DVD Mixing
Pioneer showcased its flagship DVJ-X1, billed as the world's first DVD turntable bringing scratching, looping, and instant cueing into the video world. Beat-matching dvds feels just like a CD player with tempo control that can be set at +/- 6%, 10%, 16% or even 70% to 100% (a quick way to turn hip-hop into jungle) and master tempo that preserves the key of the vocal while changing the speed (no more Mickey Mouse-sounding divas.)
Looping features are incredibly strong with both a seamless realtime loop and emergency loops. The realtime loop can be set as the DVD is playing and is looped continuously until the exit button is pressed, letting the video continue in real time without a pause. The emergency loops seemed like a strong feature - able to find a downbeat of a measure and loop it seamlessly as long as necessary until the next track is cued up. The player stores up to three cue points per DVD/CD allowing instant recall by hitting one of three buttons and additional cue points can be stored on a SD Memory card. I was able to play with one and the control wheel feels like a cross between a jog wheel and a record player allowing a bit of resistance like you would expect and instantaneous response time. The DVJ-X1 is available now with an audio/video mixer coming out next year.
Also entering the world of DVD mixing, Numark showed off a system with two DVD players, an audio/video mixer and three screen video display. The DVD01 Professional DVD Video Player is a dual rack mountable DVD player with pitch control, looping and full menu control. The AVM01 Audio/Video Mixer allows crossfader control of both audio and video with extensive video mixing effects (chroma key blue screen, luma key black screen, picture-in-pictures, wipes, fades). The VM03 is a triple screen display, perfect for monitoring two channels of input along with the live signal output. All three units combine together for a complete DVD-DJ package. Using the system, it felt like I was using my good old DJ CD player but controlling video in addition to the audio.
Turntables controlling CDs
Another trend I noticed, probably as a response to Final Scratch, was CD controls that incorporated or mimicked turntables. First I saw the Tascam TT-M1, a turntable-based CD controller. The control device clips onto a turntable and is connected and powered by a Tascam DJ CDX CD player. Once connected, the DJ uses the turntable controls to control the CD audio - tempo shift, back spinning, scratching, and turning the power on/off for that speeding up/slowing down effect. The TT-M1 also works without a turntable, allowing scratching on any flat surface. I would have loved to have played with one of these but it curiously was not set up for demonstration.
Numark adds the vinyl feel to its CDX tabletop CD player by duplicating the direct drive motor of its TTX turntable to control the sound of CDs. Whatever you can do with vinyl, you can do with CD - scratching, backspinning, etc. Add to that the digital effects of slide, echo, filter, chop, and auto-pan, and the CDX translates the best of both worlds - the vinyl feel controlling cutting edge digital technology. This could be the CD player that converts the serious turntablists out there - imagine Final Scratch without the laptop. I am not that much of a vinyl guy, but the CDX felt like a turntable with sensitive control and the feel of a really sturdy deck.
