B.B. Koning
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B.B. Koning
ParticipantI forgot to mention that I have Windows 7, if that helps at all.
When I backed up the folders from the hard drive that failed to the backup one, it grouped all the folders into a master folder called ‘local disk’. However, inside of that folder, the file structure that Traktor would have seen it under (i.e. the folders they came from) is the exact same.
I don’t know if perhaps I should drag all the folders out of the local disk master folder, and put them all independently in the drive as separate folders. Maybe then I could change the drive letter to match Traktor’s old drive letter, as was suggested to me by somebody?
ParticipantHee Won Jung, post: 33941, member: 948 wrote: Layer that stuff. Progressive and Electro are more of a A to B as there is a lot of the sound spectrum used within a single track.
With Tech House/Deep/Soul/House, layer that shit…get track A going add in B add in C…sample…a bit from Deck D..
I really enjoy mixing what i will call “Euro” House…thats the real stuff…Stefano Noferini, Grabriel Rocha, Manuel De La Mere, all amazing tech house…but it can sound boring and dull to a crowd as the beat is so simple…just gotta add in more from other tracks….Mixing in Key helps a ton
Indeed, that is the real stuff. It doesn’t necessarily sound boring to all crowds by itself, however. I have been at gigs in Europe where it was the same tech house beat for nearly 24 hours (literally), and the crowd ate that shit up like candy.
I guess it depends on the room and the audience. Where I am now…no effing way it would work. All they want to hear is generic Guetta and Dubstep 24/7.
I definitely agree with you on layering though.
ParticipantShadow played here over the weekend, at a club that very much advertises itself as being the ‘in’ place to party.
VIP bullshit up to your eyeballs in that joint. Which is really kind of sad, since they do book some pretty decent DJs (Sash/Dig/Sander van Doorn) every so often.
I was wondering how exactly he was going to go over in such a bullshit rank environment.
The last time I saw him, it was in a dingy old converted factory. Very underground, very badass and very early on in his career.
You have to wonder if his talent agency/management/agent/promoter is selling him a bill of goods, or if they really don’t understand the kinds of places they are putting their artists.
ParticipantSuch Traktor hate….sigh.
Yes, yes, we know you’re a ‘real DJ’. We know you can use Serato, manually beatmatch, spin on Technics decks, CDJs, or a Fisher Price children’s turntable.
That’s great. Respect where respect is due.
But for people to be such dicks about a piece of software that can do so much for what amounts to such a minimal cost in comparison to other equipment/software? I think Phil once said that it is built like a flight deck, and that’s pretty accurate.
It might not be the most intuitive or user friendly, but the fact remains that you can do some pretty amazing stuff with it.
November 30, 2012 at 9:48 pm in reply to: Do you think digital djing makes djs play out to soon??? #32965ParticipantD-Jam, post: 32056, member: 3 wrote: I’ve seen rank amateurs come out and play on vinyl long before any laptops got into the booth.
What changed now? Promoters got sloppy.
They want a quick buck and have no clue how to plan and promote events that they take on the freejays or cheap DJs and thus fail. Not to mention since 2000 the promoters have pushed the scene to be about fashion and not about the music. Even now with the whole mainstream popularity and such of EDM, the scene is still more about VIPs, girls dressed like strippers competing for attention, guys pretending to be wealthy alpha males, and the DJ as simply a jukebox.
I’ve seen guys who learn the basics of beatmatching and they run out to play. They have no clue how to open or even how to play to a crowd. They just want their moment to be in the booth and pretend it’s like the fantasies they make of DJing.
Laptops and sync didn’t change this. It’s when promoters made the DJ less important to the night in many aspects, and they now look at ROI to the point that they’ll fathom the rank amateur if they can put a tight leash around him/her.
Well said, sir. Well said indeed. Honestly, that’s what turned my heart out of the dance scene for a period of time. Why should somebody who can’t afford 100 dollar shirts and shoes be banned from dancing and having a good time?
And yeah, every girl and their mother, especially in the States, wear the same two tight black dresses.
Alphas push you around and take pictures for their FB wall when you’re trying to dance to an artist they’ve never heard of nor care to know about.
It’s a sad state of affairs.
On the flip side, the digital age has allowed those who love the art form but cannot afford to drop 4 grand or so on CDJs/1200s and a mixer the opportunity to express themselves.
