Newbies: Learn to beatmatch FAST using this technique

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Bridpop

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OK - I dont claim to be any kind of expert, and this is just a variation on what is already known, so dont shoot me down in flames. But if this helps anyone then it was worth while.

OK - I got my decks about 3-4 weeks ago (1 Gemini XL 500 MK2 Decks and a Gemini 626 mixer, Sony MDR 700 headphones) and i didnt have a clue how to beatmatch until i formulated my own slant on the existing techniques:

1. Get record one playing out of the speakers (duh)
2. In headphones, start record 2 and use finger on label to get the record to the first beat, and keep your fingertips on the record to keep it in place
3. Move the record back and forth under the needle till you can get the beat in a position where you KNOW the beat will happen when you release the deck.
Now with your fingers on the record, hit the START/STOP button with your other hand and the platter will stop spinning (or trying to spin) - Now you can take your hand off the record for a moment.
4. OK, the crucial part. Make sure the pitch of record 2 is set BELOW that of the record you are going to mix this into, you should know roughly how each track is, bpm wise.
Its important that you make sure record two is gonna be SLOWER than record one. Ill explain why in a minute.
5. Now, listen to record one coming out of the speakers and start to follow the beat patterns. Have one ear listening to the speakers, and the other listening to one side of the headphones.
6. At the beginning of a 16/32/64 beat phrase, RELEASE the track that you had under your fingertips, and push the record with enough pressure to have it running more or less at full speed. You should be aiming to get the beat you have under your fingers starting on the first beat of this phrase.
7. As soon as you do this, put the other headphone on your your ears, and start listening to the two tracks playing together in your headphones. It will sound awful - but dont worry.
8. Now you KNOW that record two is SLOWER than record one so the pitch slider will ONLY be have to moved in one direction. Now put your finger on record 2's label and speed up the record for a moment, you should hear the sound of the records thumping out of tune, change. Make small pulling movements, speeding the record up, until you hear the tracks thumping together - you'll know when this is because the sound in the headphones will sound clear.
9. Now, up the pitch about 2mm and listen to the headphones again. The tracks should start to slip out of alignment again (as expected) so put your finger on the label and speed it up a bit till you hear the beats coming together again, then as soon as they are together, move the pitch another 2mm and go back to listening.
10. The beats will probably fall apart again, listen CAREFULLY to the bassline of the tracks running together, properly beatmatched records have a clear THUD THUD noise, whereas beats that are out of alignment sound DIRTY (if you catch my drift).
11. Go back and keep doing the pattern of:
a. Speed up record with finger to get beats aligned
b. up the pitch a small amount
c. Go back to concentrating on listening to the beats playing together. As soon as they sound mis aligned (or Dirty as i call them) go back to (a)

Now, basically the only thing ive done NEW here is deliberately limit things to the point where you KNOW which track will be too slow. So with only one direction to change the pitch in, you can concentrate on getting THIS right, then when you become more experienced you can learn how to do things either way (speeding up OR slowing down to get beats matched). Basically the more the minute movements you make with the pitch, then the more likely you will be able to beatmatch accurately first time. As long as you pay attention to LISTENING to the beats, then you should be able to beatmatch within days, even HOURS if you concentrate.
This only covers a fraction of what you need to know about dj'ing but it helped me get over the frustrating days of learning to DJ quickly.

Importantly, to do this right you need the core skills of handling your decks right etc. You should be able to get a beat positioned under the needle, know your decks and how delicate you need to be when pushing the record to get it up to speed immediately, and know how your way around the cue'ing sections of the mixer so you can do all these steps in seconds, leaving you time to concentrate on beatmatching.

Hope this is of help to someone 8)
 
Gotta becareful when doing something like this. Altho it may work fro some Genre's it won't for others. I suggest that if you're a new DJ then stay away from the platter i.e. don't touch the records. The reason I say this is because as a new DJ your skills are not yt defined, touching the rcord or moving the spindle takes a lot longer to learn how to do properly. I say use the pitch control which allows you to make those small or large fixed needed. Most newbies make the mistake of wanting to adjust the speed with their hands and they end up over compensating for their mistakes. If you truly have your beats matched up then there should be barely any adjustments made, very small if at all none. The pitch control is more accurate then your fingers will ever be unless you've been spini forever.
 
Another tip:

Start off making very big pitch adjustments working down to smaller ones.

It's easy to make the mistake of just making small adjusments initially. By doing this, it's harder to tell the difference between the two speeds and it takes /forever/ to beatmatch.
 
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ONE THING I LEARNED IS THAT U CAN ALWAYS OVERDO SLOWING DOWN....MAKES IT EASIER
 
yeah this is all true, but remember do what works for you. A person could write several books on beatmatching and mixing alone, and many more on how to for different genres.
 
