Getting started with Denon DJ Engine Prime Software - A beginners guide!

In this guide, DJ Holland explains how to use Denon Engine Prime to import your music from your computer, prepare it and then export to a USB for playback on a Prime player. Engine Prime is used for preparation of music for playback on the SC5000, SC6000, Prime 2, Prime 4 and Prime GO devices.
Free Lesson from the Beginner Denon DJ Course: www.wearecrossfader.co.uk/deno...
Free Music Pack: www.wearecrossfader.co.uk/gets...
0:00 - Intro
1:51 - Analysis Settings
3:38 - Layout & Difference between Playlists & Crates
5:01 - Preparing a track
7:17 - Importing local music
8:12 - Inbuilt File Browser
9:18 - Playlists
11:24 - iTunes/Apple Music Import
13:24 - Serato Import
15:20 - Traktor Import
19:15 - Rekordbox Import
23:35 - Export with Sync Manager
25:44 - Export with Device Panel
26:47 - Outro
Sign up on our website to access free lessons, join our community forum and access free DJ music and resources.
bit.ly/wearecrossfader
Follow our socials:
Instagram - bit.ly/crossfaderInstagram
Facebook - bit.ly/crossfaderFacebook

[@Crossfader]

Free lesson from our brand new Denon DJ Beginners Course: www.wearecrossfader.co.uk/denondjlesson

[@djnoji8638]

Sometimes I export a crate/ playlist and it’ll say exported, but 0 songs are in that playlist/ crate on my P4

[@lsb_fencing]

please can we have a new video like this for engine 2.0??

[@aaroncross4063]

2.0.2 now, a few UI changes

[@joelbrandao4]

This channel has incredible quality. Congratulations on the amazing job, guys!

[@Crossfader]

Glad you enjoy it! Thank you :)

[@sbd668]

You are great at explaining and truly, you should start doing more products!! 👍👍👍👍

[@MinderMark93]

Brilliant, easy and clear instruction. Thanks

[@Gottasituation]

Im totally new with denon and this was absolutely useful Thank you a lot

[@aryotare]

Nice! Thanks for this guide! I'm sure it will help people starting with Denon DJ products

[@Crossfader]

Thanks! We hope so too!

[@djquikdr]

For people that uses Mixed In Key there is a workaround so that the information given by MIK (key, cue points etc.) are respected in Engine Prime. After using MIK add the music file to Serato. Then in Engine Prime import the song from Serato. Basically Serato is a bridge: MIK --> Serato --> Engine Prime

[@djnoji8638]

This will help with “missing” files???

[@kennswan9059]

Thank u.. that was great !! i havent purchased a controller yet but i am leaning toward a Denon prime 4..seems amazing !!!! Happy fading !

[@itoridayo]

Dont know why i still watch even though im not a denon dj user haha XD Love the vids!❤

[@Crossfader]

Nothing wrong with learning other softwares, who knows what you may play on in the future! Thanks for watching!

[@scorp888]

Awesome job with the video guys. 2 Main comments. 1/ Why do you recommend fat 32 as the format? If the library is large, then you run the risk of hitting the fat 32 file size limit, which you won't on exfat 2/ How about a starting to organise your music rather than importing from elsewhere.

[@elcompadj1]

Thankz batos. Best info for the prime 4. Keep up the rad work.

[@mikesmith5087]

Wow Brilliant demo thank you explained perfectly.

[@arnaudbenassy2435]

Very clear explanation!!! Thank you!!😎

[@djfuzzofficial]

Awesome tutorial, thanks guys!

[@dj_ramo]

Absolute godsend!!!! Very helpful!!! Thank you!!!!!

[@g3ahvicious249]

Thank you very much. I appreciate you.🙏😊

[@aaroncross4063]

Perfect Intro thanks!

[@krsdjdjcrs1]

Great tutorial thank you

[@DJSupe]

Not sure if you mentioned it somewhere in this video. I made several file moves, folder deletions, etc on my MacBook. Then I went in to Serato DJ and fixed any lost files and reorganized some crates. I opened Engine DJ and updated my Serato playlist. I am now ready to use the Sync Manager to update my SD card that already has synced in the past. My question is if I select all of my playlists to export, will all of the files overwrite the previous files, or will it be a speedier process and only sync changes?

[@DJYL97]

Love ur videos man

[@Crossfader]

Thanks Wael!

[@cliftonvail3953]

Man this helped me so much

[@djplastix]

Denon products seems to make more sense for user, more intuitive in general than competition

[@riccardorossi9711]

hi, is there a way to start playing a song just pushing a loop pad with a preset loop (like rekordbox does). it seems to me that is just possible to start first play button and then recall the loop from the pad. thanks!

