Post: #1

Hey guys, I've recently taken up interest in music, especially guitar & turntables. While it's fairly straightforward with the guitar, can you share tips on learning & mastering DJ'ing & stuff?

Any links to lessons, theory, practice routines would help a lot. As far as the music goes, it's electro & progressive house that I'm interested in. Success stories & personal experiences are more than welcome!

The goal is to do a few sets of music that I like and spin for friends at house parties, and then see how it goes

Post: #2

I've been mixing for over 10 years and played in clubs in various countries. I mostly play tech house, techno and tribal.

The absolute best advice I can give you if you want to learn to mix is buy a basic setup that includes;

- either vinyl or CDJ's that have vinyl emulation (I recommend Stanton decks or Pioneer CDJ's)
- basic 2 channel mixer (Numark or basic Pioneer (DJM400 for example) will do)
- good quality headphones (Seinheiser HD25's are IMO the best. You will keep these as you improve and upgrade)

Once you have spent the money on a basic setup similar to the aforementioned; practice. All the courses, theory etc are all money making schemes and can be found for free on youtube. There is no substitute for getting hands on and gaining a feel for it.

Better yet, make friends with a crew that can already mix and are willing to share the knowledge. I started mixing when I was 14 because my mate's older brother had a pair of Technics and a crate of Jungle and Drum n Bass vinyl. He let us jump on for a mix while he was busy rolling joints haha.

Once you get the basics down with beat matching, blending, EQing, monitoring and basic effects for example, you will want to upgrade your kit. That is why its very important to start basic. 90% of people that lash out and buy a set up never end up making anything of it or bother to learn at all.

In the interim, build up your music library and start thinking about programming i.e. what tunes work with others. This is how you build a set. Its very important if you are mixing prog, electro etc to mix in key, so start learning basic music theory and key your records.

Once you have basic mixing abilities down pat and understand the theory behind it, you can move into the digital realm. A lot of electronic artists use Traktor or Ableton. Serato is more Hip Hop as its good for triggering samples and on the fly functions. Look into the Traktor S4; awesome bit of kit and very compact.

Mixing and DJing is a great skill to have and one which you can have a lot of fun with. There comes a time for everyone when it becomes more than that though, and you fall in love with sharing music with people. It becomes part of your identity. Unfortunately a lot of that is now lost with digital dj's who have jumped aboard the bandwagon. Call me tragic, but that is what it is all about at the end of the day.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

Post: #3

You cant really learn DJing... sure you can buy some equipment an play or mix some songs and I guess then you would be a DJ. With time you can learn to read the crowd an what to play. But some people who do all that just seem generic. Then theres people who are born for DJing who can read the crowd an carry the party, know exactly when to play that one diffrent or silly song at just the right time to make the party/club go nuts. You gotta be charismatic and confident to, what ever you are Djing you are in charge of the hole show, you gotta own that shit.


DJ Scratchatory Rape

Post: #4

Thanks guys, much appreciated.

Cr33pin, I don't claim that I'm starting a new SHM and will sell out across the world this year lol. I enjoy music in my spare time, and probably something will come out of it. Even if I put a few of my favourite tracks together, upload it to ipod & run to it in the gym, that would be a step in the right direction.

Lukey, the shittiest part of my story that I was dodging any sort of music education when I was a kid. I've picked up some theoretical stuff from guitar (like what chords sound well together, progressions and other basics), but if I just concentrate of mixing a few songs smoothly it may still sound like shit lol. So basically, apart from equipment, where do I start given this information?

At the moment, I was thinking about this thing Numark iDJ Live - it's super cheap, simple and will help to learn the basics with just an iPad. Otherwise, I've been playing around with Mixx, Traktor & similar on my laptop. Ableton & Cubase are awfully complicated so far

Post: #5

(01-09-2013 09:01 AM)Lukey Wrote:  I've been mixing for over 10 years and played in clubs in various countries. I mostly play tech house, techno and tribal.

The absolute best advice I can give you if you want to learn to mix is buy a basic setup that includes;

- either vinyl or CDJ's that have vinyl emulation (I recommend Stanton decks or Pioneer CDJ's)
- basic 2 channel mixer (Numark or basic Pioneer (DJM400 for example) will do)
- good quality headphones (Seinheiser HD25's are IMO the best. You will keep these as you improve and upgrade)

Once you have spent the money on a basic setup similar to the aforementioned; practice. All the courses, theory etc are all money making schemes and can be found for free on youtube. There is no substitute for getting hands on and gaining a feel for it.

Better yet, make friends with a crew that can already mix and are willing to share the knowledge. I started mixing when I was 14 because my mate's older brother had a pair of Technics and a crate of Jungle and Drum n Bass vinyl. He let us jump on for a mix while he was busy rolling joints haha.

