Get the latest Rekordbox Features on your DDJ RB

The Pioneer DDJ RB is a fantastic controller packed with great features but sadly it was released before Rekordbox introduced key shift and keyboard performance modes. The follow-up DDJ 400 controller did take full control of these features but before you go selling your beloved controllers to upgrade, we have a great method to add keyboard mode to your RB via MIDI mapping.

What is MIDI Mapping?

MIDI mapping is essentially the reprogramming of the buttons on your controller. Every button, knob and fader on your controller has a MIDI address, which when triggered will tell the software what to do. With MIDI mapping, we are able to tell the software to perform a different action when that selected button is pressed. So if you have a feature you don’t use very often we are able to programme a different function to that button. Note however that the MIDI mapping is saved in the software and not in the controller, so if you take your controller and use it on a friends computer, the original buttons will return.

How do I get Keyboard Mode on my DDJ RB?

You can use MIDI mapping to add features within Rekordbox onto your existing controllers. So in the case of the DDJ RB which lacks the dedicated controls, we can use MIDI mapping to reprogram an unused feature for the Keyboard. If you don’t feel comfortable mapping out the RB don’t worry, we have taken the time and created our own mapping scheme which replaces the Slicer mode on the DDJ RB with Keyboard for you! To use this mapping simply follow these easy steps.

How To Install The Midi Mapping:

Click MIDI in the upper right corner of Rekordbox.

Press Import, Save your current mapping if you wish but don’t worry about this if you are running default mapping.

Load the file you downloaded.

Now when you click slicer on the DDJ RB, your controller will in fact open and utilise the keyboard performance mode, allowing you to key shift your hot cues. To select which hot cue to key shift, simply press slicer once again and the available cue points will flash. To move further up the scale or lower down, you can select different pages of the keyboard mode by holding SHIFT and then pressing PAD 5 to go down a page and PAD 6 to go up a page.

What can I do with Keyboard Mode?

Now you have full keyboard mode on your DDJ RB controller why not take a look at our tone play course which will teach you step by step how to master the art of using keyboard and key shift performance modes to create unique and dynamic transitions. For more inspiration why not check out our TonePlay Tuesday video’s on our social media pages and on Youtube.