[@GeoffreyUrch]

Hi, I have my music in named folder categories ie Rock, Disco etc and all these folders are In one folder called music how do I add these to engine prime so after they are analysed they stay In this format ? Thanks Geoff

[@allandenola5968]

What a great tutorial! So if I am a serato dj user and buy the prime 4 i read my iTunes library thru serato dj . What’s the best way to transfer everything to engine prime? Should i first transfer iTunes then use the serato icon in engine to transfer all the cue points - beat grids Etc? Love this controller for weddings and mobile but dont want to make a mistake

[@Wendel_Kos]

Great video!! Does anybody know how to prevent dupicates when importing/dragging files into big playlists?

[@koycdjartage2571]

Absolute life saver

[@billy2001james]

All my music is on a external HD, can I do these steps directy from the Hd then plus it into the decks?

[@lmac790]

Legends!! Thank you.

[@Crossfader]

Anytime at all!

[@ivanvelez7668]

hi, I have a question regarding the integration settings in the preferences tab inside engine prine software. I use serato dj pro as my main dj software. but my music that i use with serato dj pro is not stored in my computer internally, but it is stored in an external hard drive which is formatted for mac. But wish to use engine prime software to create library of songs to transfer to a flash drive formatted in fat32 to use on denon media players. Back to the integration settings, I can leave the serato settings off if my songs are not stored inside my computer is this correct? Can i use an external hard drive formatted in fat32 and transfer everything i have on my other hard drive which is formatted for mac which I use all the time to dj with serato dj pro to the external hard drive that is formatted in fat32 and use as my new main drive for serato dj pro and engine prime software? And can engine prime software read my serato library from an external hard drive? Also, what is the sync to engine button inside the sync manager panel in the engine prime software for?

[@AngelLebailly]

thanks a lot mate - awesome

[@corneromme8735]

Great video! Is it possible to import my streaming services playlists (Tidal) into Engine and then export it to my USB so i can play them offline?

[@dmolinah]

very useful thanks

[@andyjardine8192]

Great explanation, I'm seriously thinking of going Denon but wanted to keep using Traktor and was wondering about that import feature... I could defo work with that

[@Crossfader]

We are seeing a lot of Traktor users going to Engine Prime recently!

[@P4boot]

Stay away from denon! Their quality control is questionable!

[@mindmazebeats3568]

Super easy in tractor export your collection but not the files then inside then an engine Prime import that same file you created exporting your library

[@mindmazebeats3568]

I use tractor for 8 years and I switched to Denon Prime had to send back my first unit because of quality control issues but the second one was spot on

[@djonederisrael5792]

I purchased the Denon Prime Go because of your guy’s videos and I was hooked. But what do you do when the drive said it’s corrupted? Cus every time I that happens on my Engine program, it resets the whole library collection and I have to continuously analyze the files. It’s really annoying and making me wanna just return the unit lol

[@2119rocky]

Hi, thanks for the video, do you have to download audio drivers for the Denon SC 5000M Thanks

[@user-wu4gc8rz3q]

Hey :) thanks first of all for the video. A quick question : do you mean CUE importing from engine to serato is possible ? 😅 greetings

[@djy9519]

I have engine prime on windows and I'm using the mcx 8000. I don't know why, but the sync manager is not showing up in the bottom left.

[@Northern_Rockhopper]

How do you delete your collection ? Half my library are now highighted red and can't play.?

[@kisho2679]

how can the song-file itself physically be deleted from the connected storage-device directly with Engine-Prime software (instead of browsing separately to the drive-folder on the storage device)?

[@joestadtherr2284]

After importing my crates from Serato, I see that not all the track information showed up. Everything but "year" imported. Can you tell me how to fix it?

[@danielweetman]

Fantastic, well presented Thank you ::::

[@DJFITME]

I have problem with 1 genre engine wont add them to playlist. all my other 8k tracks i have organize just fine but when i try to add these to playlist nothing happens so frustraiting and all tracks buyed from beatport all tracks are in same location. I tryed to ask on denon facebook page but nobody know why that is happening. Any idea? Never had this problem with any other software

[@djace5191]

What file format are they? Maybe corrupt? Do they work in other software?

[@DJFITME]

@@djace5191 mp3 everything works on rekordbox and traktor no issues

[@yrureadingthisname]

Anyone know how I get playlists I create on the Prime 4, which would then be on my USB, into my engine library from said USB? I know Sync manager does not do this, only meta data, but I can’t seem to drag playlists from my device and drop them into my playlists library on engine either... there has to be a way, no?

