For years, one of the biggest powerhouses in the DJ software world has been Algoriddim. With their djay and djay Pro softwares, they took their Apple and iOS-centric design prowess and fed it directly into innovation and new features. They were among the first to bring real-time stem separation to DJ software while others were slow to adapt.
Today, Algoriddim is releasing djay Pro 5.0 – a free update / brand new version of their DJ app. Here’s what DJs should know, and why it might be extremely compelling for DJs to take a look at the app if they’ve ignored it for a bit:
A major Neural Mix stem separation update
In this 5.0 release of djay Pro, Algoriddim has collaborated with AudioShake, a San Francisco-based AI company that offers enterprise-level platform for companies to split audio into their base stems. Since their founding in 2020, they’ve been largely selling their tech to labels, publishers, and film studios – but this appears to be the first time Audioshake has licensed their tool to a DJ software.
I’ve had a first listen in a private beta of the software – and it sounds pretty good – but most importantly, I was able to run it on a number of mobile devices with very little prep of the songs. The tracks loaded and processed quickly, and I was able to layer four tracks with Neural Mix without any audio issues on a first-generation iPad Pro from 2016. It’s all being done on-device, and without huge detriment to audio quality and device performance.
For DJs, particularly those looking to play more popular music via a streaming service, perhaps on a hyper-portable mobile rig (djay Pro on iOS is perfect for this), this takes what already was a very solid stems mixing experience to the next level.
“Fitting large AI models onto devices, in real-time, and without a loss in quality, is a big technical challenge – one made particularly difficult with audio, where the sound needs to be separated in high resolution,” said Jessica Powell, CEO of AudioShake.
You’re still going to have the same audio-challenges that most stem separation technology has had – the empty gaps in the audio from where drums were when you remove them, for instance. That’s something that we expect the next generation of stem separation will take head on – dynamically generating the missing pieces after you pull a track apart. Still – Neural Mix in its latest release clearly has some of the best-sounding real-time stem separation out there, and DJs using Serato and Virtual DJ’s current offerings would be wise to give djay Pro a comparative listen.
Crossfader Fusion: crossfader FX + automixing
Automatic mixing features are always a bit of a mixed bag when it comes to writing about them on a DJ technology website. We most recently saw something similar to djay Pro 5.0’s “Crossfader Fusion” in Pioneer DJ’s Rekordbox software, which added Smart Fader and Smart CFX alongside the release of DDJ-FLX models. Djay’s approach is pretty similar – choose the type of transition and effects you want, select the link of the mix, and decide if you want to mix tempos – and then tap “Mix Now” – the tracks will blend together.
The result is pretty well done and almost every blend we tried sounded at worst, acceptable; at best, impressive. That said, it’s a familiar bit of a hyper-simplification/automation of mixing in a way that many DJs will object to as being “cheap” – but sometimes that’s what new technology feels like.
Fluid Beatgrid, because somehow this isn’t ubiquitous yet
One of the biggest oddities about beatgrid-based DJ softwares has been, for over a decade now, the relatively mediocre support for more dynamic, live drumming tracks. These types of tracks often have fluctuating tempos.
In this new release, Algoriddim has added Fluid Beatgrid, which is “capable of instantly analyzing and predicting the structure of any song, this dynamic grid system follows every tempo fluctuation and interruption in the beat. Fluid Beatgrid automatically detects and adjusts to varying tempo and rhythmic changes within a song, ensuring beats are always locked in perfect harmony. […] Rather than laboriously editing beat grids manually, DJs can now beat-match any type of songs together, making complex transitions easier and more accurate, regardless of their rhythmic structure”
This is easily the smoothest automatic beat gridding I’ve ever seen for dynamic tracks. The track speeds up, and the beatgrid is still on the beat – even on dramatic tempo shifts.
Pricing and Availability
djay Pro 5.0 is available as a free update for existing users, with a new UI and enhancements for iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. The app is free to download, with an optional Pro subscription offering full access to all features across Mac, iPad, and iPhone. The subscription is priced at $6.99 / €6.99 / £6.99 per month or $49.99 / €49.99 / £48.99 per year.
I continue to see djay Pro as a guiding light of where DJ software can be in this decade, one that challenges the relative hegemony of Pioneer DJ’s tools and inspires solid new feature introductions in other pieces of software. This new release will be absolutely essential to DJs who already are using Algoriddim’s software, and for others, it might be just what you might need to give it a shot.