New to DJing or production? Need help or advice? Post here

Doucheman

Wondering if any Traktor experts here can help me with a very basic question.....

Have 'upgraded' to Traktor Pro 2.01 recently (was using virtual DJ previously), and am having trouble with the crossfader - when I am mixing two tracks, which are of equal levels, I'm not getting a smooth transition volume wise-the master sound is much louder when the crossfader is in the middle. Have tried adjusting the crossfader smoothness/sharpness settings but to no avail. Any suggestions? Thanks

seanbmc

I have a question, been using Virtual DJ on the laptop and I have decided that I'm going to need a good controller.

My price range is 100 euro or so max, any suggestions?

DrGreenthumb

Doucheman wrote: »

Wondering if any Traktor experts here can help me with a very basic question.....

Have 'upgraded' to Traktor Pro 2.01 recently (was using virtual DJ previously), and am having trouble with the crossfader - when I am mixing two tracks, which are of equal levels, I'm not getting a smooth transition volume wise-the master sound is much louder when the crossfader is in the middle. Have tried adjusting the crossfader smoothness/sharpness settings but to no avail. Any suggestions? Thanks

effectively your playing both songs at the same time, this is nothing to do with a crossfader setting you should be EQ'in as your bring in/out the tracks,

so your not playing the 2 tracks at there max together,

i.e on the track thats playing bring in the other one with a lower bass and adjust to increase the bass while lowering the other tracks bass, this also works on the mids and highs, play around with it for a bit and you'll get the hang of it,

also some tracks are just louder or if one is a better quality it will sound a bit louder due to more bass and overall richness

DrGreenthumb

seanbmc wrote: »

I have a question, been using Virtual DJ on the laptop and I have decided that I'm going to need a good controller.

My price range is 100 euro or so max, any suggestions?

for that price your not going to get anything that I myself would consider good,

this is 150 at Aquarius, but its probably crap,

http://www.aquariussound.ie/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=70&category_id=39&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=2

id recommend you save up and get something better or get something 2nd hand

That_Guy

Thinking of investing in a Mixtrack Pro from Numark.

Have any of you used it? Worth getting or worth investing in something else?

ianuss

Never used one of those before but I'm after switching to vinyl so I'd consider selling my M-Audio Xponent. It's a great little controller. Something around €250 I guess

gazza10157

hey guys im new to the mobile dj buisness and 1 problem i have is everytime i use my fog machine the speakers pop or spike. The fog machine runs off a different power socket and it still happens...any ideas on what is causing it and how it can be fixed thx gary

Cianh

Cianh wrote: »

I'm having a problem with the beat loop on my cdj's. Its working fine from the point of view that i press beat loop /loop divide and it gives me a four beat loop.

The problem is when i'm mixing I get the beats matched perfectly and the next tune is ready to go; but if I want to use a loop in the mix to make it last longer the loop bpm is slightly off and it causes a train wreck mix.

I don't think cueing the next tune up in the bpm of the loop would work either because when i'd press exit the original tunes bpm would be off.

The tunes have been analyzed by rekordbox too so the bpm reading should be pretty accurate to begin with.

Cheers for any help
Cian

Anyone had this problem? or know what i'm doing wrong? Cheers.
Cian

Doucheman

DrGreenthumb wrote: »

effectively your playing both songs at the same time, this is nothing to do with a crossfader setting you should be EQ'in as your bring in/out the tracks,

so your not playing the 2 tracks at there max together,

i.e on the track thats playing bring in the other one with a lower bass and adjust to increase the bass while lowering the other tracks bass, this also works on the mids and highs, play around with it for a bit and you'll get the hang of it,

also some tracks are just louder or if one is a better quality it will sound a bit louder due to more bass and overall richness

Thanks for that man, getting the hang of it ....

gazza10157

wel lads im just starting out in the mobile djing and 1 problem i have is when i use my fog machine my speakers pop or make a weird noise i am running them off different power sockets and the fog machine is kept away from the speakers but it still happens ....any ideas why ? thanks gary

ED E

Different socket, same circuit. All the plugs in a single room, or several, are connected. Chances are you're experiencing ground interference. Earth your sound gear.

