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DJ Superman
Advanced Member
United Kingdom
1,192 posts Joined: Jul, 2003
46 hardcore releases
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Posted - 2004/03/06 : 22:18:36
a message to all the DJ's, if you've got a minute I'd really appreciate some help! i have been mixing for a few weeks now and I've got a few questions that need answers some (or most) will probably seem really stupid to anyone that knows what they're on about but I guess we've all got to start somewhere, hey!
Firstly its about pitch, is a whole set played at the same BPM? I figure that if the 1st record you play is at 170BM then you'll match the second to that, then so on and so on it'll remain the same. only problem is if I'm playing from say "connections" into "no more jokin'" (slow into fast) then no more jokin' is going to sound very strange, but if I try slowly correcting the pitch so it's closer to it's original BPM then it sounds all slurred and nasty, not to mention I've never noticed this happening in any set's I've heard before. like I said the answer is probably really obvious to the experienced out there but I've got my decks and nobody around to teach me so take pity!
Next is just a bit of an improvement on my mixing. I can beat match pretty well now, have been practicing for a good few hours each day and it's getting to the point where, if I'm doing well I can beat match in 30 or so seconds. I've heard a lot of people say they can beat match in 15/20seconds every time on here before and want to know what they do with the other 3 minutes! are there any little tricks that I could start introducing to my mixes to make them a bit more interesting? nothing too complex but I'd really like to start adding a bit more of a technical aspect to my mixes, rather than just playing from tune to tune.
Thirdly, does anyone else find Scott Brown tunes harder to mix than usual? I always find the baselines to be less easily defined and there is usually an intro before the main line kicks in, I've been cueing the record from the first beat, both to beat match and when I actually mix the track in as well but I'd really like to know how to bring in these tunes in from the start properly. It sounds great when you just hear the lyrics from the next tune coming in on live sets and I wanna be able to as well, only problem is that when i try the first baseline always drops out of sync with the current track! is this just practice or are there any tricks?
Right, I think that's about it for now thanks to anyone who could be arsed to read all that and takes the time to post back and help out, I really appreciate it. I'll post a mix in few weeks and see if anyone can advise me on what improvements I could make but for now I'll just keep practicing on my own thanks!
whizz-billy-the-kid's got you in his sights
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Edited by - DJ Superman on 2004/03/06 22:20:38 |
StrifeII
Advanced Member
United Kingdom
2,143 posts Joined: Mar, 2001
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Posted - 2004/03/06 : 23:11:44
1) english please? :P
2) keep practicing, people are probably lying when they say they can beatmatch in 20 seconds :P it takes a minute or two to get it perfect
3) experiment, they seem fine to me...
This post bought to you by Blasphemy
"Even though i've come to far, i know i've got so far to go"
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capone13
Advanced Member
United Kingdom
1,302 posts Joined: Mar, 2004
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Posted - 2004/03/07 : 15:39:35
Awright m8 hows it goin?
All I got to say is just don't give up, you just got to keep on trying no matter how difficult you are finding it. I only started a couple of months ago and i've found a great dj book that has told me a lot.
How To DJ Right: The Art And Science Of Playing Records
Get this book from Amazon.co.uk cause its a quality buy with 283 pages and its only £7.00.
DJ J-me
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Blue Frequency
Advanced Member
United States
824 posts Joined: Nov, 2003
332 hardcore releases
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Posted - 2004/03/07 : 18:29:03
Don't worry about correcting it. Songs will sound odd when you don't play them at their original BPM. You will notice this a whole lot more than those people out dancing. Just don't change it up too much, if you're going to +8% and the other track is at -2% I normally wouldn't bother mixing it just because it's a big jump. Mixing isn't just about playing records, ita bout fitting them together and making it a preformance; get the best possible sound.
When I'm matching I can do it in 10 to 20 seconds and get within the general area usually. Longer when I'm recording and don't want to have to tweak a lot during the mix. Sometimes it falls together nicely and I have 3-5 min till the song ends. You can try cutting the volume in time with the track to creat different effects or do some cutting to the next track.
Example: 1 is playing 2 is playing through the head phones. 1 breaks in 8 beats 2 has a drum roll in 4 beats that will last for 4 beats. You count 1 - 2 -3 - 4 cut to track 2 when the roll drops in 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 cut to track 1 where it drops to silence. It just adds on to your set. It like scratching in the sense that you shouldn't do it a lot unless people are expecting it.
Play them often, I'm still getting use to his new intro outro. I mix by snare drum when that occurs or when there isn't a snare I use what ever other instrument is there (hard to explain you will just pick up on it). But you need to drop his tracks in a lot sooner now otherwise there will be just the kick drums going together
Best example I can give you is my new mix http://music.globalbeatz.net/dj-mix-mp3/3199 register and get it. Listen to when I'm going from Distorted Visions into I became hardcore, I dropped it in a bit to late, creating a nifty break but the kcik on each song doesnt match making the transistion noticable. Also notice there isn't a kick drum to match by. I used the snare/highhats/vocals all together to match. Hope that helps, let me know if you have any questions about anything I said cause I'm not sure if it's understandable. |read|between|the|lines|
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DJ Superman
Advanced Member
United Kingdom
1,192 posts Joined: Jul, 2003
46 hardcore releases
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Posted - 2004/03/07 : 18:46:40
that's exactly what I was after mate, thanks I'm downloading the mix at the minute. I guess a lot of it's just going to be about practice. Will start trying to beat match with other instruments in songs, that should make things much more easy down the line as well as getting the SB tunes into my mixes.
