After Hours Entertainment
Been reading this forum for weeks now, trying to learn all of the ins and outs of VDJ... I am getting ready to lay down the green for (2) Denon DNS3700s / Pioneer DJM800 mixer this week and am going to get the VDJ v6 software... However, this is honestly a foreign world to me technically speaking! I am having the hardest time trying to select the PC of choice to make this set up really sing! All of the opinions represented here do not offer a solid path to follow... If there is help to be found, please make your voices heard! I will be playing audio in the beginning but am very interested in doing the video sooner than later. I also am attempting to run karaoke thru VDJ for a weekly bar gig as well...
Does VDJ operate better on Vista or XP? 32bit or 64 bit? I have been looking at desktop PC's lately, as laptops dont offer the same horsepower as a desktop (especially considering the video play in the future). Is VDJ going to support the new Windows 7 operating system in the future, and if so, should I opt for Vista now and have an upgrade path down the road?
I have been looking at the DELL XPS 630 and 730 desktops, and trying to determine the best configs... But I've read complaints here about the DELL with this software... Whats truth and whats heresay? Even just comparing the 2 Dell options, one can get lost in trying to match all of the opinions in this forum!
Do I need the CrossfireX / Dual ATI radeon 4850 512MB video card or will the single ATI 4850 512MB video card suffice? The VDJ recommended specs say dual output... Is that what the CrossfireX / Dual ATI is offering?
Do I need the included integrated 7.1 audio card or the XFi Sound Blaster audio card upgrade option? And how does the sound card relate to the ASIO sound card in the Denons? Do i need to spend extra for the upgraded sound card?
Does anyone know who you can ask these types of questions to? I have been all over Michigan the last few months and trying to get some professional opinion and the people that sell this equipment/software just offer half brained concepts with no content!! I need answers PLEASE!!
Thanks,
Sleepless In East Lansing
Does VDJ operate better on Vista or XP? 32bit or 64 bit? I have been looking at desktop PC's lately, as laptops dont offer the same horsepower as a desktop (especially considering the video play in the future). Is VDJ going to support the new Windows 7 operating system in the future, and if so, should I opt for Vista now and have an upgrade path down the road?
I have been looking at the DELL XPS 630 and 730 desktops, and trying to determine the best configs... But I've read complaints here about the DELL with this software... Whats truth and whats heresay? Even just comparing the 2 Dell options, one can get lost in trying to match all of the opinions in this forum!
Do I need the CrossfireX / Dual ATI radeon 4850 512MB video card or will the single ATI 4850 512MB video card suffice? The VDJ recommended specs say dual output... Is that what the CrossfireX / Dual ATI is offering?
Do I need the included integrated 7.1 audio card or the XFi Sound Blaster audio card upgrade option? And how does the sound card relate to the ASIO sound card in the Denons? Do i need to spend extra for the upgraded sound card?
Does anyone know who you can ask these types of questions to? I have been all over Michigan the last few months and trying to get some professional opinion and the people that sell this equipment/software just offer half brained concepts with no content!! I need answers PLEASE!!
Thanks,
Sleepless In East Lansing
Posted Mon 06 Jul 09 @ 10:51 pm
Tear Em 'Up
While I cannot answer all of your questions in detail please allow me to put at least one to rest. I own both XP(32 bit) and Vista (64 bit) operating systems. I have noticed no difference in performance between machines, after making adjustments.
Posted Mon 06 Jul 09 @ 11:03 pm
DJRudeDoGG
Terry's right about the OS, VDJ is unaffected but if you want less problems and better compatibility on other stuff later on, go with the 32 bit OS. I have Vista 64 and have ran into quite a few compatibility issues with different products.
If you are going with the Pioneer DJM-800 then why not go with the Pioneer CDJ-400s instead of the Denon DN-S3700s? What is your reasoning for mixing up the brands? There isn't anything wrong with either controller but I'm curious to know why you are foregoing the Pioneer controller for the Denon. I did a lot of research before buying my CDJ-400s and just love them. I'm not even sure the 3700s are native yet, are they Terry?
