Frequently Asked Questions
Q: When I'm trying to pre-listen (preview) a song in the list, it doesn't work
A: You need to have a separate output for headphones activated in Preferences (CFG)
Q: I want to use 2 different soundcards (audio outputs) on my Mac/Windows. How can I do this?
A: On Windows you can configure them directly from the FutureDecks Pro preferences (CFG).
On Mac you need to make an 'aggregate audio device' (a virtual soundcard) from the 2 soundcards that you like to use -- use Applications -> Utilities -> MIDI & Audio Utility to do so. Then, just select the new virtual soundcard in FutureDecks Pro.
Q: Why should I buy (purchase) the Pro version and not the Lite version?
A: The Pro version has more advanced features which are not found in the Lite version like:
- external hardware controllers support and MIDI
- video mixing (including scratch, pitch, bend, loop, etc)
- professional looking interface (skin)
- high-quality time stretching and pitch scaling for harmonic/key mixing
- time-coded vinyl/CD support and Analog input
- external effects (VST/AU support) that you can add on decks / master / microphone
- Learn mode (ability to assign keyboard keys or MIDI events to buttons/knobs/sliders on the interface in a very intuitive and simple way)
- external mixer support
- cue points
- advanced loop controls
- ability to use a microphone (TalkOver + OnAir)
- sampler (load/play/sync up to 8 small audio files/fx sounds)
- priority for technical support
Q: I have some MP4 and M4A files on my computer but they don't seem to work
A: On Windows you need to download and install iTunes from www.apple.com
Q: I can't use WMA files on Mac
A: WMA files don't work on the MacOSX version of FutureDecks. Convert them to mp3 or m4a.
Q: Is it possible to edit the songs tags directly from FutureDecks?
A: No, you should use an external application for this like iTunes, Winamp or MusicMatch (all free)
Q: How can I define keyboard shortcuts?
A: You just press the LEARN button, select the button, knob or slider and then press the desired keys.
Q: Where can I find free and payed VST and AudioUnit effects ?
A: A very good place to start is www.kvraudio.com
Q: Why does my mp3s sound so bad?
A: On Windows the mp3 built-in decoder might be damaged. You should download and install iTunes for best quality (from www.apple.com)
Q: What is SPLIT mode?
A: You need to activate the audio split mode if you have a simple stereo soundcard (no multichannel) but you still want separate outputs for speakers and headphones. The speakers signal will come out on the Left channel and the headphones signal on the Right channel of the simple stereo output. Obviously, you will also need a signal splitter to use the signals in this way.
Q: Multichannel output doesn't work on Windows with my soundcard. What is wrong?
A: On Windows, the multichannel soundcard must have a WDM driver to work ok. Also, you must activate the multichannel setting in FutureDecks.
Q: What are the demo version limitations?
A: The demo version may be used only for 30 days for evaluation purposes only. It works only for 20 minutes per session, and mix recording and list 'saving as' are disabled.
Q: If I have 2 computers do I have to buy 2 copies?
A: No, you just have to purchase 1 license and then you can use it on up to 3 computers.
Q: I have some M4P files on my computer from the iTunes Store but they don't seem to work
A: The iTunes Store (iTMS) songs are protected by a very advanced technical method and also by copyrights laws. Apple does not allow any other 3rd party company to decode that songs. Only iTunes and all other Apple software decode the M4P files. Please complain to Apple for this problem.
One solution is to burn your songs to CD (as audio-cd) and then re-import them as un-protected aac or as mp3. Another possible solution is to upgrade your songs to DRM free format from the iTunes store, but we have NOT tried this before so it might not work.
Q: What is a cue point?
A: A cue point records a position in a song for easy re-finding of good/interesting mixing positions.
Q: How do I set a cue point?
A: You should use the SetCuePoint button which is located near the CUE button
Q: Can I record my mixes?
A: Yes, you can record your mixes in AIFF (Mac) or WAV (Windows) format. You can later burn the file to an audio CD using your favourite CD-burner application, or you can transfer it to your iPod.
Q: What can I do if the sound is not hearing well (stutter, pops, clicks, skips)?
A: You should first go to http://www.musicxp.net/tuning_tips.php. You should set the latency to maximum. If it doesn't work you would probably need to upgrade your computer to at least a 1.5GHz processor. If you already have this, maybe you should change your soundcard with a better one.
Q: What soundcards do you recommend for the best audio quality?
A: There are professional soundcards available for both Mac and Windows from M-Audio (www.m-audio.com), RME (www.rme-audio.com), and many others like EMU, Emagic, ESI, Event, Antex, GadgetLabs, DigiDesign, etc. Please note that these are very expensive professional soundcards. You might also try consumer high-quality soundcards like M-Audio Revolution, CreativeLabs, TerraTec, etc
Q: What hardware controllers do you recommend?
