We're currently living in the age of digital audio. DJ Tools is an incredibly powerful tool that is essential to any music producer.

But there are so many different DJ Tools plugins in the music production landscape, so we decided to create the ultimate list of the top DJ Tools plugins today that will help you find the perfect fit.


XFade

DJ Tools by Stagecraft



Images



Description


Fades in a DAW?

XFade is designed to give the producer or DAW DJ a simple crossfader, suitable for mixing, production, or live performance. This plugin allows you to fade between 2 input streams within the DAW, overlaying samples on each side as well.

Damn Fast

XFade operates with 0 latency and can fade in/out more than once in a buffer, so it will be lightning-fast even with larger buffers and older sound-cards. If you plan on crab scratching in your DAW, this is a must. Be sure your midi device is high speed, XFade can keep up!

Adjustable Cutoff

You can adjust the crossfade slope. Use a sharp curve for fast cuts, or a gradual slope for slow and smooth fades between tracks.

Add Samples

Additionally, there are sample players on each side, which can overlay audio int the mix. Keep an extra track to fall back on when mixing, blast an air horn or one shot for some extra energy, or have a loop to fall back on while your guys drop a solo. A must for live performance.



Rating


Value For Money

Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


Mac OS X:

  • Mac OS X 10.11 or newer

Formats:

  • AAX
  • AU
  • VST
  • VST 3

Windows:

  • ­Windows 7 or newer (64-bit only)
  • Windows 32-bit hosts are no longer supported

Formats:

  • AAX
  • VST
  • VST 3

Note: Windows 32-bit hosts are no longer supported.

OS Compatibility



Vinyl Lab

DJ Tools by Stagecraft



Images



Description


Vinyl Lab is powerful and easy to use. It allows you to scratch and DJ in a wide range of new ways. The fully dynamic and customizable UI lets you take charge of your setup like never before.

A New Type of DJ Software

Vinyl Lab is our take on traditional DJ software. Like any professional DJ software, it allows you to browse and play beat matched tracks, mix, and loop. We take it to the next level too, by adding full VST/AU plugin hosting capabilities and effects chaining, in app online audio searching, and remixing to change the key and tempo of any track in your library (and export them).

Effects Chaining

Vinyl Lab comes with a broad array of native effects, and professional effects chaining features unlike other DJ software. Vinyl Lab is a VST/AU host, so you can open and use millions of plugins. Additionally, all the parameters can be quantized in more ways than just the typical straight or triplets. This means that live creation of beats and manipulation of effects has never been better!

Remix Key & Tempo

With Vinyl Lab you can alter the pitch (key) and tempo of tracks independently. This means you can warp tracks, loops and samples that would normally not sound right together, and bring them into accord. You can then remix and export your tracks to any key and tempo, so that they can be used in other applications.

Samples and Loops

Samples and loops are the core of Vinyl Lab. We offer unprecedented control of an environment that can play overlapping loops in perfect time, and drop in samples at will. Controlling the way that loops interact in a musical environment, alongside turntables, has always been a challenge for existing DJ software. We give you full control, allowing turntablism in ways never before seen.

In some ways Vinyl Lab is also far more versatile than existing DJ technology.  You can, for example, customize the UI so you an get the layout you want, play multiple tracks on turntables at the same time, overlap and beat juggle many samples at once, and quantize virtually any parameter to be in time and in the master key (in real time).  Quite simply, you have more control, and more options than with any other DJ software.

Features:

  • 16 sample players, assignable to either of 2 turntables
  • Timecoded vinyl support (all types of timecode supported), as well as CDJs
  • Effects chaining with assignable parameters
  • Fully midi mappable
  • Host VST and Audiounit plugin effects
  • Remix to any key and tempo ­ and export for use in other applications
  • Run as Standalone (Mac or Windows) or as a VST or Audiounit plugin
  • MIDI platters controllers for scratching ability
  • CDJ compatible



Video


Rating


Value For Money

Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


:

Mac

  • Mac OS X 10.11 or newer

Formats:

  • AAX
  • AU
  • VST
  • VST3
  • Standalone

Windows

  • ­Windows 7 or newer 

Formats:

  • AAX
  • VST

OS Compatibility



Scratch Track

DJ Tools by Stagecraft



Images



Description


Scratching in the DAW

Scratch track is designed to give you a way to add scratches to your recording projects. You can use this plugin to scratch samples, loops, tracks or live input. This is the only software to offer live scratching, and to support all types of timecoded vinyl, midi learn for controls, automation, and programmable crossfade.

