Brand New

[Paquet10]

Hi. Im really into Dubstep and Electro and I would like to try and take a chance at Dj'ing it. Im brand new, 14, and real interested. Any help here please would be amazing<3 thanks for your time
-Lucas

[Seopril]

Hey Lucas. Just so you know, there is an introduction thread, but don't worry about it. I'm not sure what type of help you want right now? I recommend checking out the following threads.
http://www.djforums.com/forums/showthread.php?2721-The-Official-DJF-Beginners-MEGA-Thread! <--- Helpful beginner information.

http://www.djforums.com/forums/showthread.php?963-Budget-Equipment-Appreciation-Thread <--- If you need equipment, I recommend looking here.

http://www.djforums.com/forums/showthread.php?646-Sigma-s-n00bs-guide-to-DJing-right <--- This is the first post I looked at when I joined a month or two ago. Its very helpful.


Some questions that would help give you information:
How do you want to DJ? (I'm assuming because you're 14, you don't want to go vinyl, nothing wrong with it, it's just that I'm 16 and I'm loving the digital stuff right now)

What type of music do you want to play? Are you set on only playing Dubstep and Electro? If so, check out the Dubstep forum http://www.djforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?26-Dubstep
Electro Forum - http://www.djforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?23-Electro


Equipment:
Assuming you want to be a Digital DJ, not a CDJ or Vinyl DJ, here are some pieces of equipment that I recommend:
Traktor Kontrol S2/S4 (I have an S2 and I love it, but I would look at the new Behringer stuff coming out that I posted below)
Behringer CMD Series (A4, Pl-1, etc) - Not out yet, but it is insanely cheap IMO. The equivalent to an S2 costs $199 by Behringer.
Kontrol X1
Novation Launchpad - It can be re-mapped for Traktor Pro 2 so that you can control 4 decks with it easily.
Traktor Pro 2 Software - This is the software that I use, and I'm impressed by it. Download the demo if you are thinking about being a dj.

Besides all this, there isn't much I can answer unless you have specific questions. My final two pieces of advice are:
1)if you love it, keep doing it
2) It can be expensive, so don't buy something without giving it some thought before hand.

Good luck! Hit me up if you have any questions :)

[Paquet10]

Hey Lucas. Just so you know, there is an introduction thread, but don't worry about it. I'm not sure what type of help you want right now? I recommend checking out the following threads.
http://www.djforums.com/forums/showthread.php?2721-The-Official-DJF-Beginners-MEGA-Thread! <--- Helpful beginner information.

http://www.djforums.com/forums/showthread.php?963-Budget-Equipment-Appreciation-Thread <--- If you need equipment, I recommend looking here.

http://www.djforums.com/forums/showthread.php?646-Sigma-s-n00bs-guide-to-DJing-right <--- This is the first post I looked at when I joined a month or two ago. Its very helpful.


Some questions that would help give you information:
How do you want to DJ? (I'm assuming because you're 14, you don't want to go vinyl, nothing wrong with it, it's just that I'm 16 and I'm loving the digital stuff right now)

What type of music do you want to play? Are you set on only playing Dubstep and Electro? If so, check out the Dubstep forum http://www.djforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?26-Dubstep
Electro Forum - http://www.djforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?23-Electro


Equipment:
Assuming you want to be a Digital DJ, not a CDJ or Vinyl DJ, here are some pieces of equipment that I recommend:
Traktor Kontrol S2/S4 (I have an S2 and I love it, but I would look at the new Behringer stuff coming out that I posted below)
Behringer CMD Series (A4, Pl-1, etc) - Not out yet, but it is insanely cheap IMO. The equivalent to an S2 costs $199 by Behringer.
Kontrol X1
Novation Launchpad - It can be re-mapped for Traktor Pro 2 so that you can control 4 decks with it easily.
Traktor Pro 2 Software - This is the software that I use, and I'm impressed by it. Download the demo if you are thinking about being a dj.

Besides all this, there isn't much I can answer unless you have specific questions. My final two pieces of advice are:
1)if you love it, keep doing it
2) It can be expensive, so don't buy something without giving it some thought before hand.

