DJing ***FAQ*** methods and techniques, bump often

AcidBurn

Bluelighter
Joined
Nov 4, 1999
Messages
1,940
Well, I cant find the old djing faq, so i guess we can start another one.
In the old one there was a link to a page on technique (beatmatching and other things). I thought i put it in my favorites, but its nowhere to be found. If anyone has an idea of the page im talking about, would you please post a link.
If you have questions, feel free to ask them here, as long as they have to do with methods and technique.. ie. no "what should i spin?" questions.. go to the chart threads for that.
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Bluelight_pimps up in this mutha fuckin hizzouse...
 
Acidburn, could you post kind of a "To-Do" List of the order in which you do things to mix in a record. e.g.
1. Find the first beat in the song and throw it in on the first beat in a measure of the other song.
2. blah blah blah.
That would help me a lot. Thanks,
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Vestaxboy
"I feel more like I do
right now than I did
before."
"Nice Shoes, wanna fuck"
 
Vestaxboy-
If you're looking for an answer from anyone I can tell you my method.
If you are mixing trance, techno, or some deep, soulful, disco-ish house this is my smooth mixing technique...
First beat match your records in your headphones. Assuming record A is playing and record B is not here's what I do. At the end of a 16 measure chorus in a song start to mix B at the beginning of a 16 beat chorus (or stanza or whatever you want to call it). Cut the bass and treble completely on B and bring down the mid about halfway. Put your crossfader in the middle. (this is a good time to check your headphones to make sure you are still beatmatched) Slowly raise the mid on B and lower the mid on A. At some point usually about 4 measures into the mix, I simultaneously cut the treble on A and turn up the treble on B. This will make all the sounds but the bass predominating from B. Now, start to slowly raise the bass from B and very carefully lower the bass from A. At the end of another four measures have it so the bass is full on for B and cut from A. Now, in the remaining 8 measures of the stanza or chorus, reduce the mid from A until record B is the only one playing.
That is the simplest way to smoothly mix, that I know of. It is just one method and there are countless ways to do it.
Please, other DJs out there, give some more pointers (but don't give away your secrets
smile.gif
)
Good post Acidburn!!
 
Thats not the exact one of which i was thinking, but excellent link none the less. The one im thinking of was written by some english guy, and i think the url is a co.uk one.
As far as beat matching and working with 3 band equalizers, thats prolly the hardest part of learning how to dj IMHO. I dont think theres a sure fire way to mix ANY two tracks with ONE equalizer technique. But thats pretty close to what I do DaveB. Even if the tracks are in sync with structure, basslines and high percussion can sound cluttered if theyre both audible.
[This message has been edited by AcidBurn (edited 06 February 2001).]
 
AcidBurn-
You're thinking of recess.co.uk or something like that. I have seen that link on bluelight before and it's not a bad resource at all
 
Thanks guys, thats the one. Thanks to you too Undoc. If anyone else has any others please post them.
The recess site is really in depth and is actually an entertaining read. Most basic technique questions are answered in these pages, but feel free to ask questions here too.
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Bluelight_pimps up in this mutha fuckin hizzouse...
 
Thanks, DAK, Very Helpful. Do you guys have any tips on beatmatching? I have a hard time keeping my beats matched. I can get them pretty close, keep them matched for like a 16 or 32 or even 64 count, but then seem to lose them. Any tips? Peace,
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Vestaxboy
"I feel more like I do
right now than I did
before."
"Nice Shoes, wanna fuck"
 
