Serato Connections

[cj123]

Hi all,

Right, I Run the lighting and Sound and also Dj at a club and some djs use serato and some dont so instead of havin to keep wiring there DVS in has anyone come across or made any kind of patchbay or wiring that i could install and then all the other djs can either plug in serato and play or unplug it and just use cd's as i dont really want anyone unplugging anything from the mixer, because wire's usually go missing or it doesnt get wired back in correctley.

Thanks Cj

 

[derekleffew]

Hi Cj,
I don't know if Serato is UK- or DJ-specific, but I suspect you'll have better response posing your question to DJ Forums at DJchat.com DJ Networking Center or similar.

In the US, Whirlwind is one of the leading companies for any type of patch panel, and will fabricate anything that can be imagined.

 

[bishopthomas]

Why don't you tell us a little more about your setup. I'm not really up on Serato but I believe certain hardware allows you to plug in both CD-DJ's as well as turntables. I've never patched a DJ rig myself but if there's a specific question I can find out the answer from my DJ client who is up on this type of gear. Let us know more details and I'm sure we can help. If it's a simple patchbay (or even Y splitter) you need I'm sure we can point you in the right direction to buy/build one.

 

[CSCTech]

I believe Serato is a DJ program near the same as Virtual DJ.

cj123,

What you want, simply, is a mixer. He is a cheaper one you can get but theres tons of them you can get, go up to your local Guitar Center something similar and they will have them there aswell.
What you would want for Serato is a 1/8'' cable (To connect the laptop using the software), to dual 1/4'' (to connect to your mixer), and then you would want a a couple XLR to dual RCA to connect to the DJs turntables or CDJs.

You would just need to read up on how to use a mixer, but simply, you can control the volume of each piece of equipment you plug in. So when the DJ is using Serato software, you need to have the volume on the channel you plug the laptop into up, and if the DJ is using turntables or CDJs, you just need to put up the level of those channel(s)


Sorry if I misinterpreted your question but this would seem to be the answer if I got it right.

BEHRINGER: 1204USB

I am sure there are much simpler solutions, but your question is rather vague.

 

[museav]

My understanding is that Serato allows you to use turntables traditionally or as control tracks for software. And Rane's Serato products include both interfaces and mixers.

Are you simply wanting a connection into the house mixer, whatever that is, that is easy to use or are you looking for something where the CD player(s) would normally be routed into the house mixer but plugging in a Serato interface would bypass that and insert the interface outputs? Or are you wanting to switch between the house mixer and a mixer that a DJ brings in?

 

[bishopthomas]

What you would want for Serato is a 1/8'' cable (To connect the laptop using the software), to dual 1/4'' (to connect to your mixer), and then you would want a a couple XLR to dual RCA to connect to the DJs turntables or CDJs.

The thing about Serato is that it is not just playback software. It also needs data from the computer, via USB. The way I have seen it patched is turntables (or CDJ's) go into the hardware interface via RCA and can control playback speed, direction, etc. Now, I'm not sure how to connect BOTH a pair of turntables AND a pair of CDJ's. Maybe you can patch it all into a mixer, but it seems like you'll need the correct Serato hardware to accept a L/R pair of each. I do know that you'll need to keep the L/R (white/red) RCA cables going to the L/R (white/red) of your Serato interface. Otherwise Serato thinks you're playing back backwards and it will freak out. This left us head scratching and scrambling at the last minute before a gig recently.

To the OP, basically, you're getting a bunch of guesses from people who really don't have experience in this world. Although you're welcome around here, going to a more specific forum (like the one Derek posted) would probably be your best bet. When you find an answer please report back, as I'm sure we would all love to be more informed about something we don't typically deal with.

 

[SHARYNF]

Hi all,

Right, I Run the lighting and Sound and also Dj at a club and some djs use serato and some dont so instead of havin to keep wiring there DVS in has anyone come across or made any kind of patchbay or wiring that i could install and then all the other djs can either plug in serato and play or unplug it and just use cd's as i dont really want anyone unplugging anything from the mixer, because wire's usually go missing or it doesnt get wired back in correctley.

Thanks Cj

Serato has THRU outputs that allow you to bypass serato, it just is a direct wired connection, for just this If you plug a turn table in and wanted to play a normal vinyl record, your thru connections would go to the mixer phono in, if it was cd's then it would go to line in on mixer. I am assuming you have the Serato SL1 at the club OR is it that the DJ's come with their own SL1?

If they or you have the Rane TTM57 with Serato built in then it would be different.

You could get 2 Passive Switches like

Hosa Technology SLW-333 - Passive Stereo SLW-333 B&H Photo Video

and just select what you are connecting to the mixer inputs OR you could get a bigger mixer

Sharyn