Once you get the basics down with beat matching, blending, EQing, monitoring and basic effects for example, you will want to upgrade your kit. That is why its very important to start basic. 90% of people that lash out and buy a set up never end up making anything of it or bother to learn at all.

In the interim, build up your music library and start thinking about programming i.e. what tunes work with others. This is how you build a set. Its very important if you are mixing prog, electro etc to mix in key, so start learning basic music theory and key your records.

Once you have basic mixing abilities down pat and understand the theory behind it, you can move into the digital realm. A lot of electronic artists use Traktor or Ableton. Serato is more Hip Hop as its good for triggering samples and on the fly functions. Look into the Traktor S4; awesome bit of kit and very compact.

Mixing and DJing is a great skill to have and one which you can have a lot of fun with. There comes a time for everyone when it becomes more than that though, and you fall in love with sharing music with people. It becomes part of your identity. Unfortunately a lot of that is now lost with digital dj's who have jumped aboard the bandwagon. Call me tragic, but that is what it is all about at the end of the day.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

Awesome reply!

Post: #6

i dj'ed professionally through the 90's playing house, acid house, tribal. i literally just put my turntables away a few months ago

i dont have anything more to add than what lukey said! great post.

lukey - do you play anything from the 90's? any lables that typify your sound?

Post: #7

After reading my post it sounds almost discouraging ha. If your into music and its something you wanna do go for it. You can learn to read crowds an such by doing it. Make friends with a DJ somewhere around where you live an hang out with him when he does a gig. You will learn by being in the booth an watching what he does an how it makes the crowd react. Then throw a party and DJ it yourself, or find a friends house party an get them to let you DJ it.

Post: #8

Great replies to this thread so far. Passion and practice are the keys to everything.

One upside to this era is that the demand for dj's is at an all time high, if you're serious about this, make sure to take advantage of it, while it lasts.

Post: #9

Thanks again guys!

Agree with the DJs demand, this can be attributed to simplification of electronic music & inclusion of a lot of pop tunes; electro is not the same as it was some 10, let alone 20 years ago.

Figured out some inexpensive gear, so will probably jump to it soon. Can anyone suggest a good practice routine? It's fairly straightforward for a guitar, but can't quite get my head around practicing DJing.

Also, Ableton or Traktor? Ableton seems difficult and more producer-oriented, though gains popularity as a versatile live-playing tool. Traktor and similar have been around for years and probably is a good traditional way to start.

Post: #10

the basic idea is that the songs progress from their 4/4 tempo into blocks of 8, 16, 32, 64, 128 etc.

find major segments, 64 bars lets say, and begin to blend the songs together at those junctures

that is the basic gist

the best thing you can do? log 1000's of hours in your bedroom playing records get proficient

then play house parties

then try to get some opening gigs. most clubs let new guys dj's the early slots when no one is there.

network network network

just like anything in life it is more who you know than what you know

Post: #11

thanks reaper23!

Post: #12

If you're ever considering visiting Boston, education capital of the world, we also have a pretty cool DJ/producer school that is doing well...

http://www.mmmmavenagency.com/

Post: #13

(01-09-2013 11:54 AM)damngringo Wrote:  Lukey, the shittiest part of my story that I was dodging any sort of music education when I was a kid. I've picked up some theoretical stuff from guitar (like what chords sound well together, progressions and other basics), but if I just concentrate of mixing a few songs smoothly it may still sound like shit lol. So basically, apart from equipment, where do I start given this information?

At the moment, I was thinking about this thing Numark iDJ Live - it's super cheap, simple and will help to learn the basics with just an iPad. Otherwise, I've been playing around with Mixx, Traktor & similar on my laptop. Ableton & Cubase are awfully complicated so far

Music education isn't a prerequisite. I can't play an instrument, yet I can mix any 2 songs together and tell you if they are in key or not. That just comes from 1000's of hours of practice and playing to myself in my bedroom. Don't stress about that aspect. Just buy some gear to get started and have fun with it.

Cubase is production software, so don't worry about that just yet. The reason why Ableton seems confusing to you at this stage is because you don't understand the theory behind mixing two records. The reason why producers/dj's stand the test of time and are always able to stay current with the latest tech is because they understand the background theory, and each piece of breakthrough technology just builds on the last. Many moons ago Daft Punk used to mix on two turntables and an analogue mixer. Now they rock it in a pyramid in robot suits with Ableton rewired through a pair of old Moogs. Ok, maybe the helmets and pyramid are irrelevant, but my point is they started in the same way everyone else does; mixing two records together. Once you can do this, you can move on to the software and you will find it a lot easier.

