How to Use TRAKTOR DJ with an External Audio Interface

TRAKTOR DJ allows for separately routing Master and Monitor stereo outputs if you are using a compatible multichannel audio interface with your iOS device. This way you can implement the essential mixing function of playing one deck through the speakers while cueing the other in your headphones, also known as prelistening, monitoring or cueing. For the purposes of this article, we will show the configuration of our TRAKTOR AUDIO 6 / 10 audio interfaces as an example. If you do not use a TRAKTOR AUDIO 6 / 10, skip to the chapter Setting up your Audio Interface in TRAKTOR DJ below.

Note: Make sure that you are using the latest firmware for your NI device. Find more about updating the firmware in this article.

Preparing the TRAKTOR AUDIO 6 / 10

  1. Download and install the latest drivers for your TRAKTOR AUDIO 6 / 10 from the Drivers & other Files section of the website.
  2. Connect your TRAKTOR AUDIO 6 / 10 to a free USB port of your computer.
  3. Update the firmware of your TRAKTOR AUDIO 6 / 10 according to the instructions given in this article.
  4. Open the Traktor Audio 6 / 10 Control Panel:
    • OS X: Macintosh HD > Applications > Native Instruments > Traktor Audio 10 Driver > "Traktor Audio 6 Control Panel" / "Traktor Audio 10 Control Panel"
    • Windows: C: > Program Files > Native Instruments > Traktor Audio 6 / 10 Driver > "ta6cpl.exe" / "ta10cpl.exe"
  5. Go to the Startup tab of the Channel Setup.
  6. Disable Direct Thru by unchecking the corresponding checkboxes. The below screenshot shows the correct Startup settings for use with TRAKTOR DJ on iOS.

    Important Note: You need to disable Direct Thru, or else the corresponding output channels of the TRAKTOR AUDIO 6 / 10 can not be used for playback with TRAKTOR DJ.

    Thru Mode

Setting up your Audio Interface in TRAKTOR DJ

This section explains a simple setup for TRAKTOR DJ to send the Main Output and the Monitor Output (headphones) to two separate stereo output pairs of your audio interface.

  1. Connect your compatible NI audio interface to your iOS device. For NI audio interfaces, you can follow the instructions given in this article.
  2. Launch TRAKTOR DJ. If your soundcard is being connected for the first time, you will see a panel with the layout of the audio interface describing the sound output setup.
  3. Press the gearwheel symbol to access the TRAKTOR DJ Preferences.
  4. Select the Audio Setup menu and check the output channels to be used as Master Outputs and Monitor Outputs. In our TRAKTOR AUDIO 6 / 10 example, we have checked Output 3/4 as Master Outputs and Output 1/2 as Monitor Outputs.


  5. To follow our TRAKTOR AUDIO 6 / 10 example, the TRAKTOR DJ Master output is now playing back though the Output Channel A of the audio interface. Additionally, you can prelisten the cue signal from a Deck via the headphone output of your audio interface. In order to enable prelistening for a Deck, simply press the corresponding headphone symbol.
    Activate Cue
  6. Finally, you can adjust the balance and volume levels of your MASTER and CUE signals by touching the loudspeaker symbol at the top of TRAKTOR DJ.

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