Rane SL 2 User manual
RAN E SL2 FOR S ERATO SCR ATCH LIVE • OPERATOR’S M ANUAL 2.5.0
Important Safety Instructions
For the continued safety of yourself and
others we recommend that you read
the following safety and installation
instructions. Keep this document in a safe
location for future reference. Please heed
all warnings and follow all instructions.
Do not use this equipment in a location
where it might become wet. Clean only
with a damp cloth. This equipment may
be used as a table top device, although
stacking of the equipment is dangerous
and not recommended.
Equipment may be located directly above
or below this unit, but note that some
equipment (like large power ampliers)
may cause an unacceptable amount of
hum or may generate too much heat
and degrade the performance of this
equipment. Only use attachments and
accessories specied by Rane. Refer all
servicing to qualied service personnel.
Servicing is required when the apparatus
has been damaged in any way, such as
spilled liquid, fallen objects into an opened
chassis, exposure to rain or moisture, a
dropped unit, or abnormal operation.
FCC Statement
This equipment has been tested and
found to comply with the limits for a Class
B digital device, pursuant to part 15 of
the FCC Rules. These limits are designed
to provide reasonable protection against
harmful interference in a residential
installation. This equipment generates,
uses and can radiate radio frequency
energy and, if not installed and used
in accordance with the instructions,
may cause harmful interference to
radio communications. However, there
is no guarantee that interference will
not occur in a particular installation.
If this equipment does cause harmful
interference to radio or television
reception, which can be determined
by turning the equipment off and on,
the user is encouraged to try to correct
the interference by one or more of the
following measures:
• Reorient or relocate the receiving
antenna.
• Increase the separation between the
equipment and receiver.
• Connect the equipment into an outlet on
a circuit different from that to which the
receiver is connected.
• Consult the dealer or an experienced
radio/TV technician for help.
FCC Declaration of Conformity
Brand: Rane
Model: SL2
This device complies with part 15 of the
FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the
following two conditions: (1) This device
may not cause harmful interference,
and (2) this device must accept
any interference received, including
interference that may cause undesired
operation.
Responsible Party:
Rane Corporation
10802 47th Avenue West
Mukilteo WA 98275-5000 USA
Phone: 425-355-6000
CAUTION: Changes or modications not
expressly approved by Rane Corporation
could void the user’s authority to operate
the equipment.
This Class B digital apparatus complies
with Canadian ICES-003.
Cet appareil numérique de la classe B
est conforme à la norme NMB-003 du
Canada.
2
RAN E SL2 FOR SERATO SCRATCH LIVE • O PERATOR’S MANUA L 2.5.0
Introduction
Please read through these operating
instructions so you will know how to get
the most from your Sixty-Two and the
included Scratch Live software. Keep this
manual in a safe place. If you ever lose
it, a new copy may be downloaded at
dj.rane.com.
To keep up with the latest tips, and to
check for Scratch Live software updates,
visit the Ofcial Scratch Live Forum at
serato.com.
Wear Parts
The SL2 interface contains no wear parts.
The vinyl records and CDs are wear parts
as described in “Limited Warranties” on
page 42.
Copyright Notices
© 2013 Rane Corporation. All rights
reserved. Scratch Live and the Scratch
Live logo are trademarks of Serato.
Trademarked in the U.S. and other
countries. Licensed exclusively to Rane
Corporation. This software is based in
part on the work of the Independent JPEG
Group, and uses libpng code, copyright
© 2000-2002 Glenn Randers-Pehrson.
The Scratch Live Control Tone, the audio
pressed on Scratch Live Control vinyl
and Control CDs, is copyright ©20042013 Serato. The Control Vinyl and
Control CDs are licensed for personal
use only. The creation of personal
backups of the Control CD is allowed,
however duplicating Control CDs for
commercial benet is strictly prohibited.
For avoidance of doubt the duplication
or creation of Control vinyl for any use
is strictly prohibited. Please respect our
copyright. Windows XP, Windows Vista
and Windows7 is either a registered
trademark or a trademark of Microsoft
Corporation in the United States and/or
other countries. Apple, Mac, Macintosh
and iTunes are trademarks of Apple
Computer, Inc., registered in the US and/
or other countries.
Minimum System Requirements
• Available USB 2.0 port.
• 1280 x 720 screen resolution or
higher.
• 2 GB RAM, more for a large
library.
• Hard drive space for music:
5400RPM minimum, 7200RPM
recommended for high resolution
audio playback.
PC
• 2.2 GHz Intel Core Duo.
• Windows XP with Service Pack
3 or higher, or Vista with Service
Pack 2 or higher, or Windows 7.
We recommend Windows 7 over
Vista.
Mac
• 1.83 GHz Intel Core Duo.
• OSX 10.5.8 or higher.
PLEASE NOTE: These are the
minimum requirements to run
Serato Scratch Live without
optional plugins. For best
performance or when using
optional plugins we recommend
you use a higher spec computer.
Please see the Minimum Specs at
serato.com/scratchlive.
RAN E SL2 FOR SERATO SCRATCH LIVE • O PERATOR’S MANUA L 2.5.0
Check List
These items are included in the
box:
1 SL2 hardware interface.
1 Serato Scratch Live software
install disc.
1 USB cable.
4 stereo RCA cables.
2 control CDs.
