My Denon Prime 4 Journey

[Benny Smyth]

Now then...that was interesting.

There's a lot to like, and a lot to get used to. There's also a few things that I didn't like, but I don't think they are deal breakers.

Importing all of my music into Engine Prime took a fair few hours from Yesterday afternoon and going on into the evening. The idea was that Engine Prime would import all of my playlists, loops, cue points etc. Playlists made the journey safely, but the cue points and loops obviously got lost on the way - not a huge thing, as at least a huge chunk of the work has been done already, BUT playing a song and then suddenly remembering why I had something there is going to be a frustrating process until I get everything as it was.

The process of installing the SSD drive and copying everything over took maybe a couple of hours, which was a nice surprise. I started messing about with it at home, but I learned more about it at tonight's gig. It was a wedding at a venue 10 minutes up the road from me, which has it's own sound and lighting installed. I saw this as the ideal opportunity to use the Prime 4 as I wouldn't need to worry about lighting - just focus on the controller.

On the top left and top right of the controller are the effects, with one knob selecting the effect that you want and the other knobs changing the parameters. So far, so normal. The knob selecting the effect doesn't have a 'clicking' feel for each effect you come across - it's just a smooth twist, and that felt really weird. Usually when a knob is used to pick something, it clicks, right? That's not just me, surely? Again, not a deal breaker...just weird.

The sync buttons are also odd. On Traktor, if I want to sync the BPM of my next song to the one that's playing, I just press 'Sync' on the forthcoming track, and Bob's your mother's brother. On the Prime 4, I have to press the sync button on the deck playing before pressing sync on the forthcoming track. It took me ages to suss out what the hell was going on with that, and getting out of sync isn't just as simple as pressing sync again. Yes, I can mix but using the sync button is supposed to make my life easier. This process is using up too much brain power for my liking. It was easier to just go old school and mix manually. Why have I got to press a combination of buttons to do two things - sync on, sync off. Easy.

Mic control is great. Inputs for a couple of mics, get to mess with the EQ and add an echo, should I desire. It's simple, easy and elegant. I love it.

The interface on the touchscreen...there are bits I love, and bits I hate. The fact that it's touchscreen is amazing - I can use either the buttons on the controller to do everything on there, or just touch the screen. You can order your playlists however you want, but when you reorder them (say, in order of BPM), when you leave the playlist and then come back to it, the order reverts to it's default. That's really frustrating, and I ing hate it. I also hate that there are three colours on the waveform - it looks horrible, and it makes it really difficult to place accurate cue points and loops. As for the beatgrids assigned to each song by Engine Prime, I assume the process is throwing three darts at a board and whatever the total score is will be the BPM that they designate this particular song. There was a hell of a lot of rejigging, thus proving Traktor really is the best at that sort of thing. The search function is quite fast - not as instantaneous as Traktor, but you're not waiting for long at all.

Navigation on the screen is really easy. It just feels like a phone or tablet, and that's exactly what it should be like. This is technology that we all know and are very familiar with, and I really like that Denon didn't try to go and do something unique with this. Because of that familiarity, it is a very accessible controller.

The biggest issue I have with it is muscle memory, but that is not the fault of the controller - just the idiot using it. It's a fun piece of kit and when the lights are down, it looks very sexy. I like that I can customize the lighting options on it, and that I can add my logo onto the jogwheels (branding, baby!). It feels really well built, and while I did feel on edge using this so soon after it landing on my doorstep, the truth is that it is very stable - the screen on Traktor sometimes freezes for a few seconds (without effecting the music), but the Prime 4 didn't even blink.

I like it. It's going to take a long time for this to feel second nature to me but even now, I can see the potential of what I can get out of this thing.

[Excalibur]

Looks like you're in for The Long Haul, Benny. I must have a go with one of these, but from what you say, I'm not sure it would suit me. I hope you do grow to love it.

[DeckstarDeluxe]

I got one a month or so ago against my will really. Mainly due to my 6000 being old and battered like it's user however stock of anything 7000 or remotely close model were out of stock. I lucked out that a friend of a friend was selling his for a grand and I had one of those "afi" moments.

So glad I did, it's different gravy. Not had an issue as of yet. Yes it takes up more space but bloomin' heck it feels so good DJing on it.

Good luck with it Benny, you'll love it in no time at all.