I've tried a bit of vocal trickery. Found vocals in the track to be mixed that don't have much other sounds along with them and dropped those in and out of the playing tune, will try what you suggested with the break as well.
thanks for your help man, if anyone's got any more hints or tips then feel free to post em' up
whizz-billy-the-kid's got you in his sights
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whizz-billy-the-kid's got you in his sights
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Kaffine
Senior Member
United States
474 posts Joined: Jun, 2002
91 hardcore releases
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Posted - 2004/03/12 : 17:55:38
Mate, the best advice that I can give you on dealing with things like scott brown tracks with bad outros and intros is that there's always an instrument that can be depended on. Something that will always go tap-tap-tap-tap, even if it's a very quiet hat, an ambient beep or whatsuch. The most important thing to figure out is where this falls in relation to the beat - if you match a hat that falls between beats to the kick of another track as you start bringing in the volume, you're going to suddenly have the old 'shoes in a washing machine' (someone said that before on the forums and I loved it) effect and kicks all over the place.
You're still a new DJ and it'll take time. The number one thing is never give up. Everything will make sense as you spend more time in the community and working on your dex.
-dj h3o
All I know is that to me, you look like you're lots of fun, open up your loving arms - watch out here I come!
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steve O
Advanced Member
United Kingdom
1,128 posts Joined: Oct, 2003
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Posted - 2004/03/12 : 20:19:55
Blasphemy- I think there is ppl who can beat match in less than a minute, for example, makina djs or any1 that mixes BCN style. You've gotta b able to match witha click of a finger coz ur constantly mixing.
Hardcore Till I Die...
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StrifeII
Advanced Member
United Kingdom
2,143 posts Joined: Mar, 2001
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Posted - 2004/03/12 : 22:05:19
yeah, but it aint easily learned
This post bought to you by Blasphemy
"Even though i've come to far, i know i've got so far to go"
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steve O
Advanced Member
United Kingdom
1,128 posts Joined: Oct, 2003
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Posted - 2004/03/13 : 21:38:59
its damn near impossible!
Hardcore Till I Die...
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Brian K
Advanced Member
United States
8,663 posts Joined: Sep, 2001
528 hardcore releases
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Posted - 2004/03/20 : 03:30:08
no it's not impossible, if you've been mixing for long most people can get beat matching done in less than 20 seconds.
what's scary is when you know your records well enough to drop them in a mix without even listening to them in the headphones =P
"we'll delete the weak"
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jimnicricket
Advanced Member
United States
533 posts Joined: Jun, 2003
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Posted - 2004/03/20 : 05:43:52
i like to see how many records I can get in to a set ^-^ kinda like a hard house dj.
i don't really like to play out a whole record :}
so mr. keep on trying!!!!
and play every day you can.
soon you will best the best dj on the block
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http://funshine.org/annika.htm
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DJ Superman
Advanced Member
United Kingdom
1,192 posts Joined: Jul, 2003
46 hardcore releases
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Posted - 2004/03/20 : 13:54:03
quote: what's scary is when you know your records well enough to drop them in a mix without even listening to them in the headphones
I think there's a while before that'll be happening, that's crazy! I'm starting to remember the difference in pitch between some tracks now though, knowing which ones are fast, slow etc.
quote: so mr. keep on trying!!!!
and play every day you can.
soon you will best the best dj on the block
I'm already the best DJ on the block! .............. I'm the only DJ on the block. apart from some garage playing monkey that lives in the flats below me, but they really don't count
whizz-billy-the-kid's got you in his sights
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whizz-billy-the-kid's got you in his sights
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Edited by - DJ Superman on 2004/03/20 13:55:32 |
JesterDJ
Advanced Member
United Kingdom
1,486 posts Joined: Apr, 2003
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Posted - 2004/03/23 : 15:10:33
apart from the conversation thats already takin place here mate, i think the best thing to do to avoid having either of the tunes your mixing together sounding weird due to the speed is just to make sure you mix tunes that are slightly closer together in bpm. this is especially true for vocal tracks because it is always a lot easier to hear a change in speed for a vocal tune the nfor just a beat. For tunes that are more instrumental, you tend to be able to get away with playing them much faster than vocal tunes because of how much easier it is to detect the speed change. A big turn off to some people that. As i say the best way to avoid having to make up for such a huge difference in bom is to just play tunes that are made with a similar speed in mind. simple as that really
If pac-man really had an effect on us, we'd all be runnin' round in dark rooms, listening to repetitive music and munching pills!!!
*.*Jester*.*
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DJ Superman
Advanced Member
United Kingdom
1,192 posts Joined: Jul, 2003
46 hardcore releases
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Posted - 2004/03/23 : 23:27:38
yeah, I'm starting to structure what tunes I choose to play next a bit now, leading the set faster or slower in little bits instead of big jumps so it doesn't sound too off-key. thanks again for everyone's help! I'll post a mix so people can let me know areas of improvement soon but my sound card on my PC really isn't up to much so I'm gonna have to get a new one 1st. post any more tips if you've got them guys, it's all helping!
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