ALPHA
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Alpha · macOS · for controller DJs

Built for the controller. No compromises.

HotQue7 is a professional DJ app for the Mac, made for mixing on a controller. It follows the whole job — from the library to the post after the gig — and doesn't trade one part of it for another.

  1. 01Organize
  2. 02Prepare
  3. 03Practice
  4. 04Play
  5. 05Share
Alpha · in the build36/ 92

36 features work today, 56 more are planned for launch — every one of them is in the crate below.

The Perform screen · alpha build

Everything the mix needs. Nothing it doesn't.

The HotQue7 Perform screen: two stacked zoom waveforms in cyan, pink and blush, the mix health strip with live findings, two deck columns with phrase countdown, hot cue pads and stem toggles, and a software mixer with EQ, filter and Beat FX.

Screenshot from the current alpha build, two real tracks loaded. Tap a number.

What changes in the booth

  • Counting phrases in your head.

    Counted for you — front and center.

  • Watching meters and hoping.

    Told what's wrong — with the fix attached.

  • No controller, no practice.

    Laptop and headphones — a full rig.

  • Your prep, locked in someone else's database.

    An open file on your Mac. Yours.

Several of these you won't find in any other DJ software. That's the point.

01 · Organize · the library

Your library in order — without losing your evenings to it.

Bring what you have, find anything in a keystroke, and let the app do the listening: every track is analysed on your Mac the moment it arrives.

12Today

Rekordbox import with playlists, cues and tags, instant search, a waveform in every row — and beatgrid, key, phrases and vocals analysed on your Mac, in the background.

22By launch

Smart playlists, duplicate detection by audio fingerprint, clean-up for messy metadata, imports from Serato, Traktor, Engine DJ and more — and export back to Rekordbox and Serato, so you're never locked in.

All Organize features in the crate →
HotQue7 — Library
TrackWaveformBPMKeyTime
Ferrari (Clean Extended)James Hype125.03B5:39
In Da Club (Original Mix)Block & Crown, Jerry Davila121.012A5:05
BEATGRIDDOWNBEATSKEYPHRASESVOCALS3-BAND WAVEFORMon this Mac · no upload
Two reference tracks as the alpha analysed them — values and overview waveforms taken from the build.

02 · Prepare · the gig

Walk in knowing your set works.

Cues, stems and the plan for the night — done at home, there the second you plug in.

3Today

Hot cues set on the pads or carried over from Rekordbox, stems separated once and cached for the tracks you pick, and prep that moves to another version of a track — landing on the same beat.

11By launch

Gigs with warm-up, peak and closing slots, a set planner with its energy, key and BPM curve, “what fits next?” suggestions, auto-cues you confirm, and a readiness check before you leave the house.

All Prepare features in the crate →
Gig planConcept · for launch
Friday · Club night22:00 – 02:00 · 4 h
Warm-up22:00
Peak23:30
Closing01:15
EnergyBPM 118 → 128 → 122Key path 8A → 10A → 9A
42 tracks analysedStems cached for 122 files not on this Mac
Concept of the gig planner and readiness check — planned for launch. Cues and cached stems work today.

03 · Practice · anywhere

Rehearse anywhere. Hear what you'd do differently.

No controller in the bag? Your laptop and headphones are a full practice rig — and the same Mix Monitor that watches your gigs tells you what went wrong while you train.

2Today

A full practice mode with just the laptop, keyboard and headphones — split cue included — and every shortcut on screen while you hold ⌥⌘.

3By launch

Transition tests on two linked preview players, a Set Score and a debrief after every session, and every function on a shortcut.

All Practice features in the crate →

The practice rig

Plug in nothing. Practice anyway.

No controller, no audio interface, nothing to plug in: the internal mixer takes over, and split cue puts the mix in one ear and the next track in the other — on any pair of headphones. Train on the train, mix in the hotel room, keep your transitions sharp between gigs.

Split cueIllustration
L · the mix the room would hearR · the next track, cued

Illustration, drawn in your browser — what each ear gets with split cue on plain headphones.

Transition tests

Two linked preview players: try a blend between two tracks before it ever reaches a set.

For launch

Record & debrief

A Set Score for every transition and a debrief after the session — so the next one gets better.

For launch

Shortcuts on demand

Hold ⌥⌘ and every shortcut appears where it applies; let go and the screen is clean.

Works on this page too. Today

04 · Play · the set

Eyes on the crowd, not on the screen.