[Imagine]

I still have an itch to buy one. I've wanted one since they first appeared but seeing some of the comments on the FB groups is a bit off-putting.
I did download the Prime Engine thingy on my MacBook when I was last looking and didn't really get on with it. Might be time for another look.

The day will come where I need to invest in something like this though. Both of my playout Macs are 2013 models (solid as rocks but nothing lasts for ever and one day they will fail).

Keep us updated on the journey Benny. I'm watching with interest.
By the way - what hard drive did you opt for?

[Benny Smyth]

I still have an itch to buy one. I've wanted one since they first appeared but seeing some of the comments on the FB groups is a bit off-putting.

Go to the ocean and fill up a cup of water. If there's no fish in there, does that mean that there is no fish in the ocean? I'd take those comments with a pinch of salt, as you mostly only hear from consumers when something is wrong. Nowhere near as many will comment on the system working fine.

I did download the Prime Engine thingy on my MacBook when I was last looking and didn't really get on with it. Might be time for another look.

I bet you still won't get on with it. It's just a bit...meh. Plus, I found out today that when I make changes to a single thing, I still have to copy over the whole lot to the Prime 4. I thought to myself "I've only changed this playlist, so I'll just copy that over" and good as gold, it did exactly that. It removed everything else from the Prime 4, but the new playlist is copied over. Now that I have spotted this, I have now copied everything over again BUT it shouldn't be that much of a chore in the first place. Engine Prime is not a selling point at all...

By the way - what hard drive did you opt for?

One of these.

[Imagine]

Go to the ocean and fill up a cup of water. If there's no fish in there, does that mean that there is no fish in the ocean?

Blimey - that's a bit deep for a Monday!

I bet you still won't get on with it. It's just a bit...meh. Plus, I found out today that when I make changes to a single thing, I still have to copy over the whole lot to the Prime 4. I thought to myself "I've only changed this playlist, so I'll just copy that over" and good as gold, it did exactly that. It removed everything else from the Prime 4, but the new playlist is copied over. Now that I have spotted this, I have now copied everything over again BUT it shouldn't be that much of a chore in the first place.

Oooh.....that's a biggy. I can see that being a right pain in the proverbial.

I actually watched a very long tutorial/walkround of the unit on YouTube last night and suddenly realised something....it does EXACTLY the same stuff as my MC7000 but without the hassle of a laptop (the layout and functionality is virtually identical). Before I watched that video, I was ready to hit the button and spend a lot of money with my local dealership (well...after arranging a coffee and a play with one first).

Now that you've mentioned the playlist copying thing, I'm thinking I might well be better off staying as I am for the moment.

[Benny Smyth]

Oooh.....that's a biggy. I can see that being a right pain in the proverbial.

It was a pain not knowing. Now that I do know, I can work with it. To me, I think its unnecessary to have to sync everything every single time, but (depending on size of music collection), it doesn't take too long and because Engine Prime doesn't use up too much computer brain speed, you can minimise it and plod on with other work while it does its thing.

It's not perfect, but Engine Prime is still a baby and I dare say that Denon are still reacting to DJs saying "Why not do it this way?" It'll improve.

Engine Prime is free, so just have a play with it. Import your music (it won't affect whatever you're using at the moment) and see how you get in. Worst case scenario is that you uninstall again.

But I do suggest still having a play with the Prime 4. It's a lot of fun.

[Excalibur]

I viewed one in the shop yesterday. Doubtless it's a wonderful piece of kit, but it's huuuuuuuuuuuuuge! If it won't fit in a Micron booth, it's not for me. Simples.

[ppentertainments]

I viewed one in the shop yesterday. Doubtless it's a wonderful piece of kit, but it's huuuuuuuuuuuuuge! If it won't fit in a Micron booth, it's not for me. Simples.

That is my challenge too. I could keep the MC6000 for use with the micron booth, but sods law I would take the wrong booth/controller combination.

Needing to have a look at the Roland machines as my MC6000 starting to play up a bit.

[DeckstarDeluxe]

I had a bit of an issue with the size of the thing when looking at it.

Having taken it out on the road it's not that bad at all. I can fit the backup laptop to the side of it and it fits on my deckstand nice and snuggly.

The only issue I have is that the screen is hard to see if you have a lighting shelf on your deckstand. I have to slightly bend my knees at times to see the screen. It's not a major bugbear when the rest of it is just so damm nice