My First Mix! (Hard Trance I Think) Please Listen!

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-- My First Mix! (Hard Trance I Think) Please Listen!

Posted by GoLdEnSuN on Dec-26-2006 13:40:

My First Mix! (Hard Trance I Think) Please Listen!

Hi! I just recently brought a copy of dss dj because i wanted to see if I could actually mix at all, and i've been playing with it for the past 2 weeks and this is what i've come up with. I know it's kinda crappy, but I figure i'd get some advice and opinion on how to make it better because ever since i started playing with dss dj, it's all i've been doing! I even skipped a shift at work because i was so into it! It's just 16 mins or so long, using 3 hard trance-ish songs (I don't know what genre to classify them as), i just tried to mix them like the mixes are in a compilation cd.. sorry, i don't know what that's called either lol

01. DJ Tatana - Soul Cry (Sam Sharp Mix)
02. Dutch Force - Deadline (Love Trance Mix)
03. Mac J - Nightware

I know it needs a lot of work, but if at least one person kinda likes it i'll be happy and i'll make a 75 min or so mix if people would want it.

Link: [[ LINK REMOVED ]]

^ Sorry about the rapidshare!

Please give any feedback you can

Thanks for listening, i hope it wasn't too bad!

Posted by GoLdEnSuN on Dec-27-2006 07:30:

aww no replys didn't anyone listen?

Posted by kpjf on Dec-27-2006 14:43:

downloading it now...

Posted by kpjf on Dec-27-2006 14:57:

Wasn't sure what "dss dj" was, and just checked and really do not like to give an opinion of a mix made on this sort of thing, it probably makes mixing a lot easier, bpm and so on...

So i really cannot give an opinion, as im not sure what this dss thing is exactly, and personally this kind of thing is cheating for me, for instance when i first began mixing some of my pitching was out by a mile, but you have a bpm counter on that thing which means your pitch is going to be very close already and it doesn't give you the knowledge when your pitch is 6 out to be able to know to move it closer which is key in the beginning of learning how to pitch

I don't mean this in a rude way, but if you are serious about djing you should get decks and learn properly.

Posted by GoLdEnSuN on Dec-27-2006 21:49:

Thanks, but that's the reason why i bought a copy of DSS DJ, because i didn't want to waste money on decks and a mixer if i wasn't going to be any good at mixing anyway.

Posted by kpjf on Dec-28-2006 09:33:

Right, i fully understand that, i guess it is a gamble wasting hundred of dollars/pounds on a set up if you're not too good.

Hmm...my main point was if you practice on this set up for months, get good then go to play in a club on real decks or in someone's house well, you probably won't be able to do it, you get me?

How much was this programme? And it is just like a dj set up, ie 2 decks a mixer, then you listen to the tune in your headphones etc etc, if so then i guess that's cool, but my criticism was that having a bpm counter is cheating (to me, anyway), maybe if you could try doing it without the bpm counter.

The mix wasn't that bad for a first go, but i was just reluctant giving an opinion as these kind of programmes seem to do half the work for you.

Posted by GoLdEnSuN on Dec-28-2006 13:22:

I guess I wouldn't be able to play on real decks, or I would be able to, but I would be really crap at it. I paid around $80 Australian for it.

The way i mixed it was like this..

I would load the first song into the deck, and play it until the break, i would then play the 2nd song and listen to the output on my headphones. If i hear that the basslines aren't matching, then i put the pitch up or down on either deck until both decks sound like they're playing in harmony, then I just used the cross fader thing and the High/Low EQ to make the transition go as smoothly as possible. It's hard for me though because for example in the first song, it plays at 145.1 BPM, but after the break it changes to around 145.6, then goes down to 144.8, so I had to keep changing the pitch of the other song to make sure it plays in harmony, but I think i stuffed it up lol

I understand where you're coming from though, I guess the program might cheat because it does tell me what BPM both songs are playing at, but when i tried to mix just by making both the songs at the same bpm it didn't sound right, i had to change the pitch myself to achieve what i thought was harmony.

Thanks though for saying it wasn't bad, i just hope more people listen to it

Thanks kevferris!

Posted by kpjf on Dec-28-2006 13:41:

You know ive never used a BPM counter but now that you say it they could be unreliable, i guess it's hard for the computer to work out exactly the bpm, because even when im mixing a tune and it's in perfectly you always have to touch it here and there or slow down/speed up and so-on.

So i guess you should just practice at this programme (and maybe ignoring the BPM counter?)and if you see yourself progressing then you could save up for proper decks, but GoLdEnSuN, everybody is crap at djing when they first start, it just takes a lot of time practising although some people learn quicker than others, so just maybe keep at it a few months and im sure you'll see some progression!

Posted by GoLdEnSuN on Dec-28-2006 13:51:

thanks kevferris.. can you point me in the direction of what kind of setup i should start saving for? i.e mixer and decks and so on.. I won't buy it for a while, at least until I think i'm at least good enough to start making some bedroom mixes

Posted by kpjf on Dec-28-2006 14:22:

ha, well thats another story!

I would always say get technics, and don't bother getting numark cheapies, get technics because the way i see it there's two things that can happen: you buy technics and you don't quite make it, so you sell them get your money back, or you get good and keep them...but if you buy cheap decks and you don't quite make it, well you're going to sell them or if you get good you will still need to sell them and upgrade to technics, so my thinking has always been forget the cheap decks and go for the technics.

As for a mixer, i wouldn't really worry to begin with what kind of mixer, just go for a relatively cheap one, because to begin with if you start buying one with gadgets/effects it can put you off when you're trying to learn the basics.

I bought my technics a good few years ago with a crappy kam mixer second hand for �400, which was a decent price, not sure what that is in australian dollars, but it's worth every penny or cent in your case but i do realise it's a lot of money, especially if you're in college or don't have a fulltime job etc

Theres various things people say that can help you mixing, say for example try mixing the same tune just to get a feel of what it sounds like keeping two tunes in etc or mix very similar tunes together eg tunes by the same producer, remixes and so-on, but at the end of the day the only way you'll get good is hours of practice and a lot of determination!!

Hope this is some help!

Posted by GoLdEnSuN on Jan-06-2007 10:21:

thanks kev

did anyone else listen to it? i'm working on a new mix now