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MR1200 is an MP3 player designed specifically for DJing with. Rather than use a PC to replace an entire two-decks-and-a-mixer rig, it replaces only the decks, so you can continue to use your own separate mixer. This allows full use of mixer and headphones for prefading, meaning tracks can be mixed together as they always could be with decks.
With two soundcards in your PC (although it is possible with only one) and two instances of MR1200 running, or even two PCs, you can treat your MP3s just like vinyl. Supported Operating Systems: Windows 98 / ME / 2K / XP Features: - Platter behaves exactly like a real record deck - grab it and it stops, pull it backwards and it plays backwards. - Platter can also emulate the jog wheel on a CD deck. - Vinyl groove simulation for a "picture" of the track - spot those quiet bits! - Choice of +8 or +20 pitch control, with separate fine tuning. - Nudging and twisting emulation. - Real instant start. - Cue points. - Reverse play. - Pitch control inversion. - Quartz lock. - Time elapsed, remaining and total displays. - Full mouse and keyboard control. |
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However, if you want to use it as a jog wheel, there is a switch to toggle between jog and platter modes.
Also note that due to a limitation in Windows WDM drivers, the maximum playback frequency of audio may be limited to 100000 Hz, which equates to just over 100 RPM from the base rate of 45.
Platter display will attempt to simulate the grooves when an MP3 is loaded.
One thing that ISN'T simulated is the inertia of the platter. So instant start MEANS instant start.
The usual beatmatching techniques of nudging and twisting are simulated by a couple of buttons that gradually speed up and slow down the platter respectively. Together with the lack of inertia, can result in a very accurate mix indeed.
As this app is intended as a replacement for record decks rather than a complete DJing rig, it does not produce any effects such as echo or phasing. That's the job of the mixer.
Time stretching algorithms are reeeally hard to get working nicely. Even SoundForge can't do them that well, and they're a bit TOO CD-decky.
Having said that cue points are a feature of CD decks too good to leave out.
Currently MR1200 only plays MP3s, although WAV, OGG and WMA are possibilities.
USE IN A DJING ENVIRONMENT
Be it in a bedroom or a club, this is what this app was designed for, so please read this section carefully. But first, to get the most out of it, you need to know about PC sound devices.
* SOUND DEVICES
A PC can have more than one device capable of playing audio. For instance, you may have a soundcard integrated into your motherboard, and a separate soundcard. This would mean you had two sound devices.
Many audio applications allow you to select which sound device they output audio to, regardless of the default one that Windows uses. For instance, if you had a PC with two correctly installed audio devices and you fired up MR1200, there would be three entries in the Device list. One of these would be "Primary Sound Driver" which means "Use the Windows default sound device". The other two entries would be the names of your two sound devices. One of these would be the default device, so selecting that one would be the same as using the default device. Selecting the other one would cause the audio to be output through the other device's output, which would also have to be hooked up to some speakers for you to hear anything.
* HEARING ONE THING WHILST PLAYING ANOTHER
Using a PC to DJ with presents one major problem: Prefading. It's all very well having two MP3 players running at once, but there's no way to listen to one in headphones whilst the other one plays out of the speakers. To DJ properly we need to be able to hear one player in our headphones whilst having another output through the speakers.
So the only difference between a normal rig and one using MR1200 is the fact that you're using a PC to produce the sound rather than a record deck.
- Use of two PCs
The most obvious, but the biggest pain. Most people don't have more than one PC, and they would both need their own copies of any MP3s they were to play, or at least access to a shared drive.
Each PC is hooked into the mixer separately and one instance of MR1200 run on each. Each PC essentially gets treated as a separate deck.
- Use of two soundcards.
The preferable option. A basic soundcard can be picked up for £15 new, nothing fancy is required. And the chances are your PC already has an onboard soundcard on the motherboard. The only problem you might have is that soundcards have a tendency to conflict with one another, but this is solvable.
A laptop is the ideal portable solution, but normally you cannot fit a second internal soundcard. However, you can use an external USB audio interface.
Each soundcard has its output connected to a separate channel on the mixer, and two instances of MR1200 run on the single PC. The device select box is used to channel the output of the app through the different soundcards.
