Used VDJ a good number of years ago, but now it looks a hell of a lot more professional, maybe switching back if rekordbox doesn't add this feature, or asks to pay for the upgrade
@@MrNolz33 - it now has default levels of standard skin (Essentials, Pro, and Performance) so you can have your on-screen decks look as stripped down or as involved as you like. A big improvement from version 7 (which wasn't bad in itself). I do an online 'radio show', as do a few friends, and I swear by VDJ either just for playing the tracks with minimal cross-fade or for doing full blown mixes.
I myself LOVE virtual DJ. I am an old school vinyl DJ, grew up on decks, graduated to CDJs and so on. Have embraced ALL the digital platforms, serato, tractor, as well as virtual DJ, And dabbled in Abbleton, Torq, etc And I have always loved virtual DJ the most and am loving Stems. The possibilities are endless with this program with video mixing, live broadcast, webcast and stems as well. I believe that if one has tried it they will enjoy it and not slag it. It’s got my VOTE!
@@ShawnGBR not disputing that but the laptop mentioned in the comment above mine was 64bit. The MBP for 2011 came with an i5 in the 13" came with and i7 in the 15" models. Those processors are 64 bit is all i'm saying.
I've just got VDJ last week and I'm so impressed. Never thought this process could be achieved. You're right, it won't work on all songs, but it has definitely worked on most for me.
An awesome feature for sure....I saw the Djay Pro addition for this earlier today and was hoping that VDJ would get it also and sure enough here it is...Thanks for the quick video on it.
I love this feature! As a VDJ to Rekordbox convert, I keep having Michael Corleone moments and this is a big one. Can't wait to put it through its paces with some Dancehall and Afrobeats joints...
I just love watching Cleveland Terry loving up VDJ. Atomix is ride or die. They are the true innovators. Bought my license in 2006. Haven't paid a dime since and I'm gonna go downstairs and upgrade my app and check out these new features.
Great review of a complex topic. In practice, I use stems to punch up the kick and bass more often than isolate acapella vocals, and I always audition a stemmed track before playing it live. For that reason I don't mind preprocessing stems in advance, rather than extracting them live on the fly. I have a Native Instruments F1 controller, which gives you four dedicated stem faders in Traktor, a setup I really enjoy using.
CLEVELAND TERRY I JUST WANT TO GIVE YOU YOUR FLOWERS 💐 AS A PROFESSIONAL DJ CAUSE I REALLY LOVE HOW YOU BRAKE EVERYTHING DOWN IN YOUR VIDEOS THANK YOU BRO💯💯👍👍
To cleanly separate the parts out of music in real time will always be difficult. It took this long to implement it. That is why there is the pumping effects and audio artifacts...some the frequencies will be too close to properly isolate. As it is though, it is good enough for DJing when mixing songs in most situations..it just wont be acceptable to audiophiles. VDJ just has to fine tune it.
I think it's having trouble with the hip-hop track because the vocal itself has been processed (to give it more punch, and with auto-tune which makes it sound less like a natural voice's sound wave) so the algorithm struggles. If the vocals have been compressed or saturated to high heaven to give it a certain feel for any genre, it will struggle. If the bit rate of your tracks are low (and this goes for any genre of music), there's not enough data per fraction-of-a-second of audio file and it struggles mathematically too (so that's why you try to DJ with 320kbps .mp3 files if it's for a public area as a minimum). Like you said with the TR-808 which has a similar frequency range for parts of the bass and kick sounds, it's trying to use math (it doesn't know the sound of a vocal or a high hat or the component parts of the "Amen Break", just what those things as a sound wave should be in numbers) but sometimes the music doesn't play ball with the math. There are cheat sheets for various components that could be a separate track / stem (producelikeapro.com/blog/eq-cheat-sheet/) that give attack / sustain / delay frequencies that apply across the board. I'm guessing those percussion sounds produced by well known drum machines and note progressions from sequencers can be isolated easiest and cleanest of all.
It all depends on how the song was recordered/mixed down in the studio. More advanced algorithms need to be made for better isolations. We are not there yet but, hopefully soon.
I've noticed with hip hop specifically, when isolating vocals leave the hi-hat pad on. You get fuller vocals without any actual hi-hat's (for the most part). I'm assuming it has to do with the software or frequencies? I know you didn't talk about it in the review but if you have your STEMs set to your EQ knobs instead I feel like some playing around could really make things sound better as long as you really know your music.
Great stuff as usual. Have you done a video yet with organizing crates? Remember you said you were going to do one but I know you're a busy man but looking forward to when you do drop it.
Yes, it's only going to get better and yes for now some songs may not work with the stems but the fact that a lot of others do work is a good beginning which will get better, automatic intro and outros at your fingertips.
👍👍 You're par for the course. (Under really😄). Lovin your videos. Just got a Numark Mixstream the other day. Was already mixing with Virtual DJ for years using laptop only, at home, for fun. But have been wanting to add a real controller. I'm finding that my brain wants to stick with laptop only and not branch out to a physical controller.😄 Muscle memory. But I know in the long run it'll be great.
Thanks for the video, i've been using VDJ since 7. The VDJ 2021 concept is good, but still not perfect yet. Given it is software driven & has just come out it it take them a while to get it right.