2 control vinyl records.
4 rubber feet for the SL2.
1 Quick Start Guide.
1 Warranty card.
1 this manual.
3
Contents
Important Safety Instructions 2
FCC Statement 2
FCC Declaration of Conformity 2
Introduction 3
Wear Parts 3
Copyright Notices 3
Minimum System Requirements 3
Check List 3
Getting Started 6
System Overview 6
Connecting the SL2 6
Turntable Setup 6
CD Player Setup 6
Kensington Security Slot 6
Playing Regular Vinyl and CDs 7
Optional Power Supply 7
USB Drivers 7
ASIO (Windows) 7
Core Audio (Macintosh) 7
Control Panel 7
Installing Scratch Live 8
Mac 8
Windows 8
Additional Windows Drivers 8
Starting the Software 8
Using the Tool Tips 8
Calibrating Scratch Live 9
The Noise Threshold 9
How to Calibrate Scratch Live 9
The Scopes 9
Calibration Troubleshooting 9
Master Gain 13
33 / 45 Speeds 13
Tracking Indicator 13
Tap Tempo 14
Key Lock 14
Repeat 14
Censor 14
Eject 14
Autoplay 14
Reverse Input Control 14
Track Gain 14
USB Dropout Indicator 14
Display Modes 15
Library Views 15
Scratch Live Modes 16
Thru Mode 16
Absolute Mode 16
Relative Mode 16
Internal Mode 17
Temporary Cue 17
More Controls 17
Importing and Playing Music 10
Importing Your Music 10
Supported File Types 10
Playing Music 10
Track Display 10
Whitelabel.net 11
Preparing Your Files 11
Analyzing Files 11
How to Analyze Files 11
About Corrupt Files 11
Set Auto BPM 11
The Offline Player 11
Playback Control 12
The Control Record 12
The Control CD 12
Vinyl Scroll 12
Main Screen Overview 12
Virtual Deck 12
Visual Aids 13
Tempo Matching Display 13
Track Overview Display 13
Main Waveform Display 13
Beat Matching Display 13
Cue Points 18
Setting Cue Points 18
Enable Hot Cues 18
Triggering Cue Points 18
Editing Cue Points 18
Customizing Cue Points 18
Looping 18
Auto-Looping 19
The A-Slot 19
Loop Roll 19
Loop Roll with MIDI 19
SP-6 Sample Player 20
Loading the SP-6 20
Playing Samples 20
SP-6 Instant Doubles 20
SP-6 Play Modes 20
SP-6 Pitch Controls 21
SP-6 ‘Play From’ Selector 21
SP-6 Track Overviews 21
SP-6 Slot Volumes 21
SP-6 Output Selector 21
Individual Output Selectors 21
SP-6 Sample Banks 21
SP-6 Mute Buttons 21
SP-6 MIDI 21
4
RAN E SL2 FOR SERATO SCRATCH LIVE • O PERATOR’S MANUA L 2.5.0
DJ-FX Plugin 22
Ultra Knob Mode 22
Super Knob Mode 22
Effects BPM Multiplier 22
Deck Assign 22
Show Parameters 22
Macro Edit Mode 22
MIDI Control 23
MIDI Controller Setup 23
Assigning Controls 23
MIDI Output Lighting 23
MIDI Platters 23
Assign MIDI to Other Controls 23
Ctrl-Click Functionality 24
Presets 24
Native Controller Support 24
MIDI Devices 24
Technical Information 24
Organizing Your Music 24
Grouping Tracks into Crates 24
Subcrates 25
Smart Crates 25
Sorting Your Files 25
Using the Song Browser 25
Searching 25
Prepare Window 26
History 26
Serato Playlists 26
Uploading Serato Playlists 27
Live Playlists 27
Editing ID3 tags 27
Library Zoom 27
Display Album Art 27
Adding Album Art 27
Status Icons 27
More Info on Corrupt Files 27
File Management 28
Rescan ID3 Tags 28
Relocate Lost Files 28
Deleting Crates and Tracks 28
Copy & Move Files & Folders 28
Copying & Moving Crates 28
Scratch Live Backup 28
Recording 29
Record Gain Knob 29
Sampling From Vinyl 29
Recording Bit Depth 29
LiveFeed 30
Mixing with One Turntable or CD
Player 30
Keyboard Shortcuts 31
Additional Setup 32
Hardware 32
USB Buffer Size (Latency) 32
Updating Firmware 32
Audio Input Level 32
Recording Bit Depth 32
Sample Rate (kHz) 32
Playback 32
Track End Warning 32
Playback Keys Use Shift 32
Lock Playing Deck 32
Sort Cues Chronologically 32
Enable Hot Cues 32
Use Auto Gain 33
Hi-Fi Resampler 33
Play From Start 33
Instant Doubles 33
Play From First Cue Point 33
Braking (INT Mode) 33
Audio Output 33
Vinyl Control 33
Adjust Loops with Vinyl 33
Next Song On Flip 33
Enable Vinyl Scroll 33
Reverse Vinyl Scroll 33
Vinyl Scroll Speed 33
Drop To Absolute Position (REL
Mode) 33
Drop To Cue Points (REL Mode) 34
Vinyl Start Offset 34
Library 34
Read iTunes Library 34
Protect Library 34
Customize Crate Views 34
Center On Selected Song 34
Show All File Types 34
Include Subcrate Tracks 34
AutoFill Overviews 34
Font Size 35
Album Art Size 35
Display 35
Maximum Screen Updates 35
Audio Cache 35
Show Album Art On Deck 35
Plugins 35
SP-6 35
DJ-FX 35
Serato Playlists 35
Serato Video 35
Serato Remote 35
Troubleshooting and Frequently
Asked Questions 36
Corrupt File Descriptions and
Diagnoses 37
Scope Reading and Fixes 38
SL2 Specifications 40
Declaration of Conformity 41
Factory Authorized Service 42
Limited Warranties 42
RAN E SL2 FOR SERATO SCRATCH LIVE • O PERATOR’S MANUA L 2.5.0
5
PHONO
CD
RIGHT
DECK
LEFT
DECK
Getting Started
System Overview
The Scratch Live control records and
CDs are pressed with an audible tone
specically developed for controlling the
Scratch Live software application.