(01-10-2013 05:37 AM)reaper23 Wrote:  i dj'ed professionally through the 90's playing house, acid house, tribal. i literally just put my turntables away a few months ago

lukey - do you play anything from the 90's? any lables that typify your sound?

Acid house is sick. I wish I was around for that wave of music. It must of been a very exciting time to be part of the scene.

These days I love Viva, 8bit, Cadenza, Minus, Get Physical, Diynamic, Vagabondos, Technasia and Soma among a host of others.

(01-11-2013 07:28 AM)damngringo Wrote:  Also, Ableton or Traktor? Ableton seems difficult and more producer-oriented, though gains popularity as a versatile live-playing tool. Traktor and similar have been around for years and probably is a good traditional way to start.

As per my earlier comments, start mixing CD's or vinyl, then get Traktor. Once you have mastered that, get onto Ableton. It is a very powerful program in the right hands and can be used for both production and mixing. It is basically limitless in its capabilities.

Traktor is simple to use if you understand how to mix records. It is also a great way to be mobile as you only need your laptop and dongle or controller (eg. Traktor S4) without having to lug around a pile of cd's, vinyl etc.

Post: #14

Thanks again Lukey, you make everyhting really clear!

Post: #15

I agree its best to learn with the real thing (CD or Vinyl), and to become good all that is really needed is a good ear and practice. Eventually I feel you will need to know your crowd also to know when to drop certain tracks. I DJ but I don't like to call myself one I make beats first so I really just re-arrange/break down beats into stabs for long sets and replay them live. Its probably way harder then just matching tempo and beats but its easier for me with my analog music background. My good friend has been DJ's for 11 years now, he started off with shitty ass starter tables and worked his way up to Tech 12s. Its just all practice and research because IMO DJs are putting in those hours on the weekends when everybody is out partying to thus play those parties in the long run.

Post: #16

Hey, I run a House Music Website and was in your position about 5 months ago so I figure ill chime in here.

First off the setup would be the most important for any DJ starting out and if your looking for recommendations I'd start with a Traktor S2, these run around 500 bucks but you can find the controllers cheap and get a cracked version of TP2 on ThePirateBay if needed. Originally I started out renting an old Numark ICDMix deck that ran Cd's which I wouldn't recommend but is a great learning tool that's cheap. Also if you really just wanted to start very small and just learn some effects and the processes of DJing then there's an Ipod app called iDJ that is great for that.

Next the skills that I would focus on would be beatmatching. Start with some records with slightly different tempos and practice matching them together (I learned repeatedly switching between the same two tracks over and over at 128 and 132 BPM) Next you can start to play with effects like Reverb, Delay and things like Gater.

Production, I run FL Studio 10 with Nexus, Sylenth1, Massive and Vengeance Sound Samples all of which I got cracked from online torrents, mostly ThePirateBay. Sylenth1 probably has the best sounds but Nexus is the best reference point (Side Note, most of the record "Seek Bromance" by Avicii was created on Nexus in FL Studio). I decided to buy some Noise Effects packs from Beatport which could turn out to be very helpful as well. For the actual Producing side I would say focus on the Melody first and then if you have the right mindset for Producing you can come up with the record as you go.

Gear I run Summary:
TRAKTOR Kontrol S2
Beats by Dre Studio
FL Studio with Nexus, Sylenth1 and NI Massive
M-Audio KeyRig 49
VenGeance Dubstep, FUTURE House.

Also I learned how to use FL Studio from this Avicii video of him writing Dancing In My Head.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dIcuU58Oy8

Hope this helps!

Post: #17

Thanks, great reply. So yeah, been working on my music library for now, and will start beatmatching once there.

I found this bundle: http://www.thomann.de/gb/numark_mixtrack...tAodriQA3A

Seems cheap and versatile + I will be relocating soon, so mobility wouldn't hurt.

PirateBay ftw lol. Also, 5 months seems very quick for me, how much did you practice?

Post: #18

(01-13-2013 05:07 AM)Lukey Wrote:  [quote='reaper23' pid='344802' dateline='1357814274']
i dj'ed professionally through the 90's playing house, acid house, tribal. i literally just put my turntables away a few months ago

lukey - do you play anything from the 90's? any lables that typify your sound?

Acid house is sick. I wish I was around for that wave of music. It must of been a very exciting time to be part of the scene.

These days I love Viva, 8bit, Cadenza, Minus, Get Physical, Diynamic, Vagabondos, Technasia and Soma among a host of others.



man, soma is the only one that i recognize. i'm old. and my heyday was a while ago.

for me it was Murk, strictly rhythm, Tribal, stuff by hardfloor, old dj sneak, joey beltram, just trax' etc

Post: #19

Play two of the same track and practise nudging one of them slower or faster and work on matching the other one back in beat. (This is matching tempos not matching keys. Unless two tracks were recorded at the same or in complimentary keys there's little you can do.)