It was very different. They needed access to the studio recordings/tracks and then had a format where the tracks were included side by side So you needed to buy new versions of the tracks to have STEMS This is done using Machine learning / AI separation on regular tracks
i was in the process of converting to Serato from VDJ when 2021 was released. I've lost interest in Serato atm but when its time to get out to the clubs that will probably change. This stem control stuff is a game changer.
i guess that was present in early versions as early as virtualdj 7 pro... it had an effect called 'vocals' and it could do that... mute beats and play vocals as well as verse versa however great review
YOOOO .. I started with itch and have worked my way through Serato DJ, Traktor and now Rekordbox. I ran into a Pioneer SX3 and RB6 does NOT work with it, I was like WTF??? VDJ to the rescue. I hated the original GUI but now it looks real pro the 2021 version so I have subscribed, and it works with virtually EVERY controller/DJ system you can think off. VDJ is a no brainer🤯 and the amount of features and tweaks that are available is another no brainer🤯 It took Serato 10 years to implement DJ count🤦♂️ .. how long until they implement Stems😒 .. I will not hold my breath. I love RB6 but💔 .... long live VDJ 🏆 ps. Stems is amazing and can only get better🔥🔥🔥
It's not perfect based on final recordings and mastering of some tracks (like reverb and chorus can't be filtered out) but with a lil eq and filtering tweeks it fine tunes those tracks for the vocals. S/O to the vdj team for delivering.
Algoriddim Djay released the same feature (in a slightly different format) for their iOS and iPadOS devices today as well. This feature is really exciting
As of this point I have no issues with the stems....From what I have seen since this feature has been out for about 2 months now it comes down to the processing power of your computer and it does not matter if its PC or MAC....I am only speaking for myself not others
They still call the individual audio clips tracks, Cleveland. They just call bouncing all your vocals to one track and percussion to one track and kick to one track, etc, Stems.
Super dope update for virtual dj... and if you go into options They organized the options better they broke down the options Into categories.. i remember in your previous VDJ videos you said it was a little problem finding certain options i'm sure they seen your video and they listened dope!!!!
when VDJ works it IS awesome. it just doesn’t always work and you never know when or why. i think if it was native macOS it wouldn’t have so many issues. (like not saving preferences sometimes or the video window not behaving like a separate window or skins issues..)
My honest opinion: this is going to introduce the "audio equivalent" of a porcupine (of random resonant filter frequencies) into "a DJ mix near you." (said in my best late 90s informercial voice). To me, the "unknown" of not knowing how well it's going to work on that track your playing and want to isolate in real-time kind of reduces the feature to little more than a novelty. I get it though it's definitely convenient to have that at your immediate disposal vs having to preprocess all of your tracks with something like Phonicmind or Deezer's open source offering. The other thing I worry about is how much extra computational load that places on the machine. To me having a nice "computational headroom" is a good thing. I'd rather my machine run at only 40-60% of it's computational capacity to allow some "wiggle room" if the OS burps/interrupts with a context switch between the DJ software and something else. I know we all optimize our machines but no matter how much we do there will always be some other things running in the Background (operating systems are complex systems and gone are the "single thread of execution" DOS days lol). While I do think stem isolation will improve slightly as we allow super computing GPU clusters to run the "deep learning" AI algorithms that gather the "knowledge" to allow for what I'll call the "continuously varying psychoacoustic filtering" applied in this way of "stem isolation." However, there will be a limit (which I believe those algorithms are already approaching). For example, take a vocalist like "Stan Getz" (Girl from Ipanema, Corcovado, etc...) and then add a saxophone into that mix. Where does Stan's voice end and the Saxophone begin (and vice versa)? If you aren't familiar with that singer the frequency range and even the harmonics making of the timber of his voice is VERY similar to a saxophone (including the one in those songs). No matter how much material we feed these "deep learning" clusters there eventually comes a point where they are making an "educated guess." In playing with Phonicmind over the years to isolate stems for Mashups where no isolated vocals or stems already existed I feel like I've ran into quite a few of the limitations. "The computers" are definitely assigning "frequency ranges" to vocals vs other instrumentation as I have had pop songs where the vocalist goes "higher" than an average vocalist and their voice drifts from the vocal stem over to the "other instruments" stem (and vice versa). This is especially true with some of today's "millennial vocal sample-slice choruses" (basically every song that slices up vocal phrases and plays them back in erratic order / patterns: Think Kygo's remix of Whitney's "Higher Love" cover or any Bieber/JackU collaboration. I feel like the end of Major Lazer's "Lean On" kind of started this phenomenon. Anyway, I've gone on for way too long. Thanks for such an early demo of the new wares :-). I've been eyeing up VirtualDJ for a while now (especially it's ability to configure auto transitioning during say cocktail hour of a wedding vs using Serato and having to keep around another program because Serato wants to remain such a "purists" tool.) VirtualDJ seems to have the desire to keep innovating vs sticking with "what was." Plus like your precious video it can't hurt to have a second program (that you know) in case your primary/preferred fails you at the gig.
@@JuniorRodigan I was just about to state this. I wouldn't just blindly use it on a track while DJing live. I would hope most DJs know the majority of their tracks and have already tested STEMS out before hand.