The SL2 interface converts the control
signal coming from each deck into digital
audio, to be sent via USB to the Scratch
Live software, which decodes that signal
into a stream of information based on
what the DJ is doing with the control disc.
A virtual ‘deck’ replicates the movements
of the control disc. Audio les loaded
onto the Virtual Decks are then played
back through the outputs of the hardware,
with any manipulation of the control discs
reproduced on the audio, effectively
emulating vinyl control of the les loaded
in software.
Connecting the SL2
To integrate an SL2 unit into a typical DJ
setup, connect it to your turntables (or CD
players) and mixer, as follows:
1. Inputs
*
RIGHT
DECK
Connect your CD players or turntables to
the DECK INPUTS on the Rane SL2. *If
you use turntables, connect their ground
wires to the ground terminal on the SL2 or
your mixer.
2. Input Level Selection
Select the correct input level using the
CD / PHONO switch. Select PHONO for
Phono (turntables) or CD for Line (CD
players).
3. Outputs
LEFT
DECK
4. Connect the SL2 to your computer
COMPUTER
Using the provided USB cable, connect
your SL2 to an available USB 2.0 port on
your computer. Make sure you connect it
directly to your computer and not through
a hub or splitter.
Turntable Setup
1. Set the tone arms to the specic
recommendations of the cartridge
used, so that the needle never leaves
the record, but not heavy enough that
it heats up signicantly. Both produce
poor tracking.
2. Grounding is extremely important when
using Scratch Live. Make sure you have
good connections from the ground wires
of your turntables to the grounding
post of your SL2 or your mixer. If you
do not ground your turntables properly,
the control signal will be noisy and the
tracking of the record position will be
erratic.
3. Ensure the SL2 is set to receive a phono
level signal – See step 2 of Connecting
the SL2.
6
Connect the OUTPUTS of the SL2 to line
inputs on your mixer. You may need to
switch to CD or LINE on your mixer (not
PHONO).
RAN E SL2 FOR SERATO SCRATCH LIVE • O PERATOR’S MANUA L 2.5.0
CD Player Setup
Disable all built-in effects on the CD
player, including keylock/master tempo.
Ensure the SL2 is set to receive a LINE
level signal – See step 2 of Connecting
the SL2.
Kensington Security Slot
You can use a Kensington
security cable to attach the SL2
to an immovable object. Each
side of the SL2 has a Kensington
Security Slot. Refer to the instructions
provided with your Kensington Lock.
Playing Regular Vinyl and CDs
SL 2 Audio Driver Control Panel
–
Buffer Size
14 ms
CD
Phono
NOTE: the SL2 must be powered by
USB or the optional external power
supply for the DECK THRUs to work.
If external power is connected, the SL2
is self-powered and power is not used
from the USB port.
If external power is not connected, the
SL2 draws power from the USB port.
Power switching is automatic and the
device continues to operate uninterrupted
as long as a power sources is available.
If you wish to use the SL2 Thru outputs
when a computer is not connected,
you will need to obtain and connect the
optional external power supply. Thrus are
turned on and off in the Control Panel.
To turn the Thrus off and on in Scratch
Live, click on the THRU button just above
each Virtual Deck for the respective
channel. This will change the state of the
channels to Thru Mode, sending audio
direct from the SL2 inputs to your mixer.
See “Thru Mode” on page 16.
Optional Power Supply
The Rane RS 6 power supply is an
accessory for the SL2. Customers in the
U.S.A. may purchase from the Factory
Store at www.rane.com. Customers in
other countries may purchase the RS 6
from the International Distributor in your
country, which are listed at rane.com.
Connect the barrel connector of the
power supply to the 7.5 VDC jack on the
SL2. Plug the power supply into an AC
outlet. The yellow POWER indicator will
light on the SL2.
The universal power supply includes
different input plugs for the USA, Europe,
UK and Australia. The USA plug is
attached at the factory — you may need
to replace it in your country.
To remove a
plug, PUSH the
button while turning
the outer rim
counterclockwise.
To attach a plug,
rotate it to t into
the supply and turn
clockwise until it
locks in place.
OPEN
OPEN
PUSH
LOCK
The power supply is regulated 7.5
volts DC, 1 amp, using a P6 type barrel
plug. Any substitute must meet these
specications.
-(5.5mm) +(2.5mm)
USB Drivers
The SL2 is a dual personality device.