augustus gloop

hi guys, i have been thinking about trying my hand at a bit of dj for the past few year, but migrating and a few different things got in my way until now.
i am an absolute novice/really dont know the first thing! one thing i know is what i think sounds good:D
i am not necessarly into just dance, what i really like is the way people like 2 many djs make almost any song "work" if ya know what i mean.
i have got a mac book pro and am considering the trakor s4???
look, i am not being condesending, thinking im just gonna roll up and mash it like soulwax! i am just trying to explain myself, so ye know what i am trying to achieve, and the equipment req as a result.
my aim is to play at friends parties no more, that would be epic!!:P thank you all

Jerichoholic

That_Guy wrote: »

Thinking of investing in a Mixtrack Pro from Numark.

Have any of you used it? Worth getting or worth investing in something else?

I got one a few weeks back from xmusic.ie. It's a great controller I think, perfect for learning all the ins and outs until you're sure you know what your doing. It has a built in soundcard too which the older mixtrack doesn't. €200 and next day delivery from xmusic. Can't go wrong.

hans aus dtschl

gazza10157 wrote: »

hey guys im new to the mobile dj buisness and 1 problem i have is everytime i use my fog machine the speakers pop or spike. The fog machine runs off a different power socket and it still happens...any ideas on what is causing it and how it can be fixed thx gary

It's essentially a kettle in there gary. It's heating up that fluid, so it needs a big burst of energy. That's causing your sound to spike. It's unfortunate, and you need to start thinking about your power supplies. Three phase begins to be enticing at this point. As do capacitor banks like UPS systems etc. A mini-ups for your fog and light might be nice...very expensive though...and maybe a better fog machine wouldnt have this effect.

hans aus dtschl

augustus gloop wrote: »

hi guys, i have been thinking about trying my hand at a bit of dj for the past few year, but migrating and a few different things got in my way until now.
i am an absolute novice/really dont know the first thing! one thing i know is what i think sounds good:D
i am not necessarly into just dance, what i really like is the way people like 2 many djs make almost any song "work" if ya know what i mean.
i have got a mac book pro and am considering the trakor s4???
look, i am not being condesending, thinking im just gonna roll up and mash it like soulwax! i am just trying to explain myself, so ye know what i am trying to achieve, and the equipment req as a result.
my aim is to play at friends parties no more, that would be epic!!:P thank you all

It's not beyond the realms of possibility that you'd find a copy of ableton live lying around...

Soulwax etc generally "mash-up" songs by merging them together. In technical DJ'ing terms this is difficult when you use more than two tracks. It's easier to achieve with automatically mixing software like ableton (which is what soulwax etc do).

If you wanted to learn to mix yourself (no auto-mix) there's been lots of software recommendations throughout this thread. I suspect it might take the joy out of it for you as to mix vastly different genres and tempos is quite technical.

Spaky12Eyes

Hi all! I've been messing around on VJ7 and I'm ready to get some decks. A friend is selling me some Vestax VCI 100's and I'm just wondering what else I'm going to need? I already have some ****ty speakers that plug in through the headphone jack of my laptop (they'll do until I save up:P). I also have some pretty decent headphones. Do I need a USB soundcard? And how on earth do I get things playing through my headphones without them playing through the speakers or recording? The decks come with a copy of Traktor LE so I'll probably be using that as my mixing software.

Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks, Luke

woozle

Hi, Does anyone know, can you burn CD's using the Rekordbox software that comes with the Pioneer CDJ 850's? If not, what is the best program to burn CD's with?

woozle

Also, I have Serato and I've calibrated the Vinyl decks and CDJ's - the CDJ's sound great, but the Vinyl is really loud and fuzzy, a really horrible sound. Is this because I need new needles, or is it something else? I really want to hook the vinyl up to it and i cant when it's making that noise

hans aus dtschl

Impossible to say without seeing it but there's three likely scenario's here:

1: Your software's channel gain's or master gain are turned up too much
2: You have a type of needle that amplifies the sound when it's broken. (these don't exist)
3: You've made a complete balls of setting up serato, putting your line level outputs from serato into your mixer's phono pre-amp inputs, possibly even destroying your mixer's RIAA pre-amps, purely because you didn't RTFM.