@@ClevelandTerry Not really. Lots of regular EQ mixing is only acceptable because it only last for like 8-16 beats - you couln't stand to listen to it for a couple of minutes. And people even throw flanger or noise or filter on top of that to make it more crazy, actually lowering the audio quality, which is ok because it's effects. This can be just as good if not better
stems was an idea from Traktor who ere way ahead of the game but unfortunately they wanted record companies to make stems which djswould buy but many artists and nearly no record company was interested so the whole thing went nowhere .The idea was very ahead of its time by maybe two to three years and i guess Traktor couldnt get the software to do what it can now.Computers may also just not had the ability to make stems on the fly so they needed record companies to do it .As you might be able to hear both on Algoriddims software and Virtual dj the sound on this can get a bit whooshy like your using some filter effect but its early days.I personally tried Algoriddims version yesterday and was amazed but its on ipad and i was using a streaming service so no recording .If i had any of my own music on it then i would have been able to do a quick mash up there and then.The sync is brilliant with no drift unlike Serato but i will need access to my macs library to record.If virtual djs version is good then i will have no such problem but i wish they would make their crates nice and simple like Serato then i might use it more.
this technology is astounding and has only just been developed.Being able to stem in real time on a laptop or ipad is almost like science fiction.Personally would use this at the moment to make mash ups and record and use them later and maybe use other software to clean up and even the sound somewhat but it wont be long now that the breakthrough has been made for it to get better with each new update.This is very exciting.
Hey kinda off question but I was wondering what your thoughts on the ddj rzx were? Is it worth buying in 2020? Or go back to the ddj 1000? Both also work for virtual dj which i use both rekordbox and vdj. I like the screens on the rzx but am not sure on the crossfader compared to the ddj 1000. What are your thoughts on this. I like to scratch. Thanks !
@@ClevelandTerry pioneer said the RZX has non contact faders apparently🤔. You know I'm talking about the rekordbox video controller(pioneer flagship..freaking expensive) great soundcard.. Do you know anyone using this controller?
Cut out the vocals and leave all the instruments in and you can do a karaoke track with the original instrumentation in it! Or take the vocals from one song and the instrumental bits from another and dub them together - wonder if I can get Perry Como and Frank Sinatra to sing over a hip-hop beat!
Just plug it straight in your USB port on your computer and virtual DJ will see it and it will work . Remember Virtual DJ has support for 300+ controllers including analogue equipment such as. Vinyl/CD and Mixers 😀😀
If you bought the controller and it comes with a virtual DJ licence chances are it will be bundled with LE(unless it states otherwise) . If you purchased the controller and didn't come with a virtual DJ licence then your going to need to purchase a pro licence. Or alternatively you could purchase a licence for that controller only which will cost $99. However bear in mind if you decide to purchase another controller in the future you will need purchase another licence for the new controller 😀😀
The first iPhone was released in 2007, with the 3G out in 2008. You a time traveller or something? And what device of Apple’s slipped through the cracks that can actually get updated for 20 years. What sort of wizardry do you know? 🤔🧙♂️🧝♀️🧚🧞♀️🦄
TRAKTOR has had and invented the "STEMS" concept. Basically Native Instruments' idea was to go to the record companies and have them convert the "Multi-Tracks" from the studio sessions into STEMS. NI allowed ALL the other companies to use the concept in their software, INCLUDING Serato. This was not exclusive to Traktor! But no one bit on the idea. Now, fast forward 5 years later and everyone is goo goo over the ability to Isolate frequencies to "make STEMS." Truth is, while this and DJay's attempt at this is cute. It will never be as clean as a studio recording. Yes, I think VDJ shut down Algoriddim's claim that it is only possible on the A12 chip, but the reality is, if the other companies jumped on board with NI, then we all will have, truly clean STEMS. If you're willing to play acapellas that sound like this, then for that just play TH-cam rips in the club and call it a day!!
Wow...I thought I was alone with that perspective you just said! This new NOVELTY feature is NOT true Stems or Multi-Tracks. Just a "fancy filter" to mimic a result as if you were separating tracks of the song. Truthfully, all the audio content is STILL THERE with a disguise. That's why it still sounds like ass!
I've yet to hear this new filtering in person, and sure stems are expensive, though very clean sounding, but this should work with almost every song made. Even if this sounds naff now, it will improve over time. Plus everyone will have to do it eventually.
How many stems of well known tracks have been available ? And NI/Traktor had not(!) invented stems. They are around for decades and NI tried just a lame way of implementing them - without any known success.