[@hustonh4481]

@crossfader how do you export directly to player using the USB cord?

[@anthonylambert6709]

Do you have a video on how to move tracks from your computer harddrive to an external drive without losing the metadata? My disk is full on my mac but don't want to lose all my track info

[@krzysztofdydula]

Hi:) How to make Denon Sc Life 4 show how many Bars are left until the next Cue Point? By default it goes from 1 up and I want it to count down... Please help :) Thank you

[@josephcruz2031]

Hi question i am not a pro is this software compatible with my virtual dj 2021

[@ppg19782]

Brother...ty for the information... Now, on the Prime 4 which am getting..is there a way for stems? Really appreciate your input 👍 Much blessings 🙌 Ty🎛🎚🎧🎤👍😎

[@pglukhov]

What about moving music from my hard drive (in my Prime 2) back into my desktop? My computer HD died and all my music is now just on my mixer and not in my computer.

[@jamesmcfarlane244]

Hi, I put a Crucial hard drive into my son's Prime 4 but I do not have a laptop. How do I transfer from enginedj to the hard drive in the Prime 4? I'm so confused lol. ps, I'm 66 yo DJ and this is all new to me, but I'm helping my son who is in a mental hospital and music is the only thing that helps him to survive. pps, he has no access to a computer for security reasons because of the other patients that are not allowed access to the internet. When he gets out he will then be able to do so and I hope to still be alive by then lol.

[@lenness9962]

Does this recognize if it's r&b, hip hop etc etc? Or do I have to manually create crates?

[@tommyRfrancis]

Top notch tutorial, thank you ☺️ 👍🏼

[@djmadnez]

How do you know which drive is being searched for serato library crates?

[@ivanvelez7668]

hello there, I just came across an issue here in the engine dj software. im over here updating new tracks and importing directly into my prime go drive from within the drives panel on the engine dj software. then I wanted to add cue markers and loops on track and for some odd reason it doesn’t ,let me click and drag a track into the engine dj software deck. why is it not letting me click and drag?

[@michaelscalisi6117]

Once I transfer all the music from engine dj software into the USB stick and insert the USB stick into the the Prime 4..how to autoplay or automix with prime 4.?? especially if you play music for dinner or cocktail hour

[@nicolecampo5619]

Tengo una MACOXcon El Capitán , recién me compré una SC5000 y tengo problema para abrir Engine Prime, busco versiones anteriores que puedan funcionar y solo encuentro la 1.5 y no funciona ? Que me recomiendan , no quisiera comprar otra compu para utilizar solo Engine Prime , que dilema !Agradezco sus respuestas

[@Sidekickjm]

hey I'm new at djing, I just downloaded the software from the website and its coming up as just "engine dj" is this the same as your "engine prime"? I just got the Denon dj prime go. just wanted to make sure I got the most up to date software to set up making playlist.

[@ianroberts4683]

Nice video, thanks. But I really need some help please people! I add cues on Engine prime and they do not cross over onto my Denon MCX8000. Its driving me mad, is there a setting on the controller as they should just appear on the pads or not? any help is greatly appreciated.

[@djnamhoang]

Did you install driver for mcx8000 on engine prime's pc software?

[@ethanpico7521]

First, Thanks for a very detailed - concise tutorial on this. It is very appreciated since I am and old DJ with a new toy....Your video is helping an "old dog learn new tricks." Could you elaborate on something you said regarding drive formats. You mentioned that Fat32 or exFAT were compatible, but you recommend FAT32. Why is that the preferred format of the two formats? Thanks and be well. E

[@djnoji8638]

Mine are exFAT

[@detodounpoco445]

Lo he estado probando pero lo que no me gusta es cuando muevo carpetas en el MacBook de la música y de repente Engine Prime no reconoce la ubicación por lo cual la información que edite en su programa lo hice para nada ya que tengo que volver a hacerlo desde cero , aleguien que haya conseguido ayuda plisss.

[@njdenney69]

Great Video but I have one BIG problem. I have followed these instructions to the letter however none of my playlists are showing on my Prime Go when I plug the SD card into it. I have tried BOTH the Sync Manager and also dragging the playlists onto the SD card but no joy :(

[@diggidydamndave]

I'm having the same problem. I've followed these steps precisely, but nothing is showing up on my MCX8000. Have you figured out a solution for this as yet?

[@michaelscalisi6117]

I HAVE DONON DJ PRIME 4...PLEASE TELL ME HOW TO AUTOMIX MUSIC FOR DINNER MUSIC OR COCKTAIL HOUR..MAYBE A SHORT VIDEO WOULD WORK and HOW TO ADJUST THE CROSSFADER TIMING ON CONTINUOUS MUSIC MODE

[@DjSideways]

How do I add tracks?..I'm using engine os 2.0..I can not drag tracks in...