Work damn hard on having a sound. The world is chock of average and boring music and djs- aim to raise the standard.

For all the deep house heads: check free range recordings, moody Mann and theo parish. Oh and torronto's dnh (nick holder).

Post: #20

If you ever want to take DJ'ing house music seriously the best advice you could ever receive is: Get DAMN good at producing, because these days you HAVE to be an accomplished producer to make yourself known as a DJ - Via your released tracks. As always its also who you know it this industry...everyone is pretty well familiar with each other.

It's a lifestyle

Post: #21

(01-15-2013 09:01 AM)damngringo Wrote:  Thanks, great reply. So yeah, been working on my music library for now, and will start beatmatching once there.

I found this bundle: http://www.thomann.de/gb/numark_mixtrack...tAodriQA3A

Seems cheap and versatile + I will be relocating soon, so mobility wouldn't hurt.

PirateBay ftw lol. Also, 5 months seems very quick for me, how much did you practice?

A bunch, most of my songs aren't that high quality but there average I guess. Djing wise I'm not too bad the software and controller upgrade to Traktor Helped tons, believe me it's night and day with a good setup if your playing House like I do.

Post: #22

(01-16-2013 05:17 PM)Biz Wrote:  If you ever want to take DJ'ing house music seriously the best advice you could ever receive is: Get DAMN good at producing, because these days you HAVE to be an accomplished producer to make yourself known as a DJ - Via your released tracks. As always its also who you know it this industry...everyone is pretty well familiar with each other.

It's a lifestyle

I ONLY focus on producing now, Djing is second rate now. Avicii never touched turntables until he got a manager and already had a full deal at a Summer Ibiza scene that is how little it matters.

Post: #23

(01-16-2013 09:49 PM)PROD3GY Wrote:  

(01-16-2013 05:17 PM)Biz Wrote:  If you ever want to take DJ'ing house music seriously the best advice you could ever receive is: Get DAMN good at producing, because these days you HAVE to be an accomplished producer to make yourself known as a DJ - Via your released tracks. As always its also who you know it this industry...everyone is pretty well familiar with each other.

It's a lifestyle

I ONLY focus on producing now, Djing is second rate now. Avicii never touched turntables until he got a manager and already had a full deal at a Summer Ibiza scene that is how little it matters.

I wouldn't go that far to say it's second rate, but as far as Avicii and that style of "commercial house" than yes it's definitely second rate, all those guys do is press play and put their hands in the air.

However in the real house scene, DJing is huge deal...their productions are what get them the gigs, the gigs is where they make all their money, they don't make anything from their productions and if they do it's pennies. Even the most successful underground house labels are considered successful if they just break even...that's how little money we are talking about here.

The top names in the biz make decent money. They run record labels, tour non-stop and in between that try and dish out decent music to stay fresh and keep the names around.

Post: #24

(01-17-2013 12:14 AM)Biz Wrote:  

(01-16-2013 09:49 PM)PROD3GY Wrote:  

(01-16-2013 05:17 PM)Biz Wrote:  If you ever want to take DJ'ing house music seriously the best advice you could ever receive is: Get DAMN good at producing, because these days you HAVE to be an accomplished producer to make yourself known as a DJ - Via your released tracks. As always its also who you know it this industry...everyone is pretty well familiar with each other.

It's a lifestyle

I ONLY focus on producing now, Djing is second rate now. Avicii never touched turntables until he got a manager and already had a full deal at a Summer Ibiza scene that is how little it matters.

I wouldn't go that far to say it's second rate, but as far as Avicii and that style of "commercial house" than yes it's definitely second rate, all those guys do is press play and put their hands in the air.

However in the real house scene, DJing is huge deal...their productions are what get them the gigs, the gigs is where they make all their money, they don't make anything from their productions and if they do it's pennies. Even the most successful underground house labels are considered successful if they just break even...that's how little money we are talking about here.

The top names in the biz make decent money. They run record labels, tour non-stop and in between that try and dish out decent music to stay fresh and keep the names around.

The thing about production is sadly true. It's not enough to be a good nowadays if you make the tunes the people dance to you'll climb at hyper speed.

Post: #25

even back in the (my) day, the early and mid 90's, production was key. either you had to have a great club night yourself to book other dj's who in turn had club nights in other cities to book you - or you had to produce beats. this was if you wanted to go national. i made a pretty decent career out of playing in my region by just being a dope dj.