A: All controllers that have MIDI will work if you take 5-10 minutes to configure FutureDecks Pro.
Out-of-the-box FutureDecks uses natively (no configure needed): Behringer BCD2000/BCD3000, M-Audio Xponent, Reloop DJ-IE2, Vestax, ALL Hercules controllers. This means you don't have to configure FutureDecks at all (zero-configure) for these controllers. Just plug them (install drivers if needed) and start FutureDecks -- ready to go!
Q: Can I connect a natively supported controller and a MIDI controller at the same time?
A: Yes, and you can use the natively supported controller to control the basic functions of the software and the MIDI controller to control other functions including the effects' parameters.
Q: Is it possible to use the Behringer BCD2000 on a Mac with FutureDecks Pro?
A: Well ... yes and no. Behringer does not provide a Mac driver for the BCD2000 but there is such a driver made by "evinyatar" (http://www.evinyatar.be) that works well with the controller but without audio (you will have to use another soundcard). All other controllers (including the BCD3000) works perfect on the Mac with FutureDecks Pro.
Q: What timecoded vinyls/CDs can I use and where do I get them?
A: In the current version you can use FutureDecks timecoded CD (relative mode only, download here) and MsPinky/Torq timecoded vinyl/CD (buy it from here)
Q: How do I import an M3U playlist file that has songs with special characters in it? (eg. letters like ü, á, ñ, etc)
A: The solution is to convert that file into UTF-8 mode.
You need to download a free text editor (Notepad++), open M3U the file into it and select from the menu Format->Convert to UTF8.
Save the file, close the editor and try to use it in FutureDecks again.
Q: What is your policy on new versions / upgrades for existing customers?
A: All minor updates (which may include bug fixes but also brand new features) are FREE. So, if you purchased for example FutureDecks Pro 2.0.0 all 2.x.x versions will be FREE for you. When a major release is made which includes extremely many or very important new features you are offered a special upgrade price (less than a quarter of the full price). If you happen to have just purchased a version in the last 6 months and we release a new major version in the meantime, the upgrade is free (6 months grace period).
If you didn't find the answer you were looking for, you should also see the Features section and also the Forums.
If you still have questions you can email us directly at support@xylio.com
Q: When I'm trying to pre-listen (preview) a song in the list, it doesn't work
A: You need to have a separate output for headphones activated in Preferences (CFG)
Q: I want to use 2 different soundcards (audio outputs) on my Mac/Windows. How can I do this?
A: On Windows you can configure them directly from the FutureDecks Pro preferences (CFG).
On Mac you need to make an 'aggregate audio device' (a virtual soundcard) from the 2 soundcards that you like to use -- use Applications -> Utilities -> MIDI & Audio Utility to do so. Then, just select the new virtual soundcard in FutureDecks Pro.
Q: Why should I buy (purchase) the Pro version and not the Lite version?
A: The Pro version has more advanced features which are not found in the Lite version like:
- external hardware controllers support and MIDI
- video mixing (including scratch, pitch, bend, loop, etc)
- professional looking interface (skin)
- high-quality time stretching and pitch scaling for harmonic/key mixing
- time-coded vinyl/CD support and Analog input
- external effects (VST/AU support) that you can add on decks / master / microphone
- Learn mode (ability to assign keyboard keys or MIDI events to buttons/knobs/sliders on the interface in a very intuitive and simple way)
- external mixer support
- cue points
- advanced loop controls
- ability to use a microphone (TalkOver + OnAir)
- sampler (load/play/sync up to 8 small audio files/fx sounds)
- priority for technical support
Q: I have some MP4 and M4A files on my computer but they don't seem to work
A: On Windows you need to download and install iTunes from www.apple.com
Q: I can't use WMA files on Mac
A: WMA files don't work on the MacOSX version of FutureDecks. Convert them to mp3 or m4a.
Q: Is it possible to edit the songs tags directly from FutureDecks?
A: No, you should use an external application for this like iTunes, Winamp or MusicMatch (all free)
Q: How can I define keyboard shortcuts?
A: You just press the LEARN button, select the button, knob or slider and then press the desired keys.
Q: Where can I find free and payed VST and AudioUnit effects ?
A: A very good place to start is www.kvraudio.com
Q: Why does my mp3s sound so bad?
A: On Windows the mp3 built-in decoder might be damaged. You should download and install iTunes for best quality (from www.apple.com)
Q: What is SPLIT mode?
