Pangolin BEYOND timecode from your DJ set
Each track in your set gets its own hour of timecode. TimecodeLink sends it to Pangolin BEYOND as Art-Net timecode or MIDI timecode (MTC), and the timeline show you built for that track plays in step with it, faster or slower with the DJ's pitch fader. You program a laser show per track once and play it at every gig.
It suits a mobile DJ with a small laser rig, a club's laser operator, or a laser tech on tour with a DJ. BEYOND runs on Windows. TimecodeLink can run on the same PC or on the DJ's Mac or PC.
Step 1: Connect TimecodeLink to your DJ software
Set up the input the DJ plays on: Rekordbox, Serato (beta), Pioneer CDJ/XDJ, VirtualDJ (beta) or Denon (beta). Play a track and check that the timecode in TimecodeLink runs.
Step 2: Give each track its own hour
In the Track List panel, number the tracks one hour apart: the first at
01:00:00:00, the next at 02:00:00:00. Align
does the whole list with a 60-minute interval. In BEYOND, each hour becomes one show.
Step 3: Turn on Art-Net or MTC output
BEYOND listens to one kind of timecode at a time, so pick one. Click OUTPUTS on the master row, then:
- BEYOND on another computer: switch on Art-Net Output and set Broadcast to the network the BEYOND PC is on. Pick it by name rather than All networks, because a computer on Wi-Fi and a wired network sends an all-networks broadcast out of only one of them.
- BEYOND on the same Windows PC: switch on MTC Output and set MIDI Device to a virtual MIDI port. loopMIDI (free) makes one.
Step 4: Turn on timecode input in BEYOND
In BEYOND, open Settings → Configuration and the Timecode In page. Under Timecode types, tick Enable Art Net timecode or Enable MIDI timecode - MTC and MMC, whichever you chose in step 3. For MTC, also pick the loopMIDI port in Settings → MIDI Settings.
Leave Enable time smooth filter on. BEYOND then follows the speed of the incoming timecode, which is how the show keeps up with the pitch fader. If you want the laser to stop when the DJ pauses, turn off Keep running even though timecode stops: BEYOND then stops one second after the timecode does.
Play a track. The incoming timecode shows in green in BEYOND's Preview panel.
Step 5: Build a timeline show per track, with its offset
Open the track's timeline show and choose File → Show properties. On the Time code input tab:
- Tick Enable incoming timecode.
- Under Timecode offset, set Hour to the track's hour: 1 for the track at
01:00:00:00. - Choose Subtract from incoming timecode.
With the hour subtracted, 01:00:30:00 from TimecodeLink is 30 seconds into the
show, so you program the timeline from zero as usual. BEYOND ignores timecode that falls
outside a show, so the show for track 2 doesn't react to track 1. The setting belongs to
the show, so save the show file, and repeat for every track with the next hour.
Step 6: Arm the show and play
BEYOND starts a timecode show once it's waiting for timecode. In the Timeline, press TC-IN on the toolbar. In the workspace grid, save each track's show to a cue: click the cue and a flashing TC shows it's waiting. It starts as soon as its timecode arrives.
A grid cue stops listening once its show ends, so click it again before the track comes back. BEYOND plays one cue at a time unless Multi cue is selected on the grid toolbar; with Multi cue you can arm the next track's cue while the current one still plays.
Optional: the DJ's BPM for beat effects
BEYOND's beat-based effects and animations follow its BPM. TimecodeLink can set it over
OSC: in BEYOND, set up OSC input on a UDP port (see
Pangolin's OSC guide). In
TimecodeLink's master OUTPUTS, switch on Tempo (OSC)
with the BEYOND PC's IP address as Host, that port, and BPM Addr set to
/beyond/general/SetBpm. Leave Send Beat off.
Troubleshooting
No timecode in BEYOND's Preview panel
Check that the timecode type ticked in Configuration → Timecode In matches the output you switched on, and that only one is ticked. For Art-Net, both computers have to be on the same subnet, with Broadcast set to that network. For MTC, TimecodeLink's MIDI Device and BEYOND's MIDI Settings have to name the same port.
Timecode arrives but the show doesn't start
In Show properties, Enable incoming timecode has to be on, with the offset set to the track's hour and Subtract chosen. The show also has to be armed: TC-IN pressed in the Timeline, or its grid cue clicked and flashing TC.
The show starts at the wrong point
The offset doesn't match the track's start timecode in TimecodeLink. A show at the second hour needs Hour set to 2.
FAQ
Which timecode does BEYOND take from TimecodeLink?
Art-Net timecode or MIDI timecode (MTC), one at a time. BEYOND reads LTC only through a hardware SMPTE reader, so Art-Net or MTC is the simpler choice.
Can TimecodeLink and BEYOND run on the same PC?
Yes. Both run on Windows. Send MTC through a virtual MIDI port such as loopMIDI, and pick that port in BEYOND's MIDI Settings.
Does the laser follow the pitch fader?
Yes. The timecode runs faster or slower with the DJ's pitch fader, and with BEYOND's time smooth filter on, BEYOND follows that speed.
Can TimecodeLink send the BPM to BEYOND?
Yes. The Tempo (OSC) output can send the live BPM to BEYOND's /beyond/general/SetBpm OSC command, so beat-based effects run at the DJ's tempo.
Which DJ software does it work with?
Rekordbox, Serato DJ Pro (beta), VirtualDJ (beta), Pioneer CDJs and XDJs, and Denon players (beta). BEYOND is set up the same way for all of them.
Can I try it first?
Yes. The free trial runs for 30 days with every feature. Download it and run it; there's no sign-up.
More rigs: example setups with IPs and ports · Art-Net timecode. New to TimecodeLink? Download the free trial.
Comparing DJ timecode tools? See who TimecodeLink is for.