@@JoRiBo13 The idea of seperate tracks has been around since the beginning of music! Multi-Tracks became big in disco and onwards. What Native Instruments DID was create a software for producers to separate the tracks in the song on the fly without having to have separate tracks. 2 legs/2arms but one body. And they put it in a DJ software! They gave that software to anyone who wanted it. So if you want the Black Eyed Peas track in STEMS format, that's on their label to take the original recording and make the STEMS version for sale as well. That said, what THIS is doing is not creating STEMS/Multi-Tracks, Algoriddim and Virtual DJ are using A.I. to Isolate FREQUENCIES to mimic the effect of having separate STEMS. The reality is, it sounds OK... But not 100% not even 65% in some cases. If you are playing in your local bar or pub, then that might fly... But when you get into a club where people are paying $20+ to get in. You are doing YOURSELF a disservice because your audio will sound bad and people will look at YOU like WTF? Is it cute? Yes! Is it worth a subscription to DJay on iOS? I say NO! But it is a Band-aid when surgery is needed. If DJs need STEMS (OUTSIDE OF THE HOUSE/TECHNO SCENE) then record companies need to step up! But if you've tried to DJ on IG or FB lately, you'll know that record companies don't care about DJs! So, I would not hold my breath STEMS would come to major labels/songs.
Thanks Terry, I’ve been waiting on your review of the STEMS isolation feature on the 2021. I’ve been DJIng for 35 years and the ability to breakout tracks individually is the holly grail. Can you also do a review of the Dee Jay Pro AI on the iPad and the standalone for MAC. I was about to purchase a new IPad Pro to support the Dee Jay AI but now that Virtual DJ has something similar I’m undecided.
Just to clarify, Traktor has had stems...but we are talking about VDJs implementation.
Cleveland Terry oh ok
Just tried it out mixing some tracks with DC Go-Go tracks... Pretty decent little upgrade!
Lol traktor doesn't.I guess it's for farming😂😂
VDJ already came out with an update to the sound the very next day. Work in progress.
@@djdashkenya looool
I wish people would just give VDJ more props I've never had a problem ever.
Man i use this program all the time..... great programs thank you for doing this video.
Used VDJ a good number of years ago, but now it looks a hell of a lot more professional, maybe switching back if rekordbox doesn't add this feature, or asks to pay for the upgrade
VDJ ITS THE BEST, i use it with 2 cdj2000nxs2 and djm2000 for AV MIX for many many years.
@@MrNolz33 - it now has default levels of standard skin (Essentials, Pro, and Performance) so you can have your on-screen decks look as stripped down or as involved as you like. A big improvement from version 7 (which wasn't bad in itself).
I do an online 'radio show', as do a few friends, and I swear by VDJ either just for playing the tracks with minimal cross-fade or for doing full blown mixes.
I myself LOVE virtual DJ. I am an old school vinyl DJ, grew up on decks, graduated to CDJs and so on. Have embraced ALL the digital platforms, serato, tractor, as well as virtual DJ, And dabbled in Abbleton, Torq, etc And I have always loved virtual DJ the most and am loving Stems. The possibilities are endless with this program with video mixing, live broadcast, webcast and stems as well. I believe that if one has tried it they will enjoy it and not slag it. It’s got my VOTE!
Please note this feature is in the *** 64 bit version *** of VDJ only.
Not true. I'm using it on a 2011 MacBook pro. It is definitely not a 64-bit version and it works just the same.
@@RandomRoger bro, macs hv been 64 bit since 2007
@@kudamah - the Mac processors have been 64-bit since Mac OS X 10.7, but Apple were still supporting 32-bit apps until Catalina came out last October.
@@ShawnGBR not disputing that but the laptop mentioned in the comment above mine was 64bit. The MBP for 2011 came with an i5 in the 13" came with and i7 in the 15" models. Those processors are 64 bit is all i'm saying.
@@ShawnGBR worst decision I did was upgrade to that dumb OS
I've just got VDJ last week and I'm so impressed. Never thought this process could be achieved. You're right, it won't work on all songs, but it has definitely worked on most for me.
I'm definitely upgrading to Platinum after this. Thanks for educating👍🏾👍🏾
An awesome feature for sure....I saw the Djay Pro addition for this earlier today and was hoping that VDJ would get it also and sure enough here it is...Thanks for the quick video on it.
Kinda crazy they were released on the same day. But yes, the feature with VDJ is amazing!
I love this feature! As a VDJ to Rekordbox convert, I keep having Michael Corleone moments and this is a big one.
Can't wait to put it through its paces with some Dancehall and Afrobeats joints...
I just love watching Cleveland Terry loving up VDJ. Atomix is ride or die. They are the true innovators. Bought my license in 2006. Haven't paid a dime since and I'm gonna go downstairs and upgrade my app and check out these new features.
Many people like the green-yellow-red meter for audio track instead of one color meter?
Just got it today and yes you can still here the frequencys when you take off a vocal
I have virtualDJ and I love the new 2021 they step up There game up good job Virtual DJ
Great review of a complex topic. In practice, I use stems to punch up the kick and bass more often than isolate acapella vocals, and I always audition a stemmed track before playing it live. For that reason I don't mind preprocessing stems in advance, rather than extracting them live on the fly. I have a Native Instruments F1 controller, which gives you four dedicated stem faders in Traktor, a setup I really enjoy using.
Dude, I am really impressed with your talents.
As usual, greatly informative video! Thank you for what you do!!
Just downloaded and it's pretty cool.. Yes.. They'll eventually make it batter.
Timing is right on point, I was just looking at this option yesterday. Your review really helps, thanks.
