Ableton or Traktor Pro???
For a somewhat beginner and someone who wants to use only a laptop (Mac) for djing, which is better and why? By the way my Mac is a 2005 Powerbook with Osx 10.4.11 so, I don’t think Traktor Pro will work with it. Maybe if I up grade to Leopard? If it would be worth it.
Thanks so much, Beetz
if your serious get some midi controllers then get traktor. traktors a superior software to ableton when it comes to djing, end story. trust me.
I think it totally depends what you want to accomplish with your DJ set and how much time you want to spend to get your setup just the way you like it. I use both and what I can say about the two is that I’m finding Traktor (Scratch) Pro really intuitive and you will understand the most of it without having to read/watch numerous tutorials. I also see what the potential is of Live and what you might be able to do with it (I only scratched the surface on Ableton Live but my knowlegde about it grows every day).
For a beginner to digital DJ-ing, I would start off with Traktor because Ableton might be a little bit overwhelming if you’re new to all this. Check the websites of both programs; you can download trial versions to see what fits you best.
I’m not going to say Traktor Pro is better because I’ve never used Ableton, but… as a relative n00b to this myself (first pressed ‘play’ in January this year) I would say you can’t go wrong with Traktor if you are learning to DJ. Everything just makes sense and I find the resources to help you out (e.g. right here on DJTT) are much better for Traktor than Ableton.
If you buy Traktor I can guarantee within about 30 minutes you’ll be mixing. When I started I wanted to spend my time learning to DJ, not learning to use the software, if you know what I mean. Traktor works for that.
As long as your computer has an Intel Core Duo 1.66 and at LEAST a gig of RAM it should run, I believe.
Ableton and Traktor are two totally different pieces of kit. Ableton is good for DJing, but more in a production sort of way. You have to build a VERY detailed workflow to improvise, but you have an easier time remixing and mashing live than with Traktor. You need to deal with the learning curve of Ableton, which is very different than the learning curve of Traktor. Keep in mind, however, that there are a lot of amazing resources all over the internet to make Ableton an easier, and more lush, experience. But I believe Ableton Live is more geared toward production and remixing than DJing in the classical sense.
Whereas Traktor is more of a classical DJ feel. Two (or four) decks, a crossfader, EQ, volume, right in front of you. It is just like standing in front of decks and a mixer. The learning curve is lower, and there’s a lot you can do, but much of it is limited to what classical DJing is. This is not a complaint. I love Traktor. Sometimes that restriction makes the experience that much better. Once you get the feel of it you’ll be rocking out. 
As a beginner I’d recommend Traktor to get the feel, and then, if you decide to move to the production side to implement WITH your DJing, I’d say go with Ableton.
To be totally honest they are both such really cool pieces of software in their own ways that if i had to choose between them id die lol - the solution is to use both at the same time 
Personally i think the way Ableton is headed though that it may just outlive Traktor unless NI really start to take their software to the next level. With alot of work Max for Live is going to give the ability for the users to create alot of the features that are in Traktor Pro that we all know and love - but that will come at the expense of a very steep learning curve.
God knows what Traktor has planned for the future but competing with Max For Live is going be an incredibly tough challenge.
Thanks for the 411 guys! Looks like I’m gonna go with Traktor Pro then take it from there if I feel the need to.. Thanks Again!!
what you need is rewire the audio from traktor into ableton so you get the best of both worlds…crazy effects FTW…but dont ask me how to do it cus im clueless…theres alot of write ups on it…its a setup im thinking bout for the future
take a look in bentos sig
i didn’t hear about this “max for live” until now.. wow! sounds like albeton’s answer for NI’s Reaktor… very interesting..
ya traktor has some hoops to jump through quick… between albeton’s partnership with serato and max for live, the competition is getting thick. Not to mention many traktor users are still reluctant to get on board with TraktorPro myself included.
Yeah Ive read up on Bentos sig before…but after reading do I know how to do it?..No not really…just a lot of mumbo jumbo tech talk thats too crazy for my noobness lols…
The idea is to go though it step by step 
Not just read it and expect that you can do it without the instructions.
And if you still don’t understand it after that, the’re may be some people on this forum that can help you