Riton Posted January 15, 2006 Share Posted January 15, 2006 Hey people! First things first, if you're gonna go isratrance on me and say that yo dont need more DJs, please leave lol Now, for those who wanna be helpful here is the story. I got some cash for the new year and im looking at a new hobby. I figured i love trance, i love music, why not learn how to DJ/mix so i can have some fun u know. not to make a living out of it or anything, just to know, as a hobby... can't say it any better. Now i personally only have VERY BASIC knowledge of that traktor software, which really doesn't mean much im sure but i guess it's something i wanna learn. What do you people recommend to start? Im thinking of maybe takin sum "classes" in tel aviv or somewhere around where i live (Herzlya). Maybe a charitable soul would wanna meet up, chillax (if u know what i mean hehe) and maybe show me some basics... Im willing to buy some basic equipment to get me started obviously but im really starting from scratch... So what do y'all think? Thx for your time! David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delars Posted January 15, 2006 Share Posted January 15, 2006 hi david first off, if you want to make dj'ing your hobby, you might as well do it properly i mean, you're never going to be able to ever play at a party, with a tracktor program, and some mp3 files. so you should first gear up. do you have any original cds? can't dj when you have no music ey.. and second, get rid of tracktor man! have a peek at ebay, there are lots of cheap, and good turntables, and cd-players for sale there (i got mine there too when i first started). personally i think it's a bit dumb to go and take lessons for dj'ing. i think you can better learn to do it on your own, because, for example, you won't hesitate to rewind the track a 1000x times to get that mix right..you would if there's an impatient teacher standing in front of you... and the mixing itself....wel basically it's just 2 rythms you got to match, and the tricky thing there is to hear wich one is faster than the other, or the other way around. only way to learn that part is to try, try, try, and try again. and after that, try more. and finally one good advice: learn to LISTEN to your music, really. mixing is more than beatmatching 2 beats. you got to tell a story to your audience man Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowball Posted January 15, 2006 Share Posted January 15, 2006 hi david first off, if you want to make dj'ing your hobby, you might as well do it properly i mean, you're never going to be able to ever play at a party, with a tracktor program, and some mp3 files. so you should first gear up. do you have any original cds? can't dj when you have no music ey.. and second, get rid of tracktor man! have a peek at ebay, there are lots of cheap, and good turntables, and cd-players for sale there (i got mine there too when i first started). personally i think it's a bit dumb to go and take lessons for dj'ing. i think you can better learn to do it on your own, because, for example, you won't hesitate to rewind the track a 1000x times to get that mix right..you would if there's an impatient teacher standing in front of you... and the mixing itself....wel basically it's just 2 rythms you got to match, and the tricky thing there is to hear wich one is faster than the other, or the other way around. only way to learn that part is to try, try, try, and try again. and after that, try more. and finally one good advice: learn to LISTEN to your music, really. mixing is more than beatmatching 2 beats. you got to tell a story to your audience man 416008[/snapback] that was deep.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniël Posted January 15, 2006 Share Posted January 15, 2006 you got to tell a story to your audience man 416008[/snapback] Oh plz, no microphones during DJ-sets!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
X-scream Posted January 15, 2006 Share Posted January 15, 2006 haha Yes, we need more of that.. make sure you buy a mixer with talk-over and you're ready to set the crowd on fire! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniël Posted January 15, 2006 Share Posted January 15, 2006 supa greg! numba one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmtree Posted January 15, 2006 Share Posted January 15, 2006 I suggest asking someone who knows the technique to teach you the basics of beatmatching, cueing, eq-ing, x-faders, etc etc. - everything from there on is knowing music, ability to listen, talent, learning to play to the crowd, tricks, and, mostly, lots and lots of effort, listening, promotion, and fun. Taking a class can be beneficial if you don't know anyone who is a dj already. there's a thread in the Music Creation section about DJ equipment, etc. I'd stick to the basics like Pioneer CDJs and a good basic mixer - you'll get the feel for the music and DJing unlike what you get with Traktor. cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Journey Man Project Posted January 16, 2006 Share Posted January 16, 2006 as sadi above learnt he basics from somebody who really knows and is patitent, also be partient yourself and make sur ethis is something you really want to do, I forked out for my decks only to find I was more interested in production, and therefor my decks got dusty until I sold them a year later last week... I have heard a lot of producer just use tracktor now-a-days for their dj sets as it's a pain to have to haul all their gear and all their cd's around... I love trackto, but it takes tiem to rip all your cd's to mp3, and you can still get shit fom people for breaking copyright... once you start biying cd's it gets expensive, nd it shits me that in the psy scene now it's the latest release that get's played, not a quality set... the other reason I gave up, nobody like my old school sets, they just wanted Skazi and Astrix KILLLLAAAARGGGHH!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmtree Posted January 16, 2006 Share Posted January 16, 2006 Yeah, not everyone will make it to actually play outside their bedrooms - in fact most people don't. But if you get quality equipment, you can usually sell it, it holds value pretty well. also, learn to appreciate variety - there's plenty of good music out there if you just dig a little deeper.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fohat Posted January 16, 2006 Share Posted January 16, 2006 i mean, you're never going to be able to ever play at a party, with a tracktor program, and some mp3 files. 