CLEVELAND TERRY I JUST WANT TO GIVE YOU YOUR FLOWERS 💐 AS A PROFESSIONAL DJ CAUSE I REALLY LOVE HOW YOU BRAKE EVERYTHING DOWN IN YOUR VIDEOS THANK YOU BRO💯💯👍👍
Man I aplaud you for these videos
Really cool feature! Thanks for the video.
Thanks great explanatory vid . I can’t fault my vdj . They have worked wonders with the new version. 👍the vdj team 🙏🙏🙏
To cleanly separate the parts out of music in real time will always be difficult. It took this long to implement it. That is why there is the pumping effects and audio artifacts...some the frequencies will be too close to properly isolate. As it is though, it is good enough for DJing when mixing songs in most situations..it just wont be acceptable to audiophiles. VDJ just has to fine tune it.
I think it's having trouble with the hip-hop track because the vocal itself has been processed (to give it more punch, and with auto-tune which makes it sound less like a natural voice's sound wave) so the algorithm struggles. If the vocals have been compressed or saturated to high heaven to give it a certain feel for any genre, it will struggle. If the bit rate of your tracks are low (and this goes for any genre of music), there's not enough data per fraction-of-a-second of audio file and it struggles mathematically too (so that's why you try to DJ with 320kbps .mp3 files if it's for a public area as a minimum).
Like you said with the TR-808 which has a similar frequency range for parts of the bass and kick sounds, it's trying to use math (it doesn't know the sound of a vocal or a high hat or the component parts of the "Amen Break", just what those things as a sound wave should be in numbers) but sometimes the music doesn't play ball with the math.
There are cheat sheets for various components that could be a separate track / stem (producelikeapro.com/blog/eq-cheat-sheet/) that give attack / sustain / delay frequencies that apply across the board. I'm guessing those percussion sounds produced by well known drum machines and note progressions from sequencers can be isolated easiest and cleanest of all.
Man this is dope!.. I might have to leave Serato, seriously👍🏾
Thanks Cleveland for introducing this . Would be great to use cancelling vocals for crowd singing out the chorus 😎
It depends. On a live Wu Tang track it would be a crime.
It all depends on how the song was recordered/mixed down in the studio. More advanced algorithms need to be made for better isolations. We are not there yet but, hopefully soon.
The more natural the vocals are the better the results, if reverb, autotune or effect is applied to the vocal track that's when it gets sketchy.
Right. Which the majority of music today has.
Ah! I was just gonna ask this question. You're absolutely right and completely makes sense, thanks!
I've noticed with hip hop specifically, when isolating vocals leave the hi-hat pad on. You get fuller vocals without any actual hi-hat's (for the most part). I'm assuming it has to do with the software or frequencies? I know you didn't talk about it in the review but if you have your STEMs set to your EQ knobs instead I feel like some playing around could really make things sound better as long as you really know your music.
Good Post.. If you use the "Bleed" function, it balances out the stems
a little better.. 👍🏾
Great job explaining! Right to the point and good demonstration. I hope Serato gets this feature..
Also Virtual Dj 2021 can work with DDJ 400 Rekordbox, that is a good thing
Just tried VDJ and the track separation is not perfect but it's getting better and hopefully will improve more in the future.
Great stuff as usual. Have you done a video yet with organizing crates? Remember you said you were going to do one but I know you're a busy man but looking forward to when you do drop it.
Yes, it's only going to get better and yes for now some songs may not work with the stems but the fact that a lot of others do work is a good beginning which will get better, automatic intro and outros at your fingertips.
Thanks !!!
Thats a great review Terry! Showing what works and what doesn't in an unbiased, balanced, un-diplomatic manner. Big props!
nice vid cleveland keep it comin brother.
I begin to love your channel because you stopped software bias
I haven’t had “software bias” for a long time.
@@ClevelandTerry commendable job👍👍
Next level! I've been waiting for this for some time. Thanks for the review.
So when are Serato dj pro going to get on point with this, considering it's meant to be the professional application ?
👍👍
You're par for the course. (Under really😄). Lovin your videos.
Just got a Numark Mixstream the other day. Was already mixing with Virtual DJ for years using laptop only, at home, for fun. But have been wanting to add a real controller. I'm finding that my brain wants to stick with laptop only and not branch out to a physical controller.😄 Muscle memory.
But I know in the long run it'll be great.
Kudos to vdj👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 good stuff🔥
Thanks for the video, i've been using VDJ since 7. The VDJ 2021 concept is good, but still not perfect yet. Given it is software driven & has just come out it it take them a while to get it right.
I tried this last night and when you remove the any part of the track, the remainder of the track distorts and sounds like the gain has been redlined.
Do you think denon dj / engine os can do the same thing for the future updates?
I don't know if I would use it in the club but I would plan with it at the yard parties
Interested to hear how it works on old classics like Chic Change Brothers Johnson Raydio etc ...
Can you have Virtual DJ 2021 in Traktor S8
Is this software compatible with the Denon Prime 4 , because I'm ready to make the switch
Traktor had stems and the Traktor kontrol s8 with Traktor pro 3
In all honesty, I’ve never used Traktor.
I have it’s not bad at all
There’s a video on you tube about Traktor and stems
It was very different. They needed access to the studio recordings/tracks and then had a format where the tracks were included side by side
So you needed to buy new versions of the tracks to have STEMS
This is done using Machine learning / AI separation on regular tracks
@@ClevelandTerry Cleveland you should try it. It's a beast in the right hands...
