DJPro for Windows just announced!

[steve149]

Funny, I feel exactly the same way about over-priced fruity products but to each their own. Does this so-called new entry into the Windows world of DJ-ing do Music Videos well? If not, next (call me in a decade when and if they ever catch up to what is more relevant today)....

PS: Not my intent to start another OS flame war as that ship has sailed too many times so don't worry, be happy....

It does video on the Mac .. I can only assume the same feature set on Windows.

 

[Dan The Man]

I'm not a huge Windows fan but a Windows machine should do just for DJing if the hardware people put out stable drivers and it's kept offline. A majority of the stability problems with Windows are between the keyboard and chair.

 

[DJ Bobcat]

I'm not a huge Windows fan but a Windows machine should do just for DJing if the hardware people put out stable drivers and it's kept offline. A majority of the stability problems with Windows are between the keyboard and chair.

My Windows machines work just fine for DJing (using Traktor). Never had a glitch, but I NEVER use my main DJ computer for Internet browsing, and I've refrained from upgrading from Windows 7 to Windows 10, because I've had some driver issues with some of my other home computers, and it can be a pain in the rear when it happens.


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[steve149]

BTW, the current beta version I have seems to be missing the video output. It plays the audio from a video .. just no video. Hopefully in a later beta version.

 

[Proformance]

Is reliability still a selling feature for DJ software?

Yes - most notably if you intend to run video on a Windows machine. There are numerous DJ softwares that claim video capability but use unsupported methods to render video in the Windows OS. They often fail to work reliably when the video features are activated.

 

[Jeff Romard]

Yes - most notably if you intend to run video on a Windows machine. There are numerous DJ softwares that claim video capability but use unsupported methods to render video in the Windows OS. They often fail to work reliably when the video features are activated.

I wouldn't have thought...I would have thought that the machine it's on would be the difference rather than the software as they pretty much all do the same thing with a few different features.

 

[steve149]

I think one of the issues on Windows machines is the reliance on Codec "packs" to play different media file types .. and, unfortunately, the lack of some standards around them.

 

[Proformance]

I wouldn't have thought...I would have thought that the machine it's on would be the difference rather than the software as they pretty much all do the same thing with a few different features.

It's very common to string customers along and make them think they have "compatibility, hardware, and codec issues, etc." while continuing to let the cash register ring. The most egregious offenders will even sell you premium customer support for an issue they know resides with their product.

Some products are built on a my way or the highway platform and ultimately don't work and play well with others because the real world parameters of the most prolific hardware, drivers, and codecs were ignored.

CUSTOMER SUPPORT:
"Yes, our tires are square; but the issues you are having originate with the auto makers who prefer a new tire design that we don't support."

 

[ittigger]

Some of it is 'user error' too because while the user did not know, 'they should have' - according to the developers. The developers would also like a 'clean' machine - as their 'test' machines most likely are, which is why they have minimal problems.

 

[DJ Ricky B]

I have this on my Kindle, and my phone. The app works great on both of those platforms.

I love this beta app, but it's not stable. The program shuts down out of nowhere after about playing for 5 to 10 minutes. I LOVE the Spotify integration. When they come out with a stable version I will likely use it!

 

[SEDJ]

Looking at the info, it says that the MC6000 supported, but for Mac, so is that only for Mac or will the Windows version support it?

 

[djmagicmoments]

They will have support for many controllers but as they go through the BETA process, they add features. Again, it is a BETA so there is very little dialed in.

Been using the Mac version for years. VERY stable and very well designed.

 

[MIXMASTERMACHOM]

Usually when something like this comes out it's best to wait before jumping the gun. Most will have bugs that need to be worked out before it will work as intended.

 

[DJ Bobcat]

There's probably not a lot of difference in the source code between the Windows and Mac versions. The stability issues are more likely in conflicts between the application and third party drivers. This has always been the challenge in developing commercial software for Windows. Apple controls everything on the Mac, so driver issues are rare. While Windows is not an "open system" per se, it is to the extent that anyone can develop for it and install their product on Windows machines without the approval of Microsoft, which means drivers can conflict with those of other installed applications. So even taking a mature product from iOS to Windows can be difficult.


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[Jeff Romard]

It's very common to string customers along and make them think they have "compatibility, hardware, and codec issues, etc." while continuing to let the cash register ring. The most egregious offenders will even sell you premium customer support for an issue they know resides with their product.

Some products are built on a my way or the highway platform and ultimately don't work and play well with others because the real world parameters of the most prolific hardware, drivers, and codecs were ignored.

CUSTOMER SUPPORT:
"Yes, our tires are square; but the issues you are having originate with the auto makers who prefer a new tire design that we don't support."

I'm not doubting you but in the testing of software I have personally done I have never really seen a problem except for VDJ on one of my machines doesn't do video well but on the other (older) machine it's just fine as well as my other laptop and my desktops. I've even seen Serato for Mac running on a PC with an emulator and although it was using more power than normal it was useable

 

[Navydiver]

