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question for the dj's
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View this Thread in Original format
| bigperf |
what exactly is accomplishhed when turning knobs?
serious question, so im not trying to be offensive to any of the djs on the board.
Just checked out the Pics from Markus last thursday.
http://www.spundae.com/gallery/gall...&gallery_id=117
and the first 3 pictures each have the dj's doing just that.
A dj prior to the laptop/cdj days as I knew was all about scratchin records, and turntablism was an artform. Dj's at clubs had to pull a record from a crate, put it on the turntable,cue it up, then pull out the next one and then cue it up and take them off, repeat. This took time.
so since everything is so high tech and there is no need to dig through crates, my ignorance leads me to believe that turning knobs might just give the DJ something to do while they wait for the next song to come up? As if the technology has done everything for you and there isnt much else to do(there has to be TONS you can do and push the envelope even further given the new technology)
thats my conjecture.
ableton and serato have an agreement and will be collaborating, so there should be even more resources out there for Dj's
maybe some of the DJ's who've been at this for years and spun records back in the day, and now only use laptops or cdj's can enlighten me.
thanks |
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| macky4546 |
First thing first.
When DJing with dance music you pay alot of attentions to the melody and keys.
Your basically doing harmonic mixing. Esp. in trance thats all you do. So why do they turn the knobs. Real simple, they want a baseline of track 1 but the highs and mids of track 2. theres more to it, but if your asking the question in the first place, no point in explaining, imo |
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| bigperf |
"they want a baseline of track 1 but the highs and mids of track 2"
if thats it, then thats what i was looking for.
just like if a kid asked me why is the sky blue?
the molecules(id explain that) in the air scatter blue light from the sun more than they scatter the red light or other colors. |
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| LYNDSAYwhaaat? |
| hehe... I used to play vinyl (well actually, still sometimes do) and switched to cds... but still "turn the knobs" just as much... (the knobs on a mixer will still do the same things whether you're playing vinyl or cds). Mostly I use them to keep the sound levels in line. Or turn up/down the bass, or to use the effects... (which the mixer in the picture MOS DEF has). or some djs might even use the knobs to fade in and out of mixes. does that help omar? :D |
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| Brian Scott |
Basic intro to the club DJ mixer:
Each turntable/CDJ/laptop channel is hooked into a channel of the mixer. Each mixer channel has a set of equalizer knobs (low, mid, high), a gain knob, a channel fader (from silent to full), and possibly an effector control knob. So, for example, if you're using only 2 CDJs for your set, you will have to potentially manipulate 10 knobs and 2 faders (and possibly the cross fader) to blend tracks together as seamlessly as possible. Then repeat the process again when it's time to mix in a new track.
The best way to get a good understanding of the process is to get your hands on a mixer yourself and play some tracks while tweaking the knobs. You don't even have to "mix" two tracks. Hook up any audio medium to the mixer and go at it. If you don't have access to a mixer directly, you can try to watch a club DJ work it while you simultaneously listen for the subtle changes in sound. It's not perfect, but that's how I first gained a basic understanding of the whole process.
You mentioned scratching in your original post, which is definitely an artform in itself. You won't see as much of it these days in the EDM scene since track selection, beat matching, and harmonic mixing are the main focal points. I can't comment on the mechanics of scratching since I have almost no experience with it myself. I do believe, however, that turntablism is the most difficult form of DJing from a technical standpoint. Turntablists have my utmost respect.
Hope this helps. |
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| 72hrpartyanimal |
the knobs do nothing. its all for show...
when you see a dj twisting/turning knobs, they aint doin but ruining the song.
thats what Josh Allen and Brian Scott do, ruin music :D |
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| JSmooth619 |
| quote: | Originally posted by Scoops
ask Peter Hook |
or $uperfox!:wtf: |
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| Brian Scott |
| quote: | Originally posted by 72hrpartyanimal
the knobs do nothing. its all for show...
when you see a dj twisting/turning knobs, they aint doin but ruining the song.
thats what Josh Allen and Brian Scott do, ruin music :D |
...Says the man who can't tell the difference between house and trance music.
By the way, how are your Warriors looking this year? |
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| macky4546 |
| quote: | Originally posted by Brian Scott
Basic intro to the club DJ mixer:
Each turntable/CDJ/laptop channel is hooked into a channel of the mixer. Each mixer channel has a set of equalizer knobs (low, mid, high), a gain knob, a channel fader (from silent to full), and possibly an effector control knob. So, for example, if you're using only 2 CDJs for your set, you will have to potentially manipulate 10 knobs and 2 faders (and possibly the cross fader) to blend tracks together as seamlessly as possible. Then repeat the process again when it's time to mix in a new track.
The best way to get a good understanding of the process is to get your hands on a mixer yourself and play some tracks while tweaking the knobs. You don't even have to "mix" two tracks. Hook up any audio medium to the mixer and go at it. If you don't have access to a mixer directly, you can try to watch a club DJ work it while you simultaneously listen for the subtle changes in sound. It's not perfect, but that's how I first gained a basic understanding of the whole process.
You mentioned scratching in your original post, which is definitely an artform in itself. You won't see as much of it these days in the EDM scene since track selection, beat matching, and harmonic mixing are the main focal points. I can't comment on the mechanics of scratching since I have almost no experience with it myself. I do believe, however, that turntablism is the most difficult form of DJing from a technical standpoint. Turntablists have my utmost respect.
Hope this helps. |
haha thank you, explained |
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| Brian Scott |
| quote: | Originally posted by Scoops
ask Peter Hook |
+1 |
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| bigperf |
| quote: | Originally posted by LYNDSAYwhaaat?
hehe... I used to play vinyl (well actually, still sometimes do) and switched to cds... but still "turn the knobs" just as much... (the knobs on a mixer will still do the same things whether you're playing vinyl or cds). Mostly I use them to keep the sound levels in line. Or turn up/down the bass, or to use the effects... (which the mixer in the picture MOS DEF has). or some djs might even use the knobs to fade in and out of mixes. does that help omar? :D |
There is this one DJ at a local club who seems to be possessed by the knobs, i have to get a video of him, because its just bizarre as to how he looks when he does that, arms and shoulders going every which way, SVGMTHD knows who i'm talking about.
so when looking at this character who will rename nameless, i would agree with 72hrpartyanimal.
of course this is the extreme case.
thanks Lynsday and everyone else for the education.
it must be nice not having to carry vinyl or worry about it melting. Maybe one day my profession will be revolutionize and there will be a white board that writes what I say. And I wont have to worry about carpal tunnel or straining my rotator cuff :gsmile: |
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