Cleveland.... have you heard anything about Spotify changing it's position with Algoriddim and DJ pro?
I heard it’s still going away.
@@ClevelandTerry what do you recommend for a DJ getting started? I was looking at both Pioneer DDj sb3 as well as the DDj 400
@@ClevelandTerry I have the pioneer 200 using DJ pro. With my Spotify playlist.
i was in the process of converting to Serato from VDJ when 2021 was released. I've lost interest in Serato atm but when its time to get out to the clubs that will probably change. This stem control stuff is a game changer.
i guess that was present in early versions as early as virtualdj 7 pro... it had an effect called 'vocals' and it could do that... mute beats and play vocals as well as verse versa
however great review
But it wasn't as professional as 2021
I thought it had it even earlier than 7 if I remember correctly it was in 4... I could be wrong.
YOOOO .. I started with itch and have worked my way through Serato DJ, Traktor and now Rekordbox. I ran into a Pioneer SX3 and RB6 does NOT work with it, I was like WTF??? VDJ to the rescue. I hated the original GUI but now it looks real pro the 2021 version so I have subscribed, and it works with virtually EVERY controller/DJ system you can think off. VDJ is a no brainer🤯 and the amount of features and tweaks that are available is another no brainer🤯 It took Serato 10 years to implement DJ count🤦♂️ .. how long until they implement Stems😒 .. I will not hold my breath. I love RB6 but💔 .... long live VDJ 🏆 ps. Stems is amazing and can only get better🔥🔥🔥
Great video , djay for iPad just came out with a similar feature, it works pretty well.
Nice video! Is this an update for VDJ 2020 or do I have to purchase it separately?
It's not perfect based on final recordings and mastering of some tracks (like reverb and chorus can't be filtered out) but with a lil eq and filtering tweeks it fine tunes those tracks for the vocals. S/O to the vdj team for delivering.
Yeah, it's totally dependent on the music file, but it's certainly a ground breaking thing to have available to us.
It might have something to do with the key & the rap voice being a close frequency to the hikick
Helps with quicker mixes when vocals are taken out.
This will show how good the mastering of a track is and how bad was the mastering
yeah but now wheres my autoloop? I have to use the software and i shouldn't have to do that ?
Anything for the numark ns7 iii? Thanks
Algoriddim Djay released the same feature (in a slightly different format) for their iOS and iPadOS devices today as well. This feature is really exciting
As of this point I have no issues with the stems....From what I have seen since this feature has been out for about 2 months now it comes down to the processing power of your computer and it does not matter if its PC or MAC....I am only speaking for myself not others
Really Great Review! I've been using Virtual Dj when it was not Virtual Dj lol long story but I enjoyed your review. Keep Up The Great Job Terry
They still call the individual audio clips tracks, Cleveland. They just call bouncing all your vocals to one track and percussion to one track and kick to one track, etc, Stems.
Super dope update for virtual dj... and if you go into options They organized the options better they broke down the options Into categories.. i remember in your previous VDJ videos you said it was a little problem finding certain options i'm sure they seen your video and they listened dope!!!!
Yeah I’ll do a full review in a few days.
My Denon DN-2500F dual CD player from 1996 has a Voice Reducer that reduces the sound of the vocals.
is not the same, in 2500F is just like classic Karaoke EQ, vs this one new which is like done by AI.
My Lord, Stems. Virtual DJ Is Light years ahead
when VDJ works it IS awesome.
it just doesn’t always work and you never know when or why.
i think if it was native macOS it wouldn’t have so many issues.
(like not saving preferences sometimes or the video window not behaving like a separate window or skins issues..)
My honest opinion: this is going to introduce the "audio equivalent" of a porcupine (of random resonant filter frequencies) into "a DJ mix near you." (said in my best late 90s informercial voice).
To me, the "unknown" of not knowing how well it's going to work on that track your playing and want to isolate in real-time kind of reduces the feature to little more than a novelty. I get it though it's definitely convenient to have that at your immediate disposal vs having to preprocess all of your tracks with something like Phonicmind or Deezer's open source offering.
The other thing I worry about is how much extra computational load that places on the machine. To me having a nice "computational headroom" is a good thing. I'd rather my machine run at only 40-60% of it's computational capacity to allow some "wiggle room" if the OS burps/interrupts with a context switch between the DJ software and something else. I know we all optimize our machines but no matter how much we do there will always be some other things running in the Background (operating systems are complex systems and gone are the "single thread of execution" DOS days lol).
