Pacemaker for BlackBerry PlayBook now available - Mix, sync and scratch your digital music

Okay, time for an updated review. After a few days of playing with this I have found the crashing to subside. It seems that pacemaker was scanning my library and now my tracks load superfast without needing to be loaded yet either. So, all my choons are ready to go and the app is much more stable. Let me know if you've noticed similar behaviors. Great news, I'm feeling better about using this. I brought this out to the bike rave here in Vancouver last Friday and it was exactly the right device for a mini party! I'm a big fan now!

Also, has anyone figured out what the 'digital' button does?
Has anyone figured out how to bump forward and drag similarly to cd decks? I'm finding the turntables to small to get predictable results.

I've been DJing for about ten years and I love the app. It's worth $20 easily.... I mean, DJ equipment for less than $100 is generally a super bargain anyway, and this is a fairly complete setup which really works in a fluid way. There are more than a few things I hope they address, but for a first release, they are well on their way to a genuinely exciting, and tiny, mobile DJ experience.
The mixing and looping capabilities are good enough to throw down some cool stuff right away without a headphone splitter, and the effects, while somewhat sparse, have an ok quality sound. The reverb, for example, sounds awesome in small doses, but gets ugly when turned up too much. I don't know all the specs, but realtime audio effects processing uses a lot of cpu, and I am able to get echoed and filtered loops going in Pacemaker, and still use MorphWiz on top for weird solos. LOL it's pretty nuts.
I have had two unexpected crashes so far in the two days I've had the app, both times when in the track browser, sorting by genre or bpm. This needs to be addressed ASAP.
The sync function works ok, but it throws stuff off by a beat or two sometimes. The pitch bend should be made into buttons, the platter spinning is tedious for that feature, because there is no visual feedback. I do like the rotary style eqs and effects, even though you can only adjust one parameter per deck at a time, they are very smooth. I like using the hi-lo filters on both decks at once, to blend and kill tracks in a different way than crossfading.
I'd like to be able to zoom the waveforms on the top of the screen; they are not as useful as they could be, even though they look cool, lol. The headphone output is very versatile, and can be used for running two channels of audio to an external dj mixer. This is the icing on the cake for me. Of course, two stereo hdmi audio channels would be better, but I'm not holding my breath. That said, the app is tactile enough to dial things in without headphones for the casual user, with one cue point and one adjustable loop per track.
A vu-meter would be good too, because it is hard to tell what gain you are at sometimes, which leads to inconsistencies in output levels. The track browser should include the ability to edit ID3 tags as well. 320K mp3s sound great out of the 1/8" jack, but again, limit the usage to semi-professional standards.
I think this app will be loved by many, and if you have even a passing interest in DJing, think of it this way, this app still costs less than most new vinyl records do.

Review: awesome app.

I dj at family related parties and events, and have thus far just used my laptop with winamp and crossfade. Those are my "dj toys". This app give me a whole new world of abilities to add effects and interact with the playlist. The biggest thing for me is that this app give me the ability to INTERACT with the music without the added cost of turntables and additional items (that I would then have to carry to the aforementioned parties)

I'd like to be able to connect my PB to the laptop so I have access to my full library (for drag and drop), output the playbook audio to a mixer or speakers. I haven't tried this setup yet because I was mixing down to the last 1% of battery on the PB!!

$20 is cheap. $20 will get you a typical large pizza + wings + pop at Pizza Pizza vs. Pacemaker for LIFE! My choice has already been made.

Shoutouts to the Crackberry team and all the people who make up the community. It's really nice here.

It's USD15 here in Indonesia

Got it for $15! Stop whining! If you can't shell out more than $10 for an app then don't. PlayBook is usable with this app alone.

To devs, just fix the app crashes, or you will blow the party! RCK!

Thank you so much Pacemaker for this so..oooh...amazing apps!!! So sweet :-)

This is one of the best apps I have used. The software is awesome and behaves just like a cdj. Lots of extras too. If your not sure about the $20, it is well worth it. You will not be sorry especially if you dj or even would like to try it out. Blow your grandma away with your silky reverbs and backspins

Sold as seen

@Afourtrackmind - "this should be great for a little street side party or a nice little beach thing in the summer"...

thanks for this now i am sold, Im going to appworld now

I have to say I'm pretty stoked with it. The file management suits me to a friggin T!
So good, I wish all the playbook apps' like the e-readers' could replicate its.
It does appear to be a bit temperamental, couldn't use it for a real set until that gets sorted.

