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Sophisitcated sound systems
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| DavidScott |
| What are some key points to keep in mind when playing on a big sound system. I am used to playing at home (My system is no slouch), but in the club I am booked to play at, the system is tight. Is there any points to really keep in mind when playing on a system with that much power. |
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| big dave |
yeah dont blow it up! :D
make sure you got good headphones!!! |
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| DavidScott |
Ha! Good advice.
I just picked up the new Pioneer 1000s |
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| tamtui |
A few things....
Don't ever boost the bass on the EQ only cut
if you ultimatelly have to boost the mids or treble don't boost them all the way!! you will hurt people's ears
Be gentle with the effects. The level on the effects should not be too hi. At home you can go crazy with them but in a big sound system you should be gentle as they are magnified by 100x....
Make sure you turn down the fader when you put the needle on the record.
If you are opening for someone do not crank the master volume all the way up during your set. That is the job of the headliners.
and the most important thing HAVE FUNNNN!!!!!!!!! afterall that is the whole point of djing.
Peace out |
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| DavidScott |
| Thanks man. That is great advice! I have a RANE at my house and I have my EQs up all the way. I am so used to doing it that way...so your advice is key! As for having fun...no doubt. I have crazy nerves due to the fact that this is my first main room gig and I am playing for three hours. So, I am surely gonna up a mix here and there, but I am not perfect! Thanks again! |
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| DJ Tranz |
| quote: | Originally posted by DavidScott
Thanks man. That is great advice! I have a RANE at my house and I have my EQs up all the way. I am so used to doing it that way...so your advice is key! As for having fun...no doubt. I have crazy nerves due to the fact that this is my first main room gig and I am playing for three hours. So, I am surely gonna up a mix here and there, but I am not perfect! Thanks again! |
Hey I am not sure if you know who DJ Dan is, but in his interview with Remix magazine he said something that I live by, "Everyone trainwrecks a mix or two at a live performance, no one can do it absolutely 100% perfect, afterall we are human beings, not robots." basically it is OK to up here and there, main thing DJ Dan said to do IS NOT TO PANIC and most likely people won't even notice your mistakes. You got a really great pair of headphones, just make sure first time you put them on at that club, you turn down the headphone volume, 'cause lots of clubs run a headphone amp into the mixer and the Pioneers can handle lots of sound and can really damage your ears if your volume is set too high. Also at my club, our master volume is set right between 7 and 8, rest of the volume is brought up by trim gain and by amp gains(sound engineer takes care of our amps).
HAVE FUN, Don't be nervous(or at least don't let the crowd see it) enjoy your time on stage and get your hands up, clap into the beat when breakdown and uplift/buildup is occuring, basically split yourself in two, one spins music, the other is just like the rest of the crowd having fun grooving to the sounds. :D
Finally, definately let us know how it goes... |
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| DavidScott |
| quote: | Originally posted by DJ Tranz
Hey I am not sure if you know who DJ Dan is, but in his interview with Remix magazine he said something that I live by, "Everyone trainwrecks a mix or two at a live performance, no one can do it absolutely 100% perfect, afterall we are human beings, not robots." basically it is OK to up here and there, main thing DJ Dan said to do IS NOT TO PANIC and most likely people won't even notice your mistakes. You got a really great pair of headphones, just make sure first time you put them on at that club, you turn down the headphone volume, 'cause lots of clubs run a headphone amp into the mixer and the Pioneers can handle lots of sound and can really damage your ears if your volume is set too high. Also at my club, our master volume is set right between 7 and 8, rest of the volume is brought up by trim gain and by amp gains(sound engineer takes care of our amps).
