Xpressbeats closing down

I am sad to hear that the online DJ download service Xpressbeats is closing down.. Their website gives the following message:

We want to thank you for shopping with us over the past couple of years, we’ve loved bringing you the best in dance music to buy online but all good things must come to an end.

If you have money in your Virtual wallet, you must use it before we close the store or you will lose it! There are still tens of thousands of tracks to choose from so have a rummage through the site and fill your hard drive with some great new music.

Don’t forget you can still find some great new music in 2010 by visiting www.cdpool.com where you can find the best in promo tunes upfront of release.

If you have any questions regarding Xpressbeats you can e-mail us at admin@xpressbeats.com

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and we’ll catch you in 2010.

Last minute gift

You may be in desperate need of a gift for that DJ in your life! If so look no further.

This maybe too late for Christams, however, if your quick and pay for next day delivery who knows …

Check this out, apart from a pair of CDJ 2000’s this may just be the best christmas gift ever!

You can get it for about £17 just google Stylophone beatbox.

Pioneer Xmas prize draw for 2010 calendars

Follow and Tweet to enter the prize draw to win one of 50 Pioneer DJ 2010 Calendars

Pioneer is ready for Christmas and as a thank you for a great year they are giving away 50 Pioneer DJ 2010 Calendars. The large A3 Calendars feature 12 high gloss photos of famous DJs such as James Zabiela, Carl Cox and Deadmau5, along with 2010s greatest up and coming events.

twitter link – http://bit.ly/pdj2010

facebook link – http://bit.ly/4Lb2cL

Dont forget that the Pioneer team is showing off the evolution of the species at the next SEDA ShowNight on Sunday 17th January 2010 at the Village Hotel in Maidstone from 7:30pm.  Check our events pages for more details.

Akai APC40 Ableton Live controller

Another product which has sparked a fair bit of debate since its appearance at Novembers SEDA ShowNight is the Akai APC40 which is a dedicated Ableton Live controller.  This was demoed by the Numark team  as well as their flagship NS7 during the evening, and got a lot of interest from the DJs who run club nights which shows how diverse the SEDA membership is.  So, here it is in all its glory!

“Ableton Live software is a powerful, flexible environment for creating, performing, and producing music. This unique software demands an equally unique control instrument. Akai Professional and Ableton are proud to present the APC40: the Ableton Performance Controller. Combining the APC40 with Ableton Live transforms your experience from constructing tracks on a computer to fluid, musical creation.

The APC40 is the link between human and computer that perfectly balances analytical parameter control with creative expression. Whether you are an electronic music artist and Live is your canvass, a DJ using Live to mix or remix tracks, or a more traditional musician using Live on stage or in the studio, you will find the APC40 to the intuitive, powerful instrument that directly links your inspiration with Ableton Live.

DIRECT DESIGN
Because Akai Professional and Ableton designed the APC40 specifically for Ableton Live, you don’t need to map its controls to talk to the software. Just connect your laptop to the APC40 via USB and you’re ready to make magic. The APC40 is plug and play, so you don’t need to install drivers. First-time setup is literally three steps: load Ableton Live, plug in and power up your APC40, and select the APC40 as Ableton Live’s controller. That’s it. No mapping, no setup, no hassles.

The APC40 comes pre-mapped for instant use with Ableton Live software, so if you’re new to it, you’ll find using the APC40 to be easy to get around on. And if you’re an experienced Live user, you’ll be happy to note that you can custom-map every single knob, button, and fader on the APC40 to completely customize the controls for the way you like to work.

VIRTUAL VIEW
The APC40 talks directly to Ableton Live and Live talks directly to the APC40. This bidirectional communication makes the APC40 an advanced controller in that it can receive feedback from the software and display it on its clip matrix of 40 triggers and on LED rings surrounding each knob. The clip matrix gives you an instant view of clip status: what’s loaded, what’s playing, and what’s being recorded. Each state displays on the matrix in a different color so you can get a quick picture of clip state. You can shift your clip focus and get an overview of the clips you have loaded for your set. The APC40 has 16 knobs, each surrounded by a ring of LEDs. These LED rings make it easy to see your settings on dark stages, indicating the currently selected parameters’ values.

PREMIUM FEEL
Ableton selected Akai Professional as its partner in developing the APC40 because of Akai Pro’s leadership position in great-feeling controllers that are rock solid, rugged, and precise. From the legendary MPC series that changed the way music is made to the industry-standard MPD and MPK controllers, Akai Professional is revered by musicians, DJs, and producers everywhere for creating the feel that powers their creativity. The APC40 is built with a rugged, metal chassis and slip-proof rubber detailing. All of the knobs and faders are solid and precise for pinpoint performance. It even features a high quality, replaceable crossfader for transitioning between clips and loops assigned to “A” or “B”.