Good luck! Hit me up if you have any questions :)




Alright. This is going to be short, due to my lack of computer usage right now. Lol.
Explain vinal for me? (: and I'm pretty set on anything. I'm not sure if I'm completely set on dubstep and electro, but I'd like to give it a short.

Have you ever seen aarabmuzic? I like his mixing board. I forgot the name at the moment, but I heard a lower cost one is around 400. Ill check out the fourms later and the links you sent. Thanks so much for all the imformation!

[Gnozis]

What's up Lucas! Seoprill had a great post, but I would add that, if you haven't already, you should download Virtual DJ. Basically it's a software that lets you do very basic mixing using your mouse and keyboard. Doesn't teach you much, but it will get you pumped to learn more and help you develop your passion.

My biggest recommendation for you starting out so young is to talk to your parents about getting a Hercules RMX controller. It is a VERY solid controller for the price.

[Paquet10]

To be perfectly honest, thank you both. I've been playing with the virtual dj for about two hours or so now, and i like it. I want to do more your right, But idk how to mix /: its like, I want to DJ, but I have no idea how.. It sounds weird but its true.
I can stay digital, im fine with that. Vinyl sounds like a great idea but i think ill pass for now.
I'm not set on dubstep and electro, but id like to try it.
ummmmmm ill look into equipment more.
I have headphones, not sure if their good or not. Skullcandy Skullcrushers? and Skullcandy G.I's...
I need alot more information to begin please (:

[Seopril]

In terms of high end skullcandy headphones look here http://www.skullcandy.com/shop/mix-master-black. That's only if you're set on skullcandy. I haven't djed anywhere besides a small parties, but I use Skullcandy lowriders... the $40 ones lol. It honestly doesn't matter at this level what type of headphones you have. I can help teach you what I've learned over the past two months, but I have to go mulch my backyard for an hour or so >.< I'll be back on then, and I'll write you up some basic info if I have the time.

[Paquet10]

please. take your time. (:
and yeah. if im spending more than 100 dollars, its gotta be worth it. Im not spending more than a hundred on headphones .-. and ill be willing to change if i need to lol.

[Andrew B]

Do you have a budget in mind?

[Paquet10]

well i dont wana go all out yet. Im just getting started, so cheap, but good i guess

[Seopril]

Okay so here's what some things that you will need to know

Beat Matching: This is an insanely important skill when it comes to being a dj. Beat Matching is pretty much matching the first beat of one song, with the first beat of a different song. By first beat, I don't mean first drum hit of the song, I mean the first beat in a measure of music. This is essential in making smooth transitions between tracks when you want to introduce a 2nd track before fading out the first. It is also important when playing a two tracks at the same time, such as a baseline overtop a melody from a different song, or an acapella track overtop an instrumental. (The acapella part does not always beat match easily.) Beat matching can easily be done in most common djing software. I know for a fact that Traktor Pro 2 does, but I'm pretty sure that the other big software ones do.

Effects: Effects can make a mix have that extra feel to it that just pumps the crowd up, or it can ruin a track completely. Use effects carefully. I recommend finding a simple 4 bar loop of a baseline, and applying the effects individually to see the outcome. As a side note, one of my favorite effects is the Gator effect. It basically chops up a song and when set to 1/16, it makes every other 1/16th note muted or something like that. I like it when transitioning between two different tempos or moods of songs.

Cueing: Cueing is listening to a track in your headphone, but that track not being played out of the main mix. This is so that you can start playing a track in the cue mode, and then make sure it is beat matched correctly before playing it out of the speakers. This can be replaced by either preplanning your sets perfectly (I don't recommend this) or by using the visual waveform (or whatever the thing is called) on the software you are using. This can only be done in digital though, so I recommend learning to beat match by ear, and then use the beat match feature on the software if you absolutely have to.

Hot cue: A hot cue point is a point that you select on the song, and if you hit a hot cue button on either your keyboard or controller, it skips to that part of the song. This is important for the obvious reasons that you won't play the entire song each time you play a song. This makes it so you can skip the low energy parts of songs easily to keep up the energy, as well as loop parts of songs easier.

Looping: A loop is a repeating set of bars/measures in a song. This is useful for repeating a bassline while there is an acapella track or melody playing overtop. Most software has the option for between 1/64 - 32 bars to be repeated. Looping can also be used in transitions. In one of my mashups, I have a vocal being looped for 1/2 bar (1 word in that song) and raising the tempo slightly.