ParticipantI’m feeling rather stagnant at the moment.
Not so much that I don’t have new tunes to use. Just that I’ve been testing some of my core destroyers that I know oh so well in different forms mixed together to different audiences and colleagues. My colleagues can give me feedback about how that particular re-arrangement went, and the great unwashed can give me feedback on if I’m correctly blowing their minds or not.
That’s all well and good, but I just feel stuck in a rut. I suppose it’s normal to fall into a funk or get lazy every once in awhile.
I guess I’ve just been playing it safe until I have a better handle on some of my newer songs and getting them to transition between genres at the right point.
ParticipantI more or less had to learn using headphones, since I share living space.
Because I learned this way, I actually prefer it. That being said, it’s better to have skills with both. I just like the instant gratification I guess.
ParticipantI think this is excellent advice under most circumstances.
The exception is in those unfortunate towns where *nobody* is holding nights that showcase the type of music you like to spin.
Sure, you can find other people of like mind and make your own night, but it gets more difficult if you cannot locate anybody that even likes the same style of music that you do.
I’m not poo pooing the advice; rather, I’m just saying that I know those who are sort of stuck in dead scenes or cow towns with no rational way to just up and move to a bigger city with a greater scene.
Good on you for bringing this up.
ParticipantKent Sandvik, post: 31383, member: 3967 wrote: Is anyone still worried about showing what tracks they play? Isn’t this like the eighties white label thingies with local DJs competing about the same clubs? Just show what you play, don’t see any harm doing that.
Oh and if you still want to hide the info, obscure the ID3 track info. Anyway, I would not do that.
As I said, I’m happy to answer any questions on what the tracks are. If you want to show all your tracks, fine. I’ve made my case, I have my reasons, and I respect your opinion. You don’t have to agree. I assume you live in a free country, and are, therefore, welcome to disagree.
That’s the beauty of a community. Everybody has their own take.
ParticipantSi BooGie, post: 31327, member: 3469 wrote: Remove the setting from the broadcast area, they’re for broadcasting the metadata although I don’t know why you wouldn’t want to credit the artist and tracks you’re playing. Remember learning of tracks is a two way street and it’s not hard to find out the title of a track just by listening as there are so many audio recognition tools these days. Also, it’s not as if the DJs on Mixify are you neighbours and in completion with you, me included. I don’t use DVS so can’t send metadata but I wish I could but when I play if some one ask the the track info I always give it, it’s about being a community and sharing.
If somebody wants a track ID, I’m happy to give it. That’s not the issue. I have seen instances out there in the icecast/shoutcast scene of people snaking not just a track or two, but several at a time. You are correct that most people on Mixify and other sites are not my ‘neighbors’. There are a few that are close enough, however.
In one light, you know that you you are doing something right if somebody pulls tracks from your mix. But on the other hand, I have seen instances where setlists are just a little too identical.
As a DJ, I would think you would want a way to shape something that is unique, which includes track selection.
On this, I suppose we will have to agree to disagree.
ParticipantI haven’t played out yet, but I have been actively dipping my toe in the live DJ broadcasting scene.
I did a set where I got incredible feedback from a room that was basically all fellow DJs. I came with stuff that they hadn’t heard before, and I felt like it all flowed together reasonably well.
Of course, I felt like there were some misses, but I am currently doing sets with the same core set structure.
I had wondered about whether or not this was acceptable or not myself, so it’s good that you raised the debate.
Given that my crowd is basically other DJs, there is the possible backlash. But I’m running with the theory that there’s always somebody coming into the room that may not have heard these songs yet.
Also, I love all music, and I bet you do too.
Gene Simmons of KISS basically said that he’s not going to change their setlist drastically from one gig to the other, not just because of the tightly coordinated lights and pyro, but also because the likelihood is greater that there will be a greater percentage of people who have not seen their show yet.
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Rock bands have been doing this kind of thing for years.
September 29, 2012 at 1:39 am in reply to: Ever purposely post a mix with a few minor mistakes? #1012837ParticipantNicko D., post: 29260, member: 2782 wrote: I do my mixes live too but only recently started posting them on mixcloud. So my second one I was doing I made a mistake (I picked a track that had the same title but was lower kbps that I forgot to the eliminate from my iTunes library) and I panicked. So I stopped my recording and posted a little over an hour of my 3 hour set.
