Try and download djpro 2.02 maybe they fixed it

Serato DJ Pro 2.0.2 did not fix this issue. It is still slow in analyzing audio files.

Don't know if you guys have this problem too, but when you initially start the software and it reads all the audio files in your crates it takes minutes (specially if you have lots of audio files) for Serato DJ Pro to read the ID3 tags on the audio files. You might as well take a coffee brake after starting Serato DJ Pro.

I think you best option is to open a help request with serato
Let them know what's going on that way you have a better chance of your issue being fixed in the next version that comes out.

Already have an issue # from Serato for this. Actually tracking 3 different issues... One is actually fixed in 2.0.2 and it's in their release notes. That's the one with filenames with characters from a foreign character set. It now loads and plays properly.

Did they fix the corrupt files issue?

nope. still very slow m4a decoding in sdj pro 2.0.2 win10 version.

all tracks above 8min are skipping because of the ultra lame encoding speed.

analyse tracks is unbelievable slow. sdj analyse 5 new tracks fron itunes - need 10 mins!!!

please, please serato, fix this!:)

corrupt files with non ascii signs is fixed in 2.0.2.

Yep. Super slow.

"Hey there Christopher,
Thanks for getting back in touch.
It is a known issue with the m4a files. We are looking into possible solutions with our newer updates.
I hope this helps. Please let me know if I can be of any more assistance.
Kind Regards,
Micquel"

Response from Serato Support

I had the same problem. Ended up converting all my mp4 into either mp3 or wav and now works just fine. I also noticed with mp4 after finally analysing a track the beatgrids where way off and i had to manually change the whole song

serato is back in 1998 with skipping tracks and not working file formats.

sorry guys - thats not the right way.

rekordbox is better and better with every update, serato release same software than in 1.9 only big new thing is "retina support" - Full HD resolution should be normal since years
- and a lot of bugs too.

really thinking of buying a rekordbox controller :(

its your turn serato, now its time to give full energy to sdj pro.

It’s a windows bug cause this isn’t happening on Mac. M4A = itunes format

news...: serato send me an link to an 32Bit Version of 2.0.2.

this version runs with m4a like mp3 smooth and without problems.

serato.com

You are running the 32bit version on a 64bit PC?

Switched to the 32bit version, and mp4 is working normally again as well.

Eagerly waiting for the 64bit to not be buggy as all hell.

You can run 32bit on 64bit machines. You cannot run 64bit on 32bit. This is a temporary workaround (hopefully).

yep. 32bit version is smooth.

only problem: 1 time at a wedding, a premixed coffeetime set (64mins mp3) played, serato/win10 showed: grafic error message and serato only showed frame, no display. restart serato-->runs all nite long.

I'm getting the exact same issue, takes an absolute age to analyse tracks, Serato... please hurry up & fix this issue, I download a load of new tunes on a weekly basis, this is causing me big issues for my gigs, really not happy!!!

Buy a Mac🧐

even w mac SDJ pro is much slower than SDJ

We shouldnt have to buy a mac!! My windows laptop is top of the range, custom built & has way better specs than any mac!!

To solve this issue guys, download the 32bit instead of the 64bit. I did this yesterday after reading a few comments & now its working fine & analyzing really quick again.

Lol i know i just like giving Windows users shit. I used to be a windows user then i got my head out of my ass and converted to Mac. It was the best decision for my career. As much as i hate Mac (my first mbp was defective) i love them. It’s a love/hate thing.

2.0.3 64bit still has the same issue, heads up.

Switching back to 2.0.2 32bit.

The Mac/windows thing is always an issue. Macs are easier but then in this that’s what money is all about! Windows has improved over the last few years and other than keeping an eye on drivers there is only a little extra work with them. The 32 bit version runs like butter off the bonnet of an African desert jeep with windows but the 64 bit is like swimming in quicksand and i don’t think it’s windows problem but I could be wrong. Still I have not had a crash yet with the 32bit version on windows! Happy days. I have the choice of a 6 year old 3rd gen i5 Mac or 6th gen windows for around the same price but I am thinking windows after some recent experience debunking the Mac myth of Uber tech spec! The 2012 models are prone to heat and can cause the housing glue to melt and separate from the screen! I would suggest if anyone owns one then brush up on your drilling skills and modify the base plate by drilling 4 or 5 holes either side of the bottom panel and fine mesh it if needs must. This issue was addressed in the 2013 model and you will find slots underneath to let the heat out. Incidentally there not unibody either only flush giving you the impression of a unibody, yeah, sorry even Apple are capable of blagging the cash out of your tech wet dreams!

they are prone to heating, i have to watch mine pretty close and keep it elevated or keep a fan on it. Analyzing files in serato dj really heats it up but somehow Mixed in Key is worse.

