Major Differences Between DJ Software: Serato vs. Rekordbox. Which is Right For You?

Written by: Jonathan Hentzel

DJ Gear 2k Rekordbox vs. Serato – Ultimate Showdown!

Djing has been everlonging evolving since the popularity of hip-hop in the mid 1970s, and now it is at its peak. From vinyl disc jockeys to bedroom djs, the spectrum is almost endless for the type of djs there are now. For anyone who wants to start out at the most basic form of djing, the bedroom djing, they will need to have three things, a computer, a mixboard, and a software to hold the tracks in. This article will compile a breakdown between the two industry standard dj softwares to help determine which one new djs should want to start on.

What Is the Purpose of DJ Software?

DJ Software is the heart and soul of the DJ, it is the furnace that cooks the music, the fireplace for the wood, it is an essential program in order to become a Rockstar DJ, but which one is the one a wannabe dj needs. The two different software offers various of tools to personalize the mix and offers advantages and disadvantages over one from another. The two softwares that will be compared and contrast are industry standard and are used from DJs all around the world: Serato and Rekordbox. These softwares are the home for your music, edits, and transitions to be saved and used for later. What does each one offer over the other, and which one will be ultimately be the to-go-to.

Serato DJ Pro ($9.99-$15.99)

Pricing

Serato DJ Pro is one of a few different softwares used for DJing, as this is the home of all the music and playlists. The one thing to note about Serato DJ Pro is that it is a paid service, as someone can either buy the full version, or subscribe to pay a fixed amount monthly. These prices range from $9.99 to $14.99 a month or $250 to $450 for the full package. Check out the prices here for the full breakdown.

Serato website offers prices depending on what version is accessible, Rekordbox includes a free download rather than the minimum of $10 a month.

Layout

Serato DJ Pro has a user-friendly layout, as all of its features are on the opening layout, as well as the computer's battery life and the current time. On here at the top left, the features of amount of turntables, the format of the library, a recording option for offline tracks, and the option of changing effects are all present. Along with the wavelengths of the audio running across the screen, finding the spot where to beat sync has never been more easier!

The Serato library consists of all the tracks from linked streaming services or downloaded music after being dragged into the library.

Serato Stems

A recent addition to Serato that has increased the popularity of it is the introduction to Serato Stems. This feature isolates audio from a track by separating the vocals, drums, melody, and bass. Stems can make perfect for transitions from one song to the next and enables the ability to create acapellas and mashups on the fly.

Serato Stems have been a new addition to the service within the last year and can help isolate the track from instrumentals to vocals.

Streaming Services

Serato DJ Pro includes integrated streaming for its platform. The integrated streaming services that are compatible are Beatport, Beatsource, TIDAL, and Soundcloud. This allows every playlists and saved music to automatically be included into the Serato library as long as the user is signed in with the respected streaming service and having the premium service for it. These playlists also do not update live; however, upon restarting the application will resync those playlists with song added during the session. The use of streaming services on Serato DJ Pro does require an internet connection to use this feature. One other thing to note is that Serato allows the user to add songs to a playlist, as well as create new playlists for these streaming services.

Serato and Rekordbox has the same streaming services minus the inclusion of ITunes on Rekordbox.

Rekordbox (Free)

Pricing

The unique thing with Rekordbox is that it does not require any money to use. There are plans that do cost anywhere from $12 to $36 a month that includes backups, saving edited tracks, and analysis on all cloud library tracks, but these are not required to use. The free features do include the necessitates to mix.

Rekordbox contains a free version, unlike Serato, but also has more expensive add ons than Serato,

Layout

The layout of Rekordbox is similar to Serato, but includes other notable features. One being the preview of wavelengths before loading the track into the mixer. This can be beneficial to see which tracks are similar to the ones that are currently playing without loading it. The layout also includes a section that displays the hot cues- points in the song that have been marked to instantly get to that point of the track with a click of a button. One more thing to point out is the inclusion of sounds automatically added to the Serato library, which includes crashes, sirens, kicks, and more.

The library for Rekordbox has sounds and samples already in the software to use once finished installing.

Streaming Services

Rekordbox has integrated streaming into the software which includes ITunes, Soundcloud, TIDAL, Beatsource, and Beatport. All these streaming services, except for TIDAL, allow offline play. For other softwares, this typically is not the case and requires and internet connection to obtain access to these libraries. One thing to also note is ITunes is separate from Apple Music, as it only includes the paid songs from the ITunes store.

How To Use Music Streaming Services with Rekordbox DJ Gear 2k

Track Analysis

Rekordbox uses AI technology to develop their Track Analysis. Track Analysis is the detection of the beats per minute, key, and vocals displayed on a grid and in wavelengths. This shows what a song is physically, and where everything is. One thing different from Rekordbox's track analysis is the detection of vocals that is positioned above the wavelength so the user can see where vocals are compared to where the beat is. This is perfect and almost essential for transitioning and mixing.

The settings in Rekordbox breaks down how everything is processed when a track gets loaded into the mixer.

Overall

Both of these softwares have their differences and similarities, but depending on what dj someone is looking to be, as well as having the compatible hardware they have, as one may be better than another. Some hardware may not be compatible with one of these softwares, so when looking at which software djs want to use, make sure your board is compatible before making a purchase. If possible, give both of these a try, as they are both professional and trustworthy softwares that, in the end, will do the same job, creating the good vibes and keep the party flowing. Happy mixing up-and-coming dj,