When using Serato Scratch Live,
proprietary Serato Audio Research
drivers are used in place of Rane ASIO
(Windows) and Core Audio (Mac) drivers.
The included Rane drivers are used when
Scratch Live is not running.
Rane ASIO and Core Audio drivers
allow the SL2 to act as a 4-in 4-out
external USB sound card for use with
multiple third-party software applications
that support Core Audio or ASIO. ASIO
and Core Audio drivers are multi-client,
meaning they allow multiple applications
on a computer to share the device at the
same time. ASIO and Core Audio drivers
are not available on a machine when
Scratch Live is running.
The ASIO and Core Audio drivers are
included in the Scratch Live installer as an
option. See the instructions in “Installing
Scratch Live” on page 8.
ASIO (Windows)
The SL2 uses a low-latency, multi-client,
ASIO device driver to interface with
software applications other than Scratch
Live on Windows operating systems.
Multi-client ASIO allows different audio
software applications to simultaneously
stream audio to and from the SL2. If the
same playback channel is selected in
more than one application, the driver
mixes the audio from different applications
before streaming it to the device.
The driver Control Panel may be
launched from the Windows Control
LOCK
Panel. Select Start > Control Panel >
Rane SL2.
Core Audio (Macintosh)
The SL2 uses a low-latency, Core Audio
device driver to interface with software
applications other than Scratch Live
on Macintosh operating systems. Core
Audio allows different audio software
applications to simultaneously stream
audio to and from the SL2.
To launch the SL2 driver Control Panel,
open the System Preferences window.
Locate the SL2 in the “Other” section and
click the SL2 icon.
Control Panel
SL 2 Audio Driver Version: 1.0
Analog Pass Thru Sample Rate
Channel 1 Thru
Channel 2 Thru
Device firmware version: 1.20
Update firmware
48 kHz
44.1 kHz
Update device firmware
The Driver Control Panel supports:
• Analog Pass Thru check boxes allow
stereo outputs 1-2 to select USB
playback (computer) or analog input
(vinyl or CD) as their source. If a button
is on, USB playback is disabled and the
SL2 input is fed to the output.
• Sample Rate radio buttons allow a user
to select a sample rate of 48 kHz or 44.1
kHz.
• Phono / CD read-only indicators show
the Phono or CD input switched on the
SL2.
• Buffer Size increases or decreases the
USB driver buffer size. The SL2 drivers
run very reliably at latencies below
8 milliseconds. However, computer
performance and available resources
(number of apps running) may adversely
affect streaming audio. If pops and
clicks are heard in USB audio, try
increasing the buffer size. In ASIO, total
round-trip latency = buffer size + device
latency. In Core Audio, total roundtrip latency = buffer size + software
application latency + device latency. SL2
latency is 1.3 ms at 48 kHz and 1.4 ms
at 44.1 kHz.
• If the SL2 rmware on your computer
is newer than installed in your SL2,
the Update Device Firmware panel is
enabled. Pressing the Update Firmware
button updates the SL2 rmware to the
newer version installed with your driver.
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
1
RAN E SL2 FOR SERATO SCRATCH LIVE • O PERATOR’S MANUA L 2.5.0
7
Installing Scratch Live
Check for the latest download version of
Scratch Live software at serato.com. If it
is newer than what is on your CD-ROM,
we recommend installing it instead.
Mac
1. Insert the Software Installation CD-
ROM and double-click the Scratch Live
Installer.mpkg icon.
or
Launch the installer you just
downloaded from serato.com.
2. Follow the on-screen instructions. Once
the installation is complete, Scratch Live
will appear in your applications list. You
may like to drag the Scratch Live icon to
your dock for quick launching.
3. Plug in your SL2. No extra installation is
required to use Scratch Live.
4. The optional Rane Device Drivers
are required for other software you
may have that uses Core Audio to
communicate with your Rane device. To
install the Core Audio drivers, double-
click the .pkg le inside the appropriate
product folder in the Rane Device
Drivers folder on the software installation
CD. Core Audio driver updates are
available to download from the product’s
page at rane.com.
Windows
It is important that Windows users install
the SL2 drivers as well as the Scratch Live
software. The easiest way to do this is to
allow the Scratch Live installer to do all
the work.
1. Connect your SL2 before you insert
your installation CD. When you rst
connect it, Windows will attempt to
install the drivers via the hardware
wizard. Cancel and close the hardware
wizard.
2. Insert the Software Installation CD-
ROM. Make sure your SL2 is connected
rst. If a window doesn’t open
automatically, browse to the CD drive.
Run setup.exe.
or
Launch the installer you just
downloaded from serato.com.
3. Follow the on-screen instructions. Once
the installation is complete, Scratch
Live appears in the Start Menu under All
Programs > Serato > Scratch Live.
Because the SL2 was connected prior to
installing Scratch Live, no extra hardware
installation is required.
Additional Windows ASIO
Drivers
Once Scratch Live is installed, any
additional hardware that is connected
will be recognized and the drivers will be
automatically installed.
Starting the Software
Close all other programs on your Mac or
PC. When you load Scratch Live for the
rst time, you will see this screen.
Using the Tool Tips
Click on the ? icon to enable tool tips.
Tool tips provide a handy way to learn
the various features of Scratch Live.