HAVE FUN, Don't be nervous(or at least don't let the crowd see it) enjoy your time on stage and get your hands up, clap into the beat when breakdown and uplift/buildup is occuring, basically split yourself in two, one spins music, the other is just like the rest of the crowd having fun grooving to the sounds. :D
Finally, definately let us know how it goes... |
Thank you so much for this! In the past, I have had some anxiety issues performing in front of people jsut due to the fact that I don't want to mess up. My head is in it, my heart is in it, and I have great friends that are in it too. I appreciate your adivce and your take on it. It is always refreshing to know that complete strangers are there for me and know exactly what to say to set me at ease. Thank you and pay attention to this thread as I will be coming back tomorrow to let you know what went down. |
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| sirhiss |
I ask if I can come like 20-30 mins early and familiarize myself with the setup, not really crucial, but it helps to know how certain things sound on a PA, how the monitors sound etc.
If nothing else, it's a few less things to worry about. |
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| TranceInMySoul |
I always make sure someone explains the mixer to me before I start, cos some club mixers are a little weird... Just make sure you know how to turn the cross fader on / off if applicable, and (importantly) how to turn the monitors up and down :)
And take a torch, preferably a cool blue LED one cos people love those ;) |
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| DJ Chrono |
one main difficulty for me when mixing with a very loud sound system (like in a club) is the noise level. generally the bass is so loud that you have to turn your headphones up wayy too loud in order to hear the beats properly in the phones. there's nothing really you can do about this though.. just make sure your phones can isolate well ;)
On the positive side, this huge bass makes transitions seem smoother, and if a beat match is slightly off its generally pretty hard to tell.
One strange thing I found was that I had to turn my bass EQ way down to prevent distortion. THe bass was still very strong even with the EQ down though. I dont know if this was a sound system fault or what, but just be aware that it might occur.
good luck:D |
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| Dj Flesch |
Okay, here comes another one of my long-ass posts. I think that most people benefit from them, so here it goes.
I'll try to step you through the process and highlight all of the points along the way.
So you are spinning at a party. What do you bring? Well, of course you bring your music, but you also SHOULD bring headphones, slipmats, cartriges and a flashlight--and any other equipment that you want to use, unless you know for a fact that they will provide equipment that is to your taste. Duct tape is also recommended and if you bring electronics, then make sure you bring RCA cables, and extension cord etc. EVERYTHING that you would need to hook it up to the mixer short of electricity! Also, bring earplugs because if you are at the club for a while, you don't want your ears to start ringing before you even have a chance to start mixing!
First off, I would definetly get there about an hour or so ahead of time. This will serve a several purposes. First you can look at the equipment, and set any of your own up if you need to. Second you can listen to the music that the dj before you is playing and can better judge what tracks to lay down at the begining of your set. Also you can start to read the crowd--this way you'll know how fast you can bring it up with your set, or if you have to take it slower for a while etc. Third, you can trainspot. This is the term given to a person who observes the dj to learn his/her technique. You can also try to calm your nerves by being up on stage for a while first too.
So now you are at the party. If you have to plug in some of your own equipment, there is a very specific way in which you have to do it so that you don't send pops and cracks through the system! First off, you'll want to make sure that the channel that you are plugging the RCA cable into is turned all the way down (volume-wise). Then plug it in to your table/deck while the table/deck is off! Then you can turn your deck on. It doesn't matter if it is plugged in or not when you attach it to the mixer, solong as it is off and the channel volume is zero. If you are spinning in a club or at a rave, it is always a good idea to let people know ahead of time that you will be bringing your own equipment too.
So you are minutes away from spinning, what now? First off, you should have your first tune picked out and how you are going to mix out of the previous dj's track. There are many things to consider in this. First, what style is he playing? Does it match yours? If it does, then what BPM is he spinning at, and is this suitable to you?
If his style is totally different, then chances are you won't have that 4/4 beat that you are so used to. Spin it down (by turning the power off on the table--or if it's a cd, know how to do this ahead of time!). If you can't spin it down, then kill the bass (in phrase of course!) then lead your track in while you fade the other one out quickly. Two styles that are really different usually don't sound very good when mixed together. Also be aware of the BPM difference during this whole thing too. You can't throw down your 140BPM track when he is spinning 120. You may want to speed his track up to 130-135, or within 5-10BPM of your target range. Then use your first track or two to bring it up to where you want.
