LESSON
1 - LEARN TO DJ WITH FINALSCRATCH
ABOUT
FINALSCRATCH
GETTING STARTED
PLUGGING IN
THE
NEW FACE OF FINALSCRATCH
SOUND
QUALITY
THE
CATCH
WHO USES FINALSCRATCH?
FINALSCRATCH
ROUTINE VIDEO WITH DJ CRAZE
COSTS AND WHERE YOU CAN PICK IT UP
 For
those of you that don't have an unlimited Piggy Bank that you can
pull from every time you need a fix for your Vinyl addiction (AKA
The Black Crack). There is something out there that lets you play
MP3 files like a records on your turntables and saves ya a bit O'
dosh in the process..
FinalScratch is the ultimate way for DJs to combine today's digital
technology with the analog control of the past. By using FinalScratch
with your existing turntables or CD player and mixer, you can control
and manipulate digital audio files (WAV, MP3, etc.) the same way
you always have—using your hands to cue, mix and scratch with
the exact response and feel of real vinyl.
Just
load any digital audio file onto your computer, then pick and choose
from your own playlist as you load tracks into two "virtual"
decks. Your computer becomes your record box—there's no need
to travel with bulky records and CDs. With FinalScratch, you can
bring thousands of songs to any gig! Producers can even load new
remixes and edits created in the studio and instantly play them
without the need to cut costly acetates.
FinalScratch
can work with any DJ setup consisting of turntables or CD players
and a mixer. You can even use it at a club: simply connect the ScratchAmp™
to the club's mixer and you're ready to go. What's more, many of
the world's best nightclubs have already installed ScratchAmps in
the DJ booth, so DJs can show up with just their laptop and FS records.
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GETTING
STARTED
In a radical departure from earlier versions of FinalScratch, installing
version 1.5 on my 2.4GHz Toshiba laptop was the model of simplicity.
Previous versions of FinalScratch ran only on Linux and required
installation of a whole new operating system. Version 1.5, which
is based on Native Instruments Traktor, runs on Windows XP, so installation
is just as simple as installing any other Windows application.
Like
all of Native Instruments' latest software titles, FinalScratch
needs to be registered using a key that is linked to the hardware
specs of your computer. The registration tool offers three ways
for you to permanently unlock the program: online, via a different
Internet-connected PC or through the mail. It only took me about
five minutes to register on the Internet, and I received my activation
key in an e-mail from Native Instruments within 10 minutes. Keep
in mind that each key is linked to a specific hardware setup —
if you ever decide to move FinalScratch to a new computer, you'll
have to reregister on the new setup. (NI allows users to authorize
the software on two machines at once.)
PLUGGING IN
Installing
the FinalScratch software is only half the battle and by far the
easiest. The next step is to connect the FinalScratch hardware,
the ScratchAmp, to your DJ rig. At about an inch thick and slightly
larger in diameter than a CD, the ScratchAmp looks a bit like a
UFO and is small enough to pack in a record bag yet large enough
that it can't be easily misplaced. The ScratchAmp also has a reassuring
weight that gives you the impression that it won't break the first
time it encounters a little rough treatment. Some additional protection
from fumbling hands is offered by three plastic bumpers around the
periphery of the unit, and recessed RCA and USB connectors ensure
that careless handing won't result in loose or broken jacks.
The
ScratchAmp lives between your computer and your turntables, so it
requires some repatching back in the nether regions of your mixer.
Turntables plug in directly to the phono inputs of the ScratchAmp,
which in turn connects to the line and phono inputs of the mixer.
A USB cable connects the ScratchAmp to your computer. The ScratchAmp
does receive power through the USB cable, but if you still plan
to throw analog records in the mix from time to time, you'll have
to connect the wall-wart power supply to activate the phono pass-through.
Plugging in a second power supply is a real hassle when hooking
up in clubs and represents a significant design flaw in what is
otherwise a slick piece of hardware. Rumor has it that Stanton is
in the process of designing a new ScratchAmp; hopefully, the company
will address this issue with the new model.
Once
the ScratchAmp is patched in, getting started with FinalScratch
is as easy as booting your setup and firing up the application.
FS asks where it can find your media files and calibrates the turntable
inputs, and you're good to go!
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THE NEW FACE OF FINALSCRATCH
FinalScratch's
main interface is called Traktor FS, a stripped-down version of
Native Instruments' DJ tool, Traktor Studio. At the top of the screen
are two “decks” that represent both turntables. The
large window at the top displays roughly 10 seconds of the selected
track, with a white line marking the exact location in the file.
Directly beneath the large window is a smaller overview waveform
that shows the track in its entirety, allowing you to see upcoming
peaks and valleys in the music, much like reading the grooves in
analog vinyl.
The
majority of the screen is occupied by a comprehensive listing of
media files called the Track Collection. The Track Collection aggregates
media from your hard drive into a central database that can be searched
and organized any way you like. This is no simple directory listing,
mind you — all information from ID3 tags is displayed, as
well as Traktor FS — specific data like rating, bpm and so
forth. You can customize which columns of info are displayed in
the Collection, and the Collection can be easily sorted on any field
by clicking on its column.