Solutions:
Plug line level sources into line inputs, and phono level sources into phono inputs.

PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING:
It's important to understand how serato works. It takes the vinyl (phono level signal) into your computer. It gives two outputs: a phono and a line. The phono level is a direct pass-through of the sounds of your needle. The line is the computer's direct translation of this. Line level sources are at a line level. They do not need amplification to reach line level. Phono level sources are lower, with de-emp applied. They are amplified (by your mixer's phono pre-amps) to bring them to line level. If you plug phono into line you wont hear much. If you plug line into phono you risk destroying your mixer/amp/speakers/ears depending on what you have turned up.


Hope this helps you reach a conclusion.

woozle

I'm hoping it's the gain as i have that way up, and the volume really low - I read the manual, and thought I did everything it was telling me, so fingers crossed it's the gain! thanks Hans!

hans aus dtschl

No stress.
Unfortunately I'm leaning more towards number 3 above, woozle. Reason being that normally I find serato outputs to be too quiet for mixers rather than too loud. If it's the software's channel gains or master gain, its a straightforward turn it down job. Come back if you're still not sorted and we'll have another cut off diagnosing it.

I'd suggest plugging all inputs out of the back of your mixer except for the phono's from serato. It may sound simple and tedious, but it's the best way of being certain. Many's the night I've been glad of this approach in a packed nightclub while changing acts over.

woozle

well I'm crossing all my fingers and toes, I probably shouldn't be allowed to play with all this professional equipment and should stick to the Fisher Price record player!

woozle

You were right Hans, I had it plugged into phono - I'd assumed I'd had to do that for the vinyl, but it's literally only the vinyl turntable that ever goes to Phono - do you think I have damaged anything? It all sounds alright now, works perfectly now that I've got it going into Line rather than Phono

hans aus dtschl

Hey woozle, sorry for the delay in replying. Yep only the turntable itself and serato's "thru" outputs are phono. Everything else is line. Best bet is to try plugging it into line first and see.

The good news is if it sounds OK it most likely is OK!

woozle

Cool, thanks Hans!

mled

Hi guys,
I'm hoping someone can help me out. I recently got the NI Kontrol X1. Playing around with it on Tractor Le I could use the knobs/dials to filter the decks, however, after getting Tractor Pro 2, I can't seem to figure how to set up a link the the main filters from one of the knobs. I can use one of the effect filters, but that only takes about half the song away? you can still hear it in the background. So what I want is to be able to control the Main Filter from the X1.
I'd really appreciate it if anyone could help me out on this. Thanks

ThirdMan

mled wrote: »

Hi guys,
I'm hoping someone can help me out. I recently got the NI Kontrol X1. Playing around with it on Tractor Le I could use the knobs/dials to filter the decks, however, after getting Tractor Pro 2, I can't seem to figure how to set up a link the the main filters from one of the knobs. I can use one of the effect filters, but that only takes about half the song away? you can still hear it in the background. So what I want is to be able to control the Main Filter from the X1.
I'd really appreciate it if anyone could help me out on this. Thanks

You should try asking in the Native Instruments Kontrol X1 forum.

You'll have to set up an account, if you haven't got one already, but it only takes a few minutes and it's worth doing. The people there are generally very helpful.

mled

ThirdMan wrote: »

You should try asking in the Native Instruments Kontrol X1 forum.

You'll have to set up an account, if you haven't got one already, but it only takes a few minutes and it's worth doing. The people there are generally very helpful.

Thanks! Just looking around everywhere really..

J_E

Is Ableton good for DJing with, as in, without hardware? I'm only really doing this for myself, not for live performance yet.

ThirdMan

Cydoniac wrote: »

Is Ableton good for DJing with, as in, without hardware? I'm only really doing this for myself, not for live performance yet.

You'll need a soundcard to DJ with Ableton, and you'll need a midi controller if you want to enjoy doing it.

You'll also have to warp (prepare your tracks) before playback. There's a learning curve involved in this, particularly if you're working with music that isn't 4/4, and especially if it's not electronic music.

Other than that it's an enjoyable and powerful piece of software. Saying that, I gave it up and bought a set of Technics. A far better way to spend your time. :cool: