Agree with some...disagree with others. My philosophy on echo out is "vocal echo out". "Horay-ay-ay-ay-ay". Low end must be cut-off. Hearing any sort of dung-dung-dung bass echo is a no no. It has the potential to clear a dance floor. Another thing is how you managed the gains - anything above 0 db is too loud! Unless the sound system is too quiet, going above 0db on either master or channel gains, means you're too loud. That's my philosophy on the topic, it's an agree to disagree type of situation, but I'd like to know what the other viewers think about it.
Usually its best to aim for a consistent 0db with peaks going no more than +6db. Your mixer also has more headroom than 6db on channel inputs (e.g. Xone 96 with 20db) so its not directly distorting if you hit the red lights occasionally. But you can't properly monitor the levels above red and it should be avoided if you don't know what you're doing. I know some ppl in the techno scene which use the analog distortion from channel gains for adding texture to the sound. For the master out red lights should be avoided as the amplifier behind it will most likely be level matched.
Just curious why you would use your trim instead of your up faders? Are your up faders set for cutting? I use trim for minor adjustments once the up faders hit the top.
So the first thing you said is not the best practice. The meters measure in peak volume, which is different to how we hear - average volume. You’re right in that you don’t want them in the red, but you should match volume with your ears, THEN make sure it’s not too loud or too quiet.
As a festival DJ of 30 years along with being Sponsored by VESTAX for many years, ALWAYS keep your gains at 12 0 o'clock unless your mixing in, then drop the gain back to 12 o'clock once you do. Sound engineers will know if you are PRO if you do that, and your sets will always sound nice with Full Spectrum of sound...
you will sound so professional when you go from an old 60s/70s track to something modern and keeping the gain at 12 o'clock. Well in the kindergarten or "how to not do it forum" may be... Everywhere else use the gain for what it's meant to be used but bring the tracks all to the same volume level before fader
The graphic eq does have a purpose and by using the 12 o clock thing it’s being ignored. Gains set to 0db is the way to go that way both tracks are same volume whilst leaving lots of headroom.
Most programs have auto gain settings. 92 db is standard and does well. I keep the gains at 12 o clock then from there adjust the master volume and keeping it out of the red
I like EQ mixing and I usually do this to sound the transition cleaner. Sometimes you have hi hats or anyhting in the high section in the song that you really can hear a lot out of it. This mostly "destroys" the flow of the harmonic mixing, so I'll put it depending on the song between 9 and 11 o'clock position and mix smoothly out the old heights to bring in the new ones. Also, sometimes if the old song got too dominant vocals at the end, I level down the mids a bit to adjust it for a cleaner transition. Also, as I learned from dj.studio, bass swapping fits in a lot more situations than I thought.
If you have Channel A right before red and Chanel B right before ref and you blend them with both volume faders up arent you now deep "in the red" since both tracks were already there and are now being combined? Isnt it better to leave more headroom on both tracks?
I wonder if any DJ controller have/or will get volume a compressor/limiter built in? I remember when I had a rack setup that included a RDS 8000 Time Machine, ART SC2 compressor/limiter gate.
High-shelf mixers and consoles do have a built-in hardware limiters, which engages once you go above 0db on the meters, cheap controllers might use a software one in Serato/Recordbox etc. Won't compare to the hardware you used, but does the job ;)
Great content man! Learned some good nuggets in making my mixing sound more professional. Subscribed to your channel. Looking forward to seeing more content.
Also i forgot to say i switched my ddj-sr2 for a FLX 10 and when i was using echo -to echo out i had the wet dry at 2-o-clock and realized why it sounds lousy was because it was too much as you mentioned in this video . Seems like Reverb is Number 1 and Echo is number ? Sometimes the word you echo out on has too many letters and it sounds weird . I tried it on - 1 beat-then 3/4 - then 2 beats is too long of a tail .Thank You Allan
It looks to me, he's afraid his left speaker is going to be stolen so he needs an immovable object to keep it safe. But the real question is, is the speaker worthy? But I do have to say, aren't STEMs nice to have?
I get why you would post this. Distortion and clipping are no good, however it doesn’t work with all genres, I do a lot of underground and old skoo hip hop and it really depends on how the track was recorded. Im always adjusting the gains so it dont clip out. Also keep the levels on each channel 3 quarters up just for this. With house, this vid is good for it.
Spot on breakdown…Been spinning since ‘84…Everything you explained is exactly what I do as a natural progression from the many years of working on the craft…⚡️🔥💯
super helpful, thank you!!!! I guess my question would be how to deal with a venue with sub-optimal sound. I have a monitor up in the booth but it really doesn't seem like a lot of nuance can ever get through
Actually, you should avoid touching the Yellows so that you'll still have enough headroom when both tracks are released together in the mix. You should also tell your sound engineer to have system checks as you go touching the 'yellows' the audio mixer will start to compress or limit the overall outputs. DEEJAYS may not notice or even forget to pullback the track so that he will stay GREEN all the time. The general solution is, monitor or PFL/SOLO the track first how much gain the song has then adjust the proper volume before releasing it in the mix.
