niu02kevin
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niu02kevin
ParticipantCongrats on your new gear. You will get this sorted out and going forward, need to consider that you may need to be buying your music from someplace else. There are a ton of places, and if memory serves, there is a LONG article here on DDJTips of course, ith a list of places to buy mp3/wav files.
And there lies a lot of the problem, iTunes doesn’t sell mp3. They sell m4a/ACC……that has a DRM (digital rights management…..iThink 😉
You have a couple of options. I think you need to convert the songs you want to drop into Traktor, to an mp3 file. I think iTunes can even do this for you. If not, there are plenty of third party convertors. Unfortunately, this process, according to what I’ve read, degrades the file, which is already not the best quality. You may also be dissapointed to know that iTunes doesn’t sell the best quality file. I’m not going to debate whether mp3 is/isn’t as good as wav/aiff, but there are plenty of places that sell the same tune at 320kbps, which is the best quality compressed file you will find, and probably the preferred format for most DJs I know.
This doesn’t mean you can’t use this music……heck use anything, just have fun. But moving forward, I would consider purchasing from the abundant locations that sell 320kbps for $0.99. Take some time to learn about the different file types, after all, you’re a digital DJÂ now.
Good luck.
ParticipantYikes…….mastering. I’ve read books, watched tutorials, etc. If you like how it sounds, it seems like you’re on the right track. But if your mix is bad, there is nothing a mastering engineer will be able to do. Hopefully you have 6-10dBFS headroom on the output channel. If not, I would go back and turn all faders to -inf. Then put your kick around -20dBFS. This is what you will build around. In order of importance, (most first), bring up the faders on other channels until it sits right with the volume of the kick. Throw a gentle compressor on the output, if you haven’t done so already (like 1-2dB gain reduction), then use a limiter while looping the loudest part of your track. Turn it up until it starts to kiss -0.1dBFS. Done, and you saved some money. You want it to be loud, but if you lose dynamic range, it will lose all its punch. Sometimes its the quiet parts that make the loud parts seem loud.
If you really want a professional to do it, there are many online services. Check this one out: http://www.popmusic.dk/links-us.html
Kind of more high-end, but when I have a track ready for pitching to labels, this is who I’m going to use.
And PLEASE READ THE PDF “LEVELS IN DIGITAL AUDIO”. It was one of the more helpful things I read. This guy is all over Logic Pro Help forums and Gearslutz. He’s some kind of Mastering Genius!Other things that have helped me:
5 Minutes to a Better Mix Series. Not my DAW, not my kind of music, but VERY easy to understand, and helpful.
http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjRzsiP_aDWWLHV4-2LKBtg2 Books that are indispensable for any home studio electronic musician:
http://www.amazon.com/Dance-Music-Manual-Tools-Techniques/dp/0240521072
http://www.amazon.com/Mixing-Secrets-Small-Studio-Senior/dp/0240815807If you really want to learn Ableton, go to MacProVideo.com: for $25 you can watch any video they have for a month. It will cover EVERYTHING you could need to know about Ableton. I think there are even some series about House/Dubstep/Electronic Mixing and Mastering in Ableton. Also, they have tutorials about Music Theory and Synthesis that anyone would benefit from watching.
Check out MacProVideo’s The Hub, its an online blog along with AudioTuts.com. these are the places I find the most useful articles.
I know right? I have no social life. Since starting to make music about 6 weeks ago, it is all I do, other than go to work. Don’t worry, you’re going to get better EVERY song you make. I also recommend watching Future Music Magazine’s – In the Studio after you read those books.
I haven’t been doing this long, but if I had to do it over, these are the things I would spend my time doing. Also, make sure you spend at least as much time making music, as you do learning about it.
ParticipantHey Chuck. I joined the Start Now Finish Fast (Mike Monday) team. I was posting on the group forum that I was starting to hate the song I was working on. I was looking for permission to move on, but was challenge to complete it instead.
ParticipantHow much RAM you pushin’? On my 09′ MacBook that did have 2GB RAM, there would be skipping, popping, and the occasional freeze up. Installed another 2GB, never happened again.
ParticipantI think anyone that uses Traktor should own this book. It will teach you to do everything, and while so, explain the physics behind it all. If you want to get the most out of Traktor, I would recommend it. Also, you gain full access to the Traktor Bible website so whenever there is an update to the software, you can follow along as to what the new features are, and how to utilize them.
