My advice to the OP would be to further challenge yourself as a digital DJ. If you’re a digital DJ, how come your workflow appears to be the same as any other traditional DJ?
IMO the first step is to let Traktor do the beatmatching for you, and from there think about all the cool stuff you could be doing instead.
In the industrial/dance scene in NY I dont see any negativity towards us digital dj’s. Ok Im lying. We have asshats who use the Itunes crossfader on shit laptops that crash everytime they “spin” What really fucking pisses me off is how they continue getting guest DJ spots even though they know that dudes setup is bullshit and it fails.
Fortunately I dont associate with those twats. The people I work for are better than that. I agree with DvlsAdvct we should be better than the traditionalists, we have the tools to do so!
My biggest problem has been keeping my mouth shut. I never knew when to shut up, I would always argue with these stupid DJ’s, but lately Ive come to the realization its like arguing on the internet only with the ability to knock a motherfucker out lol.
So yeah, shut up, do your thing and rock the floor. Who cares how you do it, the crowd doesnt give a fuck.
I never understood why everything has to be a competition. I used to play guitar and use boards online and it was always a huge contest to who was a bigger man and a better guitar player. That board didn’t have the server capacity to handle the egos of even a few of the users.
Fortunately, DJTT doesn’t seem to be like that–actually it’s not at all–but rather it seems to be the entire board fighting against conventional turntablists. Not that everyone (or anyone for that matter) is in a fight per se with other boards, but it seems that if there was a forum for DJ-ing in general, and DJTT was a user, we’d be subjected to massive amounts of flaming and record lows of respect. (If that was confusing pretend you didn’t read it… sorry).
What I’m trying to say is this: aren’t these boards, and musician communities in general supposed to be places where people can learn from eachother and share new ideas and tips? Why does your music, your gear, and your technique have to be an extension of your penis?
It’s frustrating. I don’t do what I do because I want to look like a better person. I don’t puff out my chest when I make music and share it…
Also remeber when cds came out a lot of vinyl djs use to leave records on decks cued up to make it look like the were playing vinyