Just cant master doing a simple mix, any tips?

[mdcdesign]

When I'm practicing, I typically just screw around. I'm not actually TRYING to do anything in particular; I'll just load tracks at random, usually ones I've never even heard before, and attempt to mix them together. I do this without headphones, visually, because I'm not actually trying to sound good. I'll stop both tracks, rewind stuff without taking the volume down, set cue points on the fly then jump back to previous parts of both songs and try different things over and over again. I might spend 10-15 minutes just on a single mix, and if I find something that works - and works REALLY well - I'll stick them both in my "Worked Pairs" playlist so I can use them live.

There's a diference between practicing mixes and practicing a set; typically with the former, you're trying to make new discoveries; with the latter, you're putting it all together smoothly.

[Patch]

When I'm practicing, I typically just screw around. I'm not actually TRYING to do anything in particular; I'll just load tracks at random, usually ones I've never even heard before, and attempt to mix them together. I do this without headphones, visually, because I'm not actually trying to sound good. I'll stop both tracks, rewind stuff without taking the volume down, set cue points on the fly then jump back to previous parts of both songs and try different things over and over again. I might spend 10-15 minutes just on a single mix, and if I find something that works - and works REALLY well - I'll stick them both in my "Worked Pairs" playlist so I can use them live.

There's a diference between practicing mixes and practicing a set; typically with the former, you're trying to make new discoveries; with the latter, you're putting it all together smoothly.

This is the truth. A Working Pairs playlist is absolute GENIUS.

[Chrisku13]

There's a diference between practicing mixes and practicing a set; typically with the former, you're trying to make new discoveries; with the latter, you're putting it all together smoothly.

I like this right here. And I've found that to be true, I'm usually just jamming out and messin around until I find something that works well. If you can remember enough of those, you could build a set from there. I haven't done a pre-planned set yet, but I'm gonna try it out. Then I can focus on beat matching and other stuff besides song selection (which I recognize is important).

[photojojo]

I still fall into the trap of trying to do too much, instead of just letting the mix flow.

''Oh lets add a loop here and an effect there, and lets grab a clap on a third deck and mash it about and WRECK!!''

A-B mixing nice and smooth and keeping it simple alway seems to be the happiest mix.

This. you shouldn't be messing everything up with loops and FX until you completely master A-B mixing to the point you can do it without thinking about it.

[DJ Bobby Hickz]

It seems to me that getting to a point of frustration because your off your game happens to new DJ's. We have all been there, the only way I have learned to deal with being on that off day is pushing through it...I'm somewhat of a perfectionist and that can lead to major anxiety when I screw up, but allowing myself the luxury of being human, and that I will have bad days...we are not perfect, and that's okay. So, practice, practice, practice and you will have fewer bad days. I'm now down to awesome nights, great nights and mediocre nights, I rarely have a bad night.

[D-Kem]

The last bad night I had involved partying of Withnail and I proportions. Lesson learnt.

[bluegrassdj]

@the dj flb post one of the best mixes you've done. then i think we can really give you helpful tips on how you should go about improving. otherwise these suggestions are just shots in the dark.