[@PeteBlack76]

I’ve just bought a Denon Prime Go, should I be getting live playback data from the controller synced with the software or does it just sync across tracks to the prime go? Atm my laptop won’t see the prime go, I’ve installed the driver and running all the latest software and firmware.

[@FLMSTR]

I have always dragged the playlists to USB. When I used the Manager and ticked just one playlist to give it a try, Engine erased all other playlist form my computer and saved only the one I ticked.

[@ramsesdjandmusic]

Will memory cues from Rekordbox show up when imported to engine prime?

[@cassiusshepherd105]

On the SC Live 4, how can I convert an entire folder into a playlist? They are on 2 different screens so how can I 'drag' it?

[@flipper340]

good night, can someone tell me how to set the grids of a song only from a certain point forward? In Rekordbox it is extremely easy to do, in engine prime, I don't even see such an option in the grid adjustment sector. thanks and regards.

[@defier74]

You'll find it in Grid Edit Controls. Very easy.

[@1969ironmike]

I dont have the Crates/playlist button on the top of column. Only collection? I have newest version

[@horsemouth76]

Does Engine Prime software have an auto gain feature?

[@Trvshed]

I know I’m a little late to this party, but is there a way to import cue data from Djay pro AI?

[@lag3432]

Music is on my hard drive, does it know when new music is on the drive? How to keep it sync

[@paladinpriest8073]

hi, any ideas on this, I've formatted the drive to exfat and fat32 my drive is just 15gb but engine prime still tells me the drive is incompatable no matter which one i format too (i even tried a 250gb drive and got the same message of incompatibility), any help would be appreciated,. what i am doing is trying out engine prime and bits before i buy a prime 4 set up so i don't have to buy a new laptop etc, engine prime runs fine on my del latitude d630 which is about 10 years old :(

[@djnamhoang]

Think that your drive is broken somehow. Like not eject with right way or problem it's self. Try with another drive

[@HUMANuruCELLS]

Is there a way to sync through the cloud or something? (I edit on my desktop and itll be edited/filed on my laptop)

[@Crossfader]

Unlike Rekordbox, there's no cloud sync yet unfortunately!

[@jonnyhatchman687]

I've been a keen rekordbox user for 6-7 years. I've just ordered a pair of sc6000s. The fact the players can read all of your data from rekordbox and given that prime software is not even close to rekordboxs capabilities, I dont see why anyone would want to use it. Even when I get my players, i will continue to analyse and organise my tracks through rekordbox and plug my usb straight into the denon players

[@Crossfader]

Do note the players need a short time to convert the RB content over

[@djrobtech]

Pioneer are industry standards for a reason 😉

[@alexzanderking1556]

Ok so I updated my ssd yesterday with my existing crates, i got some new music that I wanted to add to my existing crate however I only wanted to export this updated crate believing it would just update it however i ended having to export all my crates all over again which was annoying did I do something wrong? or once you have exported your crates you cannot add new songs to them without having to export all your other crates? Or do I need to make new crates for the new music I want to add, please help as I do not want to have to go through this each time it has taken the better part of half a day to move all my music across again.

[@billy2001james]

I'm having this same issue, how do I just add new tracks without re-exporting all my crates? Did you figure this out ? I can't get an answer from anywhere.

[@alexzanderking1556]

@@billy2001james i have added new tracks to my crate as im going along not had any issues when copying over to my other usb i maybe doing it the long way round but it has worked for me

[@ItsMeSmoke]

Hi can you just play mp3s straight from usb or do you need to use the software? Also will it analyse the mp3 every time or does it save to the onboard memory. Sorry if this a stupid question I am new to Denon products

[@djnamhoang]

First, yes you can play your file without laptop's sorfware. Second, gear won't re-read again if you already plug and load your drive before, but if you did add new track to your drive so your gear will ask if you want it load new track and infor. Onboard memory will read new track and skip-keep infor of old files

[@Ziggy_v2]

Nice video👍- I know the Prime4 unit can directly analyze a Rekorbox USB but it will take a few seconds to create the wave forms and set the BPM - this can take a while especially if you have a large collection of tracks. Is there a way to pre-analyze the Rekorbox USB on the Engine software?

[@Crossfader]

Sadly not, you'd be best to import the Rekordbox database, convert it in Engine Prime and then export to USB

[@MixMasterG]

Yes there is, convert the CDJU USB on Prime hardware, then insert that drive in a computer running Engine Prime and analyze all tracks on it. Remember that the grid is NOT coverted and because RB does not write its analyzed bpm to the track's tags Prime has to rely on its own analysis.

