PortableModManiac

I don't know if you worked out the answer to this…

I'm confused now. Is it just the phone you are interested in scratching with? Or is it just the device you are running a DVS tone through? If so then can't the USB output from a deck connect to the iPhone through the cck USB adapter? With the PT01 USB output direct to the iPhone works perfectly. The output can be cut from the jack with an external fader or mixer. If the device doesn't have USB there's cheap preamp PCBs that you can get or I have one I stripped out of a cheap Chinese vinyl to USB player. If you aren't thinking of using midi then what is the DVS is coming from? Or is coming from something like the Tonetable app that is a touch screen DVS tone generator? If it's the idea of the phone being part of the case I am sure there's a mixer that has either a iPhone or iPad slot built-in. Can't remember the name but it is pretty much the same thing as the device you are describing I think...

Hmm depends... If you don't want DVS then xwax or pideck isn't necessary for midi control. I have run mixxx on the pi and it didn't lag much for the fact it was the full version. I think there's a version that works best for the version of Linux used to run it on the pi but it was a while ago and I suspect that the latest version of the pi or similar device are powerful enough to run the full works I've seen windows 10 running so I guess the future of the pi is not the same as the past I remember.

I just installed one in a PT01 USB I'm working on. I haven't scratched with it yet but it looks and feels like it's worth the price. I have done the platter stabiliser rings and washers in my PT01 Scratch and I didn't really think much of it and it was a bit annoying to install. The solid cutz platter I have has the patterned holes in which makes installing the belt back on the easiest thing ever. The whole thing took seconds and no need for any other rings etc. If you are thinking about upgrading the platter I think it is worth the extra cost for something that is not just a crappy plastic thing that just takes ages to get right...

I like your thinking! I wish I could get at least one of the ideas I struggle to get working on paper finished before the next one takes over my mind and I move to the next one thinking that it will be better and I just end up with piles of junk and notes. If it's any help I had a similar idea to mod the old cheap DJ2GO midi controller into a portable deck. I will probably never get round to finishing it but it was sort of similar to the device you describe (in my head anyway lol). I have a load of cheap and crappy plastic portable turntables and even bigger cabinet style players that I have stripped down to be minimal, light and USB powered. I was asking in another thread about Phase being much different than the optical mouse hacks which are DIY midi jog wheels that can scratch with software through midi signals rather than DVS and there's was a link to some info but anyway I had the DJ2GO mapped to an old windows tablet that I played around with touch screen scratching. I was using the fader to cut VDJ while scratching the screen. Anyway long story short the plan was to mount the PCB into the plastic player I stripped down so it would be a platter powered by USB with the midi buttons layed out to the side like a sort of dicer thing The hard bit that I got bored before I got to experiment with was using the jog wheel reader to upscale it to work with the platter of the deck or if it wouldn't work add the optical mouse reader to the mix and then it would hopefully be a midi PT01 type thing with either the raspberry pi running mixxx built-in or just a USB port to connect with another device that would take the midi control... Anyway I never got far enough to be able to say if the platter reader would work but the rest would be ok with being powered by USB enough to make it spin and run the DJ2GO. I am sure that the easiest way to do it would be built from scratch but I am not that good and I have already got a dismantled DJ2GO to use... Anyway I don't have the best track record of making things that work so I am probably talking out loud about the crazy ideas that haunt me so ignore me if I don't make sense. If you do make something like this I would love to see it so good luck with your project. I think the optical mouse hacks for reading platters is a good place to start for something like this but I could wrong and just wanting someone else to do the mods I need to get round to finishing...

Hopefully I am not going too off topic but is Serato going to be featured more or less with the future releases? I saw Serato DJ allowed some older Rane and Pioneer mixers to work with DVS in an update a while ago and then I heard Traktor did something similar but after a long time of nothing... I have asked about the best scratch mixer and I am told it's the Pioneer DJM-S3 I think it is which is very expensive and for Serato DJ, yet the other mixers that are coming out don't seem to be Serato enabled... Is it possible that Serato can be pushed out of the market making the expensive mixers a bad idea for the future? Everything I look up seems to point to Rekordbox being the future DVS? Am I totally wrong and not understanding the licensing of DVS?

yep, one phone plays the beat, the other is the scratch deckHave you tried the Mixfader app? I used to play with touch screen scratching before getting a deck and then the portablism addiction later. I used to use it with the stokyo kutter as the control was amazing. There's other apps that allow one device to split the output to the mixer and then Scratch with each deck. I am probably not telling you anything you don't already know but I did a lot of touch screen portable scratching before vinyl came in to the setup so I can try share any information that isn't really mentioned much if you want or need anything. I spent a lot of time with editing VDJ skins for use with touch screen windows tablets and netbooks but the whole DVS thing killed most interest in the actual use of the device to scratch. Anyway I hope this makes sense lol but if not good luck with the enclosure. I have seen some DJ stands for phones and tablets that mount to mixers that can be used for the frame maybe.

Sweet yeh that's the stuff. I have to get the Pi and Arduino out again. Too many mods too little time lol.

