Post Your Random Thoughts Thread!

[chekov]

technics are just solid and reliable (as long as they've been kept in good condition)

when you're used to them, any other turntable really throws you off at first. the pitch fader, platter and other things are usually way more sensitive so it's harder to get into it

it's more a question of having an industry standard so you can rock up to a set and not have to worry about getting used to some random turntable you've never used before. technics became the standard cos they're built like tanks

[soronery]

you use 3 or 4 decks yet dont have the concept of beat matching down from what im reading

use your ears

not numbers

also if vinyl rips are giving you trouble maybe thats a sign that you shouldnt be playing vinyl rips


dont mean to come across as harsh but it sounds like youre looking for a shortcut

if i am reading wrong then my apologies

[chekov]

this stuff is important to have a long blend btw (and that's how i like to mix, i always try to use 3 or 4 decks if possible and do blends, double drops, etc). i've found when i got two songs matched perfectly, a minute later, they're completely out of sync, either cause the fader tempos are like .01 off or (and i've had this theory for quite a while) because the bpm of a record changes as a function of the distance between the needle and the center of the record - ie, the bpm changes slightly as the song plays - this is why vinyl rips are so fucked up imo, unless someones moving the pitch fader just a little bit over the course of the song just to fuck with you.

never assume you have the pitch absolutely perfect, you should constantly be listening out for whether it's in time and adjusting it if not. if you learn how to pitch ride you can speed up/slow down much more smoothly while the tunes are in the mix

[DrGatineau]

i guess. i'd just think that if it was my living i might take the time to get used to 2 or 3 tt's instead of just one. but hey what do i know? it's not my living.

[soronery]

its very rare that ill get two plates locked to the point i dont have to ride the pitch in the mix

dont assume you can just mix them in fuck off for three minutes and assume theyll still be in time when you get back

unless youre using beat sync i guess

[chekov]

but then whichever 2 or 3 turntables you got used to would become irrelevant as soon as you go to a club and there's another kind there... makes more sense to have one standard

not even saying you can't get used to different kinds, it's just an annoyance that's easily avoided (edit - you can also get other things in booths that are awkward to deal with so it's nice to have reliable tts)

i don't really see the issue

[DrGatineau]

you use 3 or 4 decks yet dont have the concept of beat matching down from what im reading

use your ears

not numbers

also if vinyl rips are giving you trouble maybe thats a sign that you shouldnt be playing vinyl rips


dont mean to come across as harsh but it sounds like youre looking for a shortcut

if i am reading wrong then my apologies

when i say 3-4 decks i mean CDJs or traktor. I only have one tt, which i've been plugging into traktor and mixing vinyl into digital and vice versa (you do need to be able to beatmatch with your ears to do this so trust me i can beatmatch; I'm not trying to sound arrogant, i'm not perfect 100% of the time, maybe 70%, but i'm fine with that for now, only been using the tt about 2 weeks.)

but yeah, you're right, i was pretty much looking for a shortcut using numbers, and there's nothing wrong with that (ie, unethical; some people make it sound like looking for a way to make things better is blasphemy). but now i see that it's not really feasible because you'd need a different sticky note for each bpm.

[DrGatineau]

this stuff is important to have a long blend btw (and that's how i like to mix, i always try to use 3 or 4 decks if possible and do blends, double drops, etc). i've found when i got two songs matched perfectly, a minute later, they're completely out of sync, either cause the fader tempos are like .01 off or (and i've had this theory for quite a while) because the bpm of a record changes as a function of the distance between the needle and the center of the record - ie, the bpm changes slightly as the song plays - this is why vinyl rips are so fucked up imo, unless someones moving the pitch fader just a little bit over the course of the song just to fuck with you.

never assume you have the pitch absolutely perfect, you should constantly be listening out for whether it's in time and adjusting it if not. if you learn how to pitch ride you can speed up/slow down much more smoothly while the tunes are in the mix

yeah, pitch riding is actually my preferred way of beatmatching (as opposed to putting pressure on the platter or spindle or record).

but good tip on pitch riding throughout the length of the blend, mainly the problem is not knowing which song is starting to get a bit ahead/behind. and yes i understand that the answer is obvious - trial and error, bump the tempo up a little bit and if it sounds worse, do it in the other direction.