Move the mouse over a section of the
screen to bring up a context-sensitive
tool tip. Holding the mouse over the ?
button with tool tips turned on will show
you a list of all keyboard shortcuts. Tool
tips are available in several languages.
Scratch Live will display the tool tips in
the language that your computer is set to.
If your language is not available, the tool
tips will be displayed in English.
8
RAN E SL2 FOR SERATO SCRATCH LIVE • O PERATOR’S MANUA L 2.5.0
Calibrating Scratch Live
Since Scratch Live is controlled by an
analog signal, there is no guarantee of
what state that signal will be in by the time
the software gets to interpret it. Therefore,
Scratch Live needs to be able to handle a
wide range of signals, and be congurable
to use them optimally. Calibrating is just
conguring the software to your situation.
Calibration is equally important for both
vinyl and CD users of Scratch Live.
There are two parts to the Scratch Live
control signal: The directional tone, and
the noise map. Listening to the control
vinyl, the directional tone is the 1 kHz
tone. The noise map sounds like random
noise over the top of the tone.
The directional tone provides the
current speed and direction of the record,
while the noise map tells the software
precisely where on the record the needle
is currently.
The Noise Threshold
A threshold is a lower limit, below which
a process will not occur. In the case of
Scratch Live, the noise threshold is the
limit below which the input signal will not
be interpreted as control signal; in other
words if it’s below the threshold, it is
considered noise and ignored.
This setting is necessary because a
stylus is very sensitive, and will inevitably
pick up noise from the environment as
well as the signal on the record, especially
in the noisy environment of a live show.
How to Calibrate Scratch Live
With music playing in the background
(from any source), put your needle on
the record with the turntable stopped.
If you are using CD players, the same
rules apply. Have the CD deck paused
or stopped while calibrating. Ensure the
input level in Scratch Live is set correctly
to accept a LINE level signal. See “Audio
Input Level” on page 32.
Click and hold the estimate button
until the slider stops moving. Moving
the threshold slider to the left will make
Scratch Live more sensitive to slow record
movement, but also more sensitive to
background noise.
Repeat the process for each deck.
Things to remember:
• Your needle must be on the record.
• Your turntable (or CD player) must be
stationary.
• The background music playing must be
at a similar level to which you will play
your set at.
• Calibrate Scratch Live every time you
play.
TIP: If the slider jumps to the far right,
then you have a problem with noise
in your turntables/CD players/mixer.
Check all your connections and make
sure your equipment is well grounded.
In some situations you will not be able
to improve the signal quality, and you
will have to play on regardless. In this
situation, stick to REL mode.
The Scopes
The scopes on the Setup screen in
Scratch Live display the input signal as a
phase diagram. The key factors to look at
on the scope display are crisp clean lines,
round shape, and the tracking percentage
in the lower right corner.
Start both turntables or CD players. You
will see green rings appear in the scope
view as shown here.
For optimal performance the inner ring
should be as close to circular as possible.
Use the scope zoom slider (1x to 16x)
to zoom in or out as necessary. Use the
scope L/R Balance and P/A Balance
controls to adjust the shape of the inner
ring.
The number in the top left corner of the
scope view gives the current absolute
position within the control record or CD.
The number in the top right corner is
the current speed in RPM. In the bottom
left is the current threshold setting, and
the number in the bottom right shows
the percentage of readable signal – this
number should be close to 85% when
your system is calibrated properly.
Calibration Troubleshooting
After calibration, the number in the upper
right corner of the scope view should say
0.0 while the needle is on the record and
the turntable is stopped.
If that number is uctuating then
manually move the Estimate slider to the
right until that number is stable at 0.0.
If you’ve moved the slider all the way
to -24 and its still uctuating then you
have a grounding or interference problem
somewhere in the chain.
If so, the rst thing to check is that
the grounding wire coming from your
turntable is connected to either the SL2’s
or your mixer’s grounding posts.
Next, make sure that the SL2 isn’t
sitting next to a power source such as
a power strip or power box and that the
RCA cables connected to the SL2 aren’t
laying across other power conducting
cables.
If you are still experiencing issues, you
might have to adjust the placement of
your setup. For example, make sure bass
bins aren’t directly under the turntables.
for more calibration troubleshooting help
see “Scope Reading and Fixes” on page
38.
RAN E SL2 FOR SERATO SCRATCH LIVE • O PERATOR’S MANUA L 2.5.0
9
Importing and Playing Music
Importing Your Music
The easiest way to load music into your
library is by using the Files button:
1. Click on the Files button to open the
les panel. The left side of this window
displays various locations on your
computer hard drive (and external
drives if you have one). Click on these
locations to navigate your computer and
nd your music. By default, your music
will usually be found in either “Music”
(Mac) or “My Music” (Windows).
2. Once you have located your music,
drag the folder or les you want to
import onto the purple “ All...” icon.
This is located to the left of your screen
at the top of the crates and playlist
window. If you wish to import all of your
music, just drag your whole music folder
onto this icon.
TIP: You can also import by dragging
files and folders directly from Windows
Explorer (PC version) or Finder (Mac
version) into the Scratch Live library.
TIP: Adjust the
size of the Files
window by
clicking and dragging near the three
dots up or down. The vertical crates
window adjusts left and right.
