Real-time stems control – the ability to separate vocals from instrumentals instantly when DJing – is currently the cutting-edge battleground for DJ software manufacturers. It’s a fast-moving area, and many software makers are already onto their second or third iteration of stems in their software.

So just like last year, we have conducted a thorough test of the four main contenders – Serato, Rekordbox, VirtualDJ and djay Pro 5 (for Mac) – so you can hear for yourself which sounds the best.

About our real-time stems test

In the video accompanying this article, you will hear the real-time stems functions of Serato, Rekordbox, VirtualDJ and djay Pro 5 (Mac version), all demonstrated in various permutations.

We’ve used exactly the same music clip from a vocal dance track for all of them, and we’ve played them in one continuous demonstration with on-screen callouts telling you what you’re listening to.

Where available, you will hear the instrumental, the drums with the bassline, the drums on their own, and the acapella – on all the platforms.

Our Verdict For 2024

If you’d rather listen before reading what we think, then stop reading now and click play on that video!

So it’s clear that Rekordbox stems are not currently competing with the rest of them. They sound processed, they have that kind of lo-fi underwater vibe going on. They’re just not up with the best in class.

To separate the rest of them though is more difficult. Serato, VirtualDJ and now djay Pro all sound pretty great on instrumentals, on drums and bass, and just on drums. There were slight differences – for instance the bassline seeps through a little bit more on some than others – but they’re all very usable.

The biggest difference is still in the vocals. Serato tries hard to get rid of anything that clearly isn’t vocal, but that leaves a processed sound and some dips in high frequency at times. VirtualDJ seems to go the opposite way, letting more of the background music through, but that does preserve a more natural vocal sound. And djay Pro is somewhere between the two of them.

Other considerations

Of course, when deciding whether you want to DJ with stems, and if so, which platform you want to use, it’s not all about the sound quality. The makers of Rekordbox tell us that they deliberately made the stems processing how it is – resulting in a lower sound quality than could have been possible with a different approach – to make it more compatible with a wider number of laptops.

To get around that same problem, Serato has the option of processing your songs ahead of time, which uses a lot of hard disk space, but does mean that you can have great fun playing high-quality stems even on less well-powered laptops.

VirtualDJ is definitely the most processor intensive of all, however they do have a roll back to an earlier lower-quality stems incarnation, should you be trying to use them with a laptop that isn’t playing ball.

Read this next: Acapella & Stems – Prepare First, Or Use Real-Time Features?

Algoriddim’s djay Pro, for Mac and iOS at least, has got great-sounding stems that, thanks to the technology built into modern Macs and iPhones/iPads, gives you both great-quality stems and what we found to be ultra fast, smooth operation. We were very impressed overall with the usability of the latest generation stems in djay Pro.

What do you think?

Anyway, over to you, have a listen and do let us know your thoughts. One thing I can tell you for certain: when we come back in 2025, you’re going to hear another jump in quality, such is the speed at which this area is moving right now. Exciting times.

Get our course: How To Mix With Acapellas & Stems