If the style and BPM are suitable, then mix your track it. I'd have several safety tracks that you know very well with which to start off your set. Then you are home free right? Wrong. There are still a bunch of things that you need to know and do. If it isn't a mixer that you are familar with (one that YOU have PERSONALLY USED), then ask the previous DJ to explain the mixer to you. This is common practice and curtousey for djs, so don't be shy or embarassed about asking--the dj should offer it up by himself anyway. If nothing else, ask or watch which channels are hooked up to which decks etc.
So the last few things that you need to do before you start mixing is take your earplugs out and get your headphones ready. Make sure you have a spare 1/8" to 1/4" jack somewhere just incase! If you are using your own carts, then as soon as the dj makes his last transition, he should be taking his carts off and you should put yours on. If he doesn't start taking them off, then ask him if they are his or the clubs so that you can put yours on quicker. Now remember, your going to have to wait till his track is completely over before you can put your second cart on, so don't forget to do that right after your first transition.
So now you are spinning and all is going good. The bass will be slightly hard to hear in the headphones if you have HUGE monitors, but you should be able to work well enough with it. You'll use the monitors a lot more in a club than you would in your bedroom--you actually won't have a choice ;) Your headphones will most likely be cranked up with your cue track, but the most important thing to remember is that you should set your desired volume level at the begining and KEEP IT THERE! If you keep turning it up due to your ears getting "used to" the loudness, then you will go deaf quite quickly and your djing career will be very short. So make sure that it's not much more than you would use at home.
Next, you'll want to read the crowd a bit. Whenever you are spinning, it is vital that you remember what timeslot you are playing. If you are the first dj in a club and you are on at 9pm till 10:30, then you should not start playing banging tunes hopeing to attract the three people in the club onto the dancefloor. You need to play a warmup set so that when people do start arriving they aren't spanked by floor-killers! You need to gently coerce people onto the floor. Play at a slower BPM 130-135 or so...then speed it up to 140 by the end of your set. This way you can play better tracks while still maintaining a "warmup set" sound.
The key to picking which tracks will sound good for a warmup set is the amount of "stuff" going on in the track. The less the better for warmups. This doesn't mean that you can't play good tracks, it just means that you should respect the timeslot, the club owner and the dancers by doing your job as a Dj. This is a great time to go through those remixes that aren't the best on the record, but are still good. You may find that you are playing tracks that are great for warmups--and the perk is that the crowd probably hasn't heard that mix!
Anway, I know your topic was about the sound system, not track selection, so I will finish up with this: For everything I just stated, remember that the dj after you may be in your same position, so have the same curtousies for the next dj as the previous dj had/should have had for you. Make sure you notify him when you have one more transition to go so that he can prepare too. Take your carts off promptly and offer to give him a rundown of the mixer just as you needed at the begining of your set.
Lastly, don't forget to thank the club owner etc and ask him what he thought of you. The most important thing you can do for your career at this point is if he says that he enjoyed your performance, then push on him to set up another potential date to spin. Don't end the conversation with him saying, "I'll call you". End it with you saying, "I'll call YOU!" Remember that the manager is going to be very busy--he is at work after all ;) Don't monopolize his time, but don't be too brief either!
Don't forget to enjoy yourself throughout this whole process too! That is the most important part of this experience!
EDIT: In regards to the previous post, that is correct that the louder the sound system, the less noticable ups are, so this should give you reason to relax. Also, it is more important for you to trim the bass more than you need to when recording in your bedroom. You'll hear the bass volume increase considerable when the sound is amplified that loudly! This is another reason that your monitors will be more important.
ANother important thing to remember is that you shouldn't play with the master volume at all. The sound technitians set it at a certain level so as to not overload the system. Play with the headspace (the red region of your channel VU meters) if you want more volume! |
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