Mixing

[shaunlee0]

Hi,
I have started to mix dubstep recently on vinyl and was looking for any advice atall you could give me, I have basic knowledge of the tune structure. But any information i would find helpfull would be ideal cheers

[Mehlovich]

Hi,
I have started to mix dubstep recently on vinyl and was looking for any advice atall you could give me, I have basic knowledge of the tune structure. But any information i would find helpfull would be ideal cheers

The best advice to give is to practise. And buy the book called "How to DJ properly", read it and practise some more.
Its like the bible of djing.

[kwun-tings]

The best advice to give is to practise. And buy the book called "How to DJ properly", read it and practise some more.
Its like the bible of djing.

yeah ive heard that is supposed to be really good.

my advice is to get a mate or someone who can mix and ask them for tips cos then they can actually show you how to do something instead of just reading and putting your interpretation to it.

also record your mixes, then when you listen over you can hear when and how you are going wrong.

listen to some of your favourite dj's and their mixes, then try and figure out what they are doing i.e. when to take out the bass etc and then develop your own style.

lastly... practise lots.

[dubloke]

the maint hing with djing is beat matching and knowing the structure of tunes. the beat matching is only going to get better with practise (ive been djing 4 years and still have mixes that have a few beats off) the structure bit is basically simple maths, a grime intro (normally) is 16 bars (or 8 I can never remember which) and then a dubstep intro (normally) is double that. Alot of House and dnb tunes are double a dubstep intro. you can tell by looking at the grooves on a record normally, if the intro looks quite long it will normally be a house/ dnb length intro, if smaller it will be a dubstep length one. at the end of the day just do what feels/ sounds right. I taught myself by just practise and listening to mixes etc. I'm sure loads of djs have done the same

[wilson]

Know your tunes. Practice. Listen to Youngsta.

[kwun-tings]

Know your tunes. Practice. Listen to Youngsta.

cant stress that last one enough!

[Staley]

Practice, Practice, practice. Learn to count bars correctly, with dubstep I can usually hear when the bar is gonna have a change up without even having counted out the actual beats. Go easy on the effects, or don't use them at all to begin with, if ever. Listen to your blends very critically to determine if you're EQ levels need to be adjusted. Too many hi-hats and random snares mashing up can sound gash. Think about how you want your mix to progress. Start slow then build up, come out with a bang then tone things down a notch, etc. If you are playing out your set time and ability to read the crowd should determine much of your tune selection. I try and find tunes with similar harmonies, basslines, ect. that match up real nicely. It can be quite difficult to mix two vocal tracks together so be careful with that. Become competent at different forms of mixing. I started with Traktor and a mixer, couldn't even cue with my headphones, then I bought a pair of CDJ200s, then once I felt I was competent on CDs, I finally moved up to purchasing a Serato box and a pair of Numark's, which inspired me to start buying vinyl and learning how to mix just as DJs have done from the very beginning. TBH I don't have a total preferance, all have their ups and downs. Yes by all means listen to Youngsta, as he is handsdown the best technical DJ in the scene imo. Watch Mensah's GetDarker mix for a good idea of what Serato brings to the table over other formats. Seven is pretty sick on CDs. Refrain from only dropping the biggest, 'in' tunes, but by all means don't be afraid to pull for the cold-weight classics when the time is right.

[shaunlee0]

the maint hing with djing is beat matching and knowing the structure of tunes. the beat matching is only going to get better with practise (ive been djing 4 years and still have mixes that have a few beats off) the structure bit is basically simple maths, a grime intro (normally) is 16 bars (or 8 I can never remember which) and then a dubstep intro (normally) is double that. Alot of House and dnb tunes are double a dubstep intro. you can tell by looking at the grooves on a record normally, if the intro looks quite long it will normally be a house/ dnb length intro, if smaller it will be a dubstep length one. at the end of the day just do what feels/ sounds right. I taught myself by just practise and listening to mixes etc. I'm sure loads of djs have done the same

Thanks alot for the advice, I have been mixing house for a while and understand the intro thing, I have found beatmatching with house easier than dubstep as the bassline is alot easier if you have any ways you could generalise the counting of dubstep that would help.

[shaunlee0]

Practice, Practice, practice. Learn to count bars correctly, with dubstep I can usually hear when the bar is gonna have a change up without even having counted out the actual beats. Go easy on the effects, or don't use them at all to begin with, if ever. Listen to your blends very critically to determine if you're EQ levels need to be adjusted. Too many hi-hats and random snares mashing up can sound gash. Think about how you want your mix to progress. Start slow then build up, come out with a bang then tone things down a notch, etc. If you are playing out your set time and ability to read the crowd should determine much of your tune selection. I try and find tunes with similar harmonies, basslines, ect. that match up real nicely. It can be quite difficult to mix two vocal tracks together so be careful with that. Become competent at different forms of mixing. I started with Traktor and a mixer, couldn't even cue with my headphones, then I bought a pair of CDJ200s, then once I felt I was competent on CDs, I finally moved up to purchasing a Serato box and a pair of Numark's, which inspired me to start buying vinyl and learning how to mix just as DJs have done from the very beginning. TBH I don't have a total preferance, all have their ups and downs. Yes by all means listen to Youngsta, as he is handsdown the best technical DJ in the scene imo. Watch Mensah's GetDarker mix for a good idea of what Serato brings to the table over other formats. Seven is pretty sick on CDs. Refrain from only dropping the biggest, 'in' tunes, but by all means don't be afraid to pull for the cold-weight classics when the time is right.