Of couse it figures that the rest of the darn set was fantastic. I had messages on my phone at the end saying “this was the best one yet!” and of course I didn’t capture any of it because I got scared.
So from now on lesson learned. The entire mix gets recorded and posted. Good bad or indifferent. I will just keep faith in humanity that the people are as awesome as the audience in this forum. 🙂
Well said, my friend. Well said. That was also another reason I wanted to post it. After the mistakes, I was like ‘oh sh***!’ If I’m 10 minutes or less into the thing, I’m okay with starting over. But getting further into it, and especially when the effects and tracks/drops seem to be working, it just feels like I won’t be able to re-capture the same vibe of being in the zone by starting over.
September 29, 2012 at 1:35 am in reply to: Ever purposely post a mix with a few minor mistakes? #1012836ParticipantD-Jam, post: 29263, member: 3 wrote: I will tell you…in most cases, DJs and hardcore enthusiasts will notice mistakes. It doesn’t excuse you from trying to achieve as close to perfection as you can, but also bear in mind most fans won’t notice mistakes.
I use sync nowadays, and I don’t deliberately insert mistakes, but I don’t try to make things “100% perfection” because it’s like performing a song on an instrument. Every time you play that song…it’ll sound a little different than the other times you played it.
I always think of the non-DJ/non-enthusiasts when I make mixes…because the DJs and die-hards are mainly going to listen to big names over you. It’s the average joes and janes who will listen and love those mixes made by locals.
I’ve tried honestly to use DAW stuff to make mixes…even played with MixMeister. I just can’t do it. I can’t just lay out tunes and call it a day. I need to play it like I’m at a club. Granted I can redo a bad blend with some audio slicing in a program like Sound Forge, but I never felt like I could make something “amazing” unless I’m playing it like I would in a club…sync or no sync.
Even when I am playing said set and recording, my mind imagines myself in that perfect club or event…so I keep the vibe attuned to that imaginary place. I’m sure Phil and some others would tell me I need to get back into doing gigs…but that’s a different debate.
D, that is sort of what my mindset was. I am concerned about DJs and enthusiasts noticing, which is one of the primary reasons I was hesitant. That being said, I really feel like the sum was greater than the lesser part.
I try for perfection, but I’m just not good enough not to make a mistake at this point, frankly. But the re-assuring thing is the feedback I’ve gotten on this forum. Nice to hear that everybody feels that live is the way to go, and mistakes are a part of life, from Digweed down to the bedroom enthusiast.
I did one mix where I used the sync through the entire thing, simply because I was working with drum patterns that just weren’t working well with my skill level.
Since then, I’ve made it a point to focus on exclusively manual beatmatching and using Traktor’s ahead/behind the curve feature to adjust the best that I can.
It ain’t easy, and mouse head can suck my pinky for saying you just need to count to four.
I’m really looking forward to getting my feet wet, and I hope that the end result and the passion will shine through enough to carry through the f-ups.
September 27, 2012 at 1:56 am in reply to: Am I the only DJ who HATES sets with live musicians? #1012700ParticipantFor the most part, I’m with you.
I saw Oakenfold do a show where a local rapper showed up and decided to fill in over the top. Not only did it suck, but it completely killed the energy in the room. Seriously. The place was going effing nuts and then—zap. Deadspace.
Also, during the “We Are Your Friends” craze of last year on the European scene, a soul singer got up and ruined a high profile night in one stab by singing impromptu chants off key during the set.
On the flip side, I’ve seen it work to.
Two examples:
A jazz night at the Melkweg that was a perfect hybrid of actual musicians and old school soul classics from the decks.
An ensemble called Royale With Cheese that spun at AIR. The place was packed (AIR usually is), and it did not hinder it at all.
So I’d say you have to tread carefully. Very very carefully.
September 26, 2012 at 7:45 pm in reply to: Ever purposely post a mix with a few minor mistakes? #1012658ParticipantD-Jam, post: 29073, member: 3 wrote: I’ve posted mixes with a timing error or some “drift off” in a blend.
It’s what makes people know you’re human.
I keep up with your posts, so I know you’ve been in the game for quite some time. It is very re-assuring to know that you’re of that mindset. Thanks for the encouragement/affirmation.
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