Tonium P666 Pacemaker Pocket-Sized DJ System, 60 GB

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Just got my Pacemaker a few weeks ago and I'm really enjoying it! I had a couple of Numark (monster) TTX tables with a Stanton xfader when I was younger and the biggest pain was just getting the things around. Even with CDJs its pretty tough to move gear around. So the Pacemaker works out really well as far as portability goes!

Loading MP3s is not too hard, beware if you have a lot of older iTunes tracks, you'll have to *upgrade* them to the DRM-free format for $0.30/track to get them on to your Pacemaker, just something to consider. That can set you back hundreds if you have a good sized music collection tied up in iTunes.

You've really got to know your music because when you scroll through the tracks, you only get track titles and BPM displayed. Once you start playing the track, you get all the info. I havent played with the mix editor software too much but it installed easily seems easy enough, not as intuitive as iTunes but it shouldnt give you too many headaches if you're just trying to get music on the Pacemaker.

As far as "gigging" with it, if you're going to a party with a bunch of your friends and want to entertain, this is good but you're tethered to the thing all evening, you might be better off spending the $500 bones on some good music, making some really great playlists on your iPod and just letting it go to shuffle. Then you can hang with everyone at the party.

If you got really sharp with it (I am not...working on it though) its pretty reasonable to play 3-4 hours of play with lots of different music using pitch bend and effects to really get some unique flavor into what you're playing. After using it LOTS the past few weeks, I'm pretty confident it wont lock up on you in the middle of your set. It hasnt ever locked up on me and i've done some pretty impressive combinations of inputs that the folks at Tonium probably never counted on.

The auto beat matching is stupid easy, but if you sync a 85 BPM hip hop track with a 130 BPM dance track you'll get just what you ask for ;-) The pitch bend is a cool tool too but depending on the bit rate/compression of your MP3s (i guess those are fancy words for 'quality' of your MP3s) your music will sound really degraded as you slow it down.

So Im not going to pretend that it replaces the feel of vinyl or the slide of the fader but as far as just getting hours behind your music and getting to know it and thinking up good mixes, this is a great player.

Sorry for the random thoughts, I really love it though and its becoming my go to MP3 player just because of the ability to get into my music in ways that I only used to be able to with my old gear. $500 is something to think about but dont fret about the quality and finish of it, its just as sharp as anything Apple's put out (and i loves me some Apple stuff). Hope this is helpful!

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I've owned the Pacemaker since it was originally released and have been incredibly pleased with it. Early versions of the firmware were a bit buggy but it has been a solid performer for the past six months with regular updates freely available.

The interface is intuitive and easy to use after a 2-3 hour learning curve (mostly to break iPod interface habits) and the sound for the variety of formats supported is superb. You can record your mixes on the device and move them to the desktop application and vice versa. The sound controls work very well and reliably. If you like manipulating music and are looking for a device that takes you beyond the iPod experience, this is highly recommended.

The pacemaker social network for sharing mixes is nice as well. I just wish there were a way to download and play them on the device (even if for only a limited period of time).

I can't speak to its utility as a live DJ device as I've never used it in that capacity, but there seem to be quite a few folks that do in the pacemaker.net forums.

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I bought one of these when they first came out last year (the 120GB version), and I've been very happy with it. At the time I had no prior mixing experience, but I found that using the Pacemaker was pretty intuitive and I caught the bug so thoroughly that only three months later I bought my own set of full-size turntables and a mixer.

Pros: I love that it's small enough to fit in my purse or satchel and go anywhere. I travel a lot, and it makes that 8-hr flight a lot easier to cope with! I can also plug it in to any old rig and put on a decent mix if I want to. I don't go through music withdrawal any more and I'll never buy another MP3 player. It's so loaded with features I haven't yet mastered them all.

Cons: The touchpad is fiddly, simply because the device is so small. You have to be really careful where you place your fingers or you risk e.g. accidentally hitting the crossfade bar and wrecking your mix. I find the EQ gestures have been hard to get used to. I can't imagine dancing around with this thing - it's too easy to hit the wrong area of the control face if you're not paying attention! Other DJ friends of mine think it lacks a certain gravitas that a booth provides.

Overall: a great toy. I'd recommend it.

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[Bedroom DJ]

I have had my Pacemaker for about 1 month and it is simply superb. Normally I spin on two CDJ-400s and a DJM-800 - usually with music off my USB sticks - I purchase my music in .wav format and tag it using media monkey.

[Secret] I go to the club every night and the DJ is great because he always plays the music I like. [/Secret]

WHAT IS THE PACEMAKER?
This is two music players in ONE that allows you to mix music (beatmix, master tempo, pitch shift) in real time as if you had two turntables/decks.

