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Using Source with Windows Laptop DJ Setups

by Craig Anderton

Source was designed for multiple purposes, with one of them being laptop (or desktop) DJ

applications—and frankly, it’s about time the booth and mains got a shot of higher fidelity. Typically,

you’d route the computer’s USB output to the floor speakers, and a separate computer output (like the

analog headphone output jack) to the Source’s headphones section by patching the computer’s analog

audio output to Source’s AN1 or AN2 input. This means the dance floor gets the ultra-high fidelity

direct USB digital output from the computer, while the analog out can provide previewing or cuing,

depending on the program.

Sounds easy enough, right?

On the Mac, it is indeed easy because you can aggregate multiple interfaces under Core Audio, and

audio interfaces use Core Audio. So, the Mac’s internal 1/8” headphone jack could patch to Analog 2

and provide the cuing output, while the Mac’s USB provides the main output to the Source USB input.

(By the way, don’t be scared away by the horror stories of aggregation on the Mac; while it started off

being somewhat flaky, it’s now stable and I’ve had excellent luck aggregating multiple interfaces.)

But Windows is a different story. Paradoxically, it’s been possible to aggregate interfaces using the

WDM driver protocol (or the low-latency WDM/KS driver protocol) for years, and it’s both reliable

and stable. That’s the good news. The bad news is most pro audio users and DJs use ASIO due to its

ubiquity and low latency, and with very few exceptions, integrating ASIO interfaces is a non-starter.

Fortunately, there’s a suitable workaround—although it makes Windows and your audio interfaces do

something they really don’t want to do, so it’s a little complex to set up. And while this application

emphasizes DJ applications, it applies to any situation were you want to get an additional set of outs

from a Windows machine (e.g., listen to the control room speakers from the USB out, while sending a

click track from the analog out to the drummer).

THE ASIO4ALL DRIVER

An application called ASIO4ALL makes WDM devices appear like ASIO, and can aggregate them

with Source’s CEntrance USB audio driver. Therefore, you can feed the Source USB to your main

speakers, and patch the Windows computer’s 1/8” headphone jack from the internal sound card (just

about every Windows laptop and desktop on the planet has one of these) into AN2 to provide the cue

output.

This following assumes that your DJ program and controller are already installed and known to be

working, and also, that you’ve downloaded and installed the Source USB driver from

http://centrance.com/products/registration.php?product=258 and verified that it works correctly. Before

proceeding, make the necessary USB and audio connections between your computer and Source.

READY . . . SET . . . TWEAK

Here are the step-by-step instructions on how to implement the aggregation workaround using Native

Instruments’ Traktor Pro 2 and their Kontrol S2, but the same principles apply to just about any

combination of DJ gear and controllers.

Summary of content (6 pages)

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Using Source with Windows Laptop DJ Setups by Craig Anderton Source was designed for multiple purposes, with one of them being laptop (or desktop) DJ applications—and frankly, it’s about time the booth and mains got a shot of higher fidelity. Typically, you’d route the computer’s USB output to the floor speakers, and a separate computer output (like the analog headphone output jack) to the Source’s headphones section by patching the computer’s analog audio output to Source’s AN1 or AN2 input.
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1. Go to www.asio4all.com and download the latest version of ASIO4.ALL. 2. With all other programs closed and any virus protection turned off, double-click the ASIO4ALL executable (.exe file) to install it. For documentation, go Start > All Programs > ASIO4ALL to locate the instruction manual. (This also accesses the uninstall routine, should you need it someday.) 3. With your USB interface and/or controller connected, open your DJ program (e.g., Traktor Pro 2). 4. In Traktor, go File > Audio Setup (Fig.
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[Fig. 3] 7. When the Control Panel opens up, set the ASIO Buffer Size to a conservative setting, like 2048 samples (Fig. 4). Later, after the system is working, experiment with lowering this to reduce latency; however, you won’t be able to get it as low as with an ASIO-only setup. Then, click on the wrench icon to open Advanced Options. [Fig. 4] 8. Expand all device trees (Fig.
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[Fig. 5] Note: When you change these settings, Traktor may crash because it’s not seeing something it expects to see. No worries; close Traktor and re-open it. The program will recognize the new settings. 9. Click on the wrench icon again to revert to simple mode. If you want to reduce screen clutter, close the ASIO4ALL window. 10. Close the Preferences screen, then close Traktor. Re-open Traktor and when you’re asked if you want to switch Audio to Traktor’s interface (e.g., the Kontrol S2), click No.
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[Fig. 6] 12. You will also need to go Start > Control Panel > Sound and under the Playback tab, click the Windows sound card option you selected (Headphones or Speakers), then click Set Default (Fig. 7). Click OK after making your selection. If as mentioned above you later need to switch to the other sound card output option, remember that you need to change this Sound setting as well.
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[Fig. 7] Okay . . . you should be good to go! Drag a file into a Traktor deck, hit Play, and make sure USB is enabled on Source. You should hear audio from the deck. Now drag a file into the Traktor browser’s Preview deck. You can audition the Preview deck with AN2 (assuming that’s where you patched the computer’s analog audio output), and/or Traktor’s main output with USB. If you don’t hear the audio from the Preview deck, return to step 11 and re-visit your sound card assignments.