I'm doing a full library analyses and noticed that m4a is slow to analyse as well on a MacBook pro.

It takes about the same length of time to analyse a single m4a audio as it will take to analyse a MP4 video file. I'm watching the analyses bar.

FLAC, WAV, MP3 all move swiftly.

I'm using 1.9.6 Serato DJ to do the analysis.

I have 2.0.3 but my library has been acting weird lately, I notice that the the "File Size" column is not showing the values and I need that to know what type of file the track is e.g. FLAC, MP4, MP3, WAV etc. Serato does not have a file type column and I use the File Size to guess it.

Version 2.0.4 still has this issue. MP3's cruise.

I'm running a Lenovo T540p with a 960gb ssd.
Windows 10 Pro, build 17134.191 (which is 1803)
i7-4700MQ CPU with hyperthreading on. 16GB ram

Happy to provide other specs or a log.

now we have almost 2019 and serato still does not like m4a.
performance is better in 2.0.5 64 bit on win10, but still a lot of more cpu load than in 1.9 or 2.0.4 32bit.

serato crashed at my gig tonite with 2.0.5. 64bit

will downgrade to stable 2.0.3 32 bit.

its a shame. 1 year ago, still not stable on win10.

bye the way....pioneer rekordbox is very smooth on win10 machine.

angry that i buyed an ddj sz2 and no rz... :-(

It's 2019 and you're using Windows? Serato has NEVER worked stable with ANY windows platform. Let go of the breath you're holding and cop yourself a fresh macbook for problem free DJ'ing. Thanks!

Correction. My old HP Pavilion worked flawless with Scratchlive. But SDJ for Windows is a diff story.

Facts.

Nonsense. I've been Windows since XP with Serato through every version and its always been solid for me.

And I don't know if you have noticed but there are more threads about MAC users having problems than PC users.

yz is on the aptidda edge with facts. Even tecniq had to correct him

I'm on Windows 10 16G i7 6th gen. I'm on Serato 2.0.4 It always works smoothly for me. One issue, sounds like people have a similar one. My M4a files, have to be reanalyzed every single time the program opens, they take forever.

I'm considering converting every m4a to mp3 using one of those free programs.

Any advice on how to get serato to remember these tags?

2.1 runs smooth on win10 with mp3 files.

the .m4a bug that some files with ü,ö,ä é in id3 Tag is BACK!

this was solved in 2.0.4., now now ascii caraters in id3 dont work again.

also m4a files that a running cause an higher cpu load than mp3.

maybe 2.1.1 will fix this? :)

Marcus, did you get Serato to open a ticket for files with special characters. I had this problem previously, fixed in a 2.0.4 and loaded 2.1 and can confirm that this problem appears to be back. Looks like Serato forgot to put that fix into this release.

yes, its open.

you could open one too to make our problem a lil bit more important:-)

Thanks.. Did that for the original back in April. You'll find that on this same track.

This is a bug in Windows cause there’s no issue playing m4a’s on Mac.

Yes, the Windows version of Serato DJ PRo 2.1.0, which still makes it a Serato bug.

Ddj 1000 with rekordbox is on my wishlist for 2019. 1year...i mean... 1 year... Still problems.
Tryed rekordbox...runs smooth and clear.
Will be sad to leave the ddj sz2 but i think theres no other option if you want to use your highend win pc.
Please no win mac discussion now.

I thought about it.. It's also almost half price of the sz(2). Your other option is to continue using 1.9.10, which is what I've been doing. There are important features in the 2.+ releases, but not important enough to sacrifice performance. I go back and forth between new release and known old and very stable releases to verify that there is a stable 2.+ release.

2.0.4. 32Bit is stable too.

only thing in this version is, that the round bpm displays are not full hd resolution, but its okay.

version 2 is important for me because laptop display is full hd resolution and old serato 1.9. is not fitted to screen perfectly and resolution is bad

if its a lil bit time in february i will try rekordbox.

I have this same issue. Really annoying that Serato can't seem to keep that working properly. People say it's a window's issue but the other dj platforms don't have this issue on windows.

When will us ALAC users be able to switch back to 64 bit without the corrupt file issue for special characters?

Just got notified of a patch available for Serato DJ Pro 2.1.0. Loaded the patch and still the same problem with m4a files with special characters on the title or artist name. File is being flagged as corrupt and will not play. Older version 1.9.10 recognizes the file and plays properly. Maybe the patch did not get posted properly??

Same problem here!