Plug in the controller and play. The screen counts the phrases, the stems sit on your pads, and a second pair of ears watches the mix.

15Today

Pioneer DDJ-FLX4 plug and play, live stems on the pads, a phrase countdown front and center, a Mix Monitor that names what's going wrong and fixes it with one press, Beat FX, keylock and sync.

12By launch

The DDJ-FLX10 with its jog displays, more controllers and MIDI Learn, sampler and sequencer, slip and key shift, and crash recovery that brings your decks back.

All Play features in the crate →

Mix Monitor

A second pair of ears that never talks over you.

Every DJ app draws meters and hopes you look at them. HotQue7 evaluates the running mix — level, beats, phrase, key, vocals, and whether the playing track still has an exit — and names what it finds as facts, with the fix attached. One transition, in four moments.

Mix Monitor all green: a green ring and six green dots — beats, phrase, key, vocal, level, exit — below deck 2's waveform.
01 · BOTH DECKS RUNNING

Green is silent.

Beats aligned, phrases lined up, levels clean. Six quiet dots — and nothing else. A warning you have to read instead of notice would be a bug.

Mix Monitor with 2 to check: the chips read “vocals overlap in 8 beats · hold deck 2” and “deck 2 phrases −4 bars · jump deck 2 +4 bars”.
02 · THE INCOMING TRACK

Four bars early. Two vocals about to collide.

Facts, not verdicts — and every finding carries its fix. One press jumps deck 2 into phrase; holding it back keeps the vocals apart.

Mix Monitor in red: the chips read “clipping · trim both −3 dB”, “no exit · load deck 2” and “bass stacked · low swap deck 1”.
03 · THE BLEND GETS HOT

Named before the floor hears it.

Clipping on the master, the outgoing track running out with nothing cued, two low ends fighting. Red leads, amber follows — ranked, so you know what first.

Mix Monitor back to all green after the fixes.
04 · FIXED

Silent again.

Trim down, next track cued, low swap — the Monitor goes quiet the moment the mix is right. At launch, every finished transition also gets its score, and every set a debrief.

Perform screen, alpha build, on two real tracks — the findings are the Mix Monitor's own test states, pinned for the screenshot. Tap one to see it full size.

Know where you are

The next phrase, counted down.

A neural model finds the real downbeats, phrase analysis finds the structure, and the Perform screen turns both into one big number: bars until the next phrase change. The thing you normally count in your head, readable from across the booth.

  • Downbeats, not just beats — bar one is bar one, so phrases line up.
  • Key and vocal regions — harmonic matching, and a warning before two vocals collide.
−4.4 bars bar 4 of 8
Two stacked zoom waveforms in three frequency bands — cyan bass, pink mids, blush highs — with beat and downbeat grid lines.

Live demo at 124 BPM — bars.beats into the phrase change and out again, four blocks for the beats of the bar · waveforms: cyan bass · pink mids · blush highs

Stems

Pull a track apart. Live.

Vocals, instruments, drums — one press away on screen or on the controller's pads. Kill the vocal for a clean blend, ride an instant acapella, bring the next track in drums-first.

  • Click-free — a mute ramps in ten milliseconds, never pops.
  • Untouched when all on — with every stem playing, it's the original, bit for bit.
  • Separated once, cached — prepared at home, simply there at the gig.
  • On the pads — a STEMS pad mode with lamps that show what's playing.
StemsIllustration
tap to mute · try it

Illustration, drawn in your browser — three stems and the sum you hear. In the app it's the VOC · INST · DRM row on every deck.

The controller

Plug it in. It just plays.

Plug in a Pioneer DDJ-FLX4: mixer, EQ, filter, Beat FX, hot cues and stems answer to the hardware — and every lamp answers back.

  • A set without the trackpad — browse, load, cue and mix from the surface.
  • A screen that adapts — it shows what your controller doesn't have.
The HotQue7 software mixer with trim, three-band EQ, color FX filter, Beat FX and channel faders, next to deck 2's column with phrase countdown, hot cue pads and stem toggles.

Software mixer and deck column — mirrored on the controller, lamp for lamp.

05 · Share · the recording

Your set, ready to post.

The gig is over — the clip is what people see next. HotQue7 hands you the recording, the tracklist with timestamps, and a way to find out which tracks YouTube would block before your real set goes up.

0Today

Nothing yet — sharing is launch work.

3By launch

Free set recording with an automatic, timestamped tracklist ready for YouTube, Mixcloud and SoundCloud — and a check set: every track back to back, no transitions, to upload first and see which tracks YouTube would block.