-this is how I learn

-unplug your headphones and put them aside

-start record one going

-find beat one of record two. Start record two on any beat one of record one(doesn't have to be new phrase of record one)

-now with monitors blasting in your face, match beats using only the pitch controls. Try not to touch record or platter at all. The less resistance you give the drive, the longer it will last.

-you start trainwrecking, who gives a krap? Just don't use this technique at a gig

-this will help you identify which is slow, and which is fast

. . .oh, and one more thing. It might be easier to match the snare hits on 2 and 4 if you aren't mixing 4/4 styles (PopD likes breakbeats, heh heh)

. . .oh, and another thing. Don't bother counting higher than 8! do it this way--> 1-2-3-4, 2-2-3-4, 3-2-3-4, 4-2-3-4, and so on and so forth. If you start counting beats up into the teens, you may start losing track. Depending on the style, a new phrase may start after 4-2-3-4, or 8-2-3-4. Most of the time it is the measure after 8-2-3-4. aka. there should never be a 9-2-3-4, IMO of course.

. . .anyone confused. . .besides me?
 
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wow that's exactly what i did when i started....I held the record there and let it go after 8, 16, 24, or any other multiple of 8 measures.......at least i know other people do it...
 
ok i dont know how to count the beat... but i just match the drums or sumtimes the snares, whatever sound the same.... i ussually get it....

i just get lost when u guys talk about counting this thing.... i have no idea. but i can still match the beats...
i would trainwreck about every 7 songs aproximately..
but thats only if i put like a slow tune while playing a fast one or vice versa. other than that , yeah i can pretty much get them in sync together.....
but how the hell do u count the tune???
is it normal that i dont know how to count but can still beat match?>?>?
 
damn, how many times did i used to post this method. i always mix with tt2 slower. and dont ever touch the platter of spindle. just the record. give it a push to speed it up or drag your finger on it to slow it down. you dont want to put unwanted stress on your motor. thats the whole reason for slipmats!
 
tulip how come i see proffesional djs.. touch the dots to slow down and the spindle to speed up
 
why???

It's really hard to correct using just the pitch control. This takes ages to master and I'm just getting the hang off it now.

Most people touch the side off the deck. It may be the "wrong" thing to do, but hey, It works. And it gives a pretty quick correction ( which sometimes can sound **** if not timed right)

One thing though, I read in someones post that it's easy to overcorrect and thats really true.

All the master DJ's say to use the pitch control to correct and I agree. But remember that it's really difficult and will take you a long time to master.

In the meantime, try a combination of both.

Happy DJing

Fil
 
One learning technique I used was to play two copies of the same song at the same time. Your first objective is to have them play together cleanly. From there, you can learn how to do phasing by allowing one copy to be slightly behind the other copy.

Next, you can experiment by letting one copy lag 2 or 4 beats behind the other copy to get interesting sounding remixes.

From there, you can graduate to overlaying parts of the breaks under the vocal parts to add thickness to the song.
 
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oh nevermind I didn't read thoroughly.....I always just turned on the tt and then got into a good spot and held it there....then I cued in the other song and let it go on a multiple of 8.....i didn't touch the platter or shut if off or anything
 
gqblaze, I've seen a lot of dj's do that too. like the other guy said its best to use pitch but sometimes people just get into a bad habit. theres nothing wrong with it, it just puts unwanted stress on your motor which could later on effect its efficiency in keeping pitch at the right level and so on.;)
 
ok, what's the point of slowing it down after you've got it beatmatched when you can just throw it in and it IS beatmatched and then just lock the beats again, it's like getting ready at the starting block with shoes tied up and all, stopping then taking 4 steps back untying your shoelace then stepping back to the starting block so then you only have to tie your shoelace again before you get things going.

You should lock the beats, bring it back to the begining beat (easier for me at this point and easier for newbies (yes only 2.5 months for myself)) then throw the beat in at the beginning of a phrase, or X amount of beats b4 the phrase you want to mix it into and then just line up the beats again know that you've got the tempo's right.

PopD you've got it right, for newbies just starting it's easier to not get yourself tangled up in headphones if you can't handle it and just take to mashing beats aloud and lock them, getting used to pitch adjustments.

I didn't do this I was too proud lol, but I've done it a few times and I do it to show some friends and easier way to lock beats when they bring some vinyl over (collectors or similar stuff I like and interested in spinng) to show them the raw basics of what's to going on and what's to be done, somehow it semms almost more...visual? lol
 
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I dont know why people dont like touching the platter when dj'ing - its the whole point if you ask me, the tactile "feel" of having the music in your hands. And when people say that the pro's use the pitch only technique - well tell that to Paul Oakenfold, he uses the dots to slow down the platter, finger on the label to speed up and cue etc etc.
If its good enough for him - its good enough for me! 8)

If you dont believe me, then go to www.tranceaddict.com and download his live set video (big file - so dont bother if your using a 56k modem or lower)

Just my two pence, no offence to anyone intended 8)
 
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Tulip you're my man, sometimes you meet ppl who you connect with and sometimes you don't...
 
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