Remember that CDJ-3000 firmware bug? AlphaTheta and pro DJs explain what really happened — and how to avoid it in the futureHalloween is one of the biggest weekends of the year for DJ— something about the frightful, flamboyant costumes propels young people to dancefloors. This past Halloween, however, the fear didn’t come from any horror-movie decorations or jump scare tactics. The real terror was behind the decks when DJs couldn’t load their playlists into their Pioneer DJ CDJ-3000s. That included BBC Radio 1 host, Jaguar. When she connected her USB to the player at Drumsheds in London, there was no music. No tracks. No playlists. Nothing. She tried another USB. Still nothing. She asked the sound technicians. They didn’t know what the problem was either, and they couldn’t get another CDJ because all three rooms were running that night.

READ MORE: How AlphaTheta’s CDJ-3000X is finding an unexpected new audience

The issue was with the most recent firmware update for the CDJs, version 3.30. That firmware only reads Rekordbox data from Device Library Plus (which is now known as OneLibrary) and not Device Library. AlphaTheta, the company that produces CDJs and Rekordbox, quickly suspended distribution of that firmware and recommended rolling back to version 3.20. Now the company has released a statement regarding the issue, apologising for the confusion:
“We recognise that the transition may have caused inconvenience or concern, and we take that feedback seriously. Some users experienced an issue during the transition from Device Library to OneLibrary, where older versions of rekordbox were used to export libraries to USB drives. In certain situations, tracks or playlists didn’t display on the CDJ-3000, but, importantly, no music or data was deleted.”
AlphaTheta also announced that CDJ-3000s will be reverted to be able to run on Device Library only. OneLibrary compatible products, such as the CDJ-3000X, OPUS-QUAD, OMNIS-DUO, and XDJ-AZ, will still not be compatible with Device Library. The statement ends with a USB export guide that outlines the different libraries and explains how DJs can be sure their data will load on all products.
For another perspective on the nature of the issue, Mojaxx, veteran DJ and host of Beatsource Tech, describes the issues to MusicTech as such:
“Once Rekordbox reached version 6.8.1, AlphaTheta created Device Library Plus as a database primed for future innovations and new products. Device Library Plus contained the same pieces of data as the previous Device Library, such as cue points, playlists, artwork, and track names, but it was a separate database file. Firmware 3.30 defaulted to Device Library Plus if it was present, even if that had been updated less recently than the Device Library, or if it was empty. All the music and data from the original library were still on the USB, but it couldn’t be accessed on the CDJ.”
Thankfully, in the wake of the buggy firmware, Jaguar’s set was a back-to-back with the Rinse FM DJ Lu.Re, who was able to play while Jaguar figured it out. She found an old USB from years ago that worked — it didn’t have any of her first original tracks, all the other music was old, and she wasn’t especially familiar with the playlists. But she was able to play tracks.

“I get this stress dream once a month at least: ‘Your USB is blank’, and it’s just like, ‘what do I play?’ That was it,” Jaguar says. “The crowd didn’t realise, and because it was two of us, we pulled it off. If it had been a solo set, I would have been mortified. Would there just be no music for that hour?”
In the aftermath, Jaguar was one of several DJs to post to social media, alerting fellow DJs to the situation. Others included What So Not, VTSS, Samurai Breaks, Tiffany Calver and Zoe London. Because Pioneer DJ’s CDJ has been the undisputed industry standard since their inception in 2001, the issue was a worldwide phenomenon.
Before the CDJ-1000, no CD deck had a jog wheel that allowed for live scratching. Mojaxx remembers when it was first introduced: “It was such a step above everything that had come before it in terms of ergonomics and usability.” Five years after that, every club in the UK had them, and so DJs became used to the design, which remains largely unchanged.
“AlphaTheta has to deal with the legacy of their hardware that has existed for so long. They are always in this bind of, ‘We want to innovate, but if someone is going to turn up and play in front of 50,000 people and we give them new players that work in a totally different way, that’s gonna cause a problem for a lot of DJs,’” Mojaxx says. “That’s always the issue they’ll always have, and will continue to have whilst they remain the industry standard. Change is difficult for people, especially when it’s technology you rely on in a professional environment.”
After all, one reason so many DJs were upended by the new firmware is that they didn’t update their Rekordbox. Major DJs such as Zedd have specifically told DJs not to do so after previous updates had set-ruining bugs. That doesn’t change the fact that modern DJing is predominantly a software-based profession, and bugs are inevitable. In the wake of this recent one, Mojaxx and Jaguar have thoughts on how future situations can be avoided, such as better communication from AlphaTheta:
“I’d never heard of Device Library Plus,” Jaguar says. “If they’d done a news piece or info videos, I think that would have been really helpful.” AlphaTheta actually posted an explainer about a year ago on Device Library Plus, but the video is surrounded by a lot of artist-driven content and product tutorials emphasising features rather than functionality.

