Playlist's exclusive interview with the HP team developing an all-new instrument for digital DJs, the DJammer.

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UPDATE 18:02:06: Playlist has learned that NuMark is developing a new professional version of this mixer that adds pitch-shifting and beat-matching to the device. A source told us it would ship in the first half of 2006.

Playlist learned that HP Labs is working on a device that could become the world's most-requested item for digital DJs, the DJammer.

As London's club for digital DJs, Playlist needed to find out more, so we caught up with the researchers to ask some questions about what they call a "new musical instrument".

Looking around the Web, you won't find too much information on the product - there's some on HP's Research Labs pages, and a report on the Discovery Channel.

Discovery describes what DJammer does: "DJammer takes all the technology of conventional DJ equipment and puts it into the palm of the DJ's hand", it writes.

Mix, dance and party

The device carries three programmable buttons that can be set for specific features: DJs can hold a track (just like they hold vinyl on a turntable), and a built-in motion sensor monitors the DJs hand movement.

This last feature is vital - all a DJ needs to do is move their hand, and the DJammer will scratch the track at the point the music is held. Wirelessly, effectively - in fact, exactly the way vinyl responds to scratching.

With help from DJ Gavin O'Connor (illustrated below, holding the DJammer), HP is developing other effective ways to emulate mixing using digital music files.

DJ Gavin O'Connor with DJammer

Speaking to Discovery Channel, HP's Research Project Manager, Mat Hans explained: "The software that we've created allows us to map movement to an audio effect, something that will eventually be as good, if not better than, actually the scratching sound that you hear. I say better because now you're able to do much more than just scratching on a record, you could actually use different types of sensors."

"The next-generation electric guitar"

We spoke with Mark Smith, PhD, HP Labs Researcher and DJammer Co-Inventor (who invented the technology behind the optical mouse), his colleague, HP Labs Researcher and DJammer software engineer, April Slayden and DJ Gavin O'Connor, who is helping the team develop the device so it does what DJs actually need.

April explained: "You can look at the DJammer as a new musical instrument, and when you have an instrument, no two people play it alike. There's really this opportunity for personalizing music, for changing it into what you like. Everyone is going to want to create a different sound with DJammer, to use it in different ways."

The DJammer.

A new musical instrument? Mark agreed: "The DJammer is the next-generation electric guitar, it's the sort of thing where people will be able to become very creative, and that's the reason we want to make sure we maximize the opportunity for creativity on this. We want to make it so if somebody's got an idea of a way that they can use it, whether its to control vocals or your own music, then it can be used that way."

Wide and open vision

To achieve this, the research team are working to create a wide array of sensor and control technologies to make the wireless, palm-sized device as flexible in application as possible.

"We want to be able to open up the interface so people with a new idea for a sensor can add it, and we want to be able to provide existing sensors and models to application writers who can say , "hey I know how to use that sensor in this software in this incredibly cool way"," Mark explained.

April, who has been working hard to develop a software model that can accommodate such flexibility explained that, by introducing the "ability to add new sensors to DJammer, to add different interfaces to it is really going to open up a whole new means of artistic expression".

It's not intended to steal the iPod's market, either, the team stressed. Instead, it extends the digital music experience, "You could think of [the iPod] as a personal experience of your relationship with your music. As soon as you have done that the next step would be to want to share the music that you have made," Mark explained.

Digital DJ essentials

While preparing for wider opportunities, the research team is presently focused on using the device to DJ. They explained where the research project stands today: "You are able to control music by air-scratching (see above), jumping to different parts of the song, all using the sensors built into the device".

DJ Gavin talked about how he uses the DJammer as part of a traditional DJ set-up, which includes a mixing desk and turntables, with the DJammer offering a third way to play with sound, as a tool toward the overall mix.

"So, how I used it is that I set-up my mix and I walk around the audience using the DJammer as my third input device. I play off with my turntables, so if I've got a hit track going and I'm rocking an instrumental I can use my DJammer with a few tracks that I preloaded to scratch over that instrumental," he explained, "It really bugs," he smiled.

You can watch a short Discovery Channel segment, interviewing DJ Gavin and exploring the device here (in Windows Media).

Collective creation tool

It's capable of more than DJing, DJ Gavin explained: "You can use it in a session when you have four other DJs working with you. You can play in a session where it's similar to a band - where you have bass, guitar, drums and a keyboard, for example. In the same way you can bring a group of DJammers together where everyone is ready to play the sounds they want to bring."

In order to ensure flexibility in using the DJammer, the researchers are using open standards whenever possible. This is "so we can support ways to allow a wide variety of devices, not just people with DJammers, to work together," April explained.

"We're thinking of making it an open interface so anyone with a good idea to be able to enrich how the device works can actually do it," she added.

Collaboration is critical, too, they explained: "There's other opportunities - you could stream it to a mobile phone, another DJammer ,an instant messaging session you are having with your friends. There's a lot of ideas there which are about collaboration".

The DJammer already has a microphone jack built-in. This means users could, for example, plug a guitar into the DJammer and stream the sound.

"So you could consider a room of 40 people, all equipped with DJammers making a collective musical mix using their legally-owned digital music collections, like a band?" I asked:

"That would be the idea," the team replied, "Yes, exactly".

Jonny Rocket

MORE FEATURES:-

NUmark iDJ Review - Playlist Club resident DJ Lisa Rocket puts this essential iPod dj gadget through its paces.

iPod nano review - Playlist Club's review of the iPod nano.

The HP Djammer - an exclusive interview with the HP team developing the next "must-have" digital music device.

iPod DJ advice - Playlist resident DJ Lisa Rocket offers her advice for iPod DJs - an essential read.

Subversive Sounds - Tamar Newton takes a look at beatmix and mash-up culture.