Anyone using cdj 900/2000 nexus for MOBILE DJing?

DJ Gear & Hardware CDJ & Vinyl DJing
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Anyone using cdj 900/2000 nexus for MOBILE DJing?

most of my gigs are mobile (corporate/weddings). i’d like to leave the computer at home and just use my CDJ’s with RekordFriend. i am yet to drop coin on the 900nxs because i’m curious if any other mobile guys have used these. and their thoughts for workflow going through playlists, taking requests, finding those songs, etc.

strictly from a mobile stand point:sunglasses:

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I have two friends that have a mobile disco. They use two 2000s and a DJM 800

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Searching for tracks is slow on the 2000/2000 Nexus with the touchstrip.

With the rotary control on the 900 Nexus it is a rather tedious process altogether.

If searching your library to find requested tracks is a big part of your gigs, then I’d suggest hooking up a laptop with Rekordbox to the system and searching with that… Which begs the question, why bother switching to that platform at all?

Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE my 2000s setup for my club and bar gigs, but, ‘horses for courses’ and all that.

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Thanks for the input. That is the big factor for me. Workflow is everything in a mobile setting when I don’t really have too much of a game plan of genres until I see what the crowd is into. Thanks very much

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I love my CDJ 900 NXS, but if you have a large library, I think Traktor or Serato is the way to go.

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Ya, that’s what I was wondering. I don’t like using timecode cdj’s. I find it’s not quite accurate. I’m too cheap to drop 4-5000$ on 2000nexus for the hid. I wish the 900nxs would have hid for traktor. The struggle

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Maybe Denon SC2900s linked up to an iPad to browse your tracks? I think Engine has that capability. I am not sure.

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They can’t be mapped like regular midi controllers?

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They have midi capability, but you still need a timecode cd to play the song. But like I said, I’m using timecode CDs with the 800mk2’s and the cueing is shite and the pitch control never seems quite right. Basically I want to use cdj’s but the accessibility of my playlists. (Got the so g exactly when I need it, big library). A lot of good suggestions and such here and avenues to take.

Anyone heard any news if pioneer is coming out with any new cdj’s to bring down the price of the 2000nxs? Hehe

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It does indeed. :thumbsup:

You still have the usb drive in the player (only need the one as the players are linkable) but then use the iPad as a big browsing screen to manage those tracks (similar in function to the XDJ-R1 etc).

If not using Engine however I do quite often use my 2900s with Traktor via usb midi (not timecode). They actually integrate rather well- very good platter response, almost all deck controls mapped (looping / hot-cues / slip/flux mode etc).

I find this setup works rather well as a mobile setup as you also have several backup options should any one part fail- for instance I will actually have Engine running on the laptop at the same time as Traktor so if Traktor were to crash I could simply load a track via Engine. If the laptop crashes I have a usb stick already loaded and ready to go, likewise a backup of CDs- with a couple already sat in the drives.

Obviously CDJs via HID would be even better, but then you are increasing the cost 3 or 4 fold for slightly tighter integration. But either way, I wouldn’t want to be playing mobile gigs using only a CDJ screen for browsing- even the Nexus screens. It is doable, but would take painstaking levels of folder organisation and there is still no substitute for a keyboard when it comes to searching for specific tracks in a library of a few thousand.

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If you are referring to the 900nexus you would not require a time code CD surely? You would simply connect it to the laptop via usb and use it as a direct midi controller. Yes it doesn’t yet support HID so would be standard midi, but this is still leagues ahead of time code CDs in terms of integration.

See my post above regarding using the sc2900s in this manner- all of the deck controls can be mapped to Traktor so it is just like using the CDJs as intended, but with the benefits of the software for library browsing etc. And no time code CD in sight. :slight_smile:

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Cool man thanks! That’s just it, haven’t even seen the screens/played with them to test them out, thus relying on other peoples input that have used them. Yes, the backup thing is my main reason for using cdj’s for mobile, can’t beat options! “You owe me $1300 even though my controller died on me” doesn’t fly! Thanks again for the input!

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Well, I rented a pair of 2000nxs for the day to answer my own questions. Here’s what I found

  1. Didn’t get a chance to rest the HID with traktor because the firmware wasn’t updated, and I didn’t feel like waiting and doing it
  2. The timecode works really well with staying on “beat”. My 800’s constantly lose their position and I’m constantly playing with the phase. I thought it was all cdj’s, maybe it’s because mine are old, but these ones were perfect
  3. Reckordbox with just USB is quite nice and easy to browse. My playlists are very detailed and specific, but everything worked. Easy to find songs. Also, I played with the settings in reckordbox so I see what I want as far as for searching for songs. Makes a difference
  4. Reckordbox when plugged directly into my computer is also for nice for searching for tracks. Still have the ability to scan through playlists and type in the search field for speed
  5. Maybe it’s because I was using reckordbox at the same time to play songs, as well as upload onto a USB, I found there was a bit of a lag in the software. Again, maybe it’s because I was overtaxing it. MacBook Pro, 2013, 8gbs ram, etc
  6. I actually kind of like using the reckordbox with the computer more so than traktor. I rarely used it, only when typing in a song. The rest if the time, didn’t even look t the computer.

So that’s my take. If you guys got questions, let me know. I tried to get as much out of these, and test for every situation I could think of

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side note, i also discovered that you can “type” in a song to search for it. it’s kind of like the old school playstation2 style where you scroll the alphabet, hit “enter” on the letter, and then go to the next. it actually works quite well and quick. i’m actually kind of sold on leaving the computer at home, where it’s safe :slight_smile:

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The new XDJ 1000s could be the answer for mobile DJs in this situation. Rekordbox friendly with qwerty keyboard on the touch screen for searching, so the laptop could be ditched if you wanted to just work off sticks/external drive.

Also no optical drive so should be a little bit lighter too.

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Ya, just saw those suckers. Talk about timing?! The no optical makes me a little nervous, cuz it’s one less backup. I’ll have to wait and see what folks say

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I guess you could use the money you save on the XDJ-1000s to pick-up a cheap rackmount CD player? That would in theory give you an even safer backup as the CD facility would be independent of your usb/media decks should either of those decks themselves have issues.

It’s arguably overkill though and would be another thing to transport & get power to etc, but I’ve seen some pretty ingenious solutions for discretely mounting rackmount cd players and in my opinion you can never have too many independent backups! Not to mention you would in theory also be laptop-less (the point of your setup) which is in itself another backup music source…

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Ya man good call! I know I’m overkill with my theories, but it’s the professional in me. I guess if my setup does die, my “press play” iTunes setup works well. It’s my super thought out playlist to get me through more or less any wedding or corporate event. I also got some pretecorded club/lounge mixes too just incase. I am overkill!