Supported File Types
Scratch Live supports xed and variable
bit rate .MP3, .MP4, Ogg Vorbis, .AAC,
.AIFF, .ALAC, .WAV and Whitelabel (wl.
mp3) le types. M3U playlists are also
supported. For more on Whitelabel.net
audio les, see “Whitelabel.net” on page
11.
NOTE: Older iTunes Music Store DRM
files cannot be played back by Scratch
Live. iTunes Plus files are DRM-free.
Playing Music
Click on the “ All...” icon to show all the
tracks in your library. Use the keyboard
shortcut Shift - Left Arrow to load the
highlighted track on to the Left Deck, and
Shift - Right Arrow to load the highlighted
track on to the Right Deck.
TIP: You can also load tracks to Decks
using the mouse. Click and drag a track
from the track list area on to either
Virtual Deck.
To start playing a track, simply put
the needle on the record and start the
turntable. The track will start playing as
soon as it detects the signal from the
control vinyl (or CD).
In ABS mode, the track will play from
the position dictated by the placement of
the needle on the record. If you place the
needle at the beginning of the record, the
track will start playing from the beginning.
You can skip through the track by picking
up the needle and placing it further into
the record, just as with regular records
(This is known as needle dropping). See
“Scratch Live Modes” on page 16.
10
Track Display
When a track is loaded, the track name,
artist and length are displayed in the track
title bar, and the Virtual Deck shows a
solid black line.
If the track has BPM or key information
written in the tag this will also be
displayed. See ”Set Auto BPM” on page
11.
RAN E SL2 FOR SERATO SCRATCH LIVE • O PERATOR’S MANUA L 2.5.0
Set Auto BPM
Whitelabel. net
The Serato Whitelabel Delivery Network is
a unique system that allows record labels
to digitally deliver promotional releases
directly to DJs.
To download Whitelabel audio les and
sign up to receive updates on the latest
promotional releases, visit whitelabel.net.
Whitelabel Audio Files
Whitelabel.net audio les are a unique
format (le extension wl.mp3) developed
by Serato. They are specially prepared for
use in Scratch Live; pre-analyzed, tagged
with song and artist info, BPM and album
art where possible.
Whitelabel audio les play as high
quality 320 kbps stereo audio in Scratch
Live when Rane Scratch Live hardware is
connected. Without Scratch Live hardware
connected, or when playing these les
through other mp3 software and devices,
they will play as low quality 32 kbps mono
audio.
Whitelabel audio les are promotional
releases from records labels available to
Scratch Live DJs for free from Whitelabel.
net.
Preparing Your Files
Analyzing Files
Before you play your music in Scratch
Live, It is important to rst analyze your
les.
The analyze les function processes
the songs in your library to detect le
corruption, saves the waveform overview
to an ID3 tag*, and calculates auto-gain
and BPM values.
How to Analyze Files
To analyze les run Scratch Live with the
SL2 disconnected. On the left side of
the main screen, click the Analyze Files
button to automatically build overviews for
all the tracks in your library.
TIP: You can drag and drop individual
folders, crates or files onto the Analyze
Files button to force the building of
overviews at any time.
About Corrupt Files
If Scratch Live detects a corrupt
le it will tag it with a corrupt le
icon:
It is very important that you delete ANY
corrupt les from your library as they can
cause Scratch Live to crash regardless
if you play the le or not. See “Status
Icons” on page 27 and “Corrupt File
Descriptions and Diagnoses” on page
37.
If this option is checked while analyzing
les, Scratch Live will calculate the
estimated tempos of your les. If Scratch
Live is condent that the Auto BPM
estimate for a le is accurate, it will be
written to an ID3 tag* in the le. The Auto
BPM function will not be applied if the
track already contains BPM information.
To re-analyze these les and use Auto
BPM or auto gain on them, drag them
onto the Analyze Files button. If you
know your le’s BPM will fall within a
certain range, use the range drop down
to avoid double or half value BPMs being
calculated.
*NOTE: ID3 tags contain data about
your tracks and are saved inside the
files themselves. Genre, track name
and artist are examples of common tag
information. See “Editing ID3 tags” on
page 27.
The Offline Player
The ofine player is a useful tool for
preparing crates, auditioning tracks, and
setting cue and loop points. The ofine
player is available when Scratch Live
hardware is not connected, and outputs
through the current default audio device.
Load a track to the ofine player by
dragging and dropping onto the Deck, or
pressing shift+left arrow. If the end of the
loaded track is reached, the next track in
the current playlist is played automatically.
Click the Ofine Player Controls button
(outlined below) to expand and hide the
ofine player controls.
RAN E SL2 FOR SERATO SCRATCH LIVE • O PERATOR’S MANUA L 2.5.0
For information on rescanning, moving,
copying, deleting and backing up les,
see “File Management” on page 28.
11
Playback Control
The Control Record
The control record has two sides. The
rst side is 10 minutes long and contains
the Vinyl Scroll section. The second side
is 15 minutes long. Scratch Live can be
congured to work with records playing
at either 33 RPM or 45 RPM, depending
on your preference. The record has thin
marks every minute, and a thicker mark
every 5 minutes (when playing at 33
RPM). These marks are to assist you when
using needle dropping to move through
the track. These marks do not affect the
playback of the track.