SEARCH
AND DESTROY
In
the upper-left corner of the Collection is the single most powerful
tool that FinalScratch has to offer: the Search field. From here,
based on criteria you specify, you can quickly and easily search
through your entire collection of music. Looking for every track
written by Orbital? Just type Orbital in the search field
at the top left, and in a split second, you'll be looking only at
tracks with the bald brothers' special touch. Can't remember the
name of that Oakenfold remix? No problem. Simply type Oakenfold
in the Search field, and watch as FinalScratch grinds through your
entire collection and spits out every track tagged with his name.
The
sole drawback to the Search function is the inability to search
for an explicit string or strings in specific fields. Say you've
used the Genre field to tag some tracks with Progressive House and
others with just House. A search for House will return tracks
tagged with both, because the word House appears in the properties
of both tracks. I'd like to see Native Instruments add a way to
differentiate full and partial string searches. It would also be
nice to have the option to search on specific fields and use Boolean
operators like most Internet search engines. This would enable advanced
searches like “Timo NOT Tori” if you're looking for every mix Timo
Maas has done that doesn't include Tori Amos.
One
of the coolest things about working with FinalScratch is how easy
it is to find and play old records. At my house, I have shelves
and shelves chock-full of good records from years past that have
been neglected for ages simply because I've never had room in my
crate or the time to dig them out. Now that I've encoded the bulk
of my collection, I've brought back to my sets classic tracks that
I'd forgotten completely. The instant access that FinalScratch offers
is truly liberating and opens creative avenues that simply aren't
possible with CDs or analog vinyl.
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PLAYLISTS AND RECORD CASES
If
the Search functions don't sell you on FinalScratch, the Playlist
functions will. Right to the left of the Track Collection is an
Explorer-style browser containing a current Playlist, nine Record
Cases and a folder for custom Playlists. Each offers a unique way
of organizing your music files and further enhances FinalScratch's
ease of use.
Playlists
store tracks from your Collection in a predefined order. You can
have as many Playlists as you like, and each one can hold as many
tracks as you need. Tracks are added to Playlists by dragging and
dropping them from the Collection. From there, you can drag and
drop tracks up or down to change their position within the Playlist.
One of the best uses for Playlists is to preplan DJ sets: Simply
decide what tracks you'd like to have available for a show, and
create a Playlist; then, your entire set is laid out in advance.
No digging through record crates looking for that next tune — all
you have look at is what's next in the list.
SOUND
QUALITY
Okay,
so FinalScratch is a great database tool. But all of that is irrelevant
if it doesn't sound good, right? Fortunately, the sonic quality
of the FS hardware is just fine — there's no real noise or unpleasant
distortion evident when listening to music played back through the
Scratch Amp. Scratching with the time-coded vinyl sounds just like
scratching on an analog record, and latency is virtually unnoticeable,
even at the highest setting.
If
there's one thing that will make FinalScratch sound bad, though,
it's poorly or improperly encoded MP3s. The program will play back
MP3s encoded at any bit rate, but for good results, you'll want
to keep it at 256 kbps or higher using a good-quality encoder. The
LAME encoder is free and produces excellent results at high bit
rates. FinalScratch will play AIFF and WAV files, as well, so if
you have space, don't even bother converting your collection to
MP3. If you're feeling the squeeze on your hard drive and must encode
to fit all the tracks you need, try to keep them at 256 or, preferably,
320 kbps. Your audience will thank you.
If
you're a scratch DJ, you've probably heard of skip-proof records.
These records feature short samples, like stabs and drum hits, that
repeat exactly once during each rotation of the record. If the needle
jumps a groove forward or backward while scratching, it picks up
the sound at exactly the same point, resulting in a “skip-proof”
record. Some enterprising FinalScratch users have figured out how
to make MP3s that behave like skip-proof records, a goldmine for
serious scratch DJs. You can find comprehensive instructions about
how to make them yourself at http://finalscratch.sourceforge.net/lockgroove.
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THE CATCH
If
you guessed that there's a catch to all of the convenience that
FinalScratch offers, you're absolutely right. It is a remarkable
tool for getting massive quantities of music under control, but
it suffers from one painful flaw: Connecting the FinalScratch hardware
in a live DJ situation is about as pleasant as a coronary bypass.
As
mentioned earlier, the ScratchAmp serves as FinalScratch's audio
hub and handles getting timecode from the FS records into the computer
and audio from the PC back to your speakers. Setting all of this
up at home is a snap. However, in live situations, things get complicated
fast. FS users are often required to plug in the ScratchAmp to the
system while another DJ is already playing. This makes for a difficult
(and sometimes tense) situation, as it's a rare person who will
tolerate you repatching mixer cables during his or her set! Think
of it this way: You're essentially replacing both turntables and
connecting a pair of CD players while the music is running. On top
of that, you need to find power for the ScratchAmp (the wall-wart-style
power supply makes that even harder) and your laptop. Starting to
sound intimidating? It is.