I believe it was Lane that had a link to something on bmp in DP's old FAQ that was pretty good. As far as advice on keeping your beats matched, the number one thing is, of course, practice and becoming better and better at hearing the mismatch of beats. But until you become more proficient at beatmatching you can improve the length of your matches by allowing the records to play together longer while matching. What I did while first learning to do very long transitions was start the second record, and then roughly adjust the pitch. A rough adjustment should hold the beats matched for at least 8 or 16 measures. At this point, let the record keep playing until the beats start to separate again and adjust the pitch accordingly. The key to this is to be using incrementally smaller adjustments until the beats are perfectly matched. Learning the ability to match the beats in your headphones in this manner will help you learn two more advanced techniques that I'd really like to see discussed in here. The first being pitch bending, and the second being what I call progressive mixing.
Pitch bending is a style of beat matching wherein you don't touch the record to adjust it. You start the record and then overcompensate with the pitch bar to match the beats back up, and then adjust the pitch accordingly to keep the beats matched. Say you start your record and it is at 0%. Then the beat begings to fall behind quickly so you overcompensate to, say 6% to catch the beat back up. Once the beat is caught back up, you slide the pitch back to a faster speed than your original, we'll say 2% and continue as such until the beats are matched perfectly. (Keep in mind I pulled these numbers out of my ass, they don't really mean anything) Mixing in this style does two things for you. One, it allows you to mix very accurately. Most of you have noticed that different records handle differently. And it's not very hard to make a mistake while adjusting the record manually. Second, it allows you to mix very quickly. Once you are good enough at it, you can basically throw your record on, make a few adjustments, and begin mixing it in and making minor adjustments while in the mix.
The other method, which I call progressive mixing(anybody heard this called something, cause I just made it up) is very similar to pitch bending but you can touch the record. When using this style, I will start the record, make a few rough adjustments and start to mix the record in. While the record is playing, I will continue to make minor adjustments..and eventually not have to adjust at all.
Now keep in mind, for you newer dj's, that both of these are fairly advanced techniques that require you to already be very good at beatmatching. You need to be good enough at hearing differences in the beats that you can make adjustments before they are ever noticable.
Anyone have thoughts on these techniques?
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Fuck PLUR! It's all about hardcore assfucking!--The stuck-up 8ups
Just remember, I can delete you--Spencer
Damn Lane is an annoying asshole!
 
yeah rabbi!
good description...
maybe im still a newbie to Dj'ing(8months), but ive just started getting good at what you called progressive beat matching...what i actually find is that because i have crappy ass turntables (Gemini XL-500), they seem to have forced me to get really good at hearing mismatches in beats and really good at covering them up quickly...because the tables tend not to hold the pitch that well, im constantly adjusting the pitches through my mix (which i try my darndest not to do, but sometimes, its gotta happen...i hate gallups)....
anyway...one question...do any of you spin the spindle thingie in the center of the table to adjust the pitch? also, ive noticed some DJ's actually touch the platter itself...whats the opinion on doing it that way?
i heard one of my friends burned out a motor or something on his tables from spinnin the spindle to hard or something...should i worry?
ok, and one final thing...i think ive got the basics down with regards to mixing (lowering the bass on one, bringing it up slowly while lowering the other, etc...)...im kinda now in a rut...thats all i seem to be doing...what sortsa things should i experiment with to make my style more distinctive....
...i mean it kinda gets boring doing the same thing to bring in each record...
thanks
[This message has been edited by MikeyLikesE (edited 06 February 2001).]
 
Well here's my view on the mixing.
I mix trance, which is easy in the sense that the beats are easier to match, but it's hard in the sense that any slip up or galloping of beats is so noticable. No genre is easiest to mix really, good DJ's make good mixes of whatever type they spin. That's why they're are top jungle DJ's (I like Odi the best
smile.gif
), top trance DJ's, etc...
DAveB hit the nail on the head with the way I mix, once you get that down, it's almost clockwork, you feel like you can mix any two songs someone hands you (in your genre of expertise).
I find that the songs I spin change mostly after 32 bars and use them rather than 16 most of the time. This is a bit more difficult because the records have a better chance of galloping. I usually let the two songs play together an average of 64-96 bars. Which leaves a large margin for error. Using the spindle works, but when mixing using the measures I have to make sure that they cue track and the playing track are still in exact same spots in they're measures (1 of 32 lines up with 1 of 32, etc...etc.)
I will push my hand lightly against the wheel to slightly slow either track if necessary and have never real used pitch bending, tho I may try it so I can concentrate more on moving in the 3 Channels on the equilizer so they do not clash at any one level.
Sounds confusing, but using the bars is so important because of the song changes at those marks.
Ok I'm rambling.
--DJ SHEX
 
In my experiance, 32 is a much more important number than 16. Groups of 2 stanzas (or multiples thereof) sound better than single stanzas.
I dont really get the whole pitch bending idea. What i do is when the beats start to seperate, i adjust the less audible record so theyre right on, then i adjust the pitch a bit. I guess i could see how overshooting it and seeing how long it takes to get back could provide a sense of where the pitch should actually be; but other than that i dont see how it would be benificial over just nudging it with your finger.
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Bluelight_pimps up in this mutha fuckin hizzouse...
 
