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Forum: VirtualDJ Technical Support

Topic: Tempo change sounds much worse than before

This topic is old and might contain outdated or incorrect information.

I am using VirtualDJ 8.2 (b3343) on Windows 7, currently with an internal sound card (ASUS Xonar DSX thru WASAPI). Upon listening to some new tracks on high volume, I have noticed that applying even a very small change in tempo (126 bpm instead of the original 125) with key lock on results in a much softer and muddier sound, the quality drop is severe and immediately noticeable. I am not sure since which verson, but earlier versions did not have such drastic change in sound quality when adjusting tempo.

I have checked VirtualDJ 7 (as I don't have an installer for earlier VDJ 8 versions), and it has much less (but still noticeable) of an effect on sound quality when changing tempo with key lock on.

What is going on?
 
Posted Wed 24 Aug 16 @ 9:57 am
Most likely your soundcard applies it's own effects thus causing this behavior.
Make sure that your soundcard (check via it's panel on Windows) does not do any DSP processing and test again.
Also it may worth to check at which value your "pitchQuality" setting is set at
 
PhantomDeejay wrote :
Most likely your soundcard applies it's own effects thus causing this behavior.
Make sure that your soundcard (check via it's panel on Windows) does not do any DSP processing and test again.
Also it may worth to check at which value your "pitchQuality" setting is set at


Thanks for your ideas! Your comment regarding the soundcard applying some kind of effect does not compute though: why would a soundcard do anything only when I change the tempo in VDJ? I checked anyway, and every effect, DSP, EQ and everything else is turned off. My pitchQuality setting is set to 2, so in theory it's using the highest quality algorithm.

Please note that I have checked VDJ 7, which is supposed to have an inferior sound engine, and it has a much smaller effect on quality than the current VDJ 8 version. Is it impossible that Atomix changed the pitch algorithm for the worse? Is it possible that this change only affects certain interfaces (WASAPI) more than others (ASIO)? I hope some developer notices this thread...
 
Whats your sample rate set to??
 
the SOUND INSURGENT wrote :
Whats your sample rate set to??


My sampleRate is set to Automatic (44100), and the soundcard is also set to PCM 44.1 kHz.
 
Can you try changing it to 48000 and see if the sound is any better??

When I use 41000 it sounds bad, so bad I won use it. I use 48000 and everything sounds great.
 
But now i'm confused... Surely all your songs are at 41000. Why use 48000?

Personally I hate pitch lock. Try turning it off altogether. Mixes never phase right when pitch lock is engaged. It's chopping up the audio, inserting tiny gaps or over lapping the segments. It plays havoc with transients if they happen to fall on the overlap.

 
Yes your right, most of my vids are 44100.

But I get some weird artifacts. Ill try and record it tomorrow , you can clearly hear the difference.

I'm using a Pioneer DJM 850 as my soundcard.
 
I did not write that line... Different animals is not a word I'd say. What's going on here???

SEE BELOW
 
The OP is talking about "key lock" not "pitch lock", these are two different animals.

I'm sorry, I edited your post instead of adding a new one.
 
Well... technically... by standard definition, Pitch Lock and Key Lock are the same thing. But, if 'Pitch Lock' is being referred to as it is in VDJ, the pitch faders being locked to stay with each other when moved, then yes, that is different. In my original post, I actually meant Key Lock, my bad!
 
This whole thread is about keylock......... And I still can hear a difference between 44100 and 48000 when it comes to the sample rate.
 
I know the thread is about Key lock. That's why I explained I meant Key lock as Pitch lock, in VDJ terms means something else.

Perhaps when it's set at 48000 the rate of the splices Key lock uses in order to perform it's function is greater. Or, in your specific case, the tracks you are using, these splices fall less on transients.at this rate. Personally I'm yet to hear a Key Lock, Key Shift function that works well enough (outside of a DAW) to justify using it. When mixing it just does not sound as good.

 
It used to be that Atomix licensed the "elastique efficient v2" algorithm from zplane (as do many other DJ and DAW progs - although some use elastique Pro).

I don't know if that's still the case with VDJ 8.
 


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