416008[/snapback] do you mind to explain why he should discard traktor? anyway i think i can do it for you: 1. traktor is child's toy 2. it does everything for you, so no need to learn to mix by yourself. so for example beat matching is done automatically there are no skills needed to learn and do it properly. this is not the real dj art 3. traktor has bad sound quality cause all traktor dj's use mp3's from illegal sources 4. it's not real dj art to stick on a monitor only and just clicking sometimes here and there with your mouse. especially this mouse clicking thing is not really hands on. 5. you know what you are talking about because you tried it by yourself and after a very short while you noticed it is crap cause of the above reasons 6. and as all organizers of the planet think similar, you will never get any serious bookings Am i right? anway for the original question on a personal opinion i would like to recommend the opposite: 1. digital dj'ing will be quite standard in a couple of years (beside CDJ's and Vinyl). if you want to stay on the future side it is a good idea to start over now. 2. if you want to stay with traktor you should do the following: * at first if you don't have a legal version of it buy it. buy the new versions traktor3. there are so many cracked (and older versions) out there with tons of bugs, it is no fun to play on them. (imo one reason why traktor is considered beeing crap. * use original sources only. buy your cd's and rip them only to wav's. 320 mp3's are also good but if you want to avoid discussions with other dj's and/or organizers just use wav files. * learn it from the scratch. consider that it will take month over month until you are able to use all functions. it will take another couple of month until you are starting to be good. if you use traktor as it has been built - a new tool to mix different than with any other source- than you will get noticed, believe me. don't be just a "playing tracks in a row dj". if you are looking for this, it is better to go with vinyl or cdj's. beside the good manual of traktor there are no good tutorials out there. you have to learn everything by yourself or maybe find somebody who is using it already to show you the basic things. * try to understand the loop concept, in setting loops and jumping seamless from one loop to another within the same track or any other loaded track and back again. * try to understand the concept behind high quality time stretching. * try to start to combine both (loop functions and time stretching) with 3 or 4 decks. you will see you can do kind of live remixes then. * learn the bead grid concept. you will then be able to set loops in part of tracks without any beats. * beside learning to mix just with your ears (basic skill you *have* to learn) try to understand the concept of visual mixing. * buy an external midi controller. best solution is imho a combination between a real mixer and midi controller (e.g. ecler nuo4). you can decide then to use the internal mixer of traktor with a very good emulation of the xone92 mixer or use it in external mixer mode, but still beeing able to use traktor build in effects and filters from xone92 and 600er pioneer. * buy a good (external) audiocard (if you don't have one already). use high quality cables. * you will need a good laptop (at least 2 ghz and 1 gig ram). avoid celeron cpu's they are considered not beeing best with audio * if you are on windows make an own partition, make a clean xp installation optimize it for audio (search google for that term) and just use traktor on it. * last but not least: consider that some things mentioned above can be done with good cdj's as well, but using up to 4 decks and *combining* a lot of functions mentioned above can be done only within traktor. have fun! btw.: i'm not at all linked to native instruments, i'm just a long time user (since almost 4 years) who sold one day his cdj's and would never ever go back to any hardware source again ;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riton Posted January 16, 2006 Author Share Posted January 16, 2006 well i really would rather use hardware, simply cuz i think it's the funnest part and guys, you don't have to use the terminology... simply because i dont know most of it... Im thinking the best idea is for me to buy some basic starting stuff, and then i guess take a few classes to have basics and "practice" at home when i know what to do... If i just get some stuff to use, ill just stare at it and be like ugghhhhh... I feel i need at least SOME basics to understand wtf im gonna do hehe do you guys happen to know a place around herzlya/tel aviv i could call to grab some quick info? EDIT: i do realize the best option would be to hang out wiht DJ friends and learn tips and tricks... unfortunately i dont think i have any decent DJ friends out there but if someone in my are is willing to show me some stuff, meet up, ill gladly accept Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fohat Posted January 16, 2006 Share Posted January 16, 2006 i slighly agree on the terminology thing, i know i used them a lot. but you have to learn the meanings of the terms anywa,y if you want to start over as a dj ;-) doesn't matter what soft- or hardware you will use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riton Posted January 16, 2006 Author Share Posted January 16, 2006 u know what guys. This is gonna sound pretty... well... stupid maybe... but is any charitable DJ soul willing to meet up with me sumtime and maybe show me what DJing is REALLY about cuz the more this goes the less it seems i know about it lol I mean i know i dont know jack shit yet... but still... Either that or ill take a few lessons before really investing... Anyone care to recommend me a "dj school" i guess? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ov3rdos3 Posted January 16, 2006 Share Posted January 16, 2006 u know what guys. This is gonna sound pretty... well... stupid maybe... but is any charitable DJ soul willing to meet up with me sumtime and maybe show me what DJing is REALLY about cuz the more this goes the less it seems i know about it lol I mean i know i dont know jack shit yet... but still... Either that or ill take a few lessons before really investing... Anyone care to recommend me a "dj school" i guess? 416782[/snapback] Can you beatmix? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riton Posted January 16, 2006 Author Share Posted January 16, 2006 i have NO experience. Im starting from scratch. Screw auto syncing tracks with traktor, any monkey with a computer can do that... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ov3rdos3 Posted January 16, 2006 Share Posted January 16, 2006 i have NO experience. Im starting from scratch. Screw auto syncing tracks with traktor, any monkey with a computer can do that... 416847[/snapback] learn to beat mix first and foremost. if you can do that. You will aready be as good as skazi.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riton Posted January 16, 2006 Author Share Posted January 16, 2006 guys... i dont think you get me here... Im in front of my computer mixing with traktor, and i wanna move on to REALLY doing it. I have NO experience, NO dj friends, no NOTHING... I wanna learn and im asking whats the best way... not so much WHAT to learn... how would i learn to do that without any equipment or contacts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Late Posted January 16, 2006 Share Posted January 16, 2006 Well, I dont know how you can mix without the gear, see? And like people already said, traktor will get you nowhere. I myself play vinyl, but I`d guess that the majority of people who play goa\psy use cdjs so get yourself a pair and a decent mixer. Learn to beatmatch, know your songs and pay attention to the structure of the songs and like someone said earlier in the thread, tell a story. Djaying is skill + good taste + reading the crowd, not rocket science. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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