contributed by: Grant Smillie
Manufacturer: Native Instruments

With an ever growing community of software musicians, Native Instruments have upgraded their DJ software, Traktor to version 2. Long time DJ and International man of mysterious women Grant Smillie has been using Traktor for more than a year now and has taken some time to talk to us about this new Native Release.

Traktor Version 2 certainly steps up to the plate and takes the lead from version 1. I mean, with the first release, it was something that many people took notice of because there was nothing that could achieve what Traktor could but now with this upgrade version, users can really design their sets to sound as good as the best turntable DJ's in the world. For a start it can be run on both Mac and PC, whereas in the past Traktor's only platform was on PC.

I knew this was going to be an awesome program the moment I took a look at the box it comes in.. Looking at the side of the box I find that on the demonstration panels they list tracks such as Metro Area and Underground Resistance… I can‚t wait to try it out!

Ease of Use?
Getting into the nuts and bolts of the program is relatively easy once you navigate the display of the new sexy looking skin. It has a few noticeable add on features including filters and EQs that you can utilise on the fly.

Looping
Looping is still as effective and easy as ever by utilising the SET/IN button- allowing you in effect to live remix while you record. The cueing and looping features of the previous version have been considerably extended. Traktor now offers 10 saveable cue points plus 10 saveable loops which makes for handy tools.

Other Features…(taken from Native Instruments guides)

Displays
The tracks are graphically shown as waveform displaying the sound in two frequency bands for visual control of beats, breaks and instrumentation. The waveform can be stopped and accurately cued like a record.

Tempo detection
TRAKTOR DJ Studio's tempo detection uses complex algorithms for reliable beat alignment of two tracks on the fly. Tempo reading for complex beats can be improved by additional user tapping.

Precise cue-points and loops
Up to ten available cue-points and loops per track open new dimensions for live remixing. Cue points can be beat-quantized, loops can be set accurately on the bar, resized, moved, all without losing the groove.

Filters and Equalizers
High-end filters and equalizers radically transform the sound of the tracks. Just like on a club mixer, you can take out and bring in the Low, mid and high eq's as well as adjusting the gain volume to smooth out any recording volume differences.

Track database
The easy-to-use track database provides a comfortable tree navigator, powerful quick search, MP3 browser, MP3 browser, automatic playlist icons keeping track of the set and direct pre-listening of tracks.

Automation and mix export
Full automation of functions and actions, recording of all user actions, seamlessly resuming mixing sessions, editing, overdubbing and exporting the entire mix as WAV or AIFF files.

Control via external hardware
All of TRAKTOR's over 400 functions and actions can be operated by mouse, user programmed keyboard shortcuts, MIDI controllers or MIDI note events. Comprehensive learning functions provide straightforward allocation of external equipment.

Other issues…
Areas where the program has a few issues are in its handling of Accapella's. As traktor relies on beats to map out a path giving it information on track speed etc it can not beat sync accapella's as they have no beat and therefore the program does not know how to treat them.

Traktor will not operate when another music software program is running- when trying to directly dump a file from Logic, I found that I had to close it in order to load new MP3‚s and AIFF‚s in Traktor. This after thinking about it is probably safer for your computer so it does not overload while playing live.

Being able to program your keyboard to replicate the mouse functions is a handy tool to utilise on Version 2 and allows for more precise mixing than the arbitrary mouse which can slide away from you if you are not careful! The play list management is very simple you can import from a variety of formats- MP3, Wav, AIFF files and Audio CDs which makes generating a database of music quick, effective and easy to navigate. In the mix you can update your play list to include a last minute track that you had previously forgotten.

I also found that the beat matching ability of the first program was a little tighter than the second, I would have to put this down to the sheer size of the upgrade and the amount of extras that come with it. If you are looking to have a computer do all the work for you or have the ability to program your mixes in great detail, then this program is for you!

All in all the update is well worth getting; After spending an hour or two using the software you will agree that this program brings DJ‚s to the 21st century and beyond allowing you to do things that you never thought possible on normal decks and mixers.

In fact at the Respect Is Burning party in Melbourne on NYE 2003, I witnessed US House Legend and true pioneer Francois K was using Traktor for its looping facilities and ability to transport large quantities of music while on tour from his G4 Powerbook. We talked about the ability to easily interface with existing equipment- it was simply plugged into a line and away it went!

This is the future- get on the express train while you can!

Traktor is a Native Instruments product and is available through exclusive release in Australia by Major Music. If you are interested in purchasing this product or interested in finding more information on how Traktor can help you, please contact Major Music . For more products from Major Music, check out their website by clicking the image below.