While I do think stem isolation will improve slightly as we allow super computing GPU clusters to run the "deep learning" AI algorithms that gather the "knowledge" to allow for what I'll call the "continuously varying psychoacoustic filtering" applied in this way of "stem isolation." However, there will be a limit (which I believe those algorithms are already approaching). For example, take a vocalist like "Stan Getz" (Girl from Ipanema, Corcovado, etc...) and then add a saxophone into that mix. Where does Stan's voice end and the Saxophone begin (and vice versa)? If you aren't familiar with that singer the frequency range and even the harmonics making of the timber of his voice is VERY similar to a saxophone (including the one in those songs). No matter how much material we feed these "deep learning" clusters there eventually comes a point where they are making an "educated guess." In playing with Phonicmind over the years to isolate stems for Mashups where no isolated vocals or stems already existed I feel like I've ran into quite a few of the limitations. "The computers" are definitely assigning "frequency ranges" to vocals vs other instrumentation as I have had pop songs where the vocalist goes "higher" than an average vocalist and their voice drifts from the vocal stem over to the "other instruments" stem (and vice versa). This is especially true with some of today's "millennial vocal sample-slice choruses" (basically every song that slices up vocal phrases and plays them back in erratic order / patterns: Think Kygo's remix of Whitney's "Higher Love" cover or any Bieber/JackU collaboration. I feel like the end of Major Lazer's "Lean On" kind of started this phenomenon.
Anyway, I've gone on for way too long. Thanks for such an early demo of the new wares :-). I've been eyeing up VirtualDJ for a while now (especially it's ability to configure auto transitioning during say cocktail hour of a wedding vs using Serato and having to keep around another program because Serato wants to remain such a "purists" tool.)
VirtualDJ seems to have the desire to keep innovating vs sticking with "what was." Plus like your precious video it can't hurt to have a second program (that you know) in case your primary/preferred fails you at the gig.
Get to know your tracks. Just like how you know your songs when you DJ. Simple solution . No ?
@@JuniorRodigan I was just about to state this. I wouldn't just blindly use it on a track while DJing live. I would hope most DJs know the majority of their tracks and have already tested STEMS out before hand.
Yes, but that feature is very handy when mixing in and out and to be honest 16 or 32 beats of that feature for a transition is a game changer!
It’s only handy if it sounds good.
@@ClevelandTerry Not really. Lots of regular EQ mixing is only acceptable because it only last for like 8-16 beats - you couln't stand to listen to it for a couple of minutes.
And people even throw flanger or noise or filter on top of that to make it more crazy, actually lowering the audio quality, which is ok because it's effects. This can be just as good if not better
stems was an idea from Traktor who ere way ahead of the game but unfortunately they wanted record companies to make stems which djswould buy but many artists and nearly no record company was interested so the whole thing went nowhere .The idea was very ahead of its time by maybe two to three years and i guess Traktor couldnt get the software to do what it can now.Computers may also just not had the ability to make stems on the fly so they needed record companies to do it .As you might be able to hear both on Algoriddims software and Virtual dj the sound on this can get a bit whooshy like your using some filter effect but its early days.I personally tried Algoriddims version yesterday and was amazed but its on ipad and i was using a streaming service so no recording .If i had any of my own music on it then i would have been able to do a quick mash up there and then.The sync is brilliant with no drift unlike Serato but i will need access to my macs library to record.If virtual djs version is good then i will have no such problem but i wish they would make their crates nice and simple like Serato then i might use it more.
this technology is astounding and has only just been developed.Being able to stem in real time on a laptop or ipad is almost like science fiction.Personally would use this at the moment to make mash ups and record and use them later and maybe use other software to clean up and even the sound somewhat but it wont be long now that the breakthrough has been made for it to get better with each new update.This is very exciting.
It may be worth opening up the algorithm parameters to the user so she can fine tune it. Maybe have the ability to save those tweaks per track.
The true is, for now the algorithms works better with less frequency information, busy mix will be better later on.
I never had an issue with VDJ untill now. That thing keep on crashing and recovering and i have seeing many people having the same issues
I have a question... whatever happen to the compatible songs folder they used to have for vdj 7 ? Or is it called something else in vdj 2020?
Yes there are actual a few of those now look up GeniusDJ and Live feedback in the VDJ manual
Hey kinda off question but I was wondering what your thoughts on the ddj rzx were? Is it worth buying in 2020? Or go back to the ddj 1000? Both also work for virtual dj which i use both rekordbox and vdj. I like the screens on the rzx but am not sure on the crossfader compared to the ddj 1000. What are your thoughts on this. I like to scratch. Thanks !
The crossfader on the 1000, 800 and I believe the xdj-xz all have the magvel faders which is amazing.
@@ClevelandTerry pioneer said the RZX has non contact faders apparently🤔. You know I'm talking about the rekordbox video controller(pioneer flagship..freaking expensive) great soundcard.. Do you know anyone using this controller?
Thank you for your feedback! Great videos as always sir!
Im not a traktor user but they had it for about a year or maybe more
I'll probably use it to remix songs and to sample elements from old records. Yes back to sampling! LOL
I think NI Traktor has stems in their controllers and an app to make stems? Anyway this seems more intuitive with more choice of controller brands!
Cut out the vocals and leave all the instruments in and you can do a karaoke track with the original instrumentation in it! Or take the vocals from one song and the instrumental bits from another and dub them together - wonder if I can get Perry Como and Frank Sinatra to sing over a hip-hop beat!
Is the issue related to how fast your processor is? I use a gaming computer and I have Virtual set to GPU as oppsed to CPU
There is no issue. It’s just the way it sounds on certain music.
If the Mixtrack FX and Platinum are Serato DJ Mixers, how you get them to work with VDJ?