[@WoodWorksArborist]

how do i get music into the software? i can stream live from amazon music on my controller but i cant get music from my amazon playlist to drag and drop.... Do I; - buy tracks to download? - download a offline playlist to my computer? you can only stream two songs at once... also, where do i get sound samples to make my own organic music?

[@christopherholley4724]

Ok so now prime go does it save the music on the unit itself or must I keep the USB or SD card in the unit to have the music?

[@Crossfader]

Yes you will have to use an external drive, otherwise you can use the wi-fi to stream tracks!

[@djpackage4304]

It would be great to show us how to sync engine prime with our Denon controler. I already made all my lits on my Prime go but I don’t know how to put it on my engine software. I’m affraid to lose everything if I take off my usb stick of my controller! 😱 Can you guys help me with that?

[@djnamhoang]

Update your pc software to newest version, then go to sync manager, you will see sync to pc when plug your drive

[@grahamkelly8662]

If I follow these instructions, to simply load songs into engine dj, then create playlists and or crates, import them onto usb and plug into my sc live 4, will my songs all be on usb and all read and play 100%? Is there still possibility that my files will mess up on me and leave me screwed? Or should all my files always work fine? I’m about to either set up my sc live 4 or possibly just send back for a refund before even opening. I just want to be able to put all my collection of music on usb sticks and mix them in sc live 4 without corruption and massive headaches. Is this possible?

[@liusy-apollo21]

why when i export lists from rekordbox to engine or sc6000,it loses some hotcue &loop.

[@DANCEWITHSTYLEHK]

where is the auto cue button on Denon DJ Prime 4?

[@Aesop101]

so engine prime is not like serato or rekordbox which loads onto your laptop as a DJ software- it is just for downloading updates for denon products? is that correct anyone because i cannot get it to load onto my denon prime 4...thanks

[@djnamhoang]

Engine pc just for prepare and import music to flash drive, not to connect and play with product

[@nevillecooper81]

Hi do you have a link for adding new tunes to my library on installed ssd on sc6000m. Thanks

[@satchelm0uth]

Hey man, its a bit of an annoying process. Plug the laptop into your sc6000 via usb (they supply the correct adapter with the player). On the sc6000, set it to PC mode. Open up Engine prime and then do your thing.

[@tomnes0000]

Hello, when I plug my Denon PrimeGo to my computer with Engine Prime, nothing happens...any clue?

[@zionnofate]

I just down loaded engine but I have no "Collection icon " ? Only play list..

[@Northern_Rockhopper]

Why have my tracks appeared red and not available 😬

[@cipriancampan4035]

It is working also to export for Denon sc live 4?

[@scorp888]

Can Engine do memory loops like Rekordbox can?

[@bigbadjojo4863]

Can I use time code vinyl on this software?

[@djpapo975]

You should make a video where they explain how to solve the problem why Engine Prime Dj does not read the music folders

[@visualtunesmarketing]

Thanks for the excellent video and explaining everything so clearly. I got myself some SC6000M's last week which are amazing but i haven't been able to play any music on them :( I've tried everything to sync my crates to my SD card but nothing will transfer. I have one main music folder on my Mac. I import music to MiK. Then import to Serato DJ Pro. I then go to Engine Prime and update my Serato library. I then right click and import Serato crates. When my crates are in Engine Prime I go to device manager. I try to drag over a crate onto my Sandisk Extreme SD card but I keep getting a circle with a line through it not allowing me to transfer my music. I have formatted my SD card to MS-Dos Fat 32 and use partition MBR. I have no clue what I’m doing wrong. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much :-)

[@imusiccollection]

Try denon dj online forums

[@stevenmrippin]

@@imusiccollection many thanks. The Denon DJ forums helped me out a lot 👍

[@MultiBloxx]

Didn't work for me exporting from traktor to engine DJ ,did update made NML file open it says running and then nothing no music in the engine DJ window

[@jonaspilot]

Can you load music from soundcloud and beatport? Like you can on the device itself..

[@djkit]

With the latest firmware version you can sign in to Tidal, Beatport Link, Soundcloud GO+ and with the latest beta, Beatsource Link and Dropbox.

[@nathanieldryden2521]

I am starting a dj channel on KZbin but how do you make your own beets on virtual dj so its not copyrighted

[@christaylor1913]

lol

[@rogeranderson1081]

Can I get engine prime on a 2011 MacBook pro?

[@carolhyman4865]

How to play PRIME 4 through youtube with a laptop ?