Native Instruments - Traktor 3

ICN

Ooooooooooooooooooooh! The DJ debate will live on forever!!


I've just ordered this today from NI - Box / CD / Manual & all - Fcuk the environment!

They're doing a deal - €99 for a limited time only. Great VFM given the price of a barrel of oil! :pac:


I played my Mates Traktor LE there a few weeks ago at a party & thought it was excellent - very easy to use & decent results.

Since getting rid of Ableton, I've had nothing to play.. So was on the look out for something else - definitely something else other than Ableton.. and Traktor for €99 - How bad!!?

I've had the demo all week - and its really cool. Will need to obviously get practicing with it a lot more to master it - but I've found it excellent so far.


So the question is - have any of you Guys got it - been using it - have any opinions on it?

Paul B & Studiorat - I'm sure you guys use it all the time.. (only playing..:) )


JT & Sean - I'm sure you Guys know a bit about it..

But to anyone who has anything to add - Please let me know.


Let the slagging commence!! :pac::pac::pac:

jtsuited

oddly enough i've been using traktor recently for my own amusement. I figure if you're gonna go for a traditional style environment like Traktor, it's worth using timecoded vinyl or cd's or whatever.

the eq's are good enough on it (copies of A&H and Pioneer ones) and the effects are a lot better than ableton's.

one thing i don't like is looking at a computer while mixing manually (not in sync mode). Because even though you're doing essentially the same thing you would be doing on cdj's or 1210's, it still looks like you're checkin your email.

I've been considering using Traktor as opposed to Ableton for djing recently, but I think I'd have to get the torq xponent or something (or even timecoded cd/vinyl).

Anywho, congratulations on your purchase and I'm sure you'll have loads of fun.

ICN

Nice one JT,

My 1210's are off.. I've decided to sell them.. Goodbye.

They only get used for a memory lane session nowadays.

And realistically - The whole timecoded thing is just one gadget too much for me.



BUT - 110% - The EQ's in Traktor are proper. Just like Real mixer EQ's. NI really did their homework. I wonder will they stop working over time like real EQ's? LOL

Seriously though - Aren't the Traktor EQ's amazing? I have to say, they were one of the clinchers for me. Ableton's EQ's never sounded that authentic.


Ableton is too mad.. too full of options.

It can be really both brilliant & mindblowing, yet awkward & limiting at the same time.. I hate it, that's why I sold my original Full copy.

I just use the Ableton 6 Lite that I got free with my Focusrite as a fancy loop player.

3 Decks Max - straightforward deck emulations - thats all I need.

Happy days!

seannash

i went through the whole playing out with ableton thing and found it pretty boring.traktor is definitely a great option.way more fun than ableton imo.
but heres what i kinda dont get.
if it doesnt allow you to do anything that cdjs will let you do why make the switch.its not that convenient to drag a laptop and soundcard to a gig and set it up.
ableton was different because it did allow you to do stuff you cant do on cdjs(although very few users do this live)so all the equipment that came with it was necessary i guess but if this is just an emanulation of a setup that is in most clubs id rather just take my cds along with me.
the method you use(with no cdjs or turntables timecode)i can see how it would be a great option for someone who has a lappie already and doesnt want to buy cdjs.
if i was to use traktor id definitely use the timecoded cds but then it just begs the question why would i switch if it meant i had to lug around my lappie.
still better than ableton though

ICN

I dunno.. I've got a Mate that uses Ableton & has a trigger finger with things all set up. I never went that far with it.

Its random to a point.. and very interesting, but It just destroys the music IMO.

I've seen him "Kill" a party , and not in a good way!! LOL


People just want to hear music - a bit of craziness here & there - but not to the point where they're scratching their heads going - "WTF is this?"


I saw a guy on You Tube with CDJ's hooked up to Traktor. They just seemed to be glorified midi triggers. All I think I you need is the pots / the faders / crossfader & a couple of buttons.. oh, and some tunes.

