Engine Prime: This software s*cked, still s*cks, will it keep on s*cking!?

Legacy Products Engine PRIME
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I mean come on Denon… how long will it have to take to complete the Sync feature ??

Eacht time i go out & play i have to discover that:

a- there is a whole bunch that’s not synced to my harddrive / usb sticks… b- there is a whole bunch been removed during the sync process c- playlists are now incomplete… d- …

YES i know how to proper sync to devices YES i am fully aware of the entire workflow of engine PRIME since 'm backing this up from day 1

so please don’t come with how to sync instructions please…

the only reason this happens could be my entire library is over 500gb’s… and the poor software can’t handle it …

Seriously Denon… pick up the pace because you are losing me here !!

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Just use drag and drop like I do. Nothing gets left out, everything works. And I have 4 Hard drives of music. 500GB is only on one of the drives, rest is 1 and 2 TB already filled up. Engine handles it good. But - I don’t use sync. This feature just doesn’t work for me.

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drag & drop, yeah about that … if you drag folders … it won’t sync 100% too That’s the very frustrating part…

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For me it works 100% - drag and drop playlists on the usb and it’s there.

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Way I work is simple. I keep all my tracks on my master drive on my pc. I’ll put on a smaller usb drive the folders\genres I want to play via Prime.

When I want to change it up I wipe the usb drive and reload new folders\tracks. I don’t feel the need to have 100x Gigs & Gigs of tunes at the readys just cos I can. That slows the whole system.

Just pull from your master drive the tracks you will likely use.

My system is for both home use and playing out.

Otherwise Prime is great and works as it should with no issues.

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I agree with you there is always room for improvements with EP, it can no longer be called “a new software”. The time to catch up is now!

That is not a massive size, my export drive is 500gb.

  • Have you considered moving this your reasonable library to an external SSD (exfat formatted) ?

  • Engine OS does not know the difference between an export drive and main drive.

  • My entire Engine Prime library is 3.2TB (in a 4TB external SSD) and i can plug it in the players for events where i may need all bases covered e.g. weddings

  • You can still treat this as if you were storing the music in your computers internal storage ie manage your tracks in EP, export to smaller USB from the main library (external SSD).

  • And if by some chance, you cant find a track in the smaller export drive, you can also plug in the main library SSD to your players - all the crates etc are readable as it does for the smaller export drive.

My Workflow

  1. Download new tracks to my downloads folder
  2. Clean up and modify tags with a file tag manager
  3. Then i copy the file to my external ssd
  4. delete the copy in my downloads folder
  5. then the file gets added from the external ssd to dj software (engine, serato etc)
  6. now if i have a gig and want to make a small usb export - i plug in main ssd and export selected tracks to small usb
  7. i then take both small usb and main ssd with me.
  8. as planned i will play from small usb, if gig starts demanding more than what the small usb is capable of, i can plug in the main ssd to prime 5000/6000 as well and it works like the small usb but with my enitre collection available to use
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@Ravinstomper

Way I work is simple. I keep all my tracks on my master drive on my pc. I’ll put on a smaller usb drive the folders\genres I want to play via Prime.

Same here => i export it to a SSD, via usb connection (i don’t use the usb to computer connection of my prime 4, it’s like 100 times slower) then i install the ssd drive to the sata in my prime 4 and ready to go.

When I want to change it up I wipe the usb drive and reload new folders\tracks. I don’t feel the need to have 100x Gigs & Gigs of tunes at the ready just cos I can. That slows the whole system.

Almost same here, i just want my whole cat with me at all times, just in case, it’s such a wide area of music my friends & i love, it’s been proven so damn awesome to have that one track someone asks to prove a point to the gang… and you can dig it up. it’s said it’s capable to handle a shtload, i want it to handle a shtload. pimary library on the compute => completely synced to an external ssd-drive to mount in the prime 4.

Just pull from your master drive the tracks you will likely use.

That’s the thing! i drag & drop to the location in prime… all turns out ok… when prime 4 is booted with internal ssd installed… it seems playlists suddenly got wiped… crates suddenly have the HALF amount of tracks it used to have… Fav selectioncrates suddenly got 0 tracks… the star ranking system totally got wrong… this is NOT suposed to happen!

it’s not like you just can add 5 new bought & analysed/mapped tracks in a quick 5 min moment… when you add those… it results in a whole sh*tstorm in the structure of the whole lot that’s on there allready!

I allready reïnstalled engine prime, reïmported the backup Library ( i constantly re up the library because that sh*tstorm happened also waaaay too much to me in the past…)

Realy, Denon, you realy need to step up yr game in development! instead of adding these new bits… try to work out the kinks 1st instead of giving yourself tons of more work!

sry, 'm ranting i know, but it’s a real frustrating situation when there’s promised a reliable alternative for Pioneer gear and it just brings you frustration instead of fun!

the moment ‘m finally done with the sync issues… i don’t feel like havin’ a spin anymore, all the fun is sucked out of it.

@NoiseRiser

  • Have you considered moving this your reasonable library to an external SSD (exfat formatted) ?

my music archive is set on a SD card of 1tb with the best reading/writing specs on the market

  • Engine OS does not know the difference between an export drive and main drive.