The mode will switch when it reaches
the end of the record so your track won’t
stop. See “Absolute Mode” on page
16.
T
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The Control CD
The control CD
has two tracks.
The rst track is 15
minutes long and
controls playback.
The second track
is 40 seconds long
and controls vinyl
scroll.
Vinyl Scroll
Vinyl Scroll allows you to select and load
tracks using only your turntables (or CD
player) – no contact with the computer
necessary! To use Vinyl Scroll with
turntables, lift the needle off the record
and drop it into special “bonus track”
section at the end of the record’s A side.
The movement of the control disk now
controls the selected track within your
library. Lift the needle out of the Vinyl
Scroll section of the record and into the
lead out (between the Vinyl Scroll area and
the end of the record) to change crates
or iTunes playlists. Go back to the Vinyl
Scroll area of the record to choose a track
within the crate or playlist. Once you have
found the track you wish to play, put the
needle back at the beginning of the record
and it will load automatically.
This feature is available to CD users.
Go to track 2 on the control CD to access
Vinyl Scroll. Find the track you want to
load, and go back to track 1. The track
you selected will be loaded and ready to
play. You can reverse the direction of Vinyl
Scroll and set the sensitivity in the Setup
screen.
TIP: You can also use Vinyl Scroll in the
Prepare window. See the options for
“Vinyl Control” on page 33.
Main Screen Overview
Virtual Deck
The Virtual Deck
shows everything
about the speed
and position of a
track. As the vinyl
rotates, so does
the line on the
label. The circular
progress bar around the edge is a visual
representation of the position within the
song, and can be set to ash to warn
you that the track is nearing its end. The
time and remaining time are displayed in
minutes and seconds. The pitched BPM
(BPM with pitch adjustment multiplier
added) is shown on the left of the Virtual
Deck, and the turntable speed as a
percentage pitch shift is shown on the
right of the Virtual Deck. If the track has
no BPM information, pitched BPM will not
be shown.
If you are playing regular vinyl, notice
the Virtual Deck behaving strangely as
Scratch Live attempts to decode the
incoming signal. This will not cause any
problems, but you may nd it distracting.
You can unload the currently loaded track
using the Virtual Deck eject button.
12
TIP: Use the keyboard shortcut shiftalt-arrow to unload a track from the
Virtual Deck.
RAN E SL2 FOR SERATO SCRATCH LIVE • O PERATOR’S MANUA L 2.5.0
Visual Aids
When the track is playing several
waveforms are displayed. Each shows a
different aspect of the track being played.
Tempo Matching Display
The Tempo Matching display area
provides a helpful tool for beat matching.
Scratch Live detects the beats within the
track, and places a row of orange peaks
(for the track on the left side) above a
row of blue peaks (for the track on the
right side) in the Tempo Matching display
area. When the two tracks are matched
to the same tempo, the peaks will line
up. The tempo display is aligned with the
beginning of the bar, so the peaks keep
their relative position as the track plays.
This display does not show the relative
timing of the beats, only the tempos of the
tracks. The peaks will still line up when the
tracks are playing at the same tempo, but
are out of sync.
Track Overview Display
This view provides a complete
overview of the track waveform,
and includes a marker to show
the current position within the
track. This view is useful for
nding transitions within the
track. The waveform is colored
according to the sound spectrum
– red representing low frequency
bass sounds, green representing
mid frequency sounds and blue
representing high frequency treble
sounds.
You can jump to different
positions within the track by
clicking on the Track Overview display
(disabled in ABS Mode). Grey lines behind
the overview show the length of the track
– a thin grey line every minute, and a thick
grey line every 5 minutes. The overview
will be lled when you load the track onto
a Virtual Deck. On slower computers,
you should disable Autofill overviews in
the Library tab of the Setup screen. See
“Preparing Your Files” on page 11
and “AutoFill Overviews” on page 34.
Main Waveform Display
This view provides a closeup of the track, including
color coding to show the
frequency of the sound; red
representing low frequency
bass, green representing
mid-frequencies and blue
representing high-frequency
treble sounds. You can
also switch to a three-band
spectrum view by holding
the ctrl key and clicking
on the waveform. Click on
the waveform to ‘scrub’
or make ne adjustments
to your position within the track. This
applies to INT Mode only, and may be
useful if you wish to set cue points in
your tracks without your turntables or CD
players connected. The Main Waveform is
zoomed around the current position in the
track. See “Cue Points” on page 18
and “Scratch Live Modes” on page
16.
TIP: Use the + and – keys to zoom in
and out.
TIP: Waveform can be either vertical or
horizontal. See “Display Modes” on page
15.
Kick Drum
In this example, the red part
of the wave represents a kick
drum, while the purple part
represents a snare drum.
Snare Drum
Beat Matching Display
This view shows the position
of beats within the track. When
beat matching, this view helps
align the downbeats of the two
tracks. The markers are matched
up when the two tracks are beat
matched.
Example: Here is a
demonstration of using the visual
aids to help beat match. In this
example, the track that is playing
is on the Left Deck, and the track to be
mixed in is on the Right Deck.
1. Start the track playing on the Right
Deck. After a few seconds, blue peaks
appear in the Tempo Matching display.
2. Adjust the pitch of the right turntable
until the blue peaks sit under the orange
peaks in the Tempo Matching display.
Once they are aligned, the two tracks
have the same tempo.