- Use of one soundcard.
The cheap option. Requires the use of a few more cables though.
The stereo output of the single soundcard is split so the left goes into both the left and right of one input on the mixer, and the right goes into both the left and right of another. Two instances of MR1200 are run on the single PC, one having its pan set to the left, the other to the right.
You can either make yourself a special cable to do this, or make one up using off-the-shelf leads quite easily and cheaply, for example:
- 1x 1 stereo 3.5mm jack plug to 2 phono plugs lead (very common - one probably came with the soundcard!)
- 2x phono splitter: 1 phono socket to 2 phono plugs (available as a lead or an adaptor - a lead would be better, as an adaptor might not plug into the mixer inputs)
You can get these from audio / electronics retailers, along with all sorts of other jack plug and phono leads and adaptors for alternative configurations.
Some soundcards (Creative's Audigy range for a start) can output full six- channel discrete audio. This is because they don't actually provide a 5.1 encoder or decoder on the cards. When you get a 5.1 encoded signal coming from the card when you're playing a DVD, that's being streamed straight off the DVD.
For applications that generate real-time 5.1 audio (like games) the output is provided from three separate stereo outputs. So it should be entirely possible to hijack them and use them to output two separate tracks. The problem at the moment it that there is no facility for specifically sending audio data down a particular channel.
CONTROLS
If there is a hotkey associated with the control, it is listed in brackets after the control name.
* DEVICE LIST
This allows you to select which of your installed sound devices MR1200 will play the MP3 on. Leaving it on "Primary Sound Driver" will cause it to use the default device.
(This becomes inaccessible once an MP3 is loaded - this is because of the potential danger of changing the setting whilst playing a track)
* CODEC LIST
If you have more than one MP3 ACM decoder installed on your system, you may select which one you wish MR1200 to use. "MPEG Layer-3 Codec" is the normal one provided with Windows.
(This becomes inaccessible once an MP3 is loaded - this is because of the potential danger of changing the setting whilst playing a track)
* PAN SELECT
Selects whether the MP3 will be played through the left, right, or both speakers. If both speakers are selected, the playback will be in stereo if possible.
(This becomes inaccessible once an MP3 is loaded - this is because of the potential danger of changing the setting whilst playing a track)
* PLATTER
The platter is the big round thing. To load an MP3, drag-and-drop the file onto the platter. The loading will take a few seconds, as there is some precalculation to be done. The progress bar indicates how much there is left to do.
Once an MP3 is loaded, the platter display changes to simulate a single-track 12" of the current file. Subsequent MP3s can be dragged onto this when you want to change the track. accidents.
If Jog is turned OFF, then the platter emulates a platter, as found on turntables. Left-clicking and holding will have the same effect as grabbing a record on a turntable, even down to the record playing backwards when you rotate it anticlockwise. While the left mouse button is held down the pointer can leave the platter - there is no need to stay within the confines of the vinyl.
If Jog is turned ON, then the platter emulates a jog wheel, as found on CD decks. Spinning the platter will either slightly speed up or slow down the playing track, which is the normal method of beatmatching on CD decks.
The red line is the current needle position, and the blue line is the current cue position.
The current RPM of the platter (the base rate is 45) is displayed in the box above the Nudge button.
The track time elapsed, remaining and total are displayed in the boxes above the Jog button. These are correct for the current RPM, as set by the pitch controls.
* PITCH CONTROL (Up / Down)
The left-hand slider. Adjusts the RPM of the platter to increase or decrease the speed of the playback. The range is -8% - +8% or -20% - +20% depending on the selection on the 8%/20% switch below it. The current value is displayed in the box above the slider.
* FINE PITCH CONTROL (Shift-Up / Shift-Down)
The right-hand slider. As sliders on computer programs are only pixel- accurate, this will additionally adjust the RPM in a range of -1% - +1% for precise mixing. The current value is displayed in the box above the slider.
* INVERT PITCH CONTROL (Control-I)
The normal orientation of the pitch control sliders is top for slower and bottom for faster. While this is correct for a record deck, it isn't normal for a Windows application, so this allows you the choice.
