RDJ-1000 Mk1 DJ Player

[dioxide]

This is a simple CDJ style deck for DJs. Open up the Combinator and drop an audio file into the Mimic and then use the Play and pitch controls to mix. There is no SYNC button on this because PRESSING SYNC IS CHEATING (just kidding) so you'll have to sync them up old school style – which given that the average age around here is about 50, should be fine.

No fancy graphics for this, just the basics. Apologies for the included loops as I had to find something from the Reason Soundbank. You can drop entire songs onto Mimic and it will play as if you were using DJ software without fancypants stuff like looping and cue points. This is just the deck / player so you will need something to mix with – it pairs nicely with LabOne's Executioner DJ mixer (paid but cheap) or Groovy Melon's Morphin XF Crossfader (free) but failing that you could use one of Reason's mixers.

IMPORTANT: You'll need Enlightenspeed's Note Latch for this which I thought was a freebie but it turns out it isn't. There's probably a way to do this with stock devices but I'm not sure how, so suggestions are welcome.
https://www.reasonstudios.com/shop/rack ... ote-latch/

https://www.reasonstudios.com/shop/rack ... -dj-mixer/
https://www.reasonstudios.com/shop/rack ... rossfader/

Combinator file and example Reason 12 Song file:

RDJ-1000 Mk1.jpg

[dioxide]

As an add-on to this I've also created a DJ style EQ / Isolator (so +6db boost EQ with infinite cut) based on Pioneer DJ's Rekordbox EQ. This one requires third party REs also but could probably also be done with Thor and some other devices if someone wants to try. The tricky bit is setting up the EQ to have different ranges above the midpoint, and for that I needed Arcus.

https://www.reasonstudios.com/shop/rack ... ser-knobs/
https://www.reasonstudios.com/shop/rack ... -splitter/
https://www.reasonstudios.com/shop/rack ... on/filter/

Isolator.jpg

[geronimo]

Sorry, I wonder what the Arcus from Alien Seed is for? Isn't it too much ?

[dioxide]

I needed a way to make boost 6db from 64-127 but cut to silence from 0-63. You can't double map parameters in the Combinator so it had to be done with CV.

[dioxide]

I've added a few features to this. Enlightenspeed's Note Latch is no longer needed but you will need Janitor CV Shaper though, which is free.

https://www.reasonstudios.com/shop/rack ... cv-shaper/

Changes:
• More reliant on stock devices.
• Added adjustable Brake and Start times.
• Pitch/Tempo fader is reversed with plus at the bottom and minus at the top as is the case with turntables etc.
• Pitch Bend control is now also reversed to match the Tempo fader.
• You can also use C3 and D3 on your MIDI keyboard as momentary pitch bend / push-pull controls. If you want to adjust sensitivity you can adjust the trim pots in the Spider CV.
• EDIT: Removed the Tempo Reset button until I can get it to work with the braking.

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Mk2.jpg

RDJ-1000 Mk2.cmb.zip

[dioxide]

Here's an update to the Isolator channel strip featuring the following changes:

• I've used Bertom EQ Curve Analyzer VST (thanks Giles / Selig) to improve the Isolator frequency settings. It's now as accurate as I can make it.
• I've also used this tool to emulate the LP /HP filters. I'm using Rekordbox software for reference and there is a strange behaviour as the control goes above the midway point – the LPF kicks back in before switching to a HPF. I'm unsure if this is a software bug or a quirk of Pioneer's hardware filter design but I've not tried to emulate this. I'm sure it would be possible to do so, but I'm assuming this is a Rekordbox software bug for now as it's not something I think you would want.
• I've added Low / Mid / Hi kill switches and made a few cosmetic changes to the layout.

RE requirements are now Yoko Band Splitter, Arcus User Knobs (for the +6db / -inf gain control) and Selig Coloring EQ. I replaced the D-Filter with the filters from Selig Coloring EQ as the EQ needs to morph from 0db slope at the centre indent to a 6db slope. None of the other EQs or filters I have are capable of doing this, and indeed I'm not aware of any filters in the Shop that can do this. I think it might be a unique feature of this device, at least in RE format.

https://www.reasonstudios.com/shop/rack ... ser-knobs/
https://www.reasonstudios.com/shop/rack ... -splitter/
https://www.reasonstudios.com/shop/rack ... oloringeq/

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Update.jpg

[dioxide]

And in what seems to be becoming a daily update...