CREATIVE CONTROL
The APC40 comes Ableton Live Akai Professional APC40 Edition software, which is fully functional for performance and production. Owners of standalone editions of Ableton Live 7 or 8 can also work seamlessly with the APC40. Live 7 with the latest automatic update has full support for the APC40 and all versions of Live 8 are APC40-ready.

The APC40 has two banks of eight knobs. The first set controls Global parameters so you’ll always have instant access to your main sends, pans, and other essentials. The second bank of eight knobs is dynamically reassigned to the Track you select. You can control eight track parameters at a time, and as you switch channels, the Track knobs follow your focus. For example, you might be working with the Beat Decoder on track two. When you switch to track four, the eight Track knobs that you had been controlling the Beat Decoder with are now controlling the Flangeverb on track four. You’ll even notice that the settings for each knob load on the light rings so you’ll immediately see each knob’s status.

The APC40 also enables special clip-status views and feedback that only the APC40’s matrix can display. The matrix is not limited to only 40 clips: you can scroll and shift, enabling you to access, control, and perform with an unlimited number of cells.

The APC40 has a wide range of controllers. The eight Global knobs can access four banks of controls; the eight Track knobs control nine different track parameters each. This gives you a massive total of 72 controllers that are dynamically reassigned each time you switch tracks. Channel faders, bus faders, and a crossfader give you smooth control of key values. You have even more control power with special controls including Tap Tempo, Tempo Nudge, record enables, solo/cues, and two assignable footswitch inputs.

Designed in partnership with Ableton, the APC40 is the most advanced Live controller for the most advanced performers. The APC40 is Ableton Live performance… perfected.”

For more information, visit the Akai website and Ableton website.

Ryger Footlight USB-DMX thing!

Following the visit to the SEDA ShowNight in November 2009 from Ryger UK, a few DJs have asked me what the controller was that was being demoed.  It was of course the Footlight USB DMX which runs either standalone once programmed, or with Daslight which was extensively covered by the DMX Workshops and seminar provided by SEDA for its members by Will Perkins.  So, here it is:

“The FOOTLIGHT USB-DMX is the first in our range of brand new dual PC based & stand alone step sequencing controllers.

It has six big red foot buttons, each of which can hold one pre-uploaded show.  These can then be used in stand-alone mode WITHOUT the need of the footlight having a PC connection. This is THE ideal controller to use with L.E.D. Par-cans! Finally at last! A ‘simple to use’ DMX controller that gives you the ability to control your light show the way you want it!

It also allows the user to mix and match different manufacturers par-cans that use alternative DMX channels for the RGB output.  Although perfect for L.E.D. Parcans – this DMX controller is completely universal with any DMX light fitting, with over 170 different manufacturers (almost 6000 different fixtures)in it’s library.  Moving heads, DMX strobes, dimming packs, scanners, moonflowers, colour floods, stage blinders etc can ALL be controlled by this unit – all at the same time.

The software also has a ‘scanlibrary editor’ to create any new fittings that may appear on the market.   It is fully compatible with the DASLIGHT software which makes it a very easy DMX controller to use.

The FL USB-DMX is such a versatile unit making it a perfect choice for the novice or the expert light-jock.
Also it is ergonomically designed to stand on the floor by the feet of a guitarist or drummer enabling them to control a bands DMX light show completely hassle free.

With the use of a DMX dimming pack it will also integrate conventional filament Parcans & light screens alongside newer L.E.D. systems enabling your show to function all together as one coherent package rather than as fragmented separate pieces of equipment.

This excellent unit has the ability to control up to 512 DMX channels and a huge amount of steps of programming when used in stand-alone mode – When used as a slave controller remaining attached to your PC you have access to many other functions including using DMX Universe to control other DMX controllers ie: daslight 512 Eco. This gives the user a huge channel capacity.

Should you require more control over your lighting simply run this attached to the PC and you can gain access to each individual part of your lightshow LIVE.  When being operated through a PC using the daslight software the scenes can be triggered by a midi signal from sound processors (Cakewalk/Sonar 7 etc).  Also when attached to a PC you have Sound activation and ‘Tap’ triggering of the patterns using the Daslight audio analysis. ”

For more information, please visit www.rygeruk.com.