Please please please don't do what I do if you are the least bit skitterish about your computer front end and your software/hardware setup.
;-)
I typically run HD & SD music video files exclusively on a pair of redundant high powered PC laptops with twice the specs at half the cost of most equivalent Mac Products - just a reality so again not meant to be a flame (as I say, to each their own - my advice is to stick with what you know and what works until something a whole lot better comes along otherwise it ain't worth a change). I do just about everything people say not to do but am getting away with it due to the proven strategies I practice. I updated to Win 10 immediately after it came out and have never looked back as I do with each and every successive update and/or generational change of windows (and yeah, some past versions were turkeys but never ever unusable - just needed steeper learning curves for some). I also update my VDJ pro app at every update instance even if it is a day before a gig (that is how much I trust the VDJ team and they have yet to let me down). I do have the full version Serato DJ as well - not for me though, full stop. It would take a really really great music video playing product to get me to even consider jumping ship at this point I'm afraid, but I do remain open if one does ever come along. Another so-called bad thing I always do is mercilessly surf the web while I am gigging often pulling requests down from my service on the fly (both large HD videos or smaller stuff via content unlimited) or helping customers research titles they have forgotten or can't quite place. So, why do I take such risks with nary a worry or a concern it may all backfire? Simple answer is complete and total redundancy and knowing your system and OS extremely well to the point if you have so much as experience a hiccup you can shift on the fly to alternates with barely a notice! The absolute kicker is I never fly with anti-virus protection at all either since these seemingly feel-good apps are usually the root cause of most computer melt downs and/or are horrible resource hogs. I have been A/V free for well over a decade - it is very liberating and not as risky as you may think. I also do not segregate my gigging laptops from my daily users as they are one and the same with some very powerful computing apps like video editors, web publishing (I am web master for several web sites as well). A big get out of jail free strategy I employ as well is to carry a spare mirrored (with stable software suite) SSD hard drive for each of my computers on site at every gig. I can have them swapped out in no time if things get real serious and I am down to my third or fourth line sound source (tablet or media player). Never had to resort to this but I am prepared and practiced as the regular goto guy for fixing all my neighbours computers (too often) - handy for trading favours that always pays off in spades though. My first computer was a Commodore 64 before moving to PC so I have been at tinkering and gutting PCs for quite a while and while I am not immune to a bad computer day I try to keep it down to a very manageable bad computer day with these simple techniques and proven backup startegies. That is why I will always stress redundancy to the max - always have two or three or four outs when you can heh heh heh....

In very broad brush terms I never swung to Mac in the early days because they were always seemingly (to me) for the people that didn't really "know" their computers and wanted to keep it that way but wanted to be computer users - I know it is just a gross misconception on my part but then again all my kids' millennial apple using friends seem to bear witness to this fact each and every day of my existence - tragic really. I also became very familiar with the PC OS right from DOS to the Windows 3.1 jump right up until now so I kinda made my bed early on and have remained comfortable to lie in it. How does that addage go about training old dogs new tricks??? Guess this dog is tired of learning new tricks? Things would likely have been a whole lot different if my first computer had been a fruity product
;-)

One last thought - While I have my entire system twinned with the second screamer PC laptop that is just as capable as my primary, it always lags just a little behind my main one for updates and patches etc simply because who has the time to keep on top of these things up all the time? So there is an out for me on the off chance a bad update rears its ugly head - hasn't happened yet though. I also love the fact there are a million zillion codecs out there for PCs (I use the mega K-lite Codec pack as a regular baseline install) so I rarely ever get stumped on obscure HD or otherwise backfill video file that I use as an odd but cool background video where a song doesn't have a music video (many don't) so I tend to make my music videos on the fly (easy to do but perhaps a topic for another discussion). My subscribed and legal Xtendamix music vid bank is all mp4 with a stable codec but I do have neat video offering like DJI Phantom 4 drone footage and other sources I produce on my own (I worked for a TV station for a few years). I always have to have eye candy for my audience....

 

[Handinon]

In very broad brush terms I never swung to Mac in the early days because they were always seemingly (to me) for the people that didn't really "know" their computers and wanted to keep it that way but wanted to be computer users - I know it is just a gross misconception on my part but then again all my kids' millennial apple using friends seem to bear witness to this fact each and every day of my existence - tragic really.

I think you were originally 100% right on this, but today I think in both the PC and Mac world that the general population is moving away from desktops/laptops to a smart phone/tablet environment. Basically, appliances that run apps, so you actually need to know LESS to use it.

 

[Handinon]

Y over Y sales of laptops (both Mac and PC) are down. Some say the "free" launch of Windows 10 had people hanging onto their laptops longer than usual, messing up the (historic) sales cycle. Perhaps. You need to remember that the number of people running "serious" applications on a laptop, like Photoshop, DJ software, or serious gamers, is probably a minuscule percentage of overall users, many who are now happier with using smart phones/tablets to update their all important Facebook page. Laptop makers have tried removable keyboards, "touchscreens", and now "touch bar" with limited success. IMHO, the days of booming laptops sales is over, and more and more software will be written for tablets/phones. The powerful smart phone will do the exact same thing to the laptop market that it did to the camera market - eliminate low end laptops, just like it killed low end cameras. If you're an Apple user, this (ridiculous) situation has led to many DJ's having to scrounge the used market for 2012 Macbook Pro's, a FIVE year old computer!!

 

[ittigger]

If you're an Apple user, this (ridiculous) situation has led to many DJ's having to scrounge the used market for 2012 Macbook Pro's, a FIVE year old computer!!

You lost me at this part. Why would the DJ be looking at 2012 MBP's? Because of the pre-Retina, pre SSD?

 

[Handinon]

You lost me at this part. Why would the DJ be looking at 2012 MBP's? Because of the pre-Retina, pre SSD?

They 2012's have conventional USB ports, they have a DVD drive (which you can remove if you want and stick another HDD or SSD in), you can get inside them and upgrade the memory, and lastly, they do not cost $1999 (cheapest current MBP 15" screen size, only size I'd consider).