[chekov]

but good tip on pitch riding throughout the length of the blend, mainly the problem is not knowing which song is starting to get a bit ahead/behind. and yes i understand that the answer is obvious - trial and error, bump the tempo up a little bit and if it sounds worse, do it in the other direction.

yeah you can do that but can sometimes lead to the most horrendous trainwrecks if you're not careful and get it wrong ha. if you can't tell from the mix which track is out, just go into the cue to find out

[jrkhnds]

^ yes also you kinda know which tune you had to slow down a bit before so when one's going out of sync just repeat the last step.

clubs who have anything but Technics are likely to be shit, except the odd hip hop venue which has Vestax maybe. Technics are durable and club-proven; most of the little things can be fixed using a screwdriver and some braincells. they are reliable, platter movement is very stable and they don't muck about when isolated properly. as a DJ, why would I want anything else? I get paid to deliver a product, and it's in my best interest this product has the highest quality possible. thus it seems only logical to me to try and minimise external risks, such as unreliable gear.

I don't want to sound like a dick, but maybe learn to properly beatmatch on two decks before playing 3 or even four decks. unless you want to use a controller & software, in which case you can probably get away with pressing buttons instead. I know people who have been playing out twice a week for six or seven years now, who are incredibly solid but would never dare using more than two decks... although they don't play dubstep.

[DrGatineau]

I don't want to sound like a dick, but maybe learn to properly beatmatch on two decks before playing 3 or even four decks. unless you want to use a controller & software, in which case you can probably get away with pressing buttons instead. I know people who have been playing out twice a week for six or seven years now, who are incredibly solid but would never dare using more than two decks... although they don't play dubstep.

i only brought up the whole technics thign to show the reason why i started thinking about doing the whole sticky-note-next-to-tempo-fader thing in the first place.

anyway, as i said, i only have 1 tt at the moment haha (which i own), so there is no way i could do 3/4 decks on pure turntables. although, when i get back to school, i'll have 2 more at my disposal so, i haven't even attempted 3+ turntables at a time yet, that's definitely a ways away. as i said jrkhnds, when i say 3/4 decks, i mean CDJ or controller.

[jrkhnds]

yes, I already typed the answer when your posts showed up and coulnd't be bothered to delete these parts lol, I fully understand.

[DrGatineau]

ahh gotcha yeah.

well enough about me. what's on your mind jrkhnds?

[jrkhnds]

I have trouble getting into techno, which pisses me off a bit.

(I want to play more techno but am unsure where to start buying)

[garethom]

Find a style you like, and delve more into that first. First techno I got into (and is still by far my fave) was the Basic Channel, typical Berlin style dub techno stuff, then eventually got onto the Birmingham Sound stuff like Surgeon, British Murder Boys, etc.

Still can't get into the Detroit style stuff, there are certain bits I like, loads of DJ Bone stuff, but not feeling it on the whole.

[jrkhnds]

mhm yes, Basic Channel / Maurizio stuff would be obvious choices, and go from there.

quite feeling a lot of Ilian Tape's output at the moment, TTT, Acido... but I'm not really sure where to look further. it's just such a vast field with so much shit covering a lot of the pearls it's a bit overwhelming.

[garethom]

Yeah, I'd just start with the massive names, and delve deeper from there. Carl Craig, Drexciya, Jeff Mills for Detroit, Basic Channel and all their offshoots and loads of Tresor stuff for Berlin, Regis, Surgeon, British Murder Boys for Birmingham.

Other people have probs got some better suggestions though.

[chekov]

big fan of this mix if you wana check out some basic channel kinda stuff jurkhands - https://soundcloud.com/fitn/fitn-basic-channel-tribute

[jrkhnds]

thanks the two of you, big up. will probably heed Gaz's advice and start from the top. my goal is to be able to play some decent techno sets by the end of 2015.

[ultraspatial]

@jrkhnds

detroit: Relics - A Transmat Compilation; True People - The Detroit Techno Album; some early tresor (Detroit Techno Soul Compilation, x-101, jeff mills, the vision, eddie flashin fowles etc); wild oats & fxhe are good for current tunes; anthony shake shakir's massive 3 cd comp for rush hour "frictionalism"; underground resistance (i'd start with an album or comp); axis stuff maybe (robert hood's minimal nation for instance)

us: cytrax/delay; infrastructure ny; synewave; sonic groove

uk: downwards/regis/surgeon/british murder boys; blueprint/james ruskin/oliver ho; zet/monrella/inigo kennedy; mark broom; perc trax et al for new shit

berlin: obvs basic channel/maurizio; din; tresor, ostgut etc

dub techno: chain reaction; echospace/deepchord/intrusion; other heights; knowone

minimal tech-y house: perlon; workshop; arpiar; dial; studio 1; smallville; sylphe