MP3 DJ's

[charliefoy]

Would you guys frown upon someone using a DJ controller with a laptop, as opposed to vinyl or CDJ's in a club?
Just wondering as i'm thinking of buying the Torq Xponent. I'd go for vinyl, but i dont have the room for decks or the money to buy vinyls, so i think a midi controller would be a wise option. What do you think?
Cheers

[drlego]

I've got xponent aswell as Traktor Pro and to be honest it depends what you are going to be using it for. If its just ease of use and playing parties then yeah its all good but if you are using it to skip the whole beat matching and learning to mix properly I wouldnt bother.

Also nothing quite beats a fresh batch of vinyl or a new promo or a tune you have been dying to play out.

Torq isnt bad for just smashing a party but you are going to be taking a laptop with ya too. Maybe lugging 1210s, a laptop, your sound card is worse but there is something awesome about evening using control vinyl.

[blues and haikus]

buy and use what you like. fuck what people think you should be using.

from what you said you cant do for size and money, what you are considering would be a decent solution.

if you can spring the money, i have been real pleased with serato.

[physical]

it would deeefinitely piss me off if they were doing no mixing/beatmatching themselves and just using a laptop and controller.

i think if people are paying to see you perform in a club at least put in the time and effort to learn to mix on cd/vinyl (which you should want to do anyway if you are wanting to become a DJ), and not just pose away behind your computer choosing tunes like an iTunes playlist.

[hipnotikk]

it would deeefinitely piss me off if they were doing no mixing/beatmatching themselves and just using a laptop and controller.

i think if people are paying to see you perform in a club at least put in the time and effort to learn to mix on cd/vinyl (which you should want to do anyway if you are wanting to become a DJ), and not just pose away behind your computer choosing tunes like an iTunes playlist.

this. though you can still learn to beatmatch with a controller, assuming it has pitch faders. avoid the sync button at all costs starting out, unless you're planning on just wylin out and doing some crazy next level shit.

i've found a happy medium with my DVS system. it's got the pros of digital, but i can still throw on and mix in my favorite wax.

[drlego]

with Xponent it can read the beats incorrectly on some dubstep tunes. Instead of bringing in the bar on the 4rth it comes on the 3rd and every 3rd after, I think its to do with the splash cymbol and or the kick drum being reveresed, automatically the beat is not quite right so visually its not right when you match it to another song, so you need to learn to beat match properly with your ears, listening to a monitor and bringing in the beat.

In terms of use I think its better than CDJs because its your mixer and your controller all in one. You need to bring a laptop and your xponent but thats not too bad. Its a little bit bigger than 1 1210 deck but a hell of a lot lighter.

You can preview channels and bring in the beats properly, its also nice to bring in a 4 bar loop and to beat match that, hold that in place and then work with the equalisers making sure the mid and low are not smashing into each other.

Any more info give me a shout.

[hipnotikk]

its also nice to bring in a 4 bar loop and to beat match that, hold that in place and then work with the equalisers making sure the mid and low are not smashing into each other.

THIS! so happy i don't have to back cue every bar/2 bars in order to beat match.

[tundra]

none of the DVS' out there perfectly read the bpm, which is a +1 for the "avoid the snyc button" argument.

i use Traktor. got it nice and cheap thru work and have been very happy with it. that being said, ive had a lot of fun DJing with Ableton Live and a Launchpad/APC40. i dont know how many people here consider that "cheating," but thats a solid DJ setup in my opinion.

[webstarr]

only if he was still clanging...

[jikay]

It's the sound you make not how you make it that matters.

[Dark Reign]

It's the sound you make not how you make it that matters.

This.

The music and having fun should be the main focus when your out at a night or rave, I never give a fuck how the DJ is mixing or what theyre mixing on, unless there trainwrecking I dont even pay attention.

Anyways if your playing on CDjs your still using digital theres really only 2 formats to mix mp3/flac/wav or vinyl. So using a controller and laptop is equal to Cdjs IMO

[tundra]

It's the sound you make not how you make it that matters.

This.