Here's an updated version of the Isolator+Filter and a new emulation of the EQ+Filter (from the DJM-900 NXS2). I probably won't bother with the DJM-900 NXS because Pioneer themselves thought it wasn't that good and replaced it in the NXS2.

Change log:
• More accurate filter curves. I don't think I'd done as good a job as I thought I had last time. This attempt is much closer.
• A second, new Combinator patch for the EQ Mode for DJM-900 NXS2. The EQ curve is very close but a little weaker in this Combi as the Cut only goes to -24db. Pioneer says the cut is -26db. The difference is there, but it isn't that audible. If you wanted to fix it you could do so by doubling up the Selig Coloring EQ and setting the maximum cut to -2db.

Required Rack Extensions:
Both devices require Arcus User Knobs and Selig Coloring EQ. The Isolator also requires Yoko Band Splitter.

_________

[dioxide]

Aaaand another update...

Change log:
• Removed Arcus CV control in favour of Combinator mapping.
• Re-ordered Remote mapping to match the front panel.

Required REs:
Isolator: Yoko Band Splitter and Selig Coloring EQ.
EQ: Selig Coloring EQ.

[michael.jaye]

The free Xfer Records DJM Filter might be an easy and attractive addition to this project, or are you going RE/stock only?

https://xferrecords.com/freeware

[dioxide]

Thanks I'll check it out, I'm interested to see how accurate it is. For me I prefer to avoid VSTs as much as possible so the goal was to do this with REs.

EDIT: I downloaded it and ran a few tests on it. It's not close to the filter in Rekordbox. The Rekordbox filter doesn't have drive or resonance and the curve is different. The Xfer Filter seems to just be an 12db slope filter with nothing special going on. The slope in the Rekordbox filter eases into this from 0db. The range is also wider than the Xfer filter. I'm not sure what they modelled their filter on but I modelled this one on the Rekordbox software, which I hope is accurate. The Xfer filter sound pretty much like I remember my lower range Pioneer mixer filter sounding – I'd have to compare it to a hardware DJM-900 filter to see how it compares and I don't have access to one. It's also possible Pioneer put a different filter in their software to make their hardware sound great in comparison.

All that said the Xfer filter does sound fantastic, has drive and resonance and it's free. I'll be keeping it around for messing around with.

[dioxide]

Here's the Xfer filter using two D-Filters as I couldn't do this with the Coloring EQ filters. The slope is 12db. There's no drive on this and the resonance is slightly stronger on the Xfer but the freq, slope and points at which the filter activates are the same. So it is very close.

This also retains the Coloring EQs but this is only for the EQ section so they could be removed if you just want the filter.

Xfer.jpg

[michael.jaye]

Sorry, I missed the part where you were going for the Rekordbox filter, not the Mixer one.
D-Filter would be ideal (even if it isn't true to Rekordbox) as you can set different resonance for HPF and LPF. I wish my DJM750 could do that.

[dioxide]

Yes D-Filter is perfect for this. I only needed two of them for Xfer filter because I needed to emulate the dead spot in the centre.

How does the Xfer filter compare to the DJM-750 filter?

[michael.jaye]

Xfer filter sounds dirtier, it also has a drive knob which to my ears seems to mitigate the resonance.

Also, it seems to me that the centre position is "bypass", it seems to jumo into the filter mode rather than swee up into it.

[dioxide]

One more update for the EQ / Isolator / Filter channels. I'd missed the option to increase the resonance on the Rekordbox filter and it was set to minimum. Apart from that I've run through various DJ software and had a go at replicating their EQ and filters. There's also an accurate version of the Pioneer DJM EQ that stacks a couple of Coloring EQs to get the correct settings.

Algoriddim Djay
Pioneer Rekordbox
Serato DJ
Traktor Pro
Xfer Filter (filter only)

Required REs: D-Filter, Selig Coloring EQ, Yoko Band Splitter, Arcus User Knobs, Peff Trackspacer for some notes.

I think I'm done with the EQ / Filter side of things now. I've learned a bit about this stuff in the process. Basically some of these Filters have untamed resonance that I assume is distorting into a club limiter when cranked up to full. The more sensible filters here have limited resonance bump and some also dip the volume to allow for that additional gain from the filter. Also some things are not what they claim to be, as in the Xfer claims to be a DJM filter but it's nowhere near from what I can see, although it can sound nice if you keep the resonance under control.