The
setup issues are indeed irritating, but if FinalScratch has a true
Achilles' heel, it's the system's susceptibility to turntable feedback.
Because FinalScratch relies on clean timecode from its special records,
any impurities in the signal from the decks can seriously degrade
or even completely disrupt playback. If you're planning to use FinalScratch
at club or party gigs, be sure to soundcheck in advance at full
volume and verify that the program is receiving clean, solid timecode.
Hopefully, Stanton will work out a method that allows the system
to filter out turntable feedback in future versions.
At
the end of the day, FinalScratch is such an incredible tool that
it's worth the extra TLC it takes to get things running smoothly.
But there really doesn't seem to be any quick and easy way to circumvent
these problems. They just go with the territory. Until every club
has a patch bay and properly isolated turntables in the DJ booth,
it's imperative to plan out your patching strategy ahead of time.
To Stanton's credit, the company has begun partnering up with a
number of clubs around the country that now provide a preinstalled
ScratchAmp in the DJ booth for a quick and easy setup. For a complete
list of the clubs in the FinalScratch Club Network, check out www.finalscratch.com.
WHAT
DOESN'T IT DO?
There
are few things to dislike about FinalScratch, but there are a couple
of things that would make working with FS more satisfying. Anyone
who has spent five minutes with Native Instruments' Traktor DJ Studio
will miss the equalizers and filters present in the full-featured
versions of Traktor. Also conspicuously absent are Traktor DJ Studio's
looping and cue-point features, two powerful tools that would open
up new worlds of creativity to FinalScratch DJs. On the upside,
if you currently use Traktor DJ Studio, you can export Track Collections
and Playlists for use within FinalScratch.
Although
Native Instruments has taken steps to provide users with options
for customizing the interface, it would be nice to see even greater
flexibility in future versions. I'd also like to see more MIDI functionality.
If Traktor FS generated MIDI Clock or implemented ReWire for connection
to sequencers like Propellerhead Reason, it would open the door
to a whole new realm of live performance.
 WHO
USES FINAL SCRATCH?
FinalScratch
has not caused the glacial shift in DJ culture that many predicted
it would when the system was first released more than two years
ago. However, FinalScratch is slowly making significant inroads,
with support coming from an ever-growing list of luminaries such
as DJ Craze, DJ Rap, Paul van Dyk, Judge Jules, DJ Radar, Junior
Sanchez, LTJ Bukem and others. Some purists see this as a move away
from vinyl roots, but that's an ill-conceived notion. These DJs
understand that vinyl is an important part of the culture; however,
they also realize that embracing advances in technology is an essential
part of keeping the scene vital and energized. FinalScratch is an
ideal tool to bridge the gap between old tech and new tech.
Few
things in life blend tradition and progress without sacrificing
some of both, and FinalScratch is a notable exception — it's a wonderful
tool that offers the look and feel of real vinyl with the power
and flexibility of digital media. If you're a serious DJ with an
eye on the future, do yourself a favor and give FinalScratch a try.
You won't be disappointed.
 |
Watch
DJ Craze Final Scratch Routine Video |
| |
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PRODUCT
SUMMARY
STANTON
FINALSCRATCH 1.5 > $699 (COMPLETE PACKAGE); $49 (SOFTWARE UPGRADE
FROM V. 1.1)
WHERE
TO BUY FINAL SCRATCH 1.5
Click the link below to buy Final Scratch from Musician's Friend,
a cool online DJ Gear store. Ive bought heaps of stuff on there.
Or you can pick it up at a DJ shop in your area. ;)
 
Stanton FinalScratch V1.5
System
Requirements
MAC:
G4/1.25GHz; 512 MB RAM; Mac OS 10.3.2; USB port
PC:
Intel-compatible 1.6GHz; 512 MB RAM; Windows 2000/XP; USB port
DIFFERENCES
FROM VERSION 1.1
Owners
of earlier versions of FinalScratch won't be disappointed with the
new features in version 1.5. Windows users in particular benefit
the most, as version 1.5 now runs natively on Windows XP, eliminating
the need to dual-boot into Linux as a second operating system just
to run FinalScratch. Don't buy the hype that Windows isn't stable
enough to handle the workload that FS places on the operating system
— Native Instruments wrote Traktor with Windows in mind, and it's
every bit as capable of delivering stable, low-latency performance
as the Linux version. The shift to the Windows platform also means
that users who had hardware issues with earlier versions now may
be able to run FS thanks to Windows' comprehensive driver support.
Version
1.5 also offers a host of minor improvements for both Mac and PC
users that make everyday life with FinalScratch easier. Particularly
noteworthy is high-quality key correction (called “master tempo”
by many CD mixers), which allows a track to be sped up or slowed
down without changing the pitch. You can also now resize the interface
to accommodate computers with higher-resolution screens, and three
font-size choices help maximize screen real estate.
Words
: Jason Blum (http://remixmag.com/)
Web
: http://www.finalscratch.com
Web : http://www.stantondj.com
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