Well That’s a point the development team needs to adress no?? The drive where the main library loaded from is the main drive, that way the system knows the difference…

  • My entire Engine Prime library is 3.2TB (in a 4TB external SSD) and i can plug it in the players for events where i may need all bases covered e.g. weddings

I completely understand where you are going here…

so in my case… I just plug in the SD card i mentioned earlier out of the computer, plug it in the Prime 4 & things are loaded onto the prime 4(it indeed always asks for loading the library & settings if they’re found… it would indeed save a lot of hassling around!! (maybe switch it & transfer it all to a SSD in the future…?)

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Yes sir!

Another thing is to make a regular back up of just the SD card and the back up also works just like main SD card (with EP and EOS). I always found SD card ports to be funky, so i went with a standard 2.5inch SSD. I have 3/4 clones of the main library, backed up in at various intervals.

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@mufasa i allways stepped away from that idea because i recalled the file structure of a disk after it got synced… it’s not the file sturcture i use (instead of artists folders only, i the other hand use genre/labels/cat#)

BUT!

like you mentioned… you just hold on to your own file structure, drag the needed files it into your software and analyse/map/… it all out. refresh the LIBRARY-file… & basicly you are good to go with that storage device indeed!

I didn’t thought in that very direction tbh!

Hey! thx for making my weekend bruv!! much appreciated!

Another thing is to make a regular back up of just the SD card and the back up also works just like main SD card (with EP and EOS). I always found SD card ports to be funky, so i went with a standard 2.5inch SSD. I have 3/4 clones of the main library, backed up in at various intervals.

Yeah i work with a sync program (https://freefilesync.org/). each time i connect this external hdd it completely backs up the complete music folder. Asks for the needed adjustments if needed & gives a head’s up of whats going to be double, so i can always delete the older versions and have the new and good paths to the files.

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You can test it by plugging the SD card into your Prime 4. It should just work if the SD card is already in exFAT

Keep us posted!

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That certainly works!, did this multiple times.

'm just gone get me another storage device. once my revising in Engine Prime is done,

i close down the program.

Hook up the new storage device for on the road, engage the sync-process (each time it will make an exact copy of the music-folder AND the engine prime-folder)

and boom!.. device for on the road is done and i can have my piece of mind i have a perfect back up (or 2) at home

So to answer my own question:

Engine Prime: ok to manage your music

  • Create crates (with folder structure if needed)
  • Create playlists (with folder structure if needed)
  • add mappings on your tracks…

If you want to sync to external devices… you’re on your own… sync function keeps on screwing it all up.

Come on Denon! you can do this, we all had problems with Traktor & Rekordbox when they started, but seriously, get with the program ^^

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And that is the best way to organise music in EP.

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But where is the point of buying an all in one controller, if it is to use it with a software of mixing ??? “there are plenty of other products that are just controllers”

I use Serato since Scratchlive towards the end of 2004 then Serato Dj and Serato Dj Pro in DVS with my Technics SL1200Mk5 and I use this library in Engine Prime that I import and that I export to an external storage medium (in an SD card for my Prime Go) and internally in an SSD which is in my Prime 4, I took this material for the autonomous side in order to leave my mac at home for the preparation. I had CDJ2000s when they were released and I never understood why people use a computer with them (except for visual comfort, otherwise I don’t see the point, I had an external hard drive for each drive and never encountered a problem.

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@DjMell26 : If you’ve read closely, i do NOT use the dj aspect of engine prime, it’s a music organiser for me.

I load in my music, let the algorithm analyse the bpms, adjust beatgrids if needed, i do my cue marker mappings, structure my music in crates and playlists.

After that i used the sync-function(sync to external storage device, not dj bpm sync)

That way, when i use my standalone prime4 its all ready to go.

No more preloading and adjusting beatgrids before mixing in a track… it’s all ready to go, no more computer needed, just the prime 4.

Engine prime app is all about the preparation to ensure smooth workflow when using tge prime4.

Rekord box, the same story. Traktor x Serato: sometimes there are moments when doing a gig you just can plug in the usb stick to a setup running these programs, i don’t mind using these when that happens.

Hope this clears up your question?

Regards

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There is no dj aspect of the program. It is not made for djing, only for organizing. Not quite sure what @DjMell26 had in mind here…

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Sorry I thought the request was to make Engine Prime a MIX software like Traktor, RB, SDJ.

ok, if I understand correctly you want Engine Prime to create a universal database, which will allow you to use what you have prepared upstream with E.P to be compatible on X and Y software?

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No.

This is what he wants

External devices = external storage to use with the prime players

Sync Function = Sync Manager

Screwing it up =

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What he said ^^

I just want E.P. to do what it promised… but thx to the members here i found a very easy work-around now…

Not using the sync feature of the app. Only the organising functions.

With a file sync software i just make a exact copy of the original drive to a new storage for on the road.

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I also chose to way of putting my collection on the units and the external drives from the first EP versions onwards.

Sync Manager will be greatly improved in the next versions, but for know I’d stick to the “workaround” if that makes more sense in your workflow.

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4 years on and ‘imho’ EP still has far too many workarounds and far too many promises of it will do this and that or wait for this, wait for that.

As an outsider now keepin’ tabs and seeing what seems good priced hardware in the SC6k range, I have to say that the only reason I still don’t jump ship is such problems with the software.

It’s the big elephant in the room for many DJ’s coming from the competition when viewing the Denon workflow.

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