Someone please help with transitioning

[RenegadeCz]

im a bit confused ( and i know this will sound extremely noobish so try not to make fun) about the 16 or 32 bars. So do you guys set cuepoints for each song you have downloaded? Basically what I am understanding is to set up cue points 16 or 32 bars before the actual beat comes in on the song i want to transition to and I press play on that once the song i have playing is ending?

[JaF]

What I always thought would be a really cool idea would be to have people mix 2 songs in their style and upload it so beginners could see various ways people approach it.

[dstep]

[teknik1200]

track selection is very important. you obviously can't mix things that have too much going on or that clash musically without annoying people. some tracks work as "dj tools" that tend to me more mixable, it's always good to have some of these on hand.

the style of music you play will also have a big role in this. simple stripped down tracks with long loopy intros that don't do much make for better mixing fodder then other types of music.

you can pull a lot out of the incoming track with the EQ. I've been in this game for a long time and I don't think there is any given formula that needs to be stuck to, it's more of a matter of knowing the tracks and getting things that fit together.

make it your own!

if your digital you can also edit the tracks to make more mix friendly sections.

[JaF]

So do you guys set cuepoints for each song you have downloaded?

Yes

Basically what I am understanding is to set up cue points 16 or 32 bars before the actual beat comes in on the song

Don't over think it to much. Listen to a song and when it changes, that's a point you can't set as a cue. You start mixing your new song into that point before or after and if you manage to finish doing that within a phrase that would be considered fine. As the video show in the first example, you can even just drop the new song at that cue and stop the old one with no transition.

[robbyluca]

So do you guys set cuepoints for each song you have downloaded? Basically what I am understanding is to set up cue points 16 or 32 bars before the actual beat comes in on the song i want to transition to and I press play on that once the song i have playing is ending?

EDM tracks normally have 1 minute long intros, I usually put 3 cue points.
1) at the first beat of the song (~0 seconds) (with 1 minute until the main beat comes in)
2) at the 8th bar (~15 seconds) (with 45 seconds until the main beat comes in)
3) at the 16th bar (~30 seconds) (with 30 seconds until the main beat comes in)

I normally use the 2nd cue. I beatmatch, make sure it sounds good, and after 20 seconds I start bringing it in slowly.
But at clubs I mostly use the 3rd cue point for faster transitions.
It really depends on the songs that are playing.

[deathy]

(Disclaimer: I'm a newb, so my comment should be taken with a grain of salt.)

I do harmonic mixing of Ghetto Funk. I set 6 markers for transitions, 3 in front and 3 at the back. I call them "Early, Mid and Late" in and out transitions.

The Late transition markers are usually during the first and last 8 bars where the songs tend to be the most relaxed and will almost always mix together (usually just a beat with maybe a little bit of light musical content). These are good for songs that don't mix well together, or if I'm trying not to drive too much energy into the mix at the moment. When I hit the late out marker on the outgoing song, I start the next song at it's late in marker.

The Mid out marker starts 8 bars before the end of the grime, and the mid in marker starts 8 bars before the start of the grime in the next song. If the two songs are harmonically compatible then I can use these when I'm trying to keep the energy high.

The early out and in markers are 8 bars before the mid markers, they are for songs that mix really nicely together. With these, I can keep the energy driving and also have a long mix of the two songs so that it's hard to tell the exact point where I transition.

I tend to prefer to use a fast EQ transition when I reach the end of the section my 8 bar markers indicate, either the end of the beat outro if I'm going for late, or when the grime stops on the previous song and starts on the new one if using mid or early.

I still have a lot left to learn, but I tend to be very happy with these transitions most of the time. From there, I pay attention to the shape of the two songs and also practice a lot so that I have a good feeling for where there are exceptions in the songs I play. I've gotten to where I can usually tell when the energy is about to spike or drop out by ear, which is good, but I still prefer to have the markers because when I'm playing live, I find I am more distracted than I am when I practice in my bedroom and they help me to not lose my place as easily.