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Mixing in key

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Viewing 14 posts - 1 through 14 (of 14 total)
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  • June 23, 2011 at 4:21 pm #127
    DJ GRE
    Member

    I would say that its all relative to how you think about your music. I have mixed in key personally – I love it. When I had vdj it used to tell me the keys to songs but sometimes it would get it wrong. Now I use MIK with Traktor. Sometimes when playing I have a little analogue synth with me to play some riffs here and there during breaks etc. and to play in tune I have to know what key the song is in. Mixed in Key so far has gotten most tracks completely right. So I would say if you just want to use it for mixing get vdj the home edition for free, check the keys and try mixing them together, see if it is something that maybe you’d want to invest in.

    June 23, 2011 at 4:53 pm #136
    ‘Sam Ben-David’
    Member

    Yeah i am like you Digitall DJ…..been seeing it everywhere and wondering whether its worth buying…..But then i think….it be better to learn how to figure out what key its in myself. Put it this way….Guetta has had nearly all his hits produced by someone else (Joachim Garraud) because he doesnt know how to and he uses Mixed in Key (http://c441723.r23.cf2.rackcdn.com/slideDavidGuetta.png) so i think….do i wana be another Guetta 😉

    June 23, 2011 at 4:58 pm #140
    Phil Morse
    Keymaster

    I have to say I have the key for all my tunes, and I mix in key frequently in a set. The trick is not to let it become your decision-maker when you’re picking what to play next, I reckon.

    June 23, 2011 at 5:02 pm #145
    DJ GRE
    Member

    I agree, if you have a tune that you know would be perfect but is not in the same key – just play the tune, trust me the crowd, except maybe one stickler, won’t notice the clashing keys. Or just mix when key isn’t an issue, like during a drum loop.

    June 23, 2011 at 9:30 pm #200
    D-Jam
    Participant

    I generally don’t bother with key. I let my ears decide if two tracks work or not.

    I agree with Phil in that too many guys who are all about “harmonic mixing” tend to get too crazy on the scientific end of it all and thus play what I think are bland sets because they’re believing keeping it all “in key” will make things ideal.

    Just play, do what sounds good to you, make mistakes, learn from them. It’s an art form.

    June 24, 2011 at 4:55 am #220
    DJ GRE
    Member

    I love mixing in Key for the aspect that it brings back my musical knowledge into the mix, things like almost anything in the key of Am will mix with anything in the key of C Major, things like that or basically building a chord progression with tracks; like i’ll play a ii-V-iv succession of tracks as a little joke to myself – which is why I don’t use the camelot system just the traditional notes. Like I said i’ll play some synth riffs over a tracks break down or sometimes if i’m feeling really confident in the track i’ll pull off a mini guitar solo and harmonic mixing helps me know what key i’m in or that i’m going to be in.

    June 24, 2011 at 4:28 pm #358
    Rob Francis
    Member

    I use MIK and have often fallen into the trap of letting that dictate what I play but I have gotten better at this.

    June 24, 2011 at 11:19 pm #479
    Illinoize
    Member

    I only mix in key sometimes because I have VDJ, which tells you the key of each song. But like DJ GRE mentioned, it is not without error. I don’t think I would ever purchase mixed in key, simply because I prefer to use my own ears to determine what mixes. Trial and error, all that good stuff.

    June 25, 2011 at 4:03 pm #1000413
    GKP
    Member

    Has anyone got a side by side comparison mix of a few tracks mixed in key and the same tracks mixed not in key? I keep the key lock on on my Deck A in Traktor for reasons unbeknown to myself *shrugs* lol .. I never use it on Deck B, does that mean I’m half way to mixing in key or is there more to it? I have enough trouble bar & beatmatching without worrying about whether my two, three or four tracks and key locked. 🙁

    June 25, 2011 at 4:14 pm #615
    Phil Morse
    Keymaster

    GKP, post: 603 wrote: Has anyone got a side by side comparison mix of a few tracks mixed in key and the same tracks mixed not in key? I keep the key lock on on my Deck A in Traktor for reasons unbeknown to myself *shrugs* lol .. I never use it on Deck B, does that mean I’m half way to mixing in key or is there more to it? I have enough trouble bar & beatmatching without worrying about whether my two, three or four tracks and key locked. 🙁

    You need to get some basics down! Check out these two beginners’ tutorials: Beginners’ Guide to Keylocking and Beginners’ Guide: The 1-2-3 of Mixing In Key.

    June 25, 2011 at 8:40 pm #635
    Emma Partnow
    Member

    I bought Mixed In Key after studying the Review on Digital DJ Tips; and then the MIK Forums; and have found it to be the Best Money I have spent in recent time;
    Like Phil I have All my Tracks Labeled (included Samples); and though I was Obsessive at first about ‘Only’ Harmonic Mixing; (because I like to Often let Tracks run for up to 2 Minutes together); I have sinc emoved into the Camp of using the Key of the Track as an Informative Guide; but not something that Dictates what I Mix;
    My Current Set goes from 12A to 3B to to 10B to 11A to 7A and it sounds Great;
    So MIK is Not Essential; but I wouldn’t personally do without it 🙂

    June 25, 2011 at 9:33 pm #639
    fullenglishpint
    Member

    I’ve been using MIK (with Traktor) for over a year now, and I find it very useful. I have very basic musical theory training, and I’ve never played piano, so I find the camelot system very useful.
    I don’t use the key as the be all and end all of my music selection, but since I like to mix on the fly rather than plan my sets I find it useful to be able to list my tunes in order of key as a way of helping me choose quickly. Of course, like most DJs, there are often times when I’m playing a track and I just think ‘I know exactly what would go perfectly with this’ so I play that.
    So I guess it’s basically a nice guide to have, but it doesn’t limit me.

    June 26, 2011 at 9:41 am #718
    GKP
    Member

    Phil Morse, post: 604 wrote: You need to get some basics down! Check out these two beginners’ tutorials: Beginners’ Guide to Keylocking and Beginners’ Guide: The 1-2-3 of Mixing In Key.

    I’m checking it out 🙂 cheers Phil!

    Sounds like it’s got to be worth considering.

    June 27, 2011 at 6:10 pm #1061
    DJ Stone Crazy
    Participant

    I use it but I don’t always follow it. The best thing about it? It keeps me from not picking the same songs over and over again each time I do a set.

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