Final Scratch: the mess up.

This post gives a lil’ insight on the confusions behind Final Scratch project, firstly we’ll start with a lil’ brief history:

“Final Scratch is a DJ tool created by the Dutch company N2IT with input from Richie Hawtin (aka Plastikman) and John Acquaviva that allows manipulation and playback of digital audiosources using traditional vinyl and turntables. It seeks to cross the divide between the versatility of digital audio and the tactile control of vinyl turntablism.”

The package was then funded by Stanton Magnetics and developed further, with a partnership with Native Instruments (NI) they’ve used Traktor (Virtual Djing application) for the interface/software application and inserted the code to interpret the Stanton’s Timecode description ( a signal sine-wave-sort in about 1.2khz with some special specs). The hardware was mantained and developed by Stanton while the Traktor was being upgraded by NI.

This originated in serveral versions named Final Scratch 1.x. Here’s a video of DJ Craze (aknowledged turntablist and DMC winner) explaining and showing the earlier version.

http://www.youtube.com/v/n6bLdZxrfwo&hl=pt_PT&fs=1&

The setup was alike the following image:

Then evolutions in both hardware and software originated version two (featuring a new interface from Stanton), here’s a HTFR video review:
http://www.youtube.com/v/_ARyVMzQdAE&hl=pt_PT&fs=1&

An the official image by Stanton, of the setup with new improved interface:

The break-up

Unfortunately (specially for the frustrated users that used it) NI and Stanton broke up the partnership.

This caused NI to move away and create a new product with their own hardware for Traktor: named the Traktor Scratch( a short demo video below, targeting the scratching accurate emulation).
http://www.youtube.com/v/mON-QUfEdsw&hl=pt_PT&fs=1&

Stanton did a much better thing is response, they’ve created Final Scratch Open, thus opening the possibilities of having new applications responding to their interface and timecode descriptions. Here’s a video presentation of the FS Open:

http://www.youtube.com/v/rJCCBPNmxwk&hl=pt_PT&fs=1&

Not messed up enough?

Okay, for those that need more soap-opera on this, legendary rapper and producer RZA comes out pubicly announcing that he invented and patended the technology behind Final Scratch and the other vynil tarcking systems. The video were he openly states it:

http://www.youtube.com/v/TXsYXMqw4Zc&hl=pt_PT&fs=1&

Not much is needed to understand that is quite difficult for this to be true, but not taking any sides on this (but not buying much of RZA’s poorly justified weird embedded chip theory) I just post a small video that I felt handles this correctly:
http://www.youtube.com/v/uUBgqlgVSA8&hl=pt_PT&fs=1&