As far as laptops are concerned, the main issue is getting one that has at least a dual core processor, preferably 2.0 G's or faster, 2 to 4 gigs of ram. You want a strong GPU and the main concern with ALL laptops is to keep it cool!! This is the single biggest and most frequent issue with running VDJ on a laptop is overheating. KEEP IT COOL!! A laptop cooling fan is worthless buy at least a 10" oscillating fan and put it right up to the heat sinks on the computer. Buy a laptop stand too, such as the Odyssey "L" stand, this will keep it elevated. Air can circulate better around it if it's not flat on a table.
Internal hard drive space isn't an issue but if you buy a lappy following the specs I mention above it should come with at least 250 to 320 gigs of space. BUT, you should not run anything except for VDJ on that drive. Buy an external hard drive for your music, videos and karaoke. It really makes a difference and puts less stress on the computer by keeping the media separate from the program. I recommend a 1 terabyte Western Digital "My Book". I have three of them connected to my laptop, music, videos and karaoke all separate. The average user will only need one external drive, but I'm not the average user and you may want to consider whether you are or not.
There are more things to consider when buying a laptop, things like at least 3 USB ports, Firewire, HDMI for HD video out, eSata, screen size and resolution, SLI GPU's and more. It's really up to you and what your plans are for what kind of a show you want to put on. I have SLI and HDMI outs on mine for music video and karaoke to be displayed on big LCD's and an HD projector.
I wouldn't worry too much about the internal sound card on the computer, the Denon or Pioneer controllers have a great sound card built in. You can still download ASIO drivers if you want. I can use both or the Serato SL-3 drivers and either work nicely. My laptop is the Toshiba Qosmio X305 series, made for gaming so VDJ is a cinch. Like I said, no matter which laptop you buy and how powerful it is, the problem you are most likely to encounter is HEAT. Keep it COOL!! Buy a big fan and you'll be a fan, of VDJ!!
I hope I have helped answer some of your questions.
DJ RuDe.
If you are going with the Pioneer DJM-800 then why not go with the Pioneer CDJ-400s instead of the Denon DN-S3700s? What is your reasoning for mixing up the brands? There isn't anything wrong with either controller but I'm curious to know why you are foregoing the Pioneer controller for the Denon. I did a lot of research before buying my CDJ-400s and just love them. I'm not even sure the 3700s are native yet, are they Terry?
As far as laptops are concerned, the main issue is getting one that has at least a dual core processor, preferably 2.0 G's or faster, 2 to 4 gigs of ram. You want a strong GPU and the main concern with ALL laptops is to keep it cool!! This is the single biggest and most frequent issue with running VDJ on a laptop is overheating. KEEP IT COOL!! A laptop cooling fan is worthless buy at least a 10" oscillating fan and put it right up to the heat sinks on the computer. Buy a laptop stand too, such as the Odyssey "L" stand, this will keep it elevated. Air can circulate better around it if it's not flat on a table.
Internal hard drive space isn't an issue but if you buy a lappy following the specs I mention above it should come with at least 250 to 320 gigs of space. BUT, you should not run anything except for VDJ on that drive. Buy an external hard drive for your music, videos and karaoke. It really makes a difference and puts less stress on the computer by keeping the media separate from the program. I recommend a 1 terabyte Western Digital "My Book". I have three of them connected to my laptop, music, videos and karaoke all separate. The average user will only need one external drive, but I'm not the average user and you may want to consider whether you are or not.
There are more things to consider when buying a laptop, things like at least 3 USB ports, Firewire, HDMI for HD video out, eSata, screen size and resolution, SLI GPU's and more. It's really up to you and what your plans are for what kind of a show you want to put on. I have SLI and HDMI outs on mine for music video and karaoke to be displayed on big LCD's and an HD projector.
I wouldn't worry too much about the internal sound card on the computer, the Denon or Pioneer controllers have a great sound card built in. You can still download ASIO drivers if you want. I can use both or the Serato SL-3 drivers and either work nicely. My laptop is the Toshiba Qosmio X305 series, made for gaming so VDJ is a cinch. Like I said, no matter which laptop you buy and how powerful it is, the problem you are most likely to encounter is HEAT. Keep it COOL!! Buy a big fan and you'll be a fan, of VDJ!!