* START (Space Bar)
The start/stop toggle.
Unlike a normal Windows button, this performs its action on button DOWN rather than UP. This is because starting from a cue point needs a greater degree of precision
* PICKUP/REPLACE (Control-P/Control-R)
Press this once, then click on the platter to set the current needle position to that point. If you change your mind press it again - it will have changed its text to "Replace".
* NUDGE (Right)
Simulates nudging the turntable clockwise slightly to momentarily speed up the record, a normal beatmatching technique.
What it actually does is gradually increase the RPM while the button is held down. On the button being released the RPM instantly resets to its previous value.
* TWIST (Left)
Simulates grabbing the spindle and pressing down on the platter to momentarily slow down the record, a normal beatmatching technique.
What it actually does is gradually decrease the RPM while the button is held down. On the button being released the RPM instantly resets to its previous value.
* SET CUE (Control-S)
Sets the cue point to the current needle position. The cue point is displayed as a blue line.
Unlike a normal Windows button, this performs its action on button DOWN rather than UP. This is because cueing needs a greater degree of precision
* CUE (Control-C)
Instantly moves the current needle position to the cue position. The cue point is displayed as a blue line.
Unlike a normal Windows button, this performs its action on button DOWN rather than UP. This is because cueing needs a greater degree of precision
* RESET CUE (Shift-Control-S)
Sets the cue point to the beginning of the track. The cue point is displayed as a blue line.
* JOG (Control-J)
Toggles the mode of the platter between a platter on a turntable, and a jog wheel on a CD deck. See the Platter entry for more details.
* REVERSE PLAY (Control-B)
Reverses the direction of the platter motor, so the track will play backwards.
* QUARTZ LOCK (Control-Q)
Disables the pitch controls.
* BPM COUNTER (Tab, Shift-Tab)
This is a manual BPM counter, not an automatic detector. All the automatic ones are either hideously inaccurate or very temperamental. Plus they only really work if there's an obvious beat, so mixing things like IDM and ambient can get really tricky.
Tap the button (or the Tab key) in time to the beat and the BPM will be calculated from the first tap. The more taps, the more accurate the calculation. Should the time between the last two taps be greater than double the time between the two previous taps, the counter will reset. This seems to be by far the quickest way of restarting a count after a mistake.
The counter will also reset if the time between the last two taps is greater than five seconds, or if the Shift key is down whilst tapping the Tab key.
Unlike normal Windows buttons, the BPM counter buttons perform their actions on button DOWN rather than UP. This is because beat counting needs a greater degree of precision
TROUBLESHOOTING
If you can't hear anything, please check your connections, your drivers and your Play Control volume settings.
Below is a list of possible error messages, and the reasons for them.
* "No DirectSound devices found"
There are no audio devices installed on your system. Is your PC making a noise at all? Do other applications play sound? If so then re-installing the latest DirectX drivers, or your soundcard's latest drivers may help.
* "Cannot init DirectSound"
The most likely cause of this is lack of, or outdated DirectX drivers. Get the latest ones from http://www.microsoft.com. Or your soundcard's drivers may not be correctly installed or up-to-date. Check the manufacturer's website.
* "Cannot register hotkeys."
Some or all of the hotkeys associated with the controls cannot be registered with Windows, which means some or all of the keyboard shortcuts will not work. You will need to close down the other application that is using them.
Most applications will unregister their hotkeys when the user switches away from them to a different window, but some may persist.
On switching to it, MR1200 will attempt for up to three seconds to register the hotkeys (to give the previous application time to unregister) then return this error.
* "Cannot open MP3 file."
The file you are trying to play cannot be opened for reading. If you are using the command line check the file actually exists, otherwise check its attributes.
* "Can't open output file"
The temporary file cannot be created, opened or written to. Check your access rights and the available disk space on the drive your temporary directory is on. Then check you have a temporary directory environment variable defined.
The TEMP environment variable can be viewed by opening My Computer->Properties- >Advanced->Environment Variables. It can also be viewed by typing SET TEMP into a command-line prompt.
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