Link server built in
Crate poses as rekordbox on the network. Players see it under LINK, browse by playlist, artist, key or search, and stream audio, grids, cues and waveforms. Works over Ethernet and over the CDJ-3000's USB link.
Your library, straight to the CDJ.
Crate imports your music, lets you fix beatgrids to the sample, exports rekordbox-compatible USB sticks, and serves your whole library to CDJ-3000s over PRO DJ LINK — by cable or straight over the player's USB connection. No rekordbox required.
Download Crate 0.2.0 for macOS Apple Silicon · 21M · 2026-09-24
Signed and notarized with Apple, so it opens like any other app.
What it does
Beatgrids you can trust
A sample-level waveform with metronome playback. Drag beats, set tempo, expand or shrink the grid, align to the playhead with millisecond arrow-key nudges. Undo everything.
USB export and update
Writes the PIONEER folder the players expect: database, analysis, artwork. Verifies with hashes, updates an existing stick in place, and recovers interrupted exports.
Drag and drop everywhere
Drop files or folders to import. Drag tracks into playlists, reorder them, nest playlists in folders — and drop a track on a player card to load it on that CDJ.
Beatport inside
Log in with your Beatport LINK account, search, preview, and drag a result onto the catalog or a playlist. Crate downloads it, tags it, keeps the artwork and imports it.
Waveforms like the players draw them
Blue, RGB and 3Band waveforms in rekordbox's own layouts, calibrated against real analyses, plus a live beat pulse from every player on the link.
With your CDJ-3000
- Add music. Point Crate at a folder, drop files in, or import an existing rekordbox USB or library.
- Connect. Plug the CDJ's USB cable into the Mac (it shows up as a network link) or use the LINK port on your network. Quit rekordbox if it is running.
- Start Link. Pick the interface in the header and press Start Link. Choose LINK on the player and pick your computer.
- Play. Browse on the player or drop a track on its card in Crate. Hot cues you set on the player are logged; grids you fix in Crate update with one click.
Requirements
- macOS on Apple Silicon (M1 or later). Intel builds are not provided yet.
- Verified with CDJ-3000 players; other PRO DJ LINK players should browse the same way.
-
ffmpegandffprobefor importing ordinary audio and Beatport downloads:brew install ffmpeg. -
Optional: the SQLCipher command line (
brew install sqlcipher) to import a rekordbox master library. - A Beatport LINK subscription for Beatport downloads.
Crate is independent software for interoperability with Pioneer DJ / AlphaTheta players. It is not affiliated with AlphaTheta, Pioneer DJ or Beatport. rekordbox is a trademark of AlphaTheta Corporation.