Tell me about your practice

[itsbentheboy]

so i picked some pretty decent turntables. the Gemini XL-500II direct drive. its not very strong, and bounces like a sluts bedframe, but still i practice.

i've been practicing since january. almost every day for an hour. i finally feel a little ok with my skills that i'm gaining.

but its still small, simple, and novice to me. i dont feel like im growing as fast as i should be in scratching and beat matching.

so.... i ask you guys. how long did you practice before you felt good about your skills, and how difficult would you say it was to get there. do you think it could have some to do with really bouncy and semi-weak decks? i wouldnt blame it on them totally, cause ive seen people kick ass on plastic shit numark belt drives. but seriously, i need to start improving more than this. its hardly noticeable to me that im improving. gimme some of your tips to improve, and how you practice.

TL;DR give me practice help and ways to improve. questions welcome too.

[hipnopath]

It's better to practice a little bit everyday than a lot one day (say 20 minutes a day vs. 2 hours in a weekend). I'd say it took me about 6 months to become confident with my skills and it wasn't difficult, just time consuming. I learned to scratch on belt driven turntables, but once I got just one 1200, even with a shitty mixer, I was able to increase my ability by A LOT because of the added torque and tracking ability which is important in scratching. If you keep practicing, you ARE improving if you notice it or not. The best way is to record your practices and view them after noting what you need to work on. I did this my entire way in learning and I think it has helped me a lot.

Here's me with 6 months of scratching.



Here's me with one year of scratching.



And here's me just about now.



So in other words: practice, practice, practice. I learned most of what I know from DJ Angelo's YouTube tutorials which I highly suggest you use. He is a magnificent teacher and his tutorials are top notch.

[itsbentheboy]

IVE SEEN YOUR VIDS! ive scrounged youtube, and am currently taking hints from DJ Angelo, and the bare stuff Shiftee lets out from Dubspot.

well, atleast i will have more time come summer, and will be able to scratch in peace while im relaxed, not stressed from a days work and school.

[JesusJuice]

and i think being around others that are better than you to practice with makes you work harder/learn more in my opinion. its like your always pushing each other to become better. if you understand what im saying

[itsbentheboy]

yeah, unfortunately i only have the internet. not many dj's around the north central america

[JesusJuice]

ah.... WAIT JUST A MINUTE! are you from guatemala?!!?

[itsbentheboy]

no, sorry, i described that bad. north central UNITED STATES, not Central America. sorry for the confusion, im from North Dakota.

[JesusJuice]

ohh you in the states! there is a dj around every corner just gotta look hard enough

[itsbentheboy]

i know alot of people aspiring to be producers, or are already good producers, or artists of traditional instruments, but i'm the only aspiring turntablist around it seems

[djproben]

dang hipnopath, I started scratching over 10 years ago and your 6 months video makes me look like an amateur It shows exactly what you're talking about re: practice though; the times I did practice daily for a couple months I saw dramatic improvements. The reason I still suck is I just don't ever practice regularly these days.