Are you for real? How can you call yourself a Disc Jockey with no Vinyl ?Go Get a record collection and come back 😂Without Vinyl you simply are not a DJ .
Remember that scene in Die Hard 4.0 when Thomas Gabriel played by Timothy Olyphant said to John McClane: "John, You're a Timex watch in a digital age" 😅😂 great line if I may add and you sir are that Timex watch ⌚️ in this digital era 🤷🏿♂️
Thanks for the tips, I always thought my outdated controller was why the gain was so high when my cross fader was in the middle during a mix. I will be adjusting my low end to 9:00 on transitions to my next song for now on.
One of the best videos you have released… I’m self aware enough to realise I kill the lows wayy too much im going to try you 9 oclock and listen back and see if it improves my mixes thumbs up great content pdot 🎉
Every mixer has a different distortion threshold but I'd highly recommend to stay out of the red no matter what.
Or blue if using Denon dj Prime gear lol.
It goes well until you get a lower recording track 😂
Record your mix transitions then you will understand it.
Moving from a track at its pick to the intro on the next track.
Kills the mood on dance floor
Yes! I am planning on doing a follow up video to this one that focuses more on the programing side compared to this being more of the technical side.
Agree with some...disagree with others. My philosophy on echo out is "vocal echo out". "Horay-ay-ay-ay-ay". Low end must be cut-off. Hearing any sort of dung-dung-dung bass echo is a no no. It has the potential to clear a dance floor. Another thing is how you managed the gains - anything above 0 db is too loud! Unless the sound system is too quiet, going above 0db on either master or channel gains, means you're too loud. That's my philosophy on the topic, it's an agree to disagree type of situation, but I'd like to know what the other viewers think about it.
I usually apply a high pass filter before echo out. I think I saw jazzy Jeff mention it in a demo somewhere.
Usually its best to aim for a consistent 0db with peaks going no more than +6db. Your mixer also has more headroom than 6db on channel inputs (e.g. Xone 96 with 20db) so its not directly distorting if you hit the red lights occasionally. But you can't properly monitor the levels above red and it should be avoided if you don't know what you're doing. I know some ppl in the techno scene which use the analog distortion from channel gains for adding texture to the sound. For the master out red lights should be avoided as the amplifier behind it will most likely be level matched.
Miss that echo with eq cut from djm 909
I always echo with high pass filter. Agree re: 0 dB. Should never go above that.
You forgot Phrasing which is very important.
5 common mistakes - Bad song selection - 5 times per night
All good points. I def need to manage my echo. Love seeing the new kit. Hope your enjoying it.
Very useful... but another issue is mixing parts with vocals. So many do this...
Vocal clash is the worst!
Definitely
Just curious why you would use your trim instead of your up faders? Are your up faders set for cutting? I use trim for minor adjustments once the up faders hit the top.
A-Trak in da house, nice.
I teach my dj students to set the gain level so the meter hits the first to second yellow LED
That echo fx damn bro..👍👍dats true... happens to me
1:20 when checking your levels make sure your checking them at the middle of the the track where energy is at max
So the first thing you said is not the best practice. The meters measure in peak volume, which is different to how we hear - average volume. You’re right in that you don’t want them in the red, but you should match volume with your ears, THEN make sure it’s not too loud or too quiet.
As a festival DJ of 30 years along with being Sponsored by VESTAX for many years, ALWAYS keep your gains at 12 0 o'clock unless your mixing in, then drop the gain back to 12 o'clock once you do. Sound engineers will know if you are PRO if you do that, and your sets will always sound nice with Full Spectrum of sound...
you will sound so professional when you go from an old 60s/70s track to something modern and keeping the gain at 12 o'clock. Well in the kindergarten or "how to not do it forum" may be... Everywhere else use the gain for what it's meant to be used but bring the tracks all to the same volume level before fader
The graphic eq does have a purpose and by using the 12 o clock thing it’s being ignored. Gains set to 0db is the way to go that way both tracks are same volume whilst leaving lots of headroom.
That's beginner stuff.
Most programs have auto gain settings. 92 db is standard and does well. I keep the gains at 12 o clock then from there adjust the master volume and keeping it out of the red
Latin Dj’s don’t care 1 bit about clipping 😂 seen this so many times.
2 sounds played together I e. 2 kicks , will boost those frequencies by +6db on the master bus
I like EQ mixing and I usually do this to sound the transition cleaner. Sometimes you have hi hats or anyhting in the high section in the song that you really can hear a lot out of it. This mostly "destroys" the flow of the harmonic mixing, so I'll put it depending on the song between 9 and 11 o'clock position and mix smoothly out the old heights to bring in the new ones. Also, sometimes if the old song got too dominant vocals at the end, I level down the mids a bit to adjust it for a cleaner transition.
Also, as I learned from dj.studio, bass swapping fits in a lot more situations than I thought.
If you have Channel A right before red and Chanel B right before ref and you blend them with both volume faders up arent you now deep "in the red" since both tracks were already there and are now being combined? Isnt it better to leave more headroom on both tracks?