Timecoded Vinyl

Scratch track is the cheapest, simplest, most versatile way to use your timecoded vinyl in any DAW or audio plugin host. That makes this plugin the easiest way to add scratching to your recording projects, period.

Live Input

You can even scratch a stream of live incoming audio. This means you can scratch any of the sounds that you can generate with the host program, or even incoming audio like a live MC. Imagine sending out a shout out from on stage, and then rolling it back to scratch the audio. No problem.

Samples and Tracks

You can use this plugin to trigger samples and tracks. There are programmable cue points so you can juggle between cues in your samples at the touch of a button.

Midi Learn

Like all our plugins, this one comes with it’s own midi learn. Simply right click on any of the buttons or sliders (including the crossfade) to map a midi signal to that control.

Crossfade

The only plugin out there with a professional level crossfade. This plugin lets you adjust the curve of the crossfader, and responds with super low latency to incoming midi signals, so you can finally use a midi controller for serious scratching.

Vinyl Setup

The primary function of the Scratch Track plugin is to allow you to use timecoded vinyl inside your recording software. this means that you can scratch audio samples with timecoded vinyl from inside ableton, cubase, reaper, or any other DAW. To use vinyl, simply follow the steps below.

First, open the plugin UI, enable vinyl inputs (by clicking on “vinyl in”) and then select the type of vinyl you wish to use (in the vinyl control panel, in the plugin). 

Second, You need to make sure that audio is actually being routed to the plugin (specifically to the first two inputs). In most DAWs, the vinyl input will be the primary input shown on the plugin’s track.

In ableton for instance, you simply need to select the incoming vinyl signal from the audio input dropdown, as shown below.

Midi Setup

Like all our plugins, you can map incoming midi messages to any of the sliders or buttons. To do this, simply right click the button or slider, and then activate the midi learn. Once activated, the object will learn the next midi message that it receives, and use that in the future to trigger/move.

Like all our plugins, you can map incoming midi messages to any of the sliders or buttons. To do this, simply right click the button or slider, and then activate the midi learn. Once activated, the object will learn the next midi message that it receives, and use that in the future to trigger/move. 

Line Ins

One of the novel features of Scratch Track is that it will allow you to scratch live incoming audio. This means (for instance) that you could sing a few lines of a song, and then grab the turntable, and scratch the audio immediately after it was first created.

To do this you must first enable live streaming (by clicking on the “live input” button on the plugin’s UI.

Once enabled, the plugin will add the incoming audio from inputs 3&4 to the plugin’s scratch buffer. The incoming audio will also be immediately displayed in the waveform UI (shown below).

Notice, that once you scratch the stream, it will no longer be in sync with the live throughput. To bring it back up to the current play time, simply click the “sync” button.

Automation

One of the most powerful and unique features of Scratch Track is that it can be used to record turntable scratching to automation data. This means that in addition to recording the audio output (what the scratch sounds like), you can also record how the timecoded vinyl was moved to obtain a certain scratch. It should be possible, then, to tweak the scratch after the fact, to invent new scratches that would otherwise not be possible.

To record automation, simply select the automation “out” on the plugin. This will tell the plugin to send tracking data for all parameters to the host, including the scratches that it is producing based on the timecoded vinyl input. In your host, you can then record this data.

How to do this will vary depending on your software. In ableton, simply hitting the record button will record all automation.

To play back the automation, we must now select the automation “In” button on the Scratch Track plugin (to let the plugin know it should use incoming automation data and not the incoming timecoded vinyl signal, or other midi inputs). You may also need to record automation for one of the “play” parameters, in order to trigger the sample.

You should now see the turntable scratch when you hit play on the DAW, regardless of the timecoded vinyl input.

Finally, to take this to the next level, you can record automation for the crossfade parameter. By automating the scratches and the crossfade, we can reproduce the actions of a turntablist down to the smallest detail. We can also invent new and impossible scratches by tweaking the automation data.

Features:

  • Interprets timecoded vinyl and allows scratching
  • Scratch loops, samples, or tracks
  • Record and scratch live inputs in real time
  • Record loops
  • Midi learn
  • MIDI platters controllers for scratching ability
  • CDJ compatible
  • Supports most MIDI controllers



Video


Rating


Value For Money

Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


:

Mac

  • Mac OS X 10.11 or newer

Formats:

  • AAX
  • AU
  • VST
  • VST3
  • Standalone

Windows

  • ­Windows 7 or newer

Formats:

  • AAX
  • VST

OS Compatibility