Just plug it straight in your USB port on your computer and virtual DJ will see it and it will work . Remember Virtual DJ has support for 300+ controllers including analogue equipment such as. Vinyl/CD and Mixers 😀😀
Will it work with VDJ LE or do you need to get Pro.
If you bought the controller and it comes with a virtual DJ licence chances are it will be bundled with LE(unless it states otherwise) . If you purchased the controller and didn't come with a virtual DJ licence then your going to need to purchase a pro licence. Or alternatively you could purchase a licence for that controller only which will cost $99. However bear in mind if you decide to purchase another controller in the future you will need purchase another licence for the new controller 😀😀
Hey Cleveland, what's the name of the Numark Controller your using?
Mixtrack platinum fx
@@ClevelandTerry how do you like it? Jog wheels look nice! 💯
Yes I'm using that nice
I'd imagine you will, but please could you compare the sound quality of this versus Djay's equivalent.
Um actually Traktor was able to do this a long time ago they were the first to allow stems
Not the same.
Another great video brotha 🙌🏾! How do you save the stems to your keypads I’m trying to replace it with my Slicer button!!!
The mixtrack platinum fx ???
Yes
I think this is why you can get instrumentals all day with hip hop and acapells are harder and not as available in the DJ pools.
i admire Vdj for trying. I am sure they will improve it as time goes on . For God sake I am getting updates from Apple for iphone 20 years later!!!
The first iPhone was released in 2007, with the 3G out in 2008. You a time traveller or something? And what device of Apple’s slipped through the cracks that can actually get updated for 20 years. What sort of wizardry do you know? 🤔🧙♂️🧝♀️🧚🧞♀️🦄
Thanks Cleveland Terry so true Serato & Rekordbox step your GAME UP............
TRAKTOR has had and invented the "STEMS" concept. Basically Native Instruments' idea was to go to the record companies and have them convert the "Multi-Tracks" from the studio sessions into STEMS. NI allowed ALL the other companies to use the concept in their software, INCLUDING Serato. This was not exclusive to Traktor! But no one bit on the idea. Now, fast forward 5 years later and everyone is goo goo over the ability to Isolate frequencies to "make STEMS." Truth is, while this and DJay's attempt at this is cute. It will never be as clean as a studio recording. Yes, I think VDJ shut down Algoriddim's claim that it is only possible on the A12 chip, but the reality is, if the other companies jumped on board with NI, then we all will have, truly clean STEMS. If you're willing to play acapellas that sound like this, then for that just play TH-cam rips in the club and call it a day!!
Wow...I thought I was alone with that perspective you just said! This new NOVELTY feature is NOT true Stems or Multi-Tracks. Just a "fancy filter" to mimic a result as if you were separating tracks of the song. Truthfully, all the audio content is STILL THERE with a disguise. That's why it still sounds like ass!
Facts
I've yet to hear this new filtering in person, and sure stems are expensive, though very clean sounding, but this should work with almost every song made. Even if this sounds naff now, it will improve over time. Plus everyone will have to do it eventually.
How many stems of well known tracks have been available ? And NI/Traktor had not(!) invented stems. They are around for decades and NI tried just a lame way of implementing them - without any known success.
@@JoRiBo13 The idea of seperate tracks has been around since the beginning of music! Multi-Tracks became big in disco and onwards. What Native Instruments DID was create a software for producers to separate the tracks in the song on the fly without having to have separate tracks. 2 legs/2arms but one body. And they put it in a DJ software! They gave that software to anyone who wanted it. So if you want the Black Eyed Peas track in STEMS format, that's on their label to take the original recording and make the STEMS version for sale as well. That said, what THIS is doing is not creating STEMS/Multi-Tracks, Algoriddim and Virtual DJ are using A.I. to Isolate FREQUENCIES to mimic the effect of having separate STEMS. The reality is, it sounds OK... But not 100% not even 65% in some cases. If you are playing in your local bar or pub, then that might fly... But when you get into a club where people are paying $20+ to get in. You are doing YOURSELF a disservice because your audio will sound bad and people will look at YOU like WTF? Is it cute? Yes! Is it worth a subscription to DJay on iOS? I say NO! But it is a Band-aid when surgery is needed. If DJs need STEMS (OUTSIDE OF THE HOUSE/TECHNO SCENE) then record companies need to step up! But if you've tried to DJ on IG or FB lately, you'll know that record companies don't care about DJs! So, I would not hold my breath STEMS would come to major labels/songs.
What’s your thoughts on the numark controller I wanted to know before I got one
Check DJ Rachel's video on this upgrade she has a good honest review as well.
Been messing with it. Pretty good.
Nice man. But much better if u did play the mix. But theres always next demo. More power.
Thanks Terry, I’ve been waiting on your review of the STEMS isolation feature on the 2021. I’ve been DJIng for 35 years and the ability to breakout tracks individually is the holly grail. Can you also do a review of the Dee Jay Pro AI on the iPad and the standalone for MAC. I was about to purchase a new IPad Pro to support the Dee Jay AI but now that Virtual DJ has something similar I’m undecided.
it sounds just fine when you mix with other deck's audio.
Sometimes yes, sometimes no.