new guy

**samurai teddybear** · 03-31-2012, 08:11 PM

Hello it it I the samurai teddybear hailing from West Jefferson Ohio. Im new to the forums as well as the realm of djing. My wife friends sister are all artists of some kind and i cant draw paint sculpt or anything. I love music and my wife gave me the idea to try this out so here I am a newbie looking for friends and help getting started.

**DStridium** · 03-31-2012, 09:01 PM

Hello Samurai! I am D.Burns. Welcome to the madness. Haha

With a genuine love for music you have already began getting started. Words of advice have a willingness to learn and people will teach. Have a good attitude and people will respond kindly in return. Commit as much time as you can to learning and then eventually as much time as you can practicing. You will earn respect from experience. You really only need a computer to start practicing. Although I would suggest buying some beginner tables and a mixer or take advantage of the great deal on the S2 lasting for only a little while longer. A few things you should learn first 1. Counting out beats. four to the floor beats, which most EDM is four to floor 4/4 time signature. Heres how you count. 1/4 beats are counted (1 2 3 4), 1/8th are counted (1 and 2 and 3 and 4) and, 1/16th are counted (1 e and a 2 e and a 3 e and a 4 e and a) 2. Remember to drop on the one. 3.Beatmatching by ear. This thread is amazing for starting out and lots of potential to network once you learn more advanced techniques from what I have seen. Always feel free to PM me or ask questions in the forums, remember to search for answers before posting a new thread. Here are some recommended readings for you that should help starting you out.

DJTT Recommended Readings (Compilation of helpful posts
http://forum.djtechtools.com/showthread.php?t=24072

Mix Techniques
http://www.djtechtools.com/2010/03/1...ix-techniques/

Dropping on the 1, swings, forward driven beats, down beats, up beats, etc.
http://forum.djtechtools.com/showthread.php?t=49171

Chained FX
http://forum.djtechtools.com/showthread.php?t=49498

That should get you started, all the best of luck and happy practicing mate!

P.S I have a lot of helpful DJTT blog entries saved in my bookmarks Id be happy to send your way if youre interested.

**VanGogo** · 03-31-2012, 10:28 PM

Welcome Samuri teddybear!

A good source for learning some basics for DJing is ellaskins channel on YouTube. Going through his videos (there are alot) will certainly help you get a grasp on things.

If money is tight, you can start with free software called Mixx and a computer.

Don't worry about getting tons of music. It is better to have less tunes and know them well. Also you want to acquire good quality music files. 320kbs mp3's are the most common.

There are several different hardware setups you could use also. 2 turntables and a mixer or cdj's and a mixer, midi controllers (lots of choices) there is a lot to consider and learn about all of these in order to decide which way you want to go.

There is a lot of good information here at DJTT in the blog and forums, enough to keep you busy for quite awhile!

Enjoy the journey!

**samurai teddybear** · 04-01-2012, 07:05 AM

Thanx van im starting to get some music but I will keep in mind quality over quantity. As far as equip I was and still am leaning toward Traktor s2 or s4.

**samurai teddybear** · 04-01-2012, 07:08 AM

thanx i sent u a friend request so i can continue learning from your advice and build a friendship. Ive started building a modest music library, not sure where to look and equip im leaning toward traktor s2 or s4

**DStridium** · 04-13-2012, 06:58 AM

I have an S4 that being said my advice would be to get an S4. It has a soundcard, 4 decks, and includes Traktor Pro 2 which will be upgraded to 2.5 for free in May. The S2 is nice but you may feel the need to expand to something different very quickly. The S4 is PLENTY of real estate to get a good feel for mixing/equing/beatmatching/sampling/looping, all in a sleek easy to use package. Anymore questions or anything just shoot me a PM or reply here. I'll be checking back through the day. Have a good day, man.

**dripstep** · 04-14-2012, 03:16 AM

If you have the $$ go for the S4. Remember that this hobby is not cheap, and it does take a lot of practice. If you are ok with both of those, it will make things much easier. Don't get frustrated, you will have days where your mixing is tight, and then the next day it might be garbage. Just stick with it, you will catch on if you put the effort in. Keep an eye on these forums, there is so much information here that will help you out, and many many friendly and knowledgeable members. If you have a question, search it first, and if you can't find an answer, ask and provide as much information as possible, and people will help. Welcome to the forums.