The advantage of using the pitch bending method is that - once you have it down - there is less liklihood of messing up a mix. Instead of manipulating the speed of the record that is going out of sync with your hand - and then adjusting the pitch control accordingly - you are doing it by adjusting the pitch control too much for a split-second, before moving it back to being only slightly adjusted from where it was before.
When you touch the record to adjust the speed slightly, you risk making the needle skip (esp. if the record is a little warped or the vinyl is really thin)...if you use the pitch bending method this won't happen. Also, adjustments are often less audible when you pitch bend - which keeps a mix sounding much smoother.
The pitch beding method is tricky, and you should definitely have beat-matching down before you start worrying about it, but it becomes second nature after a while.
Vestex (and, I think, Gemini) have actually started putting separate pitch-bend features (levers on the Vestexes, buttons on the Geminis) on recent high-end turntables, and they've been on most good CD mixers for years.
[This message has been edited by basic (edited 06 February 2001).]
 
The real advantage of pitch bending is that its alot more controllable and tends to be less audable.
Contact with the platter or the record, particularly breaking tends to be very noticable and its easy to misjudge and make a real mess of it.
This is really a preference choice. Pitch bending can seem difficult to start with. But once you get used to it, its a fast an accurate technique. Your less likely to mess it up from being knocked or having a shaky hand moment.
Jase.
 
As I said, the main advantages of these two techniques are that you can mix very quickly and accuately. I'll use Bad Boy Bill's hard house as an example. He mixes tracks very quickly(a song may play 1-2 minutes) and this would be impossible if you were trying to perfectly match the beats in your headphones. The way you use this style of mixing is that you throw the record on, spend 10 seconds or so adjusting the pitch, and begin mixing. When you mix this quickly it enables you to play with your tracks more ie. going back and forth between tracks or whatever. You can't really do this in some styles, trance for example, but it's commonly used in hard house, jungle, and so on.
The best example I can think if is Carl Cox. He is very very good at mixing like this. If you watch him, he's almost never wearing heaphones, and can spend almost his entire set focusing on the crowd. And the quality of his shows definitly shows how he uses this to his advantage.
To answer the question about the spindle, I only touch it if slowing the record very slightly. As far as touching the side of the platter, I will to this when the record needs to be slowed down alot when I'm rough beatmatching.
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Fuck PLUR! It's all about hardcore assfucking!--The stuck-up 8ups
Just remember, I can delete you--Spencer
Damn Lane is an annoying asshole!
 
Though I am not a big fan of the pitch bend technique, I find it is a very important method to learn. Most of my paying gigs are for mobile dj companies that only provide cd players (and frankly the pop shit I have to play I only have on disc). With cds you do not have direct control over the music in the same manner that you have with records, so you are forced to use the pitch bend method. But being able to utilize pitch bending will allow you to be able to use both cds and tables while performing which I think is a very marketable talent.
 
Ok my friend (tminus) is teaching me to DJ and he has me doing the pitchbending style of beat matching and I'm just starting out. Is it better to just learn this way even though it might take me longer. I'm just starting and I think I'm have a hard time doing it. Is there an easier way that I may be able to learn faster? I spin house and he spins trance so that's kinda funky, any house spinning tips? THis is a great thread by the way, alot better than those "Who's the Crappiest DJ" and shit. Let's keep this one Alive! Peace,
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Vestaxboy
"I feel more like I do
right now than I did
before."
"Nice Shoes, wanna fuck"
 
I think that with pitch bending, its just like learning how to ride a bike, you may fall alot at first, but as soon as you get it, your confident and can only improve from there. Practice, practice, and soon it will be like second nature to be able to match and hold a beat. When I first began, it used to take me the whole side of a record to beatmatch the cued record. Now it comes to me very easily, and only need a couple seconds
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Set me on fire with emotion and douse me with life.....
 
Id say learn how to match the records using your finger first, but im a biased anti-pitch bender
wink.gif
. Once you learn how to match using your fingers, it couldnt hurt to learn how to do it with pitch bending.
 
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