My thoughts also
+1
Cutting the lows and even the mids on the incoming track will give you headroom
Great info. What set up are you using?
I wonder if any DJ controller have/or will get volume a compressor/limiter built in? I remember when I had a rack setup that included a RDS 8000 Time Machine, ART SC2 compressor/limiter gate.
High-shelf mixers and consoles do have a built-in hardware limiters, which engages once you go above 0db on the meters, cheap controllers might use a software one in Serato/Recordbox etc.
Won't compare to the hardware you used, but does the job ;)
Great content man! Learned some good nuggets in making my mixing sound more professional. Subscribed to your channel. Looking forward to seeing more content.
Thank you so much for watching! I'm glad you got something out of my content!
DJs who airhorn every 5 seconds 👎👎👎👎🤌🤌🤌🙅🙅🙅🤮🤮🤮😵😵😵🤬🤬🤬
If they are hitting the horn that often, they are compensating for something...
every DJ should internalize these basics
Volume creep is a big one - we go salsa dancing and a lot of Dj’s music keeps getting louder and louder - i bring ear plugs Lol 😆
It's a real thing!
Also i forgot to say i switched my ddj-sr2 for a FLX 10 and when i was using echo -to echo out i had the wet dry at 2-o-clock and realized why it sounds lousy was because it was too much as you mentioned in this video . Seems like Reverb is Number 1 and Echo is number ? Sometimes the word you echo out on has too many letters and it sounds weird . I tried it on - 1 beat-then 3/4 - then 2 beats is too long of a tail .Thank You Allan
It looks to me, he's afraid his left speaker is going to be stolen so he needs an immovable object to keep it safe. But the real question is, is the speaker worthy?
But I do have to say, aren't STEMs nice to have?
Can you do a video explaining exactly what Treble, Mid, Bass are on the mixer & how to properly use/adjust them in club settings?
I get why you would post this. Distortion and clipping are no good, however it doesn’t work with all genres, I do a lot of underground and old skoo hip hop and it really depends on how the track was recorded. Im always adjusting the gains so it dont clip out. Also keep the levels on each channel 3 quarters up just for this. With house, this vid is good for it.
Spot on breakdown…Been spinning since ‘84…Everything you explained is exactly what I do as a natural progression from the many years of working on the craft…⚡️🔥💯
Never have to worry about gain in VDJ Infinity. Set to 0db and forget it.
super helpful, thank you!!!!
I guess my question would be how to deal with a venue with sub-optimal sound. I have a monitor up in the booth but it really doesn't seem like a lot of nuance can ever get through
Yo what are these tracks? 🔥🔥
I think the first one is a remix to Borderline by Tame Impala
What software doesn’t have auto gain?
Actually, you should avoid touching the Yellows so that you'll still have enough headroom when both tracks are released together in the mix. You should also tell your sound engineer to have system checks as you go touching the 'yellows' the audio mixer will start to compress or limit the overall outputs. DEEJAYS may not notice or even forget to pullback the track so that he will stay GREEN all the time. The general solution is, monitor or PFL/SOLO the track first how much gain the song has then adjust the proper volume before releasing it in the mix.
Thank you very much for video and time!!
Are you for real? How can you call yourself a Disc Jockey with no Vinyl ?Go Get a record collection and come back 😂Without Vinyl you simply are not a DJ .
I'm laughing so much I can't even tell you how wrong your staement is.🤣🤣🤣
bro what😂😂what year are you from? get up to date
Vinyl does NOT make YOU A DJ, you’re a collector that happens to DJ. Don’t be a disgruntled old head.
Remember that scene in Die Hard 4.0 when Thomas Gabriel played by Timothy Olyphant said to John McClane: "John, You're a Timex watch in a digital age" 😅😂 great line if I may add and you sir are that Timex watch ⌚️ in this digital era 🤷🏿♂️
Bro! Spot on!! Excellent points to bring up. I will definitely remember these.
Thank you for watching!
Patiently waiting for the famous “IF YOU’RE NOT REDLINING, YOU’RE NOT HEADLINING” comment 🤣
I have become the very thing I wished to Destroy 🥲
Does it even have to be said at this point? haha
Exactly i do, nice vid.
Mann WTH
Thank you ! As always, great tips brother 🙏
Facts!!!!
Nice 🔥🔥
I'm guilty of the volume creep so appreciate the useful tips. Thanks. Peace.
great great tips, I'm learning as we speak and I'll try to implement these on my next practice for keeping good habits
GREAT TIPS PDOT !!!!! THANK YOU MAN!!!
Golden nuggets here
Great video...how about the going over the curve and crossfader settings.
Thanks for the tips, I always thought my outdated controller was why the gain was so high when my cross fader was in the middle during a mix. I will be adjusting my low end to 9:00 on transitions to my next song for now on.
One of the best videos you have released… I’m self aware enough to realise I kill the lows wayy too much im going to try you 9 oclock and listen back and see if it improves my mixes thumbs up great content pdot 🎉
Thanks so much with the echo I go threw this with that part
💪🏾💯
Wack af.