My 1st night out on Traktor Scratch Pro. Likes/Dislikes/Advice...

[JD76]

http://www.native-instruments.com/fo...d.php?t=103234

Just a lil background on myself. Im a Serato user who has been on their platform since their first release (1.2). Im also a beta tester for them. Prior to Serato I was on Final Scratch 1.1

Last night I took Traktor out and used it for a 6 hour dj set here in NYC. I imported my Serato Database into it - all my crates and cue points were in tact.

Let me start with Dislikes:

1) Searching - when I type in a song title, i find the song and load. I then hop to another crate/playlist. When I hop back to the first crate, the search query is still in the search box. I then have to X out and then proceed to find the next song. In a fast paced hip hop/mashup/house set where we flip songs and do gimmick-y things like drop a song chorus for a quick 4 bars then mix out, that extra step was cumbersome. The search query should auto-remove itself once you navigate away.

2) The magnifying glass in track collection view next to artist name. Many times I clicked on that lil magnifying glass mistakenly when I was simply trying to load the song. It then added the artist name to the search box. Does that really have to be there?

3) Load times of songs - when loading a song, it should start to play instantly. In Serato, I can load a song as the other deck is playing with both faders up and time it where the song loaded is loaded on beat and playing automatically. That lil 2 millisecond lag hampers the quickness of switching songs.

4) Theres no "load song to first cue point" like in Serato? I know you can set a load cue - but again - another extra step.

5) Preparation setup, setup screen, overall GUI - It seems its all designed by a computer geek rather than a DJ. You guys made some simple tasks way too complex. I tried to send songs to the Preperation shortcut.. I right clicked on song and sent it. I then clicked on the Preparation shortcut and VOILA, nothing happened. I know - I should read the manual - but I have never really read the Serato manual and still know the program inside and out - thats its beauty. Its workflow and layout is designed with a fast paced dj in mind. Traktor seems a lil too complex. The setup screen is a mess. You cant find what youre looking for. How about like 4 tabbed regions where in those regions things are split - sound routing, efx, midi, file management. In there put the sub-folders of the choices.

6) Can an active loop have a highlight on top of the waveform instead of just an Active button turned yellow?

7) Must the multi-core cables be so long? Im connecting the box next to the mixer, not next to the bathroom.

Now the likes:

1) Sound Quality - wow! I heard sounds in songs I have never heard in this club. I have djed there for over a year so i know how songs sound in there. The sound quality is top notch and even with Serato's SL3 box, Traktors sound cant be touched.

2) Tracking stability - This is such a big deal for me. Im a mixer. I like to mix 2 records and let them ride out together for a while. With Traktor I can put a record on beat and never have to touch the pitch fader again. It felt just like using old vinyl. With Serato, the pitch fluctuates due to wow platter flutter. You constantly have to keep your hand on the pitch. Not on Traktor.

3) Efx sound great.

4) I like how when the needle gets to the end of the vinyl, the program stays in REL mode so u can still use the pitch on the turntable. Serato will switch to INT mode and u lose pitch control until u bring the needle back to the meat of the vinyl. Will this eventually burn out the end of the Traktor vinyl since the needle will stay in one non-ending groove?

5) Im not a big scratcher but I noticed that the there was hardly any latency. I was scratching a lil ahead of the beat cuz I got used to the tiny latency in Serato. Traktor is tighter.

6) Loops on the fly always stayed on beat due to the snap markers - love that!

Traktor overall is a great program. It needs to fix some workflow issues that Serato has mastered. The saying KISS - Keep It Simple Stupid is what comes to mind. I know its just some getting used to. But in a fast paced environment, the extra steps laid out could be cumbersome. Sound quality, tracking, effects - basically all the technical stuff - you guys got right. Just tweak the gui/workflow and it will be complete.

[ponyboy]

Good post.

[empolo]

1) Searching - when I type in a song title, i find the song and load. I then hop to another crate/playlist. When I hop back to the first crate, the search query is still in the search box. I then have to X out and then proceed to find the next song. In a fast paced hip hop/mashup/house set where we flip songs and do gimmick-y things like drop a song chorus for a quick 4 bars then mix out, that extra step was cumbersome. The search query should auto-remove itself once you navigate away.

+100

Can an active loop have a highlight on top of the waveform instead of just an Active button turned yellow?

+1

I've also played around with the latest Mixxx trunk build and they too have added this. Having that visual cue really does help IMO.

Agreed - nice post. Did you happen to cross-post it over on the NI forums as well?

[rdej47]

If you think this one's workflow is cumbersome check out previous versions. I was only Traktor 3 for a short amount of time before it became Pro but I was totally lost in 3's GUI, it was like a junkyard.

[transient]

1) Searching

This is an annoyance with me too. Or anybody that hops on and wants to "play araound" with traktor. If i'm not wrong I think you can hit the ESC key and it will clear the field. Much easier than trying to click the X with your touchpad.

3) Load times of songs

This has messed up some of my mixes in the past

4) Theres no "load song to first cue point"

I wish I wish I wish

6) Can an active loop have a highlight on top

This is actually a very good suggestion. There were times that I was playing and I may have had a drink or two and it took me a bit to figure out that i had a loop on.

Next time you are DJing in NYC hit me up. I live out on Long Island.

[dodge]

If you hit escape when searching it doesn't clear the search field as though you have pushed X, it only clears what you have written in the search box, but it is still in it's search state with the cursor in the box. What I do is search for the track I want, click on it so it is highlighted then click on the X button and it takes you out of the search state with your box list in its entirety and the track you are after highlighted, you can then load that into one of the decks and carry on as normal.

Being able to load tracks and instantly have them play would be sweet. That pisses me off too. Didnt realise Serato deals with that. Before I bought Traktor I thought it would do it, kinda like a CDJ, if you set up cue points on one CD you can instantly juggle through the tracks on that one CD, was kinda annoyed when I realised Traktor didnt do it

You sound like you work like I do, quick mixing, throwing things over other tracks, mash-up style. Shame I live in England where most peeps are just playing minimal and tech house. I haven't been able to find anyone into the mash-up set business yet.

[bumtsch]

4) Theres no "load song to first cue point"

I wish I wish I wish

Not quite it, but there's always the "load" cue point type and in preferences/loading, enable "initially cue to load marker".

[Tigris]

There is a "Search Clear"-Command in the Midi-Controls, has anyone tried this? Would be nice to see if this would solve the search-issue...

[belchman]

really good post! I've just got ahole of serato to give it a go, having been a traktor user, and it's interesting to hear what you have to say.

the geekyiness does bother me a bit - it's a very crowded GUI in Traktor, and it can be a bit irritating, but i'm used to it now! However, i always loved the vertical waveforms in serato - which have been dropped for the new version (SL2)! weird shit..

I'm sure Traktor'll tighten up - i agree the most important 2 things, Sound quality and tracking - Traktor have nailed over SSL..

[charo]

a very crowded GUI in Traktor, and it can be a bit irritating, but i'm used to it now! However, i always loved the vertical waveforms in serato - which have been dropped for the new version (SL2)! weird shit..

where did you see that? i thought the NAMM vids of SSL 2.0 shows vertical waveforms.