DENON Prime Support

This was my final edit of the long comment:

You also left out the innovative Denon Prime Go, which I think is a groundbreaking product.

I've been using the superb S4Mk3 for most of my gigs but the Z1/X1 combo still gets a lot of action for certain events. This exquisite petite combo has probably seen more action over these last few years than any other system I've ever used.

But after seeing somebody show up to an event with the portable, stand alone, battery powered Prime Go, I was instantly excited because of its unrivaled convenience and abundant features. I got one on loan last weekend to test. I loved the build quality and usefulness. Full I/O: booth and main outs, SD and USB sources, aux input, 2 mics, etc. On paper, I was sold, and am seriously considering getting one for certain use case scenarios. The other thing that felt refreshing, was the streaming integration: Tidal, Beatports, Soundcloud and DropBox. They really didn't pull any punches with this small yet powerful unit.

Nevertheless, I started testing Denon's Engine Software for preparation on Mac and tried to import my huge Traktor Collection (as advertised per Engine's functionality). First roadblock, the Engine software felt quite raw and unresponsive. Exporting to USB got mixed results, lost playlist organization and ended up with just an ARTISTs folders list when opening it in the Prime Go. I am aware that this is just the translation aspect of it and that I am no expert, but I am not looking forward to starting years of organization from scratch, nor doing the work twice on both universes for that matter. I know that there are lauded Library export and conversion third party options, but I've not tried them.

Anyway, once I started playing with tracks from my USB stick, everything looked somewhat promising: track info was there, as well as comments (albeit only on single track quickview window but not in the browser), BUT my hotcues had been ditched. Furthermore, I then tried setting up hot cues directly on the Engine Software on my laptop and the interface was unresponsive/grayed out. Im pretty sure all or most of these issues are probably due to my inexperience with this unit and or Engine software, but I did spend a few hours online and reading the manual to no avail. It is either buggy or not intuitive.

Summing up, my short experience trying to integrate the Prime Go into my Traktor-heavy environment was somewhat frustrating, although I loved the hardware (9/10). After this, I ended up daydreaming about a Traktor based standalone unit by NI with both standalone and computer support, as well as streaming and pro features similar to the Denon stuff. Again, I cannot stress how groundbreaking this unit really feels.

So if the latter wish is nowhere near NI's roadmap, perhaps supporting the Prime Go could be a pretty exciting compromise. The Go already supports Virtual Dj on a hooked up laptop, with full integration including touchscreen control.

The above request seems like a massive undertaking, so I ain't getting any hopes up, but this is the wishlist/suggestions forum, isn't it? After all, the reason I became enamored with NI's stuff many years ago was their unique and fierce approach to innovation and quality, and they did transform and enhance the workflow and trade of many djs and performers along the way. So a bit of wishful thinking is definitely no so unreasonable in my opinion.

Afterthought: in the process of considering the Denon Prime Go as a guest in my Traktor family, I also checked their other Prime Units. The Prime 4 is a full featured monster that leaves nothing to be desired of it (except perhaps, Traktor integration). It works as standalone with multiple USB slots, internal 2.5 drive bay and streaming services, as well as full Serato support via PC link. Denon's aggressive foray into the music industry cannot be ignored, and even though they are not industry leaders, the definitely try harder with superb hardware at competitive prices. Their software seems to be getting regular updates and upgrades, so eventually it will be getting there. I suspect that providing Traktor integration for these units could be a "sound" investment, unless of course, NI doesn't want users to flock to other HW devices, and are considering releasing similar stuff of their own in a future that cannot come soon enough.

The LC6000 is an awesome single deck controller that’s a much cheaper alternative to using a CDJ that way. There really are not many alternatives if you want a deck controller with a jog wheel. (I like using a standalone analog mixer rather than an all in one controller.) It Is definitely usable via midi map (I don’t scratch though) but I’d really prefer a native HID integration.

Essential request. Denon build superb HW and with HID Mode of Traktor, it is a badass combo with A&H Mixers (Digital, Vinyl). Please make it happen.

any updates here? traktor is a great software and i want to use it as my main setup with xone 96 as a mixer, but will be good to have a good mapping and integration with denon.