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Forum: General Discussion

Topic: AlphaTheta XDJ-AZ - Page: 3
It does feel like you have to make the effort to load songs in decks 3 and 4 by using the deck selectors (unless you used the mouse). I would suppose you can do some remapping with vdjscript to prevent loads to those decks, if really required.

The MIDI explanation you gave does make sense.
 
Zitros wrote :
And then I have a slightly more difficult request.

I changed the order of pad selection.

The 'Cue's under HOT CUE remain, like 'Loop' under BEAT LOOP, under SLIP LOOP I want to use 'Stems', under BEAT JUMP the 'Samplers'

This is easy to set in VDJ.

However, the original assignment is shown in the AZ display. How can I change the display?
I didn't find anything in the mapping file to change the assignment of the stems, for example, and no content is displayed on the samplers at all.


IGNORE the XDJ-AZ display.
Unfortunately the XDJ-AZ "pads display" on XDJ-AZ jogs is fixed and we cannot control it (at least with the current firmware)
If you assign a different pad page on VirtualDJ, this page is used by XDJ-AZ and works as it should. However it's not shown on XDJ-AZ display. It should be shown on VirtualDJ GUI though
 
Zitros wrote :
I noticed the following: if I want to work with stems, I can only do this via the EQ pots by using channels 3 and 4 for the stems; according to the warning, there is no other way to do this.
But the whole thing only works if there are no songs loaded in decks 3 and 4, so the deck must be empty?


That's a limitation of the hardware as XDJ-AZ uses a HARDWARE mixer.
At this moment (unless a future firmware update allows otherwise) you can use stems only with PADS and EQ knobs on outer decks (3/4) if they are not loaded.
 
PhantomDeejay wrote :
Zitros wrote :
I noticed the following: if I want to work with stems, I can only do this via the EQ pots by using channels 3 and 4 for the stems; according to the warning, there is no other way to do this.
But the whole thing only works if there are no songs loaded in decks 3 and 4, so the deck must be empty?


That's a limitation of the hardware as XDJ-AZ uses a HARDWARE mixer.
At this moment (unless a future firmware update allows otherwise) you can use stems only with PADS and EQ knobs on outer decks (3/4) if they are not loaded.


Thaaanks for the Information :-)
 
[resolved]
 
 
I was expecting more innovation too, especially around stems and more customizable controls. The build quality is top-notch, but I would love to see more of those little details like OLED displays on the hotcue pads or additional knobs for better stem control, which seems to be a big gap right now.
 
user30500765 wrote :
I was expecting more innovation too, especially around stems and more customizable controls. The build quality is top-notch, but I would love to see more of those little details like OLED displays on the hotcue pads or additional knobs for better stem control, which seems to be a big gap right now.


That's a limitation of the hardware, not the software.

XDJ-AZ has a hardware mixer. This means that without proper support from the firmware you can't toggle EQ controls to stems mode.
You can only use decks 3 & 4 to control stems EQ as in any other mixer.
It's a strange decision on behalf of AlphaTheta on why they didn't allow the EQ knobs to be used in "hybdrid" mode as with DDJ-REV7 for instance.
But most likely it has to do that this unit was primarily designed for stand alone operation, not for PC control.

Same goes with pad info.
Hotcues info appears on screen. But it's the only info supported by the device.
For all other pad modes, the "PAD Info" screen is hardwired to the device firmware, and the unit at the moment does not offer ANY way for the host software to send any kind of information to be displayed there.
 
Hey guys, I saw some videos in YouTube using XDJ-AZ with VDJ. So far i saw, that there is no artwork in the jog wheels. The videos are old, is the problem fixed already? I'm planning to buy, but i'm still torn between XDJ-AZ and Prime 4+.
 
 
 
The Denon hardware is very old now.
 
Two years ago is old? :-/

I've still got my original Prime 4 and it's more capable now than when I bought it, and still receiving updates.

IMO though there's not much point buying a standalone player if you're only going to use it with VDJ.
 
groovindj wrote :
IMO though there's not much point buying a standalone player if you're only going to use it with VDJ.

I would love to agree with that, but I can't.
I mean, after DDJ-RZ which was my primary controller for 8 years, the FIRST controller that made me consider changing it, was Opus Quad. A unit that's advertised mostly as a stand alone device.
It had only one small draw back (for me): It didn't offer pads (only the hotcue buttons)
Then XDJ-AZ was released and now on each gig I'm torn between using Opus Quad or XDJ-AZ
And I don't use any of them as stand alone devices at all!

So.. yes, but no!

I don't want to / need to advertise Pioneer/AlphaTheta.
But there's something on the way these units operate, even as controllers, that personally appeals to me more than a unit designed to be used exclusively as a controller.
Therefore my personal advise it to try the damn thing if you can before you judge it. Sometimes it can surprise you..

PS: I was surprised so far by 3 (and a half) units in my life so far:
1) Denon MC6000: It was a surprise to me how so many functions could fit in such small footpring without feeling cramped
2) DDJ-SZ: It didn't make sense to me, especially since I already had DDJ-SX. It seemed just like a bigger version of SX with RGB pads. And to be honest that was what it was.
Until the first day I used it, and I fall in love with it. Later I switched it with DDJ-RZ that remained my personal weapon of choice for 8 years. Therefore I think I have remained in this "platform" for almost a decade!
3) Opus Quad: Before I lay my hands on it, I saw it just as an overpriced toy with a mysterious design language. However, during the short time period that I used it in order to map it, I fall in love with it.
Not only that, but I fall enough in order to actually switch from DDJ-RZ to Opus Quad as my primary controller.
3,5) XDJ-AZ: I call this "and a half" because it's essentially what Opus Quad would have been if it followed the "traditional" Pioneer design language. A controller that in papers doesn't make much sense to use as a controller, but in reallity it somehow beats almost all of them!