3. Next align the markers in the Beat
Matching display. Watch the color of the
items passing by in the Main Waveform
display. Remember that a kick or
bass drum will be red in color, and a
snare drum will be green or blue. This
technique will by no means guarantee
perfect mixes, but may help to speed up
the process of beat matching.
Master Gain
The master output of Scratch Live
can be controlled using the master
gain control. This adjusts the
output volume of all tracks played. Ctrlclick the knob to reset it to 12 o’clock.
NOTE: For best results, set the master
gain to 12 o’clock, and adjust the
volume of individual tracks using the
track gain adjustment. See “Track
Gain” on page 14.
33 / 45 Speeds
Set this to match the speed
of your turntable for normal
playback.
Tracking Indicator
The tracking indicators
on the main screen show the quality of
the signal coming from the control record
or CD. The length of the bar indicates
the speed of the record or CD. The
color indicates the amount of position
information Scratch Live is receiving.
When you are playing the record at normal
speed, the tracking indicator should be
grey. If it is mostly red there is a problem
reading the control signal. Make sure
your needles are clean, and check the
calibration in the setup screen.
RAN E SL2 FOR SERATO SCRATCH LIVE • O PERATOR’S MANUA L 2.5.0
13
NOTE: It is normal for the tracking
indicator to be red when cueing or
scratching.
Tap Tempo
For tracks with no BPM
information, there is a tap tempo
button displayed where the BPM usually
is, in the song info area. Pressing altspace bar activates the tempo tapper
(press alt-space bar a second time to
activate the tempo tapper on the Right
Virtual Deck). Tap the space bar along
with the beat. After you’ve tapped the
rst beat, you can switch to double time
tapping, half time, start of each bar etc.
The range is set by the rst two taps, after
that you can switch to any steady rhythm
you feel comfortable with – quarter notes,
half note, whole notes. Esc resets the
BPM, Enter saves the BPM to the track.
You can use the mouse if you prefer.
Your CD player or turntable’s pitch slider
doesn’t need to be at zero, we do the
math for you. You can also use the tempo
tapper when no song is loaded, for nding
the BPM of regular records, for example.
Key Lock
When Key Lock is on, the key or
pitch of the song stays locked at
what it would be if the track was playing
at normal speed, regardless of the platter
speed of the turntable or CD player. Key
Lock has scratch detection, so that it
automatically turns off when scratching
for a natural scratching sound. Turn Key
Lock on or off by clicking the button to the
top right of the Virtual Deck.
Repeat
Use the Repeat function to repeat
the song across the entire length of
the control record.
TIP: Short “loop” samples can be
turned into a continuous track using
the Repeat function. The loops must be
less than 10 seconds long, and cut at
the start and end of a bar.
Censor
Use the censor button to “mask”
parts of a song, or use as a special
effect. When you press the censor button,
the track starts playing backwards from
that point. When you release the censor
button, the track plays forward from the
point you would have been, had you not
pressed the censor button. Censor is
available only in REL and INT Modes.
Eject
This ejects the track playing or
loaded from it’s Virtual Deck.
Autoplay
Click the Auto button to enable
autoplay. With this setting turned
on, when one track nishes playing, the
next track starts automatically. Load from
a crate to play through the songs in that
crate, or from your library to play through
your library. Autoplay works in both REL
and INT modes. Play from start must be
checked in the Playback tab of the Setup
screen for autoplay to work correctly. See
“Play From Start” on page 33.
Track Gain
Use the track gain knob to balance
the volume of the tracks in your
library. Any adjustment made to the
gain of a track is saved with the le,
and will be reapplied to the entire
track when it is loaded again. The
level meter shows the level sent to
the hardware interface after both
individual track gain and master
gain adjustment. Ctrl-click the knob to
reset it to 12 o’clock.
NOTE: For automatic gain setting of
your tracks, see “Use Auto Gain” on
page 33.
USB Dropout Indicator
The USB dropout
indicator on the main
screen is a useful
troubleshooting
tool if you have problems with audio
dropouts. Such dropouts are caused by
an interruption in passing the audio to the
Scratch Live hardware interface. If such an
interruption (or dropout) occurs, a red light
will appear briey, just to the left of the
Scratch Live logo at the top of the screen.
The light will be red for one second, and
then orange for four seconds.
If you experience USB drop outs:
• Increase the USB Buffer Size. See “USB
Buffer Size (Latency)” on page 32.
• Try closing other applications that are
running the same time as Scratch Live.
TIP: F5 and F10 will turn Key Lock on
and off for the Left and Right Decks
respectively.
14
Reverse Input Control
Swaps the Left Deck input (3 & 4)
with the Right Deck input (5 & 6) of
the SL2.
This transfers control over to the
alternate Virtual Deck. For example, the
physical record on the right hand side
now controls the Left Virtual Deck. This
essentially lets you continue mixing, but
just using one turntable. See “Mixing
with One Turntable or CD Player” on
page 30.
RAN E SL2 FOR SERATO SCRATCH LIVE • O PERATOR’S MANUA L 2.5.0
• Try turning off background tasks, for
example, wireless networking.
• If your CPU load is very high, try
decreasing the Maximum Screen
Updates setting in the Display tab of the
Setup screen. See “Maximum Screen
Updates” on page 35.
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