Scratching - Commonly used in Hip-hop and referred to sometimes as turntabelism. It is used on Vinyl systems mostly, or some digital vinyl system such as the Traktor Scratch or the Serato equivalent (sorry, but I'm only really familiar with Traktor software) You won't have to worry about this unless you go DVS or Vinyl


Okay, so now that all of that terminology is out of the way, here he go.

To start djing, I would try to create a mix. Start by selecting a few tracks, and just trying to transition between them smoothly. You can chop, which is a very sudden, kind of sharp transition. There's nothing wrong with these, I just don't like it as much, and they don't sound good if they are overplayed. Once you can transition between songs, try challenging yourself by trying to incorporate an effect or two. You can also try using some sample sounds as one shots in your mixes. I like one shot vocals in the low energy parts of songs, right before the buildup, and right before the drop in dubstep. I can't really think of any other advice right now, but I hope this helped.


Equipment:
You said cheap but good equipment. Like I previously said, if you want something RIGHT NOW go with the S2. Its only $599 or something. If I were you, I'd try to find out the release date of the new CMD line of controllers by Behringer. The CMD A4 is a 4 deck controller with 8 hotcue buttons, (the S2 only has 4), the option to switch decks that it controls (the S2 has to be modded to do this), effects, tempo controls, sync, etc. This is going to be priced at $199. THIS IS AMAZING!!! IF you can wait, go with this. Also I recommend checking out the rest of the CMD line, it's full of fun little toys for us djs. (I'm going to buy 2 PL-1s and possibly one of the LC-1 controllers) Alternatively, you can go with some cheap Numark controller like the Mixtrackhttp://www.numark.com/product/mixtrack or Mixtrack Pro. The mixtrack can be found for anywhere between $70 (I'm assuming that's used) to $150. This may or may not come with Serato software, I'm not sure.

Hope I was helpful and good luck! If you have any other questions, feel free to ask me.

[Paquet10]

Thank you so much.
Any suggestions on the songs to mix?

[Andrew B]

Thank you so much.
Any suggestions on the songs to mix?

That's up to you. Pick music you like.

[Paquet10]

well thats the problem lol. Im not sure what would mix well for a beginner... any ideas to get started?

[Seopril]

If you don't know what mixes well, then there isn't much you can do besides listening to music. While listening to music you like, just look for similarities between songs. Does a certain song remind you of another? Do two songs have similar drums or basslines? Stuff like that. You can also look for good transition points between songs. Just the other day, I was listening to Lump Your Head by Hollywood Undead (not EDM at all) and I thought that there was a good vocal transition point. So I got the acapella form of the song, and found a hardbass song with a similar BPM. There is a line in Lump Your Head that goes "All bets are in, I see ya roll the dice. Looks like another 7 it's the end of your life". I looped the word life while slightly raising the tempo until it was 200% the original BPM, then returned the tempo to normal and quickly played a loop saying "It's the end of your life". I'm not sure why, but it just seemed like I could transition well with that into the drop of Bangarang by Skrillex. Basically, just listen to music and let your mind just connect the tracks. Not sure what else to say.

[recon2]

FUCK DUBSTEP AND ELECTRO go to beatport.com and click click click your way to victory !! zOMG

[recon2]

or just listen to Andrew B he's seen it all

[Buddy McKarthur]

Hey bro! Glad to hear that you too are interested in DJ'ing. I am in a similar situation as you (except with a little more knowledge). All the posts on this page have been great. So basically, just start out on a midi controller or get some cheap cdj's and a mixer, but whatever you do, DO NOT START OUT WITH A MONITOR AND A MOUSE!!!!! This what I did and it was possibly the worst DJ'ing mistake I could've possible made because it was really hard to transition from hunching over a monitor, chin in palm to standing over something that I could actually control with my hands and move around a little wore when I mix. I wish you the best of luck, and my knowledge ain't that broad on this subject, but always feel free to message me with any questions! :)

[Paquet10]

thank you all c: ill let you know what i choose. I will probably get a handheld device, due to it seeming easier lol. Ill post an update soon thannks again :)