We often get asked, “so, what is Serato DJ?”
Now that really is a big question! It has been around a long time, has a unique history and has developed into an extremely powerful DJ software platform.
Serato have been one of the main players in the digital DJ market for many years with their Serato DJ Pro and Serato DJ Lite software (previously called Serato Intro). Serato DJ is a software solution for DJs that initially was designed to offer a DJ the traditional vinyl style of DJing, however in the years it has grown to incorporate controllerism as well as turntablism.
Let’s dig deep and find out what Serato DJ is and why it is still so very popular these days…
What is Serato DJ: A Brief Overview
Serato DJ is a digital DJing platform that allows DJs to mix digital audio files in an environment that represents what DJs were doing in the traditional days of vinyl DJing.
The software offers the user the ability to mix on up to four virtual decks (depending on hardware and set up) and affords a wealth of additional performance modes that have grown from simple FX to now featuring sampler options as well as streaming from a variety of streaming platforms including Soundcloud, Tidal, Beatport Link and Beatsource.
What is Serato DJ: Let’s go old school.
To understand what Serato DJ is, let’s go back and take a quick look at the origins of Digital DJing software.
Before Serato DJ and the other options from various companies there was a product known as Final Scratch which went on to become Traktor DJ, this was one of the forerunners for a digital format for DJs and paved the way for the DVS (Digital Vinyl Solution) evolution.
Native Instruments vs Serato DJ: The head to head
Native Instruments with their Traktor software were soon to become the go to software for any electronic dance music DJ looking for digital DJing software and became a firm favourite amongst the techno and European crowd, whilst Serato and Serato DJ was immensely popular with the Hip Hop fraternity and managed to grow a huge following in the US market.
Whilst these two products were pitched head to head as direct competition they both offered a slightly different feel and approach to the craft of DJing. For a long while Serato appeared to be less favoured in the electronic dance music world but with its open source approach it was adopted by many manufacturers as the companion software for their controllers.
In fact Serato made a major coup in only focusing on the software and not limiting it to their own designed hardware, as they could place it anywhere they liked and users then had the option and a choice as to which hardware to use with the software.
Native instruments on the other hand focused on making their own controllers and hardware and were not interested in opening this out to third party companies, so hardware support was limited as to what a Traktor user could use.
This business model though would prove to limit Traktor’s appeal and reach and in recent years Serato DJ have grown their user base from the once hip hop dominated sector to covering the wider spectrum of the DJing sphere, with house DJs, techno DJs, turntablists and freeform DJs all adopting the platform.
What is Serato DJ’s performance Like for a DJ?
As a performance software Serato DJ Pro and lite (there are two versions available) are very powerful DJ tools.
The lite version is a cut down version of the Pro edition offering essentially all the requirements for anyone to get on board with digital DJing and is generally packaged free with a lot of ‘off the shelf’ controllers and third-party hardware and is a great introduction to the Serato EcoSystem and for anyone wanting to learn the art of DJing.
The Pro version is a paid upgrade/purchase for DJs who progress beyond the hobbyist stage to a level that would demand more advanced user and performance options.
Additionally, with Serato DJ DJs can purchase expansion packs which add additional performance features and capabilities to the software, from DVS and video options to FX options, this then gives DJs multiple options to configure the software exactly to their individual needs.
Within the Serato DJ software DJs have all the tools at hand to prep their tracks and digital music files, including setting up and saving loop and cue points using the inbuilt crate system, (think of this as Serato’s very own record box/playlist feature where a DJ can place a track that they want to include in their sets) or directly from their streaming accounts.
This is all part of the library view, where all your music can be browsed. There are a wealth of other performance features that users can explore within the software itself once a DJ becomes comfortable and familiar with the software, the ability to remap hardware can be seen as an advanced function but allows users to customise how the software works with a specific piece of hardware.
How Serato DJ has Grown over the Years
So now we have given you an overview about what Serato DJ is. Let’s tell you a little more about how it has grown over the years? It really has become a juggernaut piece of DJ software!
Some of the new advancements that have come through recent upgrades is the ability to use the software without a hardware controller or hardware unlock device (mixer/sound card) the original versions were security locked to hardware which meant that the software couldn’t be bootlegged however with DJs travelling the world for gigs, it wasn’t practical to have them lugging around additional hardware when a simple laptop was the perfect travel partner, as a result there are now two modes that DJs can work from with Serato DJ,
Performance Mode and Practice Mode
Practice Mode allows DJs to prepare their sets and do just that practice straight from the laptop (no hardware needed) ideal whilst on the move.
Performance Mode is the mode when a DJ takes it to the club or event and works the software with connected hardware, there are a few slight differences in operation between the two modes but nothing that really warrants major attention.
Equally with each new upgrade any new piece of Serato DJ compatible hardware is catered for meaning past, present and future bits of kit will always be usable with the software.
There are currently over 90 pieces of supported hardware so DJs have plenty to choose from when it comes to this well-known and well supported DJ software.
We hope this answers the question of “What Serato DJ is and why you should be using it” and please make sure sure you keep an eye out for more Serato articles as we lift the lid on this dynamic DJ software.
