Numark DDS 80 Professional DJ CD Player Review

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(More customer reviews)The previous poster does have a point with the tedious amount time and work required to prep an iPod for use with this console. I didn't have to convert my iPod into the FAT32 mode like the OP is saying. I use my iPod like a regular iPod. The most time consuming process I encountered was going through my 30 GB of mp3s and renaming and classifying them through iTunes so that I could use them with the Numark device and the Librarian software properly.
I actually have an iDJ2 console which basically adds source inputs (ability to plug in and actively mix cd players or turntables or etc to the Numark device) just like a DJ mixer does. The programming guts and other special features of the two systems are practially interchangable. They both use "Librarian" software and have the same firmware upgrades. In essence the iDJ2 is a non-rackmount version of the Numark DDS.
With both of these devices you notice really quick if you have to modify your mp3 naming system. You find yourself searching for a track and can't find it because the tags are jumbled. It took me two weeks of previewing and renaming all of the 6,000+ tracks I have at my disposal. You also figure out pretty quick if your mp3s are substandard quality too. I have had to re-download a few of my mp3s that have volume level issues or sound quality problems. Some of the mp3s just suck, you have to adjust all of your volume settings so you can match volumes between tracks and by the next track you will have to reduce the volumes because they will be too loud. This is not the fault of the Numark device, it's just the nature of using mp3s.

So after renaming the tracks I learned it was a good idea to add a genre tag in the most useful DJing tracks. Tracks like the "Hokey Pokey", "YMCA", "Calle Ocho", etc. It's just easier to find them if you tag the genre with "DJ Music" or "Top 200" then they all pop up when you search for songs in that genre.
Once you're happy with the titles and tags on your mp3s then you have to run your mass storage device through the "Librarian software" on a PC. Doing so builds all the search criteria tags within the mass storage device so it will work when you utilize the search function of the Numark device. This only took my system about 2 hours for 6,000+ tracks.
When it's completed using the "Librarian" software, the next step is the more difficult step to swallow. You connect your iPod or flashdrive or external HHD to the Numark device and it tells you that you can either use your existing library or download a new one. If you have used your mass storage device prior, the old library still exists in the memory and any tracks added to your mass storage device since the old library was created will not be able to be located by the search engine. If you have added new tracks you must download the new library which can take hours and hours. I'm talking about watching paint dry on the wall boring. It takes my 30 GB iPod classic with 6,000+ tracks about 4 1/2 hours to build a new library everytime I added new tracks to the mass storage device/iPod. It seems to rebuild the library all the way from track one to track 6,000+ instead of just revising the existing file and only adding the tracks that are new to the library. I suppose this is a sort of a "checks and balances" to the library system to keep everything current incase there are deletions or additions to the mass storage device.
When the hard part is completed you can literally just plug your mass storage device into the Numark system and acknowledge that you want to use the existing library and in seconds you're using your Numark system like a pro DJ and it is fun to use for DJing. I don't completely trust the system to roll without my CD players and CD library as such just in case the mass storage device or the Numark system crashes leaving you with nothing, but with that said I DJed several gigs last summer and didn't use the actual CDs for more than four tracks during most of the gigs.

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DDS80 blends a familiar professional DJ CD player with new media formats and devices. The CD player features convenient USB ports for connection of modern media devices such as thumb and hard drives, iPods, MP3 players; and an included 80GB removable/upgradeable hard drive stores a limitless library of music. You can rip your music straight from CD to the hard drive for the security of a backup.DDS80’s unique blend of media with a high-definition color screen and Numark’s intuitive Crate music-management software give the mobile DJ incomparable visual control of their music. Carefully crafted around the way DJs work and play, DDS80 takes the questions out of mixing media formats and puts the answers back in the hands of the DJ.A number of Numark DJ technologies are built-into DDS80 to ensure that your gigs are always fun. Key Lock enables independent control of pitch and tempo so Cold Sweat will never sound like it's being sung by Alvin and Chipmunks – unless you want it to. You can move pitch all the way from -100% up to +25% and anywhere in-between. Beatkeeper™ seamlessly integrates your samples and loops and it has a tap-override function so you're always in control. You can play music from two devices simultaneously, including two songs from the same iPod! You can scratch CDs, MP3s, WAVs, and AACs (unprotected) using the large jog wheels.DDS80 ensures fast track access as a CD player, and when using the hard disk section, you can locate tunes even faster using text-search. You can easily expand and connect DDS80 to any USB music storage device using the two front-panel USB ports.DDS80 fits standard 19-inch equipment racks. It occupies 5RU total, or can be separated into a 3RU DDS controller and a 2RU DDS Drive. DDS80 is a powerhouse, cutting-edge CD player that combines the rock-solid DJ performance of a traditional DJ CD player with the forward-looking media compatibility of hard drive and USB connections.

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