12 Ways To Play Music On Pioneer DJ’s Opus Quad

Long gone are the days of plugging a USB into standalone DJ gear just to get music playing – we’ve counted no less than 12 ways to do it on the Opus Quad, Pioneer DJ’s flagship all-in-one player. Watch the video here, or scroll down for the written version.

Here’s what’s covered…

• 0:00 Intro
• 1:39 12 ways to DJ with Opus Quad
• 2:18 Export to USB
• 3:15 Use Pro DJ Link
• 4:34 Connect via WiFi
• 7:03 DJ with Rekordbox Cloud
• 10:49 Use it with Rekordbox mobile
• 12:02 DJ using mobile WiFi
• 12:52 Connect to Bluetooth
• 13:40 Pair with Rekordbox software
• 14:24 Use with Serato software
• 14:53 Plug in CDJs
• 15:17 Plug in turntables
• 15:42 What we’d like to see..

All The Ways To Play Music On The Opus Quad…

Here they all are with a brief summary of pros and cons of each…

Exporting to USB

The first method is to export your music to a USB. This is a tried-and-true method, especially when using the Rekordbox app to prepare the music with cue points and playlists. This preparation enhances the experience with standalone units like the Opus Quad. However, even if you were to simply load music onto a USB drive and plug it in, it would still work.

Although this remains the most common method due to its reliability, especially in a club setting, there are other ways that could be more convenient, faster, or simply preferable depending on your situation.

Using Pro DJ Link

The second set of methods involve using Pro DJ Link. This long-standing feature allows you to connect to a laptop and use the Opus Quad in the same way as if you were using a USB drive. In other words, the laptop serves as a large hard drive. This eliminates the need to export to a USB to play your music, which is especially handy if you’re preparing music on a laptop and working on playlists.

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The Opus Quad’s Wi-Fi capability means you don’t even need to use a cable. You can connect via ethernet, use a USB cable, or use Wi-Fi as long as there’s a network that both the unit and your laptop can connect to.

Using the cloud

A third method involves using Rekordbox’s Cloud features. The cloud subscription option lets you keep your entire music library in the cloud, allowing you to log in on any Opus Quad or Pro CDJ setup as long as it is also online.

This lets you play from your complete collection from anywhere. However, you need internet access and certain features may not work when you’re accessing your music from the cloud.

Playing from your phone

Another couple of ways involve your phone. The first of these is using the Rekordbox for iOS or Android mobile app. This app lets you connect in a similar way as you would with a laptop using Pro DJ link and play tracks off of that unit over USB, either wired or using Wi-Fi.

Alternatively, you can connect using Bluetooth, as the Opus Quad allows this on two of its four channels. This means you can quickly play a tune from your phone in the same way you would if you’d connected to a wireless speaker.

With DJ software (three options)

Another tried and tested method is to plug in a laptop with a USB cable and run proper DJ software on the laptop. With the Opus Quad, you can use Rekordbox, Serato DJ Pro, or VirtualDJ.

Using the analogue inputs

Lastly, you can use the Line or Phono In sockets on the back of the Opus Quad to add extra music sources. You could plug in turntables, CDJs, a synthesiser, a drum machine, a sampler, or even another DJ or a whole electronic act, for a “hybrid” DJ set.

As you can see, the Opus Quad is a highly flexible DJ system allowing you to switch and change throughout a performance depending on what’s going on and what music source you want to use, making it an extremely powerful tool.