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counting the BPM of a record
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| trance85 |
Ran a search and all I got was a bunch of people asking for comp. programs that do this, so don't jump on my ass if this topic has been done a billion times :/
Just a quick little question I have, how do you guys count the BPM of your records? Do you time out a minute on a stop watch or some while you're counting? Or do you count the beats for 15 sec then multiply by four? :/ what do you do?
Anyways, I just got my technics a few days ago, so I'm still working this stuff out. Any help greatly appreciated. |
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| veezee |
are you wanting to learn this to aid you in beatmatching?before you start, quit. It is bad practise.. Your ears are a good tool... I don't know many people that count the bpms .. if a record is faster then the other or vise versa, in time you will be able to hear that.. I remember buying a mixer that had a bpm counter, i covered them up right away.. yes there are a million other threads about this, and you are going to get the same response.. but to each his own i guess.. If you must, grab a stop watch, tap along with the beat for 30 seconds and multiply x 2..
You can thank me later.. :)
Jay |
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| memusa |
I'm guessing (and this is not meant to be an insult) that you've just started mixing...
From my experience, I've learned that obsessing with BPM is the worst thing you can do...
What you should do is just try to more or less know what the BPM of a track is...the range it's in I mean...that way you have an idea of what can be mixed after what during a set and it won't sound terribly fast or slow...
There's a lot of top DJs who write the BPM of tracks on the vinyl sleeves to make it easier, which I find very smart...Sasha, if I'm not mistaken does this. |
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| trance85 |
Well no I was just curious really, it seems like everyone knows the BPM of all their records offhand, so obviously it seems like its more than just: "this record is faster...I'll slow it a little" -- it seems like there's more precision involved.
But yea I don't have BPM counters, and I don't want em either. I used a BPM counter at the record store (just 'cause it was on the mixer), and I could tell they weren't very accurate, they fluctuate alot.
But what I was essentially asking, is that you DO actually count the beats to find out the BPM, then you use it to match records or what not? Also should I write the BPM on the label of my records once I've got it figured? (what if 2 months from now I don't like DJing though because of school or some other reason, will having BPMs written on the records make them unsellable?) |
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| placebo |
| quote: | Originally posted by trance85
Well no I was just curious really, it seems like everyone knows the BPM of all their records offhand, so obviously it seems like its more than just: "this record is faster...I'll slow it a little" -- it seems like there's more precision involved.
But yea I don't have BPM counters, and I don't want em either. I used a BPM counter at the record store (just 'cause it was on the mixer), and I could tell they weren't very accurate, they fluctuate alot.
But what I was essentially asking, is that you DO actually count the beats to find out the BPM, then you use it to match records or what not? Also should I write the BPM on the label of my records once I've got it figured? (what if 2 months from now I don't like DJing though because of school or some other reason, will having BPMs written on the records make them unsellable?) |
Having that info on a record won't lower the value really, it just won't be in "new" condition I guess. I have plenty of records that have price tags on the label, BPMs on the sleeve, names, all kinds of weird crap. It's kinda interesting...almost tells a story of the record's journey into your crate. :toothless
I just started mixing, my mixer has BPM counters, but they are such a joke, I don't even pay attention to them. It told me the other day Automanual was 180 BPM...ahahahaha.
I just try to mix by ear, I'm still having trouble hearing which track is faster though, any tips on that? I even kill the channel so I hear the active deck playing, and the one I'm mixing in my headphones, and I still can't tell.
Maybe my hearing just sucks. |
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| trance85 |
One thing thats bothering me about BPM counting, what happens if the beat goes different at one point? I can't just assume it'll be that way for the rest of the song can I?