ParticipantPretty sure Maschine is not a DAW. I believe people use Maschine as a drum sequencer either within their DAW, or drag their MIDI from Maschine into their DAW of choice.Native Instruments has some great HD videos on their website for pretty much everything they offer. I would check that out.
I just started using Logic and it comes with Ultrabeat as a drum sequencer. I did not read good things about it and it seemed that most people were using other plug-ins or hardware like Maschine. But, after watching hours of tutorials on Ultrabeat alone, it is an absolutely incredible piece of software. I think it is rather intimidating, but I’m glad I rolled up my sleeves and learned it inside and out.
And I think that’s just the thing with all of this production stuff. Decide on your software, learn all you can, because in the end, they all pretty much do the same things.
I spend half my time making music, and the other half reading the 1500 page manual for Logic or watching tutorials for which I bought a subscription to learn everything.
I think both Ableton and FL Studio are very capable. In the end, I went with Logic because, I use Mac, and I got everything, software, 10 synths, a sampler, and Ultrabeat, along with 50GB of sounds and loops for $199. The price for Live 9 Suite is a bit of an investment. I’m happy with my choice, and will be busy for a couple years learning all that Logic has to offer.
The only thing I would mention, and this may not even matter. Ableton Live is without a doubt the most prevalent DAW. It is much easier to find books, tutorials (free and paid for), courses online and in person, and of course it is also meant to perform with if that’s your thing.
Good Luck. I thought getting started on the DDJ thing was a bit of a rabbit hole, but production has sucked me in even harder. It’s addicting and I sleep very little. I have to put the wife and kids to bed each night before I start. Shit, it’s 0130 right now and I have to leave for work in 5 hours. I need to go back and adjust the automation on my bass line first though………
ParticipantYou can upgrade the RAM yourself. $100 from the Apple store, prolly less elsewhere. Just need a little glasses screwdriver to take the back of the laptop off.
ParticipantOne of my macs is a 09 MacBook. When I had 2GB RAM, Traktor would skip when I would use my controller. When I upgraded to 4GB, no problem. Make sure that it allows AT LEAST 4GB RAM. And its not a Pro, but DOES have the apple light!
ParticipantSure. Either you could get creative with your mapping, or you can flip the X1 into MIDI mode by holding shift and hotcue, at the same time. It’s like an entire extra page of controls. You could map it to do whatever you want it to. I used to use the X1 to do EVERYTHING. I’d convert to MIDI mode and my X1 became my mixer with EQs, kill switches, filter knobs with on/off, volume-faders, and a cross-fader. Get creative!
ParticipantTerry,
Thank you for taking time to listen and comment. I was hoping you would, and I accept it as very complimentary. I have read a short text on music theory and used some of it. There are perfect fifths littered throughout. I set out to make the song in the key of Am (8A for Camelot DJs ;-), and per MIK, I accomplished that.
I know the lead synth is a little annoying. That is almost the sound I was going for, but without pushing most people over the edge.
I hear you on the structure. All 8 bar phrases and make changes at each, but I wound up introducing the lead line after 32 bars, then dropped it after 16 to bring it back in another 16, then droppping again for the first breakdown. Probably could’ve cut out that whole back and forth and made the first pre-breakdown section 32 bars as I did the post breakdown, giving it more symmetry.
I’ll check out the book as I do enjoy books. Still, I sat down and did this per Mike Monday’s “are ya readin bout makin music, or are ya makin music?” I must say, making this was the best learning experience thus far. I’m seeing how learning one or two new things a day, whether its music theory, synthesis, or Logic function based, adds up over a LONG time.
ParticipantThanks for your reply. I agree that the build/breaks are lacking some energy. I also feel like the melody is off a touch. Well, I may mess around with a couple things but am already itching to start another one. This shits addictive!
ParticipantAnyone? Beuller?
ParticipantThanks for sharing. I’m new at this too. I really liked the percussion elements. Do you have a background as a drummer?
Check mine out at SoundCloud as well. I’ll follow you, if you follow me. How much did you learn doing this? It was a great experience for me.
ParticipantGuys, I posted yesterday in non-dj chat about LogoNerds.com.
For $27 you get unlimited revisions for a web logo
For $47 you get the same for web and business logo if you ever want to print anything.
ParticipantNiets, baby, def was not implying you were lazy. I guess what I meant was the frequency with which I seem to read people having difficulty figuring out what to do with the F1. I guess it boils down to whether or not you want to pay the extra few hundred green backs to add the additional functionality you describe, ala Maschine.
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