Lol that's awesome. Thinking about the actual mod side of it. How close to a Rane style system are those optical mouse hacks? I was thinking about trying it (never get round to anything though) but was wondering about how similar a jog wheel is in terms of sending the midi signal to tell the software that the 'deck' is moving compared with a DVS signal. I have seen people 'scratch' with the optical mouse hacks which is midi I think. How far from DVS is midi? If it's not that far soon will it be hacked?

Sorry to dig up this old post but I saw the mention of a Stanton STR8 arm and trying to find any information or pics about mounting any other tonearm is an endless search that ends up with only my questions coming back to haunt me! Has anyone posted about the tonearm mount on the case? I can't find anything other than the fader position mod that shows the mount could be removed or remade. Any ideas for finding any examples of removing the tonearm mount or mounting a full tonearm bracket? I am going crazy debating whether to cut the case or not. I have been slacking for too long and am trying to get the mods done I have half started and stopped before I actually get anywhere and it's starting to look like a huge waste piled up taunting me.

I am not connected with the DJ world and am probably seeing an exaggerated view based on the bits of info I see on Instagram. I have seen a lot of combining the Shure panic with release of the Phase...

I didn't know that much about it other than everyone saying to buy as fast as possible but it is a bit annoying for things like certain portable mods that are designed for the Shure cartridge. I am not that knowledgeable about the different types of stylus but I guess something will come along and fill the gap. Seems crazy big companies are not making such well known products when there are a lot of people who spend crazy money (to me anyway) on upgrading plastic portables. I guess the interest in turntables and accessories it's not as widespread as I thought... I picked a weird time to get back into vinyl!

Damn feels is everything going obsolete... I was thinking about a Stanton with the straight arm. Cheap for a Direct Drive deck but I went even cheaper with an Epsilon. I got a used Stanton STR8 arm for a mod I have started which I don't know if it makes it worse if I damage it now and then they are not available anymore... Will all companies start going bust? Shure now Stanton?

Yeah I don't think I got any info about the release date after the initial delay one. It just arrived out of the blue. I can't help but see the same cheap plastic box when I look at the Phase as it's the same size but it also sounds too good to be true, compatible with everything... Mixfader app was amazing with the DVS working with most vinyl and tones so maybe but I don't understand how people are saying it will be the vinyl and stylus killer that is the definitive solution... At least without more information anyway. I would love to not spend any more cash on a stylus again trust me... (I broke a Shure last week and then hear that they're discontinued!). All the portable mods I've done are looking like a huge waste of time and money too if the future is stylus free...

I am not going to pre-order this time and I am probably sounding like a hater BUT I pre-ordered from them before and I waited ages for the Prolink to be released. I guess the delay was due to the focus turning to this and basically rushing to try to make the Prolink as cheaply and quickly as possible to get the orders out and move on with this. I forgot about ordering it the wait was so long until a package with a hand made box (even the Mixfader sticker was hand cut at an angle) arrived with a pretty bad and cheap old scart adapter looking plastic thing with cheap cables (the stokyo kutter was cheaper and had better cables and production). The Mixfader has the best rubber grip and everything about it feels like a quality product even down to the case with extra rubber pads for tablets so to see a peel off double sided tape pad on a rattling case that feels like it's jacks are going to snap off is a bit disappointing. The instructions are printed on a home ink jet printer and don't mention much as to the settings for the fader which seems to be stuck on scratch cut when used with it. I don't feel like putting the same faith in a product that is a bit more complicated than a few jacks and a Bluetooth connection after the let down from the Prolink hype. I think it was obviously sidetracked for the Phase and that's understandable but it just doesn't seem to be the actions of a company that is making something that is going to change the future of turntable use. At least not at first. Maybe version 2 will be worth it after any errors are ironed out. Anyway I don't hate the Prolink and it's useful but it is definitely not the intended quality that is usually found with their products which is something that makes me think about the way this could go if deadlines are not met again. The price isn't the same as the Prolink either so I think this is something I would want to see more of first. Anyway rant over but I don't think many people have said much about the Prolink pre-order problems...

I don't know how easy it is to to find a place to 3d print larger enclosures but you could use a mixture of a printed frame / mounts and then use either cut sheets of plywood, metal or laser cut plastic for the box type parts. I have a printer and I am still crap at actually creating what I wanted. Sometimes wood is a lot easier. Also I am not sure what you mean by the app or how it's used in this setup. Have you tried the Mixfader app? Is it touch screen scratching with the phone output cut by the fader?

This is some next level modding! I am attempting to add a Stanton STR8 tonearm to the PT01 USB and with the mount the stock tonearm goes in being part of the plastic casing I am reluctant to cut it out incase I don't pull it off and then the case is damaged and mounting any other tonearm is not going to be easy. I saw this and firstly was thinking wow, then I was wondering how you mounted the tonearm to the other side? Did you make a new mount? Or cut out the stock one? Here's a link to the pics I have of the initial mod but I am now at the point where I am deciding whether to remove the mount or mount it on the other side. If you remove the mount is it easy to remake? https://instagram.com/p/BiKWGnvH_jv/ Managed to upload some pics. I have removed the gimbal wiring etc and have tested with a headshell. I am thinking that to sink it just a little bit more that tonearm mount has to go... Any ideas?