I hope I have helped answer some of your questions.
DJ RuDe.
Posted Tue 07 Jul 09 @ 1:27 am
djles.co.uk
Reading DJRudeDoGGs post above, different people have different opinions as to whats best, but, it is only someones opinion.
I use a Hewlett Packard G70 17" laptop with 3gb RAM and 320gb internal hard drive and 3 USB ports using Vista 32bit. I have a 500gb external Maxtor USB hard drive, a Native Instruments AK1 USB soundcard and a Vestax VCI-100 MIDI Controller. I use a powered 7 port USB hub to connect all this to the laptop including a 'live' camera feed. The laptop sits on an Akasa cooling plate, which in turn sits on a Stanton Uberstand. Never had any heat problems with this setup, even last Friday in one of my residencies where the heat in the DJ Booth was ridiculous and gigging for 6 hours straight!
All my videos are stored and played from the internal hard drive. They are AVIs and mp4s, I currently have just over 2,400 stored on the internal drive which is only about half full. I keep a backup copy of the videos on the external hard drive.
My mp3 database is stored and played from the external hard drive, currently about 17,000 mp3s.
I have 2 nightclub residencies where I normally work a total of 11 hours per week (apart from last Fridays monthly 2 extra hours). My gigs are 95% video.
Like I said at the start, different people, different opinions, no offence DJRudeDoGG. :-)
I use a Hewlett Packard G70 17" laptop with 3gb RAM and 320gb internal hard drive and 3 USB ports using Vista 32bit. I have a 500gb external Maxtor USB hard drive, a Native Instruments AK1 USB soundcard and a Vestax VCI-100 MIDI Controller. I use a powered 7 port USB hub to connect all this to the laptop including a 'live' camera feed. The laptop sits on an Akasa cooling plate, which in turn sits on a Stanton Uberstand. Never had any heat problems with this setup, even last Friday in one of my residencies where the heat in the DJ Booth was ridiculous and gigging for 6 hours straight!
All my videos are stored and played from the internal hard drive. They are AVIs and mp4s, I currently have just over 2,400 stored on the internal drive which is only about half full. I keep a backup copy of the videos on the external hard drive.
My mp3 database is stored and played from the external hard drive, currently about 17,000 mp3s.
I have 2 nightclub residencies where I normally work a total of 11 hours per week (apart from last Fridays monthly 2 extra hours). My gigs are 95% video.
Like I said at the start, different people, different opinions, no offence DJRudeDoGG. :-)
Posted Tue 07 Jul 09 @ 2:33 am
DJRudeDoGG
I run 3 Western Digital 1 terabyte "My Book" hard drives in addition to the dual internals, a USB laser mouse, both CDJ-400s, an M-Audio Uno USB to MIDI for my DJM-800, a Serato SL-3, camera and a powered 7 port USB hub. Also connected are a 1.5 terabyte Seagate FreeAgent Extreme via eSata, 50 ft HDMI cable to my 4 port HDMI amplifier/splitter for my 42" and 22" LCD monitors and HD projector. I do have the overheat problem occasionally but not an absolutely regular occurrence. I now use the fan and do not have the issue anymore, so far that is.
As you have read I run a lot of gear from my laptop like you. I never said this issue is guaranteed to occur, I merely stated that this is one of the most "common" issues plaguing laptop owners. Obviously not everyone will experience the same thing every time.
I also have a plethora of VST and DAW software as well as MS Office Suite, Peachtree Business Accounting, Adobe CS4 complete and countless other demanding software packages on my internal drives and I run the full version of Norton 360 2.0 while browsing the internet regularly with this laptop. Maybe I'm a hypocrite for having all of this on mine while telling noobs not to but I say don't do as I do...Do as I say. I am very good with electronics and computers and know what I can and cannot do, whereas the average Joe doesn't.
