tips on beat matching?

[styga]

okay, so ive watched the videos on how to be a DJ and that sarah chick covered beat matching pretty well, so ive got a pretty good idea on how it works but i just need to put that into practice.

anyway, does anyone have any other tips fo beat matching that would help me out, and also what are some tracks that would be easy to practice beatmatching with to get the basics going?

[dim]

link to this sarah chick so we dont all go over what you already know...

[styga]

http://www.ausdjforums.com/modules.php? ... pic&t=4013

the first 5 videos on there

[fackedd]

theres loads of vids if you just youtube beatmatching brah.

[Hobberz]

Something with a really hard hitting drum beat. Satisfaction by Benny Benassi is pretty good.

You can even try having two copies of the same song. One in Deck A and one in Deck B.

Try it on different BPM's to, and also cover your BPM reader if your gear has one.

Its all about training your hears mate, so practice practice practice.

[Jaz]

Cover your BPM on your CDJ's, this will probs help you more then anything...the BPM analyser is more harm then help

[legunner]

grab two deadmau5 songs that are extended intro or full versions, he always starts songs with a kick inntro

[Jaz]

he always starts songs with a kick inntro

Some Chords, Sofi needs a ladder, Raise your weapon, one trick pony, I remember, Ghost n stuff, The longest Road.... i wouldnt say he always starts songs with a kick haha sorry, couldnt resist

[andyman]

he always starts songs with a kick inntro

Some Chords, Sofi needs a ladder, Raise your weapon, one trick pony, I remember, Ghost n stuff, The longest Road.... i wouldnt say he always starts songs with a kick haha sorry, couldnt resist

Cheeky WHALE

[styga]

haha cheers guys, and yeah im gunna stick some tape over it after seeing you guys constantly complaing about people 'cheating' by using the digital bpm so yeah

[Skank]

for a smoother more noticeable mix try mixing in the phases

as for songs download anything thats a club remix or extended mix

[lloydc]

i recon do it in 3 stages

1: get two of the same song, play em at the same tempo and get them beat matched so you know what you're listening for.

2. mix two different songs, ones at different tempos (this is where you cover the BPM and use your ears)

3. learn where to beat match (phrasing is the term you're after, heres some info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phrasing_%28DJ%29 )

[dim]

I recommend concentrating on getting good with just two songs. Each time you play them together you'll have a better idea of how they should sound matched. This will give you more chance of getting it right quicker. This will let you hear how they sound while they're on the way to being right.

...Then you can transfer that knowledge to more tunes by adding them one at a time.

Two copies of the same thing is a good 1st step but once you get them right they'll "phase" which is a confusing sound that won't happen on other mixes so don't dwell on it.

Also when listening to two tunes at once it can be hard to make out the kick drums amongst all the bass that may involved so I prefer to listen to snares.

FYI: "phrasing" is very different to "phasing". beware of typos regarding these two terms.

"Phrasing" is where you match the riff or melody or some repeating musical pattern in a song to a "phrase" in another song which is the same length. It won't happen without beats being matched but while a beat can repeat every bar a phrase may last for 4 or more bars. It is a more musical and advanced way of mixing so for now concentrate on getting the kicks and snares to land simultaneously.

"Phasing" is the cancellation of certain frequencies because you're speakers are trying to reproduce exactly the same thing twice and they cant handle it. You've probably heard of the "phaser" sound effect which reproduces this without you needing two copies?

good luck.

[Lurk6r]

As your learning, ALWAYS start with the song much slower than what your trying to match it too. Hit cue, see how long before it goes out of time, speed it up. Repeat.

This way, you don't have to figure out if you need to speed up or slow down as song.

[Gandy]

also, record your beat matching sessions and listen to them play back, sometiems you think you will have it beatmatched, then when listen back to it tou will pick up minor clipping, this will teach you to fine tune your ear

[eggssell]

haha cheers guys, and yeah im gunna stick some tape over it after seeing you guys constantly complaing about people 'cheating' by using the digital bpm so yeah

welcome to the elitist ways of the dj.

select your weapon and crap on anyone in a lower level

turntable>cdj>controller>laptop only>ipad>dj hero>non djs.

moving up in the chain is possible but you must be prepared to crap on those in the level you came from.

may the force be with you padawan

anyways its not cheating, its just not accurate. i.e. if it reads 128 and the other reads 128 and they aint matching you are either offline or the pitch isnt 100% correct. only way to get it 100% is to use your ears.

[styga]

i think i just had my first succesful attempt at beat matching, it was using two of the same song but it sounded like it was beat matched,

[eggssell]

nice one mate!!! + rep. how good is it!

in terms of mixing, i know when i started i would do all my transitions quietly (i.e. channel fader down) and let it play like that for at least 32 but up to 64 beats and then slowly bring it in.

that way i knew for cert it was beatmatched and i had dropped the one perfectly (occassionally i would push it a little too much so it would start offline).

these days i hot drop occassionally especially if a track starts with vocals. sometimes it works sometimes it doesnt but i just tap or push to correct.

[styga]

cheers man

in every video i watch they make it look so easy and then i go to have a crack and im just like fuck this sounds terrible

im still having trouble whether i need to up the tempo or slow it down or not

got any songs you reckon would be good for a simple practice?

[eggssell]

nothing comes to mind but yeah anything that has a solid kick, or even better just a kick for like 12 bars (i count 8 beats in a bar a la dj tutor) for the track you are trying to bring in.

one of the tricks that someone mentioned to me and its pretty good is, is start the pitch of the incoming track fast. that way you know which way you are going. and then its only at the fine tuning part that you would need to go up and down.

also have you read up on phrases? while no need to be perfect i.e. having builds and drops happen perfectly in time, it is a good idea to let an entire phrase finish before dropping the one. i never use to do this, despite having read about it, then cbg pointed it out and clarified, and it made a hella difference.

but yeah worry about the beat matching then move to mixing. Though i find if you drop the one at the beginning of a phrase it does make beat matching easier. IMO anyways.

[styga]

haha yeah im gunna try all of that

but constantly failing at beat matching is annoying me so im gunna use the bpm on the screen so i can get a sense of what its going to sound like when its beat matched correctly and once i get a hint of the sound then ill go back to covering up the bpm

[BeatLeSS]

one thing to remember too is your brain is audio balanced.

So if you're hearing off beats you'll usually be like wtf.. (syncopation i believe?)

Try not to ignore this, i find zoning out and letting my mind do the work i can beatmatch quicker. When it's in time you'll be like "ahhh this sounds good" thats when you've got it.

And remember frustration = progress!

[styga]

too much frustration = a pissed off guy who had given up for the night hahaha

[eggssell]

Use the force goof.

Hehe it wont happen overnight. Take yer time and enjoy

[styga]

haha yeah i know it wont, but at the moment i dont really know what im listening for aye haha

what does IMO stand for?!