Well said youngsta is the boy! thanks for the advice and i will take a look at mensah's get darker mix. I have two stanton tables and a mixer and loving the feel of the vinyl at the moment and getting some dark tunes out. I will take your advice on counting aboard and the EQs levels thanks. I may look into using traktor more as i have it and a large collection of music on my computer. But will get practising Cheers again man

[shaunlee0]

The best advice to give is to practise. And buy the book called "How to DJ properly", read it and practise some more.
Its like the bible of djing.

yeah ive heard that is supposed to be really good.

my advice is to get a mate or someone who can mix and ask them for tips cos then they can actually show you how to do something instead of just reading and putting your interpretation to it.

also record your mixes, then when you listen over you can hear when and how you are going wrong.

listen to some of your favourite dj's and their mixes, then try and figure out what they are doing i.e. when to take out the bass etc and then develop your own style.

lastly... practise lots.

Cheers dude, yeah i have been shown how to beatmatch properly, as before it was just reading things without a physical example which greatly helped. Thanks i think the way is to start recording my mixes as then it will evident what needs improving etc..

[Staley]

If you learn to mix well first on vinyl, on the other form factors will seem rediculously easy to learn in comparison. So stick with that if you can for a bit. But as you and so many of us know it can take quite a bit a chedda to build a nice collection of dubs, but I think it is a lifetime obsession worth having.

[shaunlee0]

Yeah i find it alot more enjoyable and will have to take the hit on the wallet for that. I gather it will help me learn to do things properly. But yes gotta completely agree there

[cyberdyne]

Thanks alot for the advice, I have been mixing house for a while and understand the intro thing, I have found beatmatching with house easier than dubstep as the bassline is alot easier if you have any ways you could generalise the counting of dubstep that would help.

Pretty straightforward G. The VAST majority of dubstep tunes fall into 64/96/128 intros with then either a break or a drop. Usually a drop. Some of the girlier or more ambient tunes will pan out to 192. Unusual to see much else unless you get a beatless atmos intro in which case you go for a straight atmo to atmo blend. A lot of Rusko tunes do 96 in, which is actually the superior number for ease of mixing into shit you dont know so good.

When your mixing you should simply always be aware of where you are in the current tune, and how many beats intro the tune your bringing in has. If the tune has a 64 intro, it VERY usually (but not always) has a 64 beat break, and so on. This means if you want to double drop a tune that has a 96 intro into a tune with a 64 intro, even if you dont know the first tune for shit, just keep cueing it on 32's and you'll have plenty of time to reset if its the incorrect 64 your getting up in front of.

I'm not gonna ramble on about it as its a pretty simple concept - 64/96/128/other - Drop or Break. Learn that for every tune and so long as you get your beat matchings decent, you can slam out a whole bunch of tunes pretty quick like and make it sound good.

[brasco]

Thanks alot for the advice, I have been mixing house for a while and understand the intro thing, I have found beatmatching with house easier than dubstep as the bassline is alot easier if you have any ways you could generalise the counting of dubstep that would help.

Pretty straightforward G. The VAST majority of dubstep tunes fall into 64/96/128 intros with then either a break or a drop. Usually a drop. Some of the girlier or more ambient tunes will pan out to 192. Unusual to see much else unless you get a beatless atmos intro in which case you go for a straight atmo to atmo blend. A lot of Rusko tunes do 96 in, which is actually the superior number for ease of mixing into shit you dont know so good.

When your mixing you should simply always be aware of where you are in the current tune, and how many beats intro the tune your bringing in has. If the tune has a 64 intro, it VERY usually (but not always) has a 64 beat break, and so on. This means if you want to double drop a tune that has a 96 intro into a tune with a 64 intro, even if you dont know the first tune for shit, just keep cueing it on 32's and you'll have plenty of time to reset if its the incorrect 64 your getting up in front of.

I'm not gonna ramble on about it as its a pretty simple concept - 64/96/128/other - Drop or Break. Learn that for every tune and so long as you get your beat matchings decent, you can slam out a whole bunch of tunes pretty quick like and make it sound good.

Some of the 'girlier' tunes???

I despair

[jam1]

Practice, practice, practice! When I first started mixing (probably getting on for 9/10 years ago now...) I was mixing for 3 or 4 hours a day, every day!

Learn to pitch chase! i.e - Don't touch the platter whilst the faders on the mixer are open. Move the pitch fader back and forth (only small movements though...) to get it back in sync if the mix starts to go out slightly.

Listen to mixtapes!

Go to clubs and watch DJ's mix. Might make you look a bit 'nerdy' but it will help you understand different approaches to mixing. The first time I stood behind Andy C in a Dj booth and watched him mix was quite an incredible experience!

And finally, practice some more!

I imagine most of these points have been covered already though...

[shaunlee0]

Cheers your help is muchly appreciated. I will take it all on board and get mixing. Andy C sickkkk your a hero thanks again!!