The reason I mention all of this is because I know it is best to run your gigging laptop bare bones with no extra software, no AV protections, preferably no internet use, etc. My point is that I do gig with this laptop and haven't followed the best guidelines and still have relatively few issues, in 8 months it has only crashed twice during a gig and that has only been on VDJ 6.0.1 with no fans to keep cool.
My point to all of this is... keep it cool!!! I have very little else to worry about beyond that with my set up.
DJ RuDe
BTW: No offense taken ;)
As you have read I run a lot of gear from my laptop like you. I never said this issue is guaranteed to occur, I merely stated that this is one of the most "common" issues plaguing laptop owners. Obviously not everyone will experience the same thing every time.
I also have a plethora of VST and DAW software as well as MS Office Suite, Peachtree Business Accounting, Adobe CS4 complete and countless other demanding software packages on my internal drives and I run the full version of Norton 360 2.0 while browsing the internet regularly with this laptop. Maybe I'm a hypocrite for having all of this on mine while telling noobs not to but I say don't do as I do...Do as I say. I am very good with electronics and computers and know what I can and cannot do, whereas the average Joe doesn't.
The reason I mention all of this is because I know it is best to run your gigging laptop bare bones with no extra software, no AV protections, preferably no internet use, etc. My point is that I do gig with this laptop and haven't followed the best guidelines and still have relatively few issues, in 8 months it has only crashed twice during a gig and that has only been on VDJ 6.0.1 with no fans to keep cool.
My point to all of this is... keep it cool!!! I have very little else to worry about beyond that with my set up.
DJ RuDe
BTW: No offense taken ;)
Posted Tue 07 Jul 09 @ 3:19 am
djles.co.uk
DJRudeDoGG wrote :
BTW: No offense taken ;)
BTW: No offense taken ;)
:-)
You're right about the importance of keeping laptops cool, since using cooling plates for the last couple of years I've not had any overheating issues.
When I first started doing video I did have a different type of heat issue. I had too many items drawing power from the laptops USB ports and suspected it was overheating the internal chips. Thats when I switched to using a powered USB port so they can draw power from that instead of the laptop, particularly the cooling plate and my PC to TV convertor.
My VCI-100 and NI AK1 Soundcard are still powered from the laptop, but, don't cause a problem.
Posted Tue 07 Jul 09 @ 4:05 am
acw_dj
Well For VirtualDJ FAST IS BETTER. I like more to use N-Vidia video cards (in desktop or laptops) and even Intel onboard video card X4500 before I go for an ATI low performance cards. Sure ATI have high performance video cards, but this ones are not usually in a laptop.
If you can afford, Toshiba Qusomio X305 (With Q9000, processor) wild run very well with VirtualDJ, and cooling is the only factor to be aware of it.
By the way I use a desktop witn Intel E6600 Core 2 Duo, 4GB DDr2 800MHz, and 3TB in harddisk using N-Vidia 9600GT. No problems, mixing video, using timecodes. Same with my HP Compaq 6710b laptop, Intel T7100, 4GB DDR2 667MHz, 500GB in local disk, 3TB in external disks, Video X3100... I have to take care of some config and running processes but also could mix video with this laptop. I have to said because of this, that at least T7200 or better run better, P8600 or Q9000 are very good ones (but I also have read some T5300 users are ok too).
Denon 3700s is fully supported and run like a charm (as I have read). IT's about taste, needs and budget...
Good Luck!,
Posted Tue 07 Jul 09 @ 4:31 pm
After Hours Entertainment
Thanks for your feedback guys... I picked up my equipment yesterday and am just trying to figure out the laptop now!! I cant wait to see how the installation of VDJ goes now... So much new info to figure out!
Anyways... I've been looking at the AlienWare M17x laptops from the Dell site. Still trying to determine the actual configs. Anyone here running that specifically or have suggestions on the actual processors, video cards, etc.?
Looked at the Toshiba laptop as well. Thanks again for everyones input! It is appreciated!
AJ After Hours
Anyways... I've been looking at the AlienWare M17x laptops from the Dell site. Still trying to determine the actual configs. Anyone here running that specifically or have suggestions on the actual processors, video cards, etc.?
Looked at the Toshiba laptop as well. Thanks again for everyones input! It is appreciated!