A: You need to activate the audio split mode if you have a simple stereo soundcard (no multichannel) but you still want separate outputs for speakers and headphones. The speakers signal will come out on the Left channel and the headphones signal on the Right channel of the simple stereo output. Obviously, you will also need a signal splitter to use the signals in this way.
Q: Multichannel output doesn't work on Windows with my soundcard. What is wrong?
A: On Windows, the multichannel soundcard must have a WDM driver to work ok. Also, you must activate the multichannel setting in FutureDecks.
Q: What are the demo version limitations?
A: The demo version may be used only for 30 days for evaluation purposes only. It works only for 20 minutes per session, and mix recording and list 'saving as' are disabled.
Q: If I have 2 computers do I have to buy 2 copies?
A: No, you just have to purchase 1 license and then you can use it on up to 3 computers.
Q: I have some M4P files on my computer from the iTunes Store but they don't seem to work
A: The iTunes Store (iTMS) songs are protected by a very advanced technical method and also by copyrights laws. Apple does not allow any other 3rd party company to decode that songs. Only iTunes and all other Apple software decode the M4P files. Please complain to Apple for this problem.
One solution is to burn your songs to CD (as audio-cd) and then re-import them as un-protected aac or as mp3. Another possible solution is to upgrade your songs to DRM free format from the iTunes store, but we have NOT tried this before so it might not work.
Q: What is a cue point?
A: A cue point records a position in a song for easy re-finding of good/interesting mixing positions.
Q: How do I set a cue point?
A: You should use the SetCuePoint button which is located near the CUE button
Q: Can I record my mixes?
A: Yes, you can record your mixes in AIFF (Mac) or WAV (Windows) format. You can later burn the file to an audio CD using your favourite CD-burner application, or you can transfer it to your iPod.
Q: What can I do if the sound is not hearing well (stutter, pops, clicks, skips)?
A: You should first go to http://www.musicxp.net/tuning_tips.php. You should set the latency to maximum. If it doesn't work you would probably need to upgrade your computer to at least a 1.5GHz processor. If you already have this, maybe you should change your soundcard with a better one.
Q: What soundcards do you recommend for the best audio quality?
A: There are professional soundcards available for both Mac and Windows from M-Audio (www.m-audio.com), RME (www.rme-audio.com), and many others like EMU, Emagic, ESI, Event, Antex, GadgetLabs, DigiDesign, etc. Please note that these are very expensive professional soundcards. You might also try consumer high-quality soundcards like M-Audio Revolution, CreativeLabs, TerraTec, etc
Q: What hardware controllers do you recommend?
A: All controllers that have MIDI will work if you take 5-10 minutes to configure FutureDecks Pro.
Out-of-the-box FutureDecks uses natively (no configure needed): Behringer BCD2000/BCD3000, M-Audio Xponent, Reloop DJ-IE2, Vestax, ALL Hercules controllers. This means you don't have to configure FutureDecks at all (zero-configure) for these controllers. Just plug them (install drivers if needed) and start FutureDecks -- ready to go!
Q: Can I connect a natively supported controller and a MIDI controller at the same time?
A: Yes, and you can use the natively supported controller to control the basic functions of the software and the MIDI controller to control other functions including the effects' parameters.
Q: Is it possible to use the Behringer BCD2000 on a Mac with FutureDecks Pro?
A: Well ... yes and no. Behringer does not provide a Mac driver for the BCD2000 but there is such a driver made by "evinyatar" (http://www.evinyatar.be) that works well with the controller but without audio (you will have to use another soundcard). All other controllers (including the BCD3000) works perfect on the Mac with FutureDecks Pro.
Q: What timecoded vinyls/CDs can I use and where do I get them?
A: In the current version you can use FutureDecks timecoded CD (relative mode only, download here) and MsPinky/Torq timecoded vinyl/CD (buy it from here)
Q: How do I import an M3U playlist file that has songs with special characters in it? (eg. letters like ü, á, ñ, etc)
A: The solution is to convert that file into UTF-8 mode.
You need to download a free text editor (Notepad++), open M3U the file into it and select from the menu Format->Convert to UTF8.
Save the file, close the editor and try to use it in FutureDecks again.
Q: What is your policy on new versions / upgrades for existing customers?
A: All minor updates (which may include bug fixes but also brand new features) are FREE. So, if you purchased for example FutureDecks Pro 2.0.0 all 2.x.x versions will be FREE for you. When a major release is made which includes extremely many or very important new features you are offered a special upgrade price (less than a quarter of the full price). If you happen to have just purchased a version in the last 6 months and we release a new major version in the meantime, the upgrade is free (6 months grace period).
If you didn't find the answer you were looking for, you should also see the Features section and also the Forums.
If you still have questions you can email us directly at support@xylio.com
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