Beatport track keys vs Mixed in key

[photojojo]

put the actual key as well.. I find this whole 10A 8B 35Q to be a complete joke.

It's much, much easier to scan down a lits of numbers and find compatible songs than it is to scan down a list of letters.

[tekki]

i use this http://www.ibrahimshaath.co.uk/keyfinder/
did 500 songs in it, checked with a keyboard and all of them were right. good enough for me

This times 12000!

Ish's Keyfinder is awesome! Loving it.


If he would be able to add BPM detection, this would be close to perfection for me.

[backtothefront]

MIK is FAR from perfect. Grab a keyboard and learn to key by ear. It is not that hard.. I tried doing it for a bit, but realized my mixes were WAY better when I was not relying on a key to put two tracks together.

This, this, this and this. Absolutely, tip for all new DJ's, we have a great wealth of tech in our reach but please do not become reliant on it, you have 2 very sensitive sensors either side of your brain which knock the shit out of software, learn to use them.

Here endeth today's lesson...

EDIT:

I will add I own MIK4 but tbh I stopped using it, I thought what am I doing?, spending several hours analysing tracks, making notes etc when I could be actually mixing new tracks and seeing how they might fit together, a great deal more fun and interesting I found. I'd spent the previous 16 years DJing without such software and I looked at what value it was adding and I came to the conclucsion, fuck all.

That's not to say MIK isn't useful and all power to your elbow if it helps, but me, no thanks, I'll just mix the tracks up during practice sessions and see what happens.

[sebastiannz]

Thing is, it's more fun mixing when you're not horribly key clashing every mix.

[rsciangula]

Pioneer has Rekordbox which now has key detection - it's free ... haven't tried it though

[backtothefront]

Thing is, it's more fun mixing when you're not horribly key clashing every mix.

Indeed, not aimed at you bud directly, but if one can't tell if tracks are out of key without using software whilst in the mix, using your ears then well tbh I've no answer to that frankly.

(BTTF, shuffles off, ignores laptop and S4, switches on 1210's and mixes with 12"s and a 2 ch mixer to pay his penance)...

[Jester]

This times 12000!

Ish's Keyfinder is awesome! Loving it.


If he would be able to add BPM detection, this would be close to perfection for me.

new version is out. get on this people (and don't be a cheap ass, throw the chap a few squids )

[photojojo]

If he would be able to add BPM detection, this would be close to perfection for me.

I don't really get why people want to use BPM detection outside of Traktor. I've never really had a problem with it.

[jmastio]

I remember I read something about this here is the link :
http://blog.dubspot.com/dubspot-lab-...y-vs-beatport/
It is already one year ago but anyway it can still give some clues.

[Bassline Brine]

Honestly, I have had a love/hate relationship with MiK. But right now? I'm using it, and loving it.

I did have an issue with the company itself for awhile, selling their Mac and Windows licenses separate. But that has been resolved, and I now own and use MiK again.

And you know what? It wasn't just a suggestion from these boards. I heard it from a fair few local DJ's in my area, whom I respect. And it was one of those suggestions that made me come back to it again, and see what it really was all about.

I bought it at first... awhile ago. Getting my music ready, before I had bought anything to mix with. Just thought it sounded like a solid idea. And then my PC Desktop died (what I was using at the time) and cue basically two years later, and I'm trying it again.

And you know what? I find it's a lot of fun to mix utilizing the Camelot Wheel / Harmonic mixing. Yeah, I'm not doing some combinations off the cuff as much as I was before... but my mixes are NOT clashing, and well, maybe I should have the ear for this better naturally, but it works.

I also kind of find it fun moving around the circle, picking tracks in that next step that would sound good for the moment. It works really well with the style of mixing I've set up for myself.

For a one (or more) hour gig, what I do is pick about 120+ songs, and put them in a playlist. All songs I know well, and all stuff that would work for the evening. Pretty simple really. What I had been doing is going off the cuff with that playlist, going from song to song that I thought would fit well. But I'll admit, I had some key clashing, even though other things lined up.

Here comes in MiK. Now, I just organize it by key, and go around the circle to a degree. Sometimes staying on the same key, going to major, back, down for a minute, but it's all pretty simple. I have enough songs that they work well together, and it's building a story with those songs, watching the crowd, and just making it another aspect of my routine.

I like it. It does take some thought out of what song I will pick next, by limiting the options that I want to roll with, but it works. I still do everything manually (beatmatching, picking the track to drop off the cuff)... but that limitation is sometimes a strength. And that's what it comes down to. I like my mixes that I've been using MiK with more than the ones I haven't. And in the end? That's really all that matters.

If you have time, and want to listen, these are two of my most recent mixes. (I've been spinning breaks almost exclusively lately, but I imagine the principles carry over rather well across the board).

Using harmonic mixing:
http://soundcloud.com/crb/bear-blasting-breaks

Without using harmonic mixing:
http://soundcloud.com/crb/bbq-steak-break

I like both of the mixes. Honestly I do. I listen back to what I record a lot to figure out where I can improve, if there are any better places I could have mixed tracks in. And I really think that using Harmonic mixing techniques have improved my mixes. It's tough to put a pin down on it, but that's just how it is.

So, I'd highly recommend it to anyone interested. It's not for everyone. You can have great mixes without using it. But I find it an enjoyable system to mess about with, and feel it's honestly improved my mixing. I can't say much more than that, other than try it for yourself.


And to the OP: I think it's best to stick with one program or solution. If it's Beatport, MiK, RE... or just using a keyboard. Just use the same thing across all your tracks, and you should be more than fine. Switching it up is just going to miss out on consistency IMO.