“AlphaTheta’s social media is all about branding and coolness. One area where they could do better is having communication posts and more information on their YouTube,” Mojaxx says. At the time of writing, no social post has been made with the statement on the firmware on either the AlphaTheta USA or AlphaTheta Global Instagram pages, or on the AlphaTheta YouTube channel.
“When there’s a new firmware update for any AlphaTheta product, there should be a YouTube video talking through that update,” Mojaxx continues. He doesn’t blame AlphaTheta entirely, though. There’s a reason plenty of DJs were still able to use their USBs despite the new firmware bug: They are on top of the tech, they have a laptop that can run the most current version of Rekordbox, they keep Rekordbox updated, and they hey bring USBs with multiple versions of Rekordbox.
“The number of DJs I see turn up at gigs with one USB stick—my jaw is on the floor. You cannot roll like that. If you’re getting paid to DJ, you need at least four sticks,” Mojaxx says. “Two of them need to be exported from the latest Rekordbox, and another couple of sticks you’ve exported on an older version that you know work. Just because you’re playing off a USB stick, you’re still a software DJ. You have to make sure that your software is correct, updated, and working with the hardware that you’re going to use. That is a responsibility of the DJ.”
“DJing and making music are completely different things. You’ve made a tune that’s popping off on TikTok, and now you’re getting booked for gigs. How could you possibly be a great DJ when you haven’t been doing it very long?” Jaguar inquires. “We’ve got massive events like Drumsheds and your Warehouse Projects, which are so amazing and fun. But then, people are not supporting the smaller grassroots events. Being a good DJ is playing every slot ever. Warm-up. Peak time. [You need] experience.” Weddings. Local pubs. Five-hour sets for £100. At those gigs, faulty tech is inevitable, but you still need to keep your cool and get through the night.
Mojaxx echoes Jaguar’s point about how community is not only essential for DJs, but it could have stifled the CDJ issue significantly. He recommends going to a local DJ store to test all the USBs on CDJs before arriving at the gig or head to common hubs like Reddit to engage with other Rekordbox users about new updates. Mojaxx shouts out Mix Master G, whose channel is specifically dedicated to the technology behind DJing.
“Tech stuff isn’t for everybody, but there’s always technology involved. Otherwise, we’d be playing acoustic guitars,” Mojaxx says. “Talk to other DJs about what equipment they’re using, what USB sticks they’re getting good results with, what they’re formatted to, and what version of Recordbox they’re using. Have those discussions to make sure that you’re at least abreast of what’s going on.”
AlphaTheta and Pioneer DJ’s CDJ models will likely remain the industry standard for years to come, and in many ways, this Halloween fiasco was a wake-up call. AlphaTheta recently posted a series of YouTube videos exploring ancillary functions on the CDJ-3000X, such as browsing and new button builds. Plus, more DJs than ever are conscious of library formatting and Rekordbox updates.
Jaguar may still have that same stress dream as her career continues, but now she knows what questions to ask and what issues to address to ensure the real-life version doesn’t come to pass ever again.
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