The following article is from one of the conference sessions at Winter Music Conference (WMC) last week in Miami where the PowerPage was covering the mobile music scene, digital DJing and the pervasiveness of PowerBooks in the Electronic music community.

Miami -- Another fantastic conference session at WMC here was given by Greg Chin (a.k.a. DJ Stryke). In it he exposed us to the wonders of Stanton's FinalScratch 2, a combination hardware and software product that allows DJs to import all their vinyl into a laptop and play all of their records via two "control records" on traditional turntables. The process saves hauling crates of heavy vinyl from gig to gig and gives DJ's access to features not possible with traditional vinyl.

FinalScratch 2 lets you play digital music files from any analog turntable or CD player with the natural, tactile feel and response of spinning vinyl. FS2 makes cueing, mixing and scratching feel as natural as spinning all your old school wax - without having to change records.

Note: FinalScratch is not currently compatible with the new Mac Intel Core Duo computers.

Stryke also gave attendees a hands-on demo of Traktor FS which integrates FinalScratch with Native Instrument's Traktor DJ Studio

Traktor FS 2 provides a way to organize music and play it back using two virtual decks. Traktor FS 2 supports numerous file formats-including MP3, WAV, AIFF, AAC and WMA-and can even play tracks right off your computer's CD-ROM drive or an external FireWire hard disk. Stryke told us about playing a gig live where he downloaded a track from Beatport.com and added it to his mix - without missing a beat. All thanks to an open WiFi connection.

Traktor gives DJs access to a host of features like looping, independent control over pitch and tempo, onboard filter effects and the ability to non-destructively record and edit your mix.

During the session Stryke's projector wasn't working so he invited attendees up to his table where he showed us first hand how FinalScratch 2 worked with his copy of Traktor. He ended the session with Q&A and an amazing mixing showcase where he showed off the power of his setup. It's amazing what you can do as a DJ now thanks to the power of this new generation of digital tools.

Stanton FinalScratch 2 - US$599
Native Instruments Traktor DJ Studio 3 - US$279