Concept — planned for launch. Track names are placeholders.

+ · Under the hood

Made for the booth, down to the pixel.

What runs through every chapter: how it reads, how it runs, and who owns your data.

4Today

Native for Apple Silicon, an audio engine that never waits for the screen, offline with no account, and your library in an open format from day one.

5By launch

100,000 tracks without a stutter, graceful recovery when your Mac runs hot, a free trial with every feature, and a subscription with an exit plan.

Open format

Your library is a file. Open it.

Tracks, cues, grids and analysis live in a plain, unencrypted SQLite database on your disk, with a documented schema. Any tool that reads SQLite reads your library — no export button, no account, no permission needed.

Terminal — zsh
$ sqlite3 ~/Music/HotQue7/library.dbsqlite> .tablesanalysis_result    import_ref         set_plan_entry     track_fts_docsize
audio_file         pin                tag                track_fts_idx
beat_grid          playlist           tag_category       track_tag
cue_point          playlist_entry     track              version_group
gig                saved_loop         track_fts
history_entry      schema_info        track_fts_config
history_session    set_plan           track_fts_datasqlite> select title, artist from track;In Da Club (Original Mix)|Block & Crown, Jerry Davila
Ferrari (Clean Extended)|James Hype

Real output — the current schema, on a library holding the two reference tracks.

READABLE

Built to be read from the booth

Big numbers, calm colors, dark for the club. It speaks up only when something is wrong.

ONE DESIGN

Same colors, everywhere

Cyan bass, pink mids, blush highs on every waveform — and controller lamps that mirror the screen.

NATIVE

A real Mac app

Written for Apple Silicon. The audio engine never waits for the screen, and it all works offline.

OPEN FORMAT

A database, not a black box

Documented schema, unencrypted, on your disk. Open it yourself, any time.

NO HOSTAGES

Full export, always

Everything you put in comes back out — to open formats and to Rekordbox or Serato. Leaving is a feature, not a support ticket.

EXIT PLAN

Stop paying, keep your work

If your subscription ends, the app keeps opening your library read-only, with export. Your prep doesn't evaporate because a card expired.

The whole list

Every feature, in one crate.

What works in the alpha today and what's planned for launch — searchable like your library. Nothing in “Today” is a promise; it's in the build.