Major disappointment, split headphone output. It does do the job, and I suppose it lessens the load on the OS. However, this actually two stereo (headphone/speak channel and the HDMI channel) outs AND a set of beautiful speakers that seem to be tied to the headphones. Also another way to get that stereo out could be done over bluetooth. I just wonder how much buffer would be required to lock with the headphone channel. Maybe its the timing sync issue is why its not here. I hope this sells well so they can R&D that, maybe with a little help from RIM too as they're so keen to help developers. I wonder if it were possible to use the HDMI, in which I suppose you'd have to use a DAC (digital to analog converter) of some sort.

The drag on the decks and bump on the deck will take a little getting used to, but I think Ill get with it with some practice. Im also having a bit of time adjusting to the circular 'knobs'. I personally feel a linear fader lends itself better to touch than rotary, however it does seem they've really nice job with the interface. Its stunning.

If you're on the fence an want to be able to DJ. Buy this. The value for such a feature rich dj rig is unreal. I'm a dj and have used all sorts if toys and tools from 1210's to serato and dvj's. I've got a pretty good idea of quality pro kit and I'm astounded at what you get for $20. If they sort the stability thing out, I'd likely take this with me out. Other than that, this should be great for a little street side party or a nice little beach thing in the summer. This will really fit the bill.

Nice work!

This is hands down one of the best apps released for the PlayBook.

Just buy it, plug your PB to the speakers and enjoy the tutorial. It s awesome.

rip MCA... still waiting for people reaction about the app before i buy it, but definitely i will because its freakin pacemaker on the cool 7incher playbook. godamn that DJ make my day

Totally worth apps..cool apps for musics lover! Only at BlackBerry Playbook tablet! Hell yeahhh!

To buy or not to buy hmm, that's the question

Would be awesome to see a DJ'ing competition using Pacemaker on PlayBook....crackberry.com shoudl ask for submissions....

I'm not a dj. But seeing the video makes me want to get one.

Bought, downloaded, installed. But it´s pretty buggy for me :( lags and freezes, is it possible it is due to me running the OS 2.1 beta?

I think this is my favorite feature.

"Split output - Split output and listen to one track in the headphones while another track is playing in the speakers. All you need is the Griffin DJ Cable."

I tried to purchase it but i get an error (error 10000)

http://btsc.webapps.blackberry.com/btsc/viewdocument.do?externalId=KB244...

i might have been charge multiple times :( i hope not!
Help! Tried rebooting! Read that article, and typed everything correctly! HELP D;

I bought it for £20 and didn't think twice. That's like the equivalent of ~ 6 pints of beer in the UK, which will prove more memorable I wonder? What is a joke is all the 'penny pinching' Playbook owners mouthing off like they've been wronged. Sheesh.

Tried it out on my lunch break. I really like it. Takes some getting use to BUT, it has been crashing on me. I did a restart but that did help. IM low on memory on my PB, down to 2 GB storage, would that have an effect on its performace?? if not, i hope they catch the issue and do an update soon.

Busy downloading the full price app. Bought it to support the developer(s)... any developers bringing great apps to the PlayBook first / very early have my support. And I'm looking forward to using it!

Now, just throw in a little TAT and have multiple PlayBooks to increase the number of tracks you can lay down.

This app is amazing. I used the Beta, which was still super fun although a bit buggy and missing some features. I'm not afraid to shell out $20 for this at all!

Thanks to the devs! :)

cool, thats a great app. now how about another video sample from crackberry

This is amazing. It feels like a real DJ device opposed to an app. Hope I don't ruin the awesome price, but I would pay at least 50 bucks for this. I'm already having a great time with it. Thank you Pacemaker and great job.

Can't wait to get home and play with it! I really do hope i won't have to repurchase it again for BB10 tho...

The item didn't say that Pacemaker Lite was "free", it just said it was an option if the $19.99 price of the full app was too much.

This does look really, really cool...

if you truly believe that the devs chose the Playbook because "it's running on the only true, real-time operating system", you'll believe anything.

Wait.....the "free" version is $4.99!?!? Wow Lmao

Question : it says it automatically matches the speed of the songs (Beats per minute), but is there a way to match pitch? For example, if two songs have the same 4 chords in a row, but are different pitches (ones higher), can they be matched without distortion?
Also, do you choose the songs you want to mix from your mp3s on the playbook? Or is there a list of songs you choose from in the app?

Awesome, good to have exclusive quality content. I already feel like a DJ :)

It's £20 here in the UK (over $30). What a joke.

Oh My. I pay my $20 (count also an extra note for the audio split cable :http://store.griffintechnology.com/dj-cable ) and you know what ? I've not been happy to spend money like that since ... what ... my Playbook ? Yes.

In da mix soon. old school.

downloading now. Been waiting for this one. I might be asking for too much, but if this could eventually access BBM Music, it would be awesome.

"Check out Pacemaker Lite free" It's $4.99

Already downloaded and mixing. This is cool but so much to do and learn. Nice Job on this app! Just as cool as ScrapBook!!

I think this is my first first....lol