The music and having fun should be the main focus when your out at a night or rave, I never give a fuck how the DJ is mixing or what theyre mixing on, unless there trainwrecking I dont even pay attention.

Anyways if your playing on CDjs your still using digital theres really only 2 formats to mix mp3/flac/wav or vinyl. So using a controller and laptop is equal to Cdjs IMO

if only everyone felt like this!

i personally think there's something to be said about mixing vinyl - it looks like fun, and vinyl deffinitely sounds very, very good (most of the time). however, think about this:

most (if not all) of dubstep is made in the digital realm - from the sampled audio (which may or may not be sampled from acoustic instruments) to the plugins. typically the only thing recorded is the vocals. granted, some producers may record hand claps, maybe some guitar and/or percussion, but that certainly is not the norm. so why do some DJs look down on digital DJs whether they use Serato, Live, or otherwise? i've always wondered that.

the people on dubstepforum and people involved with the genre are typically very open minded and accepting of people's different ways. that being said, i've DJed a few little shows with my Live + Laptop + Controller setup (pre Traktor Scratch setup) and got dirty looks and a couple of "you're a fucking hack" comments.

[BinaryBeatdown]

This arguement will soon be in the hall of fame....from now until the cows come home....pay your dues on wax...then go digital....the creativity is endless after that....anyone who calls you a hack for using DVS...is a moron....id like to see someone use 3 or 4 decks/loops/hotcues/EFX chaining and then play live drums on a midi controller during thier live set Vs. a vinyl only set..... lets see who comes out on top....

[thrush]

i dont like efx chains or loops or anything. tracks are built the way they are because they're built the way they are. you shouldnt need to change it if its a good tune.

[BinaryBeatdown]

i dont like efx chains or loops or anything. tracks are built the way they are because they're built the way they are. you shouldnt need to change it if its a good tune.

i agree...but you must express creativity in your sets bruv....effects merely accent the tracks or what your doing...anybody can play track after track just beatmatching them together....for example....i can take a 1/32 piece of a loop(on the fly)....use the beatmasher add some Filter92 LFO and some IceVerb....tweek it a bit....and i have on-the-fly filthy wobble or glitchey-type sound.....wack the key up or down a few octaves and you got a high end freq. synth or low end synth.....kick a drum only track....and you have live PA !! now thats just one trick i do....i dont want to give away all my secrets ...but.... just let your mind go and do something different....

its not the track that im trying to mess with to make sound better....but the creativness of my mix as a whole ....

[thrush]

everyone likes different things

[mocsun23]

Do you playa, i use the Vestax spin (http://store.apple.com/us/product/TX742 ... TY3ODQ5OTY) with traktor pro. been doing it 4 bout a year or so, taught myself almost everything, i dont care what any1 has 2 say, just play music n enjoy the vibes. fuck what any1 else has 2 say honestly. Do You.

[yong]

it would deeefinitely piss me off if they were doing no mixing/beatmatching themselves and just using a laptop and controller.

uhhhh........

mixing and beatmatching aren't mutually exclusive? at ALL?

[abZ]

i dont like efx chains or loops or anything. tracks are built the way they are because they're built the way they are. you shouldnt need to change it if its a good tune.

I am with you totally but that is me. Everyone else can express themselves the way they want to. If I want to hear people mixing exactly like I do then I might as well just stay at home and listen to my own tapes. I am a supporter of using technology, not a total hardcore snob but one thing I recommend is no matter what medium you choose, you should practice and practice and don't take a gig until you are sick. Too many people grab Traktor a lappy and buy shit off of the Beatport top 100 for a few months and they are ready to be a rock star. It doesn't take any time to learn how to beatmatch these days but it still takes a long time to learn how to mix. The nice thing about the old days where that you got no instant gratification, you had to PRACTICE and hone your talent before you got up there and did your thing.

[frebentos]

just pose away behind your computer.

see this too many times.

if you want to play parties...sound...but go out learn on something other than software and buy the tracks.

You see too many kids playing out shit mp3's that they've ripped off the internet, on software that does all the work for them, so they can be the "DJ"...it sounds shite and its a kick in the baws for stnuc that have spent time learning how to do it and actually go out and buy the tunes...