|
Recording your promo mix...would this be wrong? (pg. 5)
|
View this Thread in Original format
| DJ Kibon |
As someone who was doing non-linear digital mixing with Mixmeister prior to taking the plunge and buying turntables, it might sound suprising, but I think that the quality of my mixing is generally better now on turntables than it was in the digital realm.
There are of course downsides, such as a single screw-up ruining your entire recording if you are striving for perfection, but I don't even bother with digital mixes at this point, just don't have the interest in doing them.
With regards to the executive job analogy - sure, pull out all the stops in order to both land the job and impress everyone once you are there. But using a computer mixed compilation for demo purposes is akin to padding your resume with fake employment history. It might land you the job, but it can land you in pretty deep . |
|
|
| hooknife |
| quote: | Originally posted by skytribe
Then answer my question: If you have the skill to spin that well live, why would you need to resort to editing your demo on a PC?
Fact is, any edited mix is always going to be better than what you can do live. (This doesn't go for every DJ; I'm talking about DJ's who are at a point where they still need to send out demo CD's).
Sure, it's a cutthroat business. But if you actually have the chops, then you don't need to edit your demo on a PC. If you don't have the chops, editing makes you look like you do, and you will make a fool out of yourself when you get into the DJ booth at the gig.
Either way, there's no point. |
Answer to your question: I do it because it makes my demos sound the best possible. No other reason.
I have been DJ'ing for 12 years and I am very confident in my skills with mixing live but I am always able to make a better mix on the computer. I know that a lot of kids on this board don’t think its "cool" but I think they miss the point. I'm trying to get hired because I feel that if I can mix one time for the promoter live then I have a good chance of being invited back.
So let me put it another way, I just want one chance and a great demo is what will most likely give me that chance. |
|
|
| skytribe |
| quote: | Originally posted by hooknife
Answer to your question: I do it because it makes my demos sound the best possible. No other reason.
I have been DJ'ing for 12 years and I am very confident in my skills with mixing live but I am always able to make a better mix on the computer. I know that a lot of kids on this board don’t think its "cool" but I think they miss the point. I'm trying to get hired because I feel that if I can mix one time for the promoter live then I have a good chance of being invited back.
So let me put it another way, I just want one chance and a great demo is what will most likely give me that chance. |
Or, in other words, your PC mixing skills are better than what you can actually do live. Meaning, you're misrepresneting your talent. |
|
|
| hooknife |
| quote: | Originally posted by skytribe
Or, in other words, your PC mixing skills are better than what you can actually do live. Meaning, you're misrepresneting your talent. |
We can argue until we turn blue in the face, I make my demos on a computer and I don’t have any issues with doing so. Sorry to upset you.
I like to think of them as resumes and my resume is pretty much perfect. |
|
|
| skytribe |
| quote: | Originally posted by hooknife
We can argue until we turn blue in the face, I make my demos on a computer and I don’t have any issues with doing so. Sorry to upset you.
I like to think of them as resumes and my resume is pretty much perfect. |
By the same token, your resume shouldn't say that your skills are more advanced than they actually are. |
|
|
| hooknife |
| quote: | Originally posted by skytribe
By the same token, your resume shouldn't say that your skills are more advanced than they actually are. |
Who says? Last time I updated my resume I had to check the name at the top to make sure it was mine because I could not beleive how much I knew. Most people "sugar coat" their resumes. |
|
|
| Inertia |
well, i wouldnt agree to doing something on a PC you can't back up live. but aside from that, if i were recording a demo and for some external reason were to up on just 1 point, there are quite a few things you can do to erase that. say i screw up the last transition. i stop the recording, start a new one, that starts at 1min before the point of the track i wrecked out of. i record that, and finish my set. i load up the first recording in soundforge, cut out the nasty part and then, load up a the 2nd, and paste it into the mix just at the right point, so there is no pause or discrepancy.
then you have successfully fixed your promo. |
|
|
| skytribe |
| quote: | Originally posted by hooknife
Who says? Last time I updated my resume I had to check the name at the top to make sure it was mine because I could not beleive how much I knew. Most people "sugar coat" their resumes. |
Yeah, and those people are the incompetents who get hired for jobs they're simply not qualified for. |
|
|
| Nemesis44 |
| quote: | Originally posted by hooknife
Answer to your question: I do it because it makes my demos sound the best possible. No other reason.
I have been DJ'ing for 12 years and I am very confident in my skills with mixing live but I am always able to make a better mix on the computer. I know that a lot of kids on this board don’t think its "cool" but I think they miss the point. I'm trying to get hired because I feel that if I can mix one time for the promoter live then I have a good chance of being invited back.
So let me put it another way, I just want one chance and a great demo is what will most likely give me that chance. |
I actually have to agree with Hooknife for the most part.
The reality about most promoters is that they couldn't pick out a bad mix if it jumped out and slapped them unless it's real bad. Most of the promoters I know will actually hand CDs to me and ask me if I think the DJ is any good.
The things I look for in demos (And I have head a few...) is mostly to do with tune selection and flow. You can get away with a beat being slightly off but you don't want to hear the correction.
Too many DJs go mad with seamless beatmatching and the truth is that it has relatively little impact on the mix. A promoter is looking for your track selection. Will it work with what he/she (as promoters aren't all blokes) want in their night. That's the main thing they are looking at.
With 12 years of experience, I'm pretty sure Hooknife is pretty tight with his mixing and I would have no problem with him using a PC for demos. I have been doing it for nearly 18 years and don't have any problems with doing it either way but do prefer spinning simply becuase I enjoy it more. Can pretty much whack out a demo in the time it takes to make it with no double take. I will however plan it depending on who I am trying to impress.
The problems arise if you are nowhere near that level. Even if some promoters can't tell a bad mix, clubbers and other DJs will soon let you know about it. You will get a hard time from the local promoters if you fail to live up to the expectation as they will feel cheated and your reputation will be ruined for good as you may will put them in a bad situation.
If you are new to DJing, and by new I mean you don't play out on a regular basis then stick to doing it on the wheels of steel.
As I have to say time and time again, getting a break has feck all to do with your demo in most cases but all comes down to who you know!
In time you wont need to 'sugar coat' your resume either. I get gigs these days because people want me to be there so resume doesn't even come into it, but it's a lot of hard work to get there. I promise you though, it is well worth it.
Cheers
Nem |
|
|
| Sunnyside |
Lame, lame, lame. I cannot see where you would get fun from 'mixing' on a computer. Don't get me wrong, I love technology, but don't pretend you can mix when you can't.
Once again, lame. |
|
|
| dknylady |
ah just thought of one more thing...
why would you spend thousands of dollars on turntables, needles, mixer, amp/speakes, headphones, carts, and VINYL if you are just gonna turn around and bang out a brainless mix on a computer mixing program???
oh and honestly i find computer enhanced "mixes" very boring. stuff like id&t or bitte ein beat. you know these mixes were messed with till they're perfect. i understand the reasons for that and that's fine and all, but i still think it's boring. i love hearing mixes that have been done live, with it's little inconsistencies. |
|
|
| Dirk W. |
| quote: | Originally posted by hooknife
We can argue until we turn blue in the face, I make my demos on a computer and I don’t have any issues with doing so. Sorry to upset you.
I like to think of them as resumes and my resume is pretty much perfect. |
Anyone can bull a resume. |
|
|
|
|
