well.. i don't yet have my decks, so i guess i am only a pseudo DJ.

but, when i have some vinyl, my decks are on order, and i have tons of mp3s i mix with VTT, so i can help answer questions.

when i get a new vinyl, i plan to put a really high quality needle on my deck, and rip it straight to a raw .wav file the first time i play it. that way i can preserve the quality.

then i will convert that to 192kbps mp3, and mix it in VTT. this is to learn where the song mixes nice, it's little nuances etc.

i will probably spin it a few times just to get the feel of it on the decks too, but not too many. I want to save the quality for playing it on the big soundsystems!

transitions
1 minute too long? hell no! i like long trannies, sometimes I even let an entire short song play within another one, then mix in in a third after that.

or some songs just let em mash together for like 5 minutes, the way sasha does.

1 minute is a decent amount, but i would go even longer than that usually, depends on the track.

favorites
yeah i do, but it's a bad habit to get into. certain records just mix so well, you can't help but try it. every time you get a new song though, the patterns change.

I'll start with the second question.

Personally, I practice whenever I feel like it. And that's usually a few times a week. I think it's important to NOT force yourself to do it every day just because you have to, because it is critical that you enjoy the mixing process and really feel the vibe. Also remember that if you practice too much, you may hit a "brick wall," and you'll have to step back and take a little break for some time, after which your mixing will improve.

Now, about new vinyl, I usually have a pretty good idea where it will fit in my set, BUT oftentimes what will happen is that reality doesn't match my expectations. That is, it'll mix badly with the tracks that I wanted to put it with, so I'll have to re-evaluate my tracklist and play it in some other part of the set. It may be bad not because of your mixing skills but simply because these particular tracks don't go well together and sound awful when mixed, and that's a valid enough reason.

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1. If i'm at a record store I listen to it a million times.
I normally dont buy vinyls that I have in my mp3 collection unless they were songs part of a dj set. For the structure, i'm not that critical on structure. I know generally where the phases are and such but not as technical as some people. So i usually mix it in with the flow of the music.

2. if ur talking about a vinyl - vinyl transition... i dont think it's "too long." Just make sure the outgoing record isnt playing over the incoming for too long

3. i practice maybe 1-3 times a week depending on my mood and how much school work i have. Like Eugene says, you dont want to force yourself to practice everyday. Because what will happen is you will fall into a slump where everything just goes bad. It doesnt get fun anymore. I am pretty sure big DJs like Tiesto and such dont practice everyday because practicing also takes a lot of time and work/effort too.

4. mix to what you feel !

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DJ Xquisite
Hip Hop & Trance DJ for the new millenium

quote:

Originally posted by Eugene I think it's important to NOT force yourself to do it every day just because you have to, because it is critical that you enjoy the mixing process and really feel the vibe. Also remember that if you practice too much, you may hit a "brick wall,"

Tell ME about it, Eugene!
For a while after I bought my gear, I was so determined to make this work out (it was a lot of money and investment and sacrifices to get the equipment) that I made myself practise everyday, no matter what the hour and no matter how tired I was. I fell into a slump and wasn't able to enjoy spinning for quite a while because of self-indulged pressure to succeed. Now I'm taking things a little slower, I'm starting to feel the vibe again, and things have become much better since then.
I think the bottom line is just to enjoy what you're doing; nothing else will matter.

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Melodic Progressive.

Better than sex.

1 - When you buy new vinyl, do you..

Depends on the track, some I play quite a few times, Pale-X - Shiver and Nu-NRG - Dreamland are getting a bit of use at the moment. In a month or so they'll be on the shelf and I'll move on to something else. Other things I'll listen to once just skipping through then I'll never play them again.

2 - Transitions.. Is a minute transition WAY TOO LONG???

Nope, as long as it all fits, helps keep the mix sound seamless. Very good for practicing perfect pitch matching.

3 - How much do you people practice DJ'ying? Hours etc...
Big DJs tend not to practice as they play out often enough not to need it. I don't practice as such but I play for about 1/2 hour on average each day, sometimes for hours on end though, sometimes I don't mix for ages.

[]b4 - Do you people have like a favorite method or i mean a favorite tracklisting that you usually stick to[/b]

I usually play the new stuff I have along with a few 'gems', awesome tracks that weren't too popular when they came out so haven't been played to death.

Method of mixing I never rely on the bass cut switches or any advanced features on the mixer to get a good mix, as you never know what you might be working with when you play out!

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Wanted! - Money or consider swaps:
BT Mercury & Solace (Black Hole 12" - BLH112) - got it! c/o discogs marketplace
DJ Tiesto Sparkles Remix (Transa / Airscape / Starecase) (Black Hole 12" - BLH118) - mine at last! Thanks to Gemm
San Feel My Love / Stroke (In Trance We Trust 12" - ITWT302) - in my collection finally! discogs marketplace again
Nunca House Of Doom (In Trance We Trust 12" - ITWT300) - if you have this in an ITWT sleeve with the promo sheet let me know!

for the PRO DJ's..DJing is a career for them.... just like everyone else they do the work, practice, and perform.... i sure do hope that they practice... but if you think about it, all the DJ's we know are PRODUCERS and they probably spend 70% of the time in their studios working on tracks and different projects....and the acctual DJing is like their live concerts..... just like any "POP" artist.