I would LOVE to know what Richie Hawtin does with Final scratch / Ableton / 909 / 1210's and god knows what else in his shows.

I'd hate to be the Guy that sets up his stuff.. He'd be seething, going "That Hawtin cnut - what a show off.. brings all this Sh!te with him - says he needs it & uses none of it.. "

Theres a bit of that to it as well - just enjoy it I say. Too many Nazi Snobs & Nazi purists around.

I'd like to think that I'm somewhere in the middle :pac:

jtsuited

ICN wrote: »

I would LOVE to know what Richie Hawtin does with Final scratch / Ableton / 909 / 1210's and god knows what else in his shows.

from what i've seen of him lately (and i'm open to correction here), he's perfectly content to stare at the screen for the night.

he also has been going on about the pacemaker too. If you don't know what that is google 'pacemaker dj'. Now there's a bloody great gadget.

ICN

jtsuited wrote: »

from what i've seen of him lately (and i'm open to correction here), he's perfectly content to stare at the screen for the night.

he also has been going on about the pacemaker too. If you don't know what that is google 'pacemaker dj'. Now there's a bloody great gadget.

Has he been taking lessons from Peter Hook?

Hawtin is a wnaker. He's so regarded - but for playing other peoples tunes. He hasn't had a decent tune in years & no one has noticed.


Pacemaker looks cool - but I'm still trying to justify the mini disk recorder that I bought.. There's actually a pacemaker shaped space right next to it in my rubbish cupboard..

seannash

as far as i know hes on fully serato now.
someone said he was on traktor.
i dont think hes using ableton as much these days.
but yeah people actualy like to hear songs in there entirety.a bit of messing it good too but a bunch of loops doesnt interest me.
its quite tricky to use ableton to its full capabilities and still keep things flowing and not sounding like a bunch of loops.
i could be wrong here but isnt traktors timecode the same as serato(the way it operates) so the cdjs wouldnt really be glorified triggers theyd act just like a cdj,similar to the way you would set up serato with some turntables,not using sync mode obviously

ICN

Yeah.. I "think" its all the same essentially..

One mans CDJ is another mans timecoded lump of plastic or whatever they are made of.

I dunno.. From what you & JT have said in pieces - Its like the "real" DJ's need it to be a visual thing to prove that they are actually doing some work by using the TC's or CDJ's.. but if anyone feels like showing what they got - why not incorperate the actual technique of the set into the visuals or something.

Yeah - this is all coming from where it started - 12"'s of course.. but its the 21st century.. 4 more century's and its Buck Rogers & no Vinyl :rolleyes:

If its all about being transparent because of the paranoia of technology & cheating, then why not be open, rather than having a million & one crutches to fall back on.

Its like those fools who have those MASSIVE pens that you get in gift shops.. I'm writing!! I'm WRITING - LOOK - I'm writing A LOT!!

Get back to basics - no one in their league wants to admit that its a great laugh. Maybe its ceased being a laugh to them. Its too fkn serious.

seannash

definitely agree with it has to be fun aspect and this is why i went back to cdjs
it was modern enough to make use of technology but was fun also.
i embraced ableton(ive got a ecler nuo 4 and uc 33 to prove it) but after a few gigs with ableton i found that i wasnt having fun so i went back to what was fun for me and because i was having fun i played better and the crowd responded better.
but horses for courses.

ICN

seannash wrote: »

...and because i was having fun i played better and the crowd responded better..

Seconded!

jtsuited

ICN wrote: »

Its like those fools who have those MASSIVE pens that you get in gift shops.. I'm writing!! I'm WRITING - LOOK - I'm writing A LOT!!
.

lol, that's actually exactly the way it is!!!

best analogy ever!!

If I was a billionaire, I'd go pure vinyl. But I'm not so I can't.:mad:

It is really horses for courses, it's whatever you find fun and keeps you in the vibe.

And Richie Hawtin is the most over-rated producer of all time. Although as far as Djing goes, the guy is absolutely flawless.