  1. TodayRekordbox import — playlists, cues and tags come alongOrganize
  2. TodayOpen, unencrypted SQLite libraryOrganize
  3. TodayInstant full-text searchOrganize
  4. TodayA waveform in every row — click anywhere to listenOrganize
  5. TodayLink related tracks: versions, edits, stemsOrganize
  6. TodayAI agents can help curate and tag — opt-in, never during a setOrganize
  7. TodayNeural beatgrid with real downbeatsOrganize
  8. TodayKey detection in CamelotOrganize
  9. TodayPhrase structure: intro, build, drop, outroOrganize
  10. TodayVocal regionsOrganize
  11. TodayThree-band waveforms on a Metal rendererOrganize
  12. TodayAll on-device, in the background — the app never waitsOrganize
  13. LaunchSmart playlists with nested AND/OR rulesOrganize
  14. LaunchYour own tag categories, batch taggingOrganize
  15. LaunchBulk metadata editing, optional write-back to file tagsOrganize
  16. LaunchDuplicate and version detection by audio fingerprint, with a merge assistantOrganize
  17. LaunchMetadata clean-up: spellings, case, store junk, artworkOrganize
  18. LaunchWatch folders with an inbox for new arrivalsOrganize
  19. LaunchPrep status per track: new → reviewed → gig-readyOrganize
  20. LaunchMoved files found again, broken ones reportedOrganize
  21. LaunchSet history and play countsOrganize
  22. LaunchEvery playlist a track is in, one click awayOrganize
  23. LaunchDual browser and a session shortlistOrganize
  24. LaunchImport from Serato, Traktor, Engine DJ, djay, Apple Music and M3UOrganize
  25. LaunchExport back to Rekordbox and SeratoOrganize
  26. LaunchFull export to open formats, any timeOrganize
  27. LaunchVersioned backups with one-click restore, optional encrypted cloud backupOrganize
  28. LaunchSync across Macs; audio files via your own cloud or NASOrganize
  29. LaunchBeatport streaming, purchase import and buy linksOrganize
  30. LaunchDynamic beatgrids for live drums and drifting tempoOrganize
  31. LaunchEnergy level per trackOrganize
  32. LaunchAuto-tagging suggestions: genre, energy, moodOrganize
  33. LaunchRelated tracks from your own libraryOrganize
  34. LaunchEvery suggestion shows whyOrganize
  35. TodayHot cues — set on the pads or carried over from RekordboxPrepare
  36. TodayStems separated on demand for the tracks you pick, then cachedPrepare
  37. TodayCopy your prep to another version of a track — cues and grid land on the same beatPrepare
  38. LaunchGigs with timed slots: warm-up, peak, closingPrepare
  39. LaunchSet planner with alternatives and a remaining-time footerPrepare
  40. LaunchEnergy, key and BPM curve of any set or playlistPrepare
  41. LaunchTrack roles: anchor, bridge, safety net, riskPrepare
  42. LaunchGig-readiness check before you leave the housePrepare
  43. LaunchHistory while planning — “played twice at this club”Prepare
  44. Launch“What fits next?” suggestions and set drafts from gig parametersPrepare
  45. Launch16 hot cues on pad pages, memory cues, cue templatesPrepare
  46. LaunchAuto-cue suggestions you confirm or correctPrepare
  47. LaunchCue import from Serato and TraktorPrepare
  48. LaunchFast grid correction, also from the controllerPrepare
  49. TodayPractice mode: just the laptop, keyboard and headphonesPractice
  50. TodayEvery shortcut on screen while you hold ⌥⌘Practice
  51. LaunchTransition test with two linked preview playersPractice
  52. LaunchSet Score and a debrief after every setPractice
  53. LaunchKeyboard-first: every function on a shortcutPractice
  54. TodayPioneer DDJ-FLX4, plug and playPlay
  55. TodayLamps that mirror the software, alwaysPlay
  56. TodayA full set without touching the trackpadPlay
  57. TodayA screen that adapts to the controller you plug inPlay
  58. TodayTwo decks with stacked zoom waveformsPlay
  59. TodayLive Mix Monitor with one-press fixesPlay
  60. TodayPhrase countdown, front and centerPlay
  61. TodayStems: vocals, instruments, drums — click-free, on screen and on the padsPlay
  62. TodaySoftware mixer: trim, three-band EQ, color FX filter, channel fadersPlay
  63. TodayBeat-synced Beat FXPlay
  64. TodayKeylock, beat sync and pitchPlay
  65. TodayHot cues on the pads, loopsPlay
  66. TodayHeadphone cue and split cue; master and phones on their own outputsPlay
  67. TodayBrowse without losing sight of the mixPlay
  68. Todayone more thing in the buildPlay
  69. LaunchPioneer DDJ-FLX10, including the jog displaysPlay
  70. LaunchMore DDJ controllers, and MIDI Learn for everything elsePlay
  71. LaunchExternal mixer mode for multi-channel interfacesPlay
  72. LaunchCDJ/XDJ control over HIDPlay
  73. LaunchSound color FX per channel and pad FXPlay
  74. LaunchSampler and sequencerPlay
  75. LaunchSlip, reverse, key sync and key shiftPlay
  76. LaunchInstant doublesPlay
  77. LaunchPlaylist palette and related tracks mid-setPlay
  78. LaunchLayout optionsPlay
  79. LaunchAutomix for your breaksPlay
  80. LaunchCrash recovery that brings your decks backPlay
  81. LaunchSet recording — free, with an automatic tracklistShare
  82. LaunchTracklist export with timestamps — for YouTube, Mixcloud and SoundCloudShare
  83. LaunchCheck set for YouTube: every track back to back, no transitions — upload it and see what gets blockedShare
  84. TodayNative macOS, written for Apple SiliconPlatform
  85. TodayAudio engine decoupled from the screenPlatform
  86. TodayWorks offline, no account needed to DJPlatform
  87. TodayYour data in an open format from day onePlatform
  88. LaunchThermal self-healing: degrade gracefully, recover without a restartPlatform
  89. LaunchLow latency, and 100,000 tracks without a stutterPlatform
  90. LaunchA free trial with every featurePlatform
  91. LaunchSubscription with an exit plan: read-only and export if you stop payingPlatform
  92. LaunchFair billing: cancel in the app, no hoopsPlatform
92 features● today · ○ by launch

Launch list

Be there when it drops.

HotQue7 is in alpha and moving fast. Leave your email and you'll hear from us once — the day it's ready for your booth.