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Backing Up Your Rekordbox Music

Posted by djolliednb on 15/05/2017
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Following on from my Organising Your DJ Music Library article I thought I’d drop another DJ Tips tutorial showing how I back up my Rekordbox USB sticks. It’s something had trouble finding all the info on how to do with the least fuss possible, so thought you may also have had the same issue. Here’s the steps I use to keep my DJ music collection safe:

  • Insert your Rekordbox USB stick into your computer.
  • If you open the USB folder you will see your ‘Contents’ folder . If you copy this folder onto your back up drive you will save your tracks, BUT it won’t copy any of your cue point or loop information. There is a hidden ‘Pioneer’ folder on your USB that stores all your cue points, to view this you need to:
  • PC: Here’s how to view hidden files in your version of Windows
  • Mac: Go to Applications > Utilities > Terminal
  • Mac: In the terminal window paste the following script:

defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles TRUE;killall Finder

  • Mac: Then hit enter.
  • In your Rekordbox USB you will now see 2 folders, ‘Contents’ & ‘Pioneer’.
  • Copy both these folders to your back up drive.

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  • Once you’re done you can hide all your hidden files again.
  • PC: Follow these steps but this time un-clicking the Hidden Files box in your version of Windows
  • Mac: Go to Applications > Utilities > Terminal (PC users follow the same steps as before)
  • Mac: In the terminal window paste the following script:

defaults write com.apple.Finder AppleShowAllFiles FALSE;killall Finder

  • Mac: Then hit enter.

It may take a long time to copy both folders (About 2 hours last time I did it), but it’s a small price to pay to keep everything safe should your USB stick get lost or die on you. I make a habit of doing this every 4-6 weeks, copying my collection onto both my back up drive & a spare USB stick which I take to gigs with me (just in case the CDJ’s aren’t linked).

If you found this useful feel free to share the info with other DJ friends 🙂

Organising Your DJ Music Library

Posted by djolliednb on 03/04/2017
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I thought I’d share my method on how I organise my digital music collection as when I first switched over from vinyl it wasn’t really something I properly thought about. Since I’ve started sorting tunes properly it has made it much easier for me to find the tracks I want on the fly mid set. I’ve seen a few articles online about how to organise your music library, but not so many that are aimed towards DJ’s so thought I’d share my process as simply as possible.

Firstly I am using Pioneer’s Rekordbox software, but the principle is the same for Serato, Traktor or even iTunes.

The secret to organisation is playlists! Every month I create a new playlist and name it with the month & year, for example March 17. Every track I buy or get sent in March 2017 will go straight into that folder, that way I will be able to skip back easily to find all tracks from that month.

Screen Shot 2017-03-31 at 18.55.51

I will also spend about and hour each week making sure all the info for each track is correct; Artist, Title, Album, Record Label. This helps me when I’m DJing, if I want to play a track by a certain artist I can easily find it. I’m not so fussed about the Genre or Key but if you are then be sure to update these fields. I will also make sure my beat grids & cue points are all set up during this time. It’s best to stay on top of this and do a few each week, if you leave it a few weeks then it becomes a bit time consuming!

Each time I play a gig I will set up a playlist. I’m not one for pre-planning sets, but it does help to think what tracks I’d like to play and put them in one place so I have easy access to them. I compare it to when I used to go through my vinyl and put what I wanted to play in my record bag.

Unless you have way too much time on your hands I wouldn’t bother going back through your digital collection, it’ll take forever, concentrate on keeping it in order going forward. I do find myself wanting to play old tunes  now & then so will catalogue them in small batches as & when I need them.

And that’s pretty much it…. Simple! I would also recommend backing up your collection (including cue points) regularly. I do mine every 6 weeks. That way if a USB stick or hard drive dies on me I haven’t lost everything. I may do an article on how I do that in the next couple of weeks. Any other DJ related tips you want to know? Let me know