HOW DOES IT WORK?
While one song is playing through the line output, the next song is chosen through headphones, then mix the two songs in real time with all magic DJ touches at your finger tips. Record your set on the fly to replay later and export. [Lame] Export to file is to .ogg format at 199 kbit/s - this is very average quality [/Lame] or to [Cool] web-online at the tonium site so that others may download. [/Cool]

WHY DID I BUY THIS?
I hate my IPOD/iTunes: they do not seem to play nice with other formats and service providers. More importantly, I wanted to experiment with music mixing when away from my set DJ set up - ie: on vacation or when I need down time at work! If my Pacemaker broke today I would buy another one tomorrow. NB: I actually own the 211 model - the 120 GB flavor with a charger, a USB a-b cable, and a 1/4inch TRS to RCA cable.

PACEMAKER HARDWARE INTERFACE
Exceptionally parsimonious and very effective: These people are definitely geniuses - the controls are easy to master and truly reflect the way I think when I am on my CDJ-400s; I played a near flawless set the first three hours I owned it!!! FXs include HI-LO cut, Treble, Mid, Bass adjust, Echo, Delay, Reverb, Roll, Wah, TranceGate, Crush, Key, and Beat controlled FX (8,4,2,3/2,1,3/4,1/2,3/8,1/4,1/8). That IPOD scroll wheel doesn't look so impressive compared to this.

PACEMAKER INTERFACE
The OS on the pacemaker is truly innovative and puts to shame almost every other DEVICE interface on the market. It is easy to find a song in a collection of thousands of songs through the interface - it is that easy to use: filters for artist, album, BPM, genre, year, and more with a very rapid and intuitive implementation for the mood of the moment, surprising, nobody does it like this. Apple will copy this.
Also, set up crates on the fly and have it transfer over to your PC.

COMPUTER SOFTWARE INTERFACE - song/collection management
Management of the song list on the device is very easy, and totally under your control. None of that crazy IPOD auto sync disaster stuff here. The software does not move files around on the hard drive of your computer. Total respect. The file compatibility is broad: WAV, OGG, MP3, FLAC, AAC plus more!!! (Check the specs - but it makes the IPOD look like a cereal box toy).

[Lame]COMPUTER SOFTWARE INTERFACE - mixing tools [/Lame]
All mixes recorded on the fly with the PACEMAKER will be transferred to your PC. To be honest - so far - I really haven't gotten the gist; I transfer the mixes but the software is so lame I just can't make it work; lining up the beginning of a bar is near impossible - they have a long way to go. This mixing software is poorly documented and does not accept audio FX plug-ins. Output is severely limited to .ogg - huh???. [Tip]I prefer mixing music in musicmeister for QUICK mixes that output to full CD quality. [/Tip]

PACEMAKER FIRMWARE AND COMPUTER SOFTWARE UPGRADE
From what I can figure out from the early reviews in the DJ mags and the online forums - TONIUM - have spent a tremendous amount of energy bringing the software / interface up to speed with what would be considered reasonable features on the pacemaker device - hats off. Having owned this in June 2009 - This is one polished interface - and easy to use.

PERKS

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I have owned an Ipod for more than 5 years and were ready for an upgrade....I bought the 60GB Pacemaker a week ago and I can tell you it works great!!!....you only have to practice a little to handle the controls with ease. A nice feature: it recognizes the itunes playlists (I have about 100) so I was worried about this (did not want to make them again). By the way, playlists are called Cases in the Pacemaker.
It has two modes: Play mode and Mix Mode. The play mode has most of the features of the Ipod....but the Mix mode is great!!..you can beatmatch two songs, make loops, a lot of special effects, and many more stuff to play around, making it a great toy.
If you do not want to get tied all evening in a casual party interacting with the device you can set it in Play mode and let the Cases (Playlists) work for you (but will not automatically mix them).
The 60GB version only comes with an USB cable for charging the internal battery through a computer. It would be nice to have also a AC charger.
The US$500 value seams a little too much, but this device is really two in one, I mean an Ipod (US$225) with a DJ Console (US$275).
If you want an Ipod upgrade, go for it!!

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After using the Pacemaker I was amazed on how 2 turntables and a mixer could now fit in the palm of your hand. I feel Pacemaker has changed the world of hand held music devices. For example, with Pacemaker you can blend the bass, trebel and mids for both channels to get all the sound you would get from a mixer. Along with changing the pitch of each song while mixing into the next song like you have turntables and a mixer all in the palm of your hand!

Being a DJ I see alot of different new and innovative ways to make things easier to replicate how dj's play music, but with Pacemaker I see a new way to dj for the future! With this device you can now dj and now dance in the crowd in the middle of the dance floor while still getting that perfect mix. It is very easy to use, as easy as an iPod, but as advanced as your most expensive dj set up! This device gets rid of all the wires, heavy turntables, and it puts "Scratch Live" Serato in the palm of your hand. It has a good amount of music space and it will work great for all kinds of dj's weither you are a beginner or been in the biz for 20 years!

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