I made the mistake of upgrading to SDJ 2.1 just before New Year's eve as I was tempted by the new features.
As a french speaking DJ I have a lot of iTunes .M4A songs with special characters and accents and guess what... I had to search songs manually through Windows explorer and drag them to the deck all night, a real nightmare!!

Such a bug should ALWAYS be included in basic unit testing before publicly releasing SDJ.
I will now test this myself each time I upgrade but I feel very dissapointed!

nearly a complete year is over and serato win10 still doesn't like *m4a files, especially with é ö ü ä á and other non ascii caracters in id3 tag.
:-(

which MP3 pool in Egypt do you use...

senseless comment:)

in germany we hava a lot of ä,ö,ü in title names and artists.
others like é and è youll find in french or spanish music.

as an open format dj its very important that software plays any track and not only house:)

hes a racist trump supporter, dont worry about him

The software full of bugs strikes again! Ahauhauahuahuah

denon prime4 release will be in 2, 3 months.
hope this will solve any win/mac discussion.:) no more computer needed! :)

If they fixes issues faster than for the MCX 8000 :)

Yeah I also get these issues i.e. slow analyzing, serato having to read all these files every single time I open it. Serato get your act together!!

That's more of a permissions issue or a corrupt library, so some maint on your stuff, there's no release that is going to fix that for you.

That's more of a permissions issue or a corrupt library, so some maint on your stuff, there's no release that is going to fix that for you.

I've done multiple library resets, ensured nothing is set to read only etc. Multiple people in the thread have reported the same issues. No issues using these files with Traktor. Serato is the problem

This is surely the biggest problem of this buggy software: your library. This CRATES system is the worst idea I've ever seen in software.

This is definitely a serato problem

Serato doesnt allow m4a correctly.
Problem is know since 2.0.0 and still no fix.
Problem occurs only with win, not with mac.

Please no win mac discussion.

Issue fixed with 2.1.1

==============================================================
At least until the next version is released ... enjoy! kkkkkkkkk

issue not completely fixed.
performance with m4a is still lame.
files run now, but if you make cue jumps, cpu load increaes massive.
also normal m4a playback causes much more cpu load than mp3

but i give up hope, serato= completely an mac program. win10 is only a gift for serato i think.

This is still not fixed.

For the record I’m not racists and your comment is totally fabricated. Majority of ppl in the south are Trump supporters sorry to burst your bubble👌🏼

Why would you say such an insulting thing.. just because you vote like the people in god's waiting room (aka Sun City Center) doesn't mean most people do.

And his comment wasn’t insulting? Please... I live in FL and the majority voted for Trump it is also a fact that the state of FL is majority republican. Facts matter. End of the political talk/

And yet you comment on something from January to say something..political

Yup esp when it’s fabricated bullshit. Just because I’m a Trump supporter I’m labeled as a racist that’s such bullshit. Because I have a different opinion on who I choose to support I’m judged because of it...na the world doesn’t work that way it’s ignorant assholes that are always pulling the race card that’s all you liberals do just make everything about race it’s so fucking corny and played out.

do you know what fabricated means? im not making up my own comment.

So saying I’m racist is actually factual? Anyway I’m over talking about it it’s played out.

Yet you continue to use the software. LOL...

And even if you don't use Serato anymore - WTF are you doing trolling here? hahaha

Not surprised that on a MAC there is no issue as M4A is native to MAC.

I analysed 708 mp4 files on a Windows machine. Here are the results of the time it took.

Virtual DJ = 2mins 55secs

Engine Prime = 7mins 21secs

Rekordbox DJ = 12mins 13secs

Serato DJ = 18mins 13secs


This leans toward it been a serato problem.


Still not fixed in 2022

Why is anyone using m4a?

Better compression at same bitrate means smaller files and better sound quality. Of course it's going to take longer to decode than mp3. Why there's a big difference you'd have to ask Serato.


Have you tried the new 3.0 beta? The under the hood decoders are completely new, wonder if it would make any difference.

It’s 2022,though. Disk space is no longer at a premium. Just stick to the standard formats that work.

Yeh it is 2022 and yet you're arguing for a 30 year old format. Your argument doesn't make sense.

By that logic we might as well be using WAV or FLAC files if disk space wasn't an issue.

mp4/m4a is literally a standard format - ISO 14496-14:2020. It was released in 2001.

It really arguing. Just wondering why a user would choose a format which is not known to work across all platforms all the time.

Still slower than the competition






The audio part of MP4 videos is AAC and that's what we get from Xtendamix and Smashvid.

Its just super slow to analyse on Windows with Serato. The files work fine.

Ah. That makes sense. I wonder what part of the container causes the issue or if dj software has to unpack the container for each file while analyzing.