This is the track I was reminded of few posts up... It's kind of a break but it has bass on it and it needed chopping and working a bit to make a few loops out of. I know it's a well known track but I was playing around with looping random tracks in the Mixfader app at -50% speeds and I heard it like it was new. From 0.00 for a few seconds. The bass seemed awesome so I did that isolation thing in Audition when you are making an a cappella using the instrumental to get clean drums and bass only loops. I probably wasted a lot of time to get a drum loop I haven't used other than the odd scratch practice...

Love that and that old warm synth like the one in summer madness. Sampling that one now ha

The weirdest thing I ever found out about breaks is that the two favorite songs I had for a while when I was in my teens were Setting Sun by The Chemical Brothers and Tomorrow Never Knows by The Beatles... I later found out they had a law suit against the Chems accusing them of stealing the break from The Beatles! I was like wow that's why I love them songs and I guess breaks became the thing that I am always drawn back to music for. Also if anyone says Ringo was a crap drummer I will calmly point them towards Tomorrow Never Knows! Here's the Chems version The Beatles version I have been obsessed with that break and got the midi file eventually and stripped out the drum pattern. It's got a strange off beat timing that is not easy to use with stuff... Anyway this is enough of my life story ha. This break is special to me for some reason I can't work out...

Absolutely ! The second video of Johnny Frigo is a cool example of nice breaks on cover versions ... The majority of the breaks I've used in my own productions haven't used the classics for drum samples and most of the things I use tend to come from Prog Rock or Jazz Fusion type records or other alternative sources .I'm not knocking the classics at all cause they are dope records to use and I will get round to doing a few tracks at some point that only use the classic breaks just to see how hard I can possibly flip them more than anything else. I like the fact that drum breaks can come from literally anywhere..I was listening to a shitty live stand up comedy record by some redneck or other who also had a band with him on stage at a mates house a while ago that had some badass drum grooves on the lp in between the dross. Yeah I like that break. Was doing a track with a Brubeck sample I need to finish this just reminded me (not very obscure Brubeck ha but I isolated the bass and it was heavy!). Think it was that Bossa Nova track. I am the same with finding obscure things to sample. I like finding loads of covers of a track I want to work with then cut all the little stabs and breaks out then add them in with the original track. I have no skills though so I am sounding like I am some producer when I haven't even finished one track ha. Hopefully soon I might!

I don't know if this counts as classic breaks but I somehow got this series of albums when I was subscribed to a Japanese (and other Asian countries) culture type magazine back when magazines were paper (ten years?!). I didn't appreciate the opportunity for sampling at the time but I reheard it in a random playlist and it was like hearing dusty old vinyl break samples. The album is called Thai Beat A Go Go and there's about four volumes I know of and the idea was to preserve the 45s released during the early Thai rock n roll scene where a lot of the tracks were covers of The Beatles and other hits but with a minimal lo-fi style. I can't find the exact tracks that are in my sample collection but this is one that I played around with. The intro stabs and break are a James Bond cover that sound kinda cool chopped up. There's better classic covers that don't have breaks in the original but the Thai track has. Hopefully this isn't breaking any rules as they are not the original breaks but sometimes the strangest covers have the best samples.

Cheers the videos lead me to find a how to use Groovebox with midi tutorial and saw the iPad might work with a USB hub so I just avoided the midi port idea and went USB completely ha.

Ha I had read it but I got a bit lost with some of the terminology. I have a mental block when it comes to trying to follow tutorials and guides so I end up just plugging things in and seeing what happens. I did get a new toy to play with from the second hand store yesterday the Launch Control XL which is pretty awesome for the cost. Still not perfected the midi input on the M-Track. Spent all morning rearranging everything. I hooked the big midi out port from an old M-AUDIO Oxygen 8 to the M-TRACK midi in and AUM seems to recognise the device when I use midi learn... That's as far as I have got so far ha. I am surprised I got that far but it is not a fun task and I can't find the info on the M-Track especially the iOS aspect seeing as it's an antique! I have to do things with visual guides like pics and videos due to getting hit by a car that forced me to relearn how to relearn which is the reason why I am rubbish at explaining anything so if I am posting without making any sense let me know lol. I only joined here and Instagram to find examples of mods and setups to copy for a vintage record player mod and I ended up learning more than I intended which became a new floor space and bank account draining hobby! Anyway I hope I can learn from you guys and share SOMETHING useful without annoying everyone with basic and strange questions!

That was awesome by the way! The beginning I saw the fader open quite a lot but towards the end I saw the fader kind of gripped tight and tapped open. I know I didn't start this post and am highjacking it but I don't find it natural to have the fader open. I noticed almost two different styles of holding the fader from the first half where it's open to the last half. Like holding it from the top and the other holding it to the side? I have no skills so probably need to learn more ways to handle it other than tapping it open...