AJ After Hours
Posted Wed 08 Jul 09 @ 1:20 pm
Dazmax
Ok I know I have said this before but what the hell.
Why, why why, use a laptop. The most basic of PC's will blow a lappy away when it comes to performance and the upgrade path is easy. I have yet to hear a compelling argument.
Rude mate I know you have a serious laptop doing your thing but imagine the performance you could get from a custom built pro rack mount for the same money.
I remain, as always, to be convinced.
Daz
Why, why why, use a laptop. The most basic of PC's will blow a lappy away when it comes to performance and the upgrade path is easy. I have yet to hear a compelling argument.
Rude mate I know you have a serious laptop doing your thing but imagine the performance you could get from a custom built pro rack mount for the same money.
I remain, as always, to be convinced.
Daz
Posted Wed 08 Jul 09 @ 5:12 pm
bryantpb
DJSoulman wrote :
!
All my videos are stored and played from the internal hard drive. They are AVIs and mp4s, I currently have just over 2,400 stored on the internal drive which is only about half full. I keep a backup copy of the videos on the external hard drive.
My mp3 database is stored and played from the external hard drive, currently about 17,000 mp3s.
Like I said at the start, different people, different opinions, no offence DJRudeDoGG. :-)
All my videos are stored and played from the internal hard drive. They are AVIs and mp4s, I currently have just over 2,400 stored on the internal drive which is only about half full. I keep a backup copy of the videos on the external hard drive.
My mp3 database is stored and played from the external hard drive, currently about 17,000 mp3s.
Like I said at the start, different people, different opinions, no offence DJRudeDoGG. :-)
Soulman,
Please explain your theory of why you keep your videos on the internal HD.
I think we all would be interested in what you have to say?
Thank you.
Posted Thu 09 Jul 09 @ 11:12 am
Blulite
i agree with daz whole heartedly on this subject, PC's are superb compared to laptops.
there are so many reports and posts on this site from people having problems with laptops... actually how many is there about peoples PC overheating or crashing??? not many... i have never once had lag or freezing when using my pc.... i also for some strange reason cant fit 4 HDD's in my laptop no matter how hard i try....
cant really think of much of a rant today the medication for my back is making me a bit retarded...but yeah erm use a PC its sooooo much better....!!!!!
there are so many reports and posts on this site from people having problems with laptops... actually how many is there about peoples PC overheating or crashing??? not many... i have never once had lag or freezing when using my pc.... i also for some strange reason cant fit 4 HDD's in my laptop no matter how hard i try....
cant really think of much of a rant today the medication for my back is making me a bit retarded...but yeah erm use a PC its sooooo much better....!!!!!
Posted Thu 09 Jul 09 @ 11:42 am
nitebeatdisco
I think that the rackmount desktop takes a lot of beating.
this is the basic spec of mine,
P4 3.4Ghz Extreme Edition CPU (most prog are not yrt writen for multi processor support, VDJ???)
1 Gig DDR400 Ram (Prob 2gig dual channel be advised)
ATI Sapphire X1950 PRO AGP (PCI express be better but unsupported by system)
XP Professional
Dispite the age of this system it works perfect with VDJ v6.0.1 with flawless video & karoke.
I dont use timecodes but looking for decent PCI soundcard that supports timecodes.
this is the basic spec of mine,
P4 3.4Ghz Extreme Edition CPU (most prog are not yrt writen for multi processor support, VDJ???)
1 Gig DDR400 Ram (Prob 2gig dual channel be advised)
ATI Sapphire X1950 PRO AGP (PCI express be better but unsupported by system)
XP Professional
Dispite the age of this system it works perfect with VDJ v6.0.1 with flawless video & karoke.
I dont use timecodes but looking for decent PCI soundcard that supports timecodes.
Posted Thu 09 Jul 09 @ 8:36 pm
djramz02
I prefer a laptop over a desktop simply for convenience- I'm a mobile DJ and I need something small and light-weight. DJ booths are usually very limited in space so the smaller, the better!
Posted Sat 18 Jul 09 @ 3:00 pm