--Maybe this isn't a problem in trance, 'cause as far as I'm concerned I haven't really noticed anything like this, but I heard break beat DJs have to deal with this sometime, would I have any probs with this in trance? --It seems like the beat is pretty consistent throughout the song so I'd imagine not.
| quote: | | If you must, grab a stop watch, tap along with the beat for 30 seconds and multiply x 2 |
This was essentially what this thread was about ... I'm a beginner so I don't know how you experienced people do it, do you seriously walk off and get a stopwatch when you get a new record? --somehow I doubt it? I was just wondering what your guys' methods are for calculating the BPMs and such. |
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| Mr.Mystery |
| quote: | Originally posted by trance85
One thing thats bothering me about BPM counting, what happens if the beat goes different at one point? I can't just assume it'll be that way for the rest of the song can I?
--Maybe this isn't a problem in trance, 'cause as far as I'm concerned I haven't really noticed anything like this, but I heard break beat DJs have to deal with this sometime, would I have any probs with this in trance? --It seems like the beat is pretty consistent throughout the song so I'd imagine not.
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There are some instances where the record has been pressed badly and therefore the beat sometimes goes off. I have the Airwave's "I Want to Believe" album sampler and I'm starting to think the BPM fluctuates during the intro of "Seattle Calling" because it just won't mix to any track. No matter how accurately I pitch it it always drifts off at the same point (more or less - I haven't payed that much attention to it).
I guess you just have to know the tracks, I don't think there's any kind of gimmicks to work around these problems with... |
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| NoisyNeil |
| quote: | Originally posted by Mr.Mystery
There are some instances where the record has been pressed badly and therefore the beat sometimes goes off. I have the Airwave's "I Want to Believe" album sampler and I'm starting to think the BPM fluctuates during the intro of "Seattle Calling" because it just won't mix to any track. No matter how accurately I pitch it it always drifts off at the same point (more or less - I haven't payed that much attention to it).
I guess you just have to know the tracks, I don't think there's any kind of gimmicks to work around these problems with... |
same with Tiesto - Breda 8PM (Montana Edit) [Magik Muzik] on the Parade of The Athletes sampler :)
As for the question, I think mixing is like cycling. You can do it, or you don't. You just pitch till it's completely in the same speed, and then you cue to the point you want to start it (or vice versa ;)). Practise a lot, and after a few months it will probably work out fine :) |
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| Sunnyside |
| Bollocks to counting the beats - after a few weeks of messing about, you'll have a very good idea of the speeds of most of your records. You learn quickly cause it's well annoying pulling out a record, cueing it up and finding it's way to slow/fast! |
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| liquidmist2001 |
just wanted to add a couple of comments...
i find its easiest when i have the BPM already on the record, not help me beatmatch, but to help with the flow of a set. you'll find that if the BPM of two records are close to each other, the less you will have to worry about matching the key in the which the record is playing. screwing around with the pitch +/- more than 5% will affect the key of the song, and harmonically speaking, your mix is going to be a wreck.
as for the breakbeat DJs having to deal with odd beats, it's not really a problem. The BPM is still constant. now, instead of listening for the constant 1...2...3...4 drum beats, they're listening to the high-hats or the symbals to see if their BPMs match. they can still mix into a purely trance track, or mix into another breakbeat track. i've mixed a few breakbeat tracks with totally different beats, i had them matched almost perfectly, and as i was mixing out, i had both beats playing at full and the crowd wents nuts as the two breakbeats blended and then one faded out as the breakdown came for the incoming song...it was sick |
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| cheesy |
| I use a program on my computer to tap out the beats and it calculates it for me. |
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| trance85 |
Ya thanks for the advice, I was just more or less curious about actually counting BPM, not with mixing per se. Like you all don't bother counting BPMs is what I'm asking? It seems like alot of the stuff/advice I've read around here is like "Know the BPMs of your records!" -- so in relation to that ... I was just wondering how you guys know? Do you count them out then write it down, use a comp. program to tap the beats and have it calculate the BPM (like Cheesy said)?
-- I mean I think it would probably benefit me to have the BPMs written on the record label or the sleeve :conf: And about sleeves, should I buy sleeves for records that don't come with them? (are they vital to keeping your records in good shape?) |
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