It’s been another spectacular year at DJ TechTools, and we’re glad to have spent it with you all, our readers and friends. If for some reason you’re just now waking up from a cryogenic freeze-state that has lasted exactly 12 months, we wanted to take this time to bring you up to speed. For our dedicated readers, this list is a great chance to look back and remember all of the awesome things that happened this year.
#1 – Making a DJ Booth Out Of IKEA Bits
People went nuts for this article, and why not? Here’s a chance to build a nice quality DJ booth out of cheap-but-nice IKEA furniture systems. We lost count of how many people sent us pictures of their new booths and thanked Hedgehog for the awesome article!
#2 – Traktor Pro 2 Release
Traktor Pro 2 came out with a bang earlier this year, bringing us the much awaited multicolored waveforms, sample decks, the loop recorder and more. Great improvements, but as we noted in last Sunday’s article, we’ve still got a substantial wishlist of awesome features that Traktor Pro 3 should have.
#3 – How to Make a DJ Name-drop
Everyone wants to be able to press a button and hear an awesome name-drop of their own DJ name, or at least so it would seem considering that this was our third most popular article of the year. Just promise us that in 2012 we’ll hear less airhorn samples?
#4 – VCI-400 and Kontrol S2 Announcements and Videos!
Incredibly enough, tied for fourth place are our two major controller announcements of the year- the announcement of the Traktor Kontrol S2 and the Vestax VCI-400. It’s worth noting here that yes, the VCI-400 Ean Golden Special Edition is being crafted in the labs as we speak – look out for more details in the first weeks of the new year!
#5 – History of Traktor
Shortly following the release of Traktor Pro 2, we decided to take a look at the history of Traktor, started all the way back with the original Traktor Studio 1.
#6 – DJ Software Showdown!
In our sixth most popular article of the year, our most excellent Tech Editor Chris Cartledge decided to pitch all of the major DJ softwares against each other in this epic article comparing them all. With the updates to Serato Itch, the introduction of Serato Intro, and a number of new contenders getting ready to step in the ring, we’re sure we’ll have to update this article very soon with another round.
#7 – Dancing, A DJ’s Secret Skill
New DJs are constantly looking to figure out what makes a successful mix master instead of a nightclub disaster, and in this article on the secret skill of dancing, we introduced an often overlooked element in what makes some DJs the crowd-pleasers that they are.
#8 – Instant Remixing with Traktor’s Slicer
Trakor’s Slicer effect is an incredible tool that can be used to shape mixes and create on-the-fly remixes, which is why this article on the intricacies and uses of the Slicer was a no-brainer top ten for us.
#9 – The Klay System – sorting your library
Everyone likes a new, clever system to refresh how they sort and use their music, and that’s exactly what this article on the Klay System details. Thanks here to our writer Marcus Klay for putting this one together back in July.
#10 – DJ TechTools Top 100 list
In perhaps the most controversial article of the year, we took Terry Church’s musings on the failings of the DJ Mag top 100 and made our own top 100 most popular DJs list. While everything about it isn’t perfect, it’s still an extremely interesting and revealing piece, showing just how messy putting any group of 100 things on a list can become.
Did we miss your favorite article of the year? Let us know in the comments. What types of articles are you looking forward to next year?
