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Fine-tuning beats

OH NOOOO NOT ANOTHER BEAT-MATCHING THREAD!!!
Kay this one is a little bit different I think... I have a pair of CDJ-100s which as you may know has 0.1% pitch precision. This is rather innacurate IMO; I'm getting quite good @ beatmatching and I can have them playing together with no problems for about, say, 30 seconds... then I have to fine-tune it again so that they don't slowly start drifting apart (I like long mixes, 2min+ long, I spin trance & progressive) but sometimes they are together for so much time that I loose track of which one is going faster... and then when the hihats start telling me that I need to pitch-bend them, I have no idea which way should I go and my changes usually go on instinct... which means, sometimes I'm right, but sometimes I'm not
How can I correct this problem? Will I be able to know what to do as time goes by or should I stop doing it by instinct and start using some method (which one?)? Or what should I do?
Any help is much appreciated!

i do like this...
matching roughly the beats while cued... then running them togather in the phones for bout 2 mins, in these 2 mins u can hear who is drifting away and to which direction, in my 2 min time im checking how to fine tune the mix... if say were in +1.4% and obviously theyll drift apart ill fine tune it, ill find the most closer pitch to my pitch that makes the tunes become one again, in all cases it will be the next pitch point (1.4, 1.3...), then when ill mix em out ill know which way to fix them (with the pitch slide) and the mixes goes perfect... enjoy

quote:

Originally posted by Vortex_SA i do like this... matching roughly the beats while cued... then running them togather in the phones for bout 2 mins, in these 2 mins u can hear who is drifting away and to which direction

yeah, but thats fuck all help when ur dj'in in some nightclubs whos mixers are not capable of feeding both tracks to the headphones at the same time.

quote:

Originally posted by Vortex_SA i do like this... matching roughly the beats while cued... then running them togather in the phones for bout 2 mins, in these 2 mins u can hear who is drifting away and to which direction, in my 2 min time im checking how to fine tune the mix... if say were in +1.4% and obviously theyll drift apart ill fine tune it, ill find the most closer pitch to my pitch that makes the tunes become one again, in all cases it will be the next pitch point (1.4, 1.3...), then when ill mix em out ill know which way to fix them (with the pitch slide) and the mixes goes perfect... enjoy

Hmmm interesting method, I'll try it the next time!
But so I assume that telling in a matter of 2 or 3 seconds which song is faster/slower after so much time together is "impossible" right?

this wont be perfect, but a quick tap of the + or - button will tell you what way to go, if you tap it the wrong way, just 2x tap the other one to get it back. i find that when i am spinning a cd, i remember what way it is off, and end up having to tap every so often to keep it on beat

quote:

Originally posted by onceler this wont be perfect, but a quick tap of the + or - button will tell you what way to go, if you tap it the wrong way, just 2x tap the other one to get it back. i find that when i am spinning a cd, i remember what way it is off, and end up having to tap every so often to keep it on beat

Hmm I understand what you mean, the CDJ-100s don't have pitch bend buttons but I do +/- the same with the jog wheel, I move it one way just a little bit, if it gets worse I'll compensate the other way round, but I hate to do it that way!
lol

quote:

Originally posted by Vortex_SA i do like this... matching roughly the beats while cued... then running them togather in the phones for bout 2 mins, in these 2 mins u can hear who is drifting away and to which direction, in my 2 min time im checking how to fine tune the mix... if say were in +1.4% and obviously theyll drift apart ill fine tune it, ill find the most closer pitch to my pitch that makes the tunes become one again, in all cases it will be the next pitch point (1.4, 1.3...), then when ill mix em out ill know which way to fix them (with the pitch slide) and the mixes goes perfect... enjoy

It's good, by it it's possible to know how work on the pitch during the mix. You can also listen only cued track in headphones and the other from speakers or monitor so there isn't mixer problem.
However i think that also istinct and especially hear is important for a dj and can work good.

quote:

Originally posted by Vortex_SA i do like this... matching roughly the beats while cued... then running them togather in the phones for bout 2 mins, in these 2 mins u can hear who is drifting away and to which direction, in my 2 min time im checking how to fine tune the mix... if say were in +1.4% and obviously theyll drift apart ill fine tune it, ill find the most closer pitch to my pitch that makes the tunes become one again, in all cases it will be the next pitch point (1.4, 1.3...), then when ill mix em out ill know which way to fix them (with the pitch slide) and the mixes goes perfect... enjoy

I would enjoy if you could explaing it a bit better in english.

Yeah, the nice method to use is...

Adjust the pitch slider just a little in the direction you think is right. If the mix moves back in time you got it. If the mix drifts even more, move the pitch slider the other way ;-) And then return the pitch slider back to the original position!

hey listen, im gonna give you the best advice on this planet. When you hear this advice you will turn to no other advice:


































Practice

This is the only thing that will help you, seriously.

quote:

Originally posted by Arsalan Practice This is the only thing that will help you, seriously.

I agree 100%, practice is the best way to learn.

it'll become instinct eventully. you will hear that the beats arent exactly matched up, and just kno that track B is faster or slower than track A

or, when fine-tuning, just make really small adjustments (also ties along with "instinct") then you will be able to catch things really fast...like if you pitch it up by .whatever %, you should be able to tell very quickly (compared to every1 else) weather you need to keep pitching up, or bring it back down and to start slowin it down.

so start thinkin all "jedi", "zen" or "weird ninja spiritual stuff" because you will eventully be so instinctive that you will start to know things before they happen. (like the beats are still in line, but you will just know that one is moving faster or slower and you will need to adjust one of the tracks)

quote:

Originally posted by b|p|3m I agree 100%, practice is the best way to learn.

lol I knew somebody would say that, 'cos that what I read in every thread :P
But don't get me wrong, I agree with you 100% on that, just wanted to know other people's opinions so that my progression curve doesn't come to a halt so fast, and by doin' it by instinct I am afraid of learning wrong and getting used to that bad habit, so now I'll try that pitch tip posted here
Cheers and thanks for the help!

quote:

Originally posted by benoitfan lol I knew somebody would say that, 'cos that what I read in every thread :P But don't get me wrong, I agree with you 100% on that, just wanted to know other people's opinions so that my progression curve doesn't come to a halt so fast, and by doin' it by instinct I am afraid of learning wrong and getting used to that bad habit, so now I'll try that pitch tip posted here Cheers and thanks for the help!

You're right, also listen other experiences and opinions are important
to increase your experience and to have a way to build your own style.

quote:

Originally posted by b|p|3m I agree 100%, practice is the best way to learn.

Indeed.
Plus, everyone develops their own style of mixing/beatmatching as most of us learn the art on our own.

I've enjoyed reading your approaches, and I'm gonna try them out myself!
peacE

quote:

Originally posted by benoitfan lol I knew somebody would say that, 'cos that what I read in every thread :P But don't get me wrong, I agree with you 100% on that, just wanted to know other people's opinions so that my progression curve doesn't come to a halt so fast, and by doin' it by instinct I am afraid of learning wrong and getting used to that bad habit, so now I'll try that pitch tip posted here Cheers and thanks for the help!

i dont think there is such a thing as bad habit when it comes wo mixing, you will create your own style .

anyways dont forgot not to have fun

quote:

Originally posted by Arsalan i dont think there is such a thing as bad habit when it comes wo mixing, you will create your own style . anyways dont forgot not to have fun

Sure, and I have fun every time I mix, no doubt
but I think bad habits can be created, I for instance always speed up the incoming track without even thinking if that is the right way to go, I just got used to it, and that I think is bad
Creating your own style is definitely true, and today I tried that new way using the pitch slider (which I always thought was way hard, and that was the reason why I promised to myself from the start to use the jog wheel) and I was very happy with the results and it's really easy actually, and with practice my mixes will be much better! Thank you ppl for all the help

yep you have to practice but you also have to make sure you are LEARNING and not making the same mistakes over and over again.

quote:

Originally posted by djrichy yeah, but thats fuck all help when ur dj'in in some nightclubs whos mixers are not capable of feeding both tracks to the headphones at the same time.

if ur with such a mixer this problem wont even apear, ull be stuck with trying just to beatmatch them, not to fine tune

quote:

Originally posted by benoitfan Sure, and I have fun every time I mix, no doubt but I think bad habits can be created, I for instance always speed up the incoming track without even thinking if that is the right way to go, I just got used to it, and that I think is bad Creating your own style is definitely true, and today I tried that new way using the pitch slider (which I always thought was way hard, and that was the reason why I promised to myself from the start to use the jog wheel) and I was very happy with the results and it's really easy actually, and with practice my mixes will be much better! Thank you ppl for all the help

ur welcome dude
and for all ya "practice" people-
it is helping to practice, but u can also help others by teaching them things they havent discovered yet... they can get it by themselfs but itll take a longer period of time

btw my english sucks sorry

Yes Pratctice is the key.

Break out of the "cycle" ( if u know what i mean) of repeating what your doing wrong.

but practicing is the only way (getting use to the beats going together)

Hi Benoitfan,
your basic problem was that after a while you could notfigure out which way you had to bend after a while.Some of you all try bending one way and if it gets worse you bend the other way.That is just not acceptable.
BENDING IS NOT A LUCK THING!!!!!
There is a way to do it right.
First of all you need to stop mixing in your head phones.By this I mean you should never listen to both channels in the headphones.Only listen to the track you're bringing in in the headphones.If you're not used to it then make a habit of it and start doin it.

Secondly you must,must make it a point to know and study your music.

Once you follow these two basics bending right becomes a piece of cake.
Here's what you do.
Lets say both your channels are up & your mix starts to go off.The track you've just brought in[Channel 1] is goin on in your headphones.Now what you do is you concentrate on earlier track[Channel 2] and tap your foot to it.Now listen to your headphones and bend to match the track in your headphones to your foot.With a little PRACTICE you'll be able to match the headphones to the other track without even tappin your feet - you'll immediately know whether to + or -.

The only time when you should listen to both channels in the headphones is if there is a delay in your monitors.

If you know your music then at a later stage you will be able to instinctly tell which way to bend.The bottom line is to concentrate on one track & then tell whether the other is faster or slower...and after a while this becomes like second nature.

P.S:Always tap your foot or nod your head on anything to keep the rhythm in your body...it helps even if you've got your mixes down to a T.

If any part is unclear then lemme know and I'll try to make it more
simple.
Lastly I have nothin against those who have other ways of mixing.Just tellin you guys what I think works best for me.
CHEERS!!!!!

Hey there, thanks for the input
Actually I have tried mixing with only one track on the headphones,but the problem was the incoming track was never beat-matched correctly,was always a bit off. And when I throw it in I like to take out the headphones and only mix with the monitors. I'm getting pretty good results with the pitch technique mentioned earlier, and I think it is great, although,again, it still is a matter of luck in the end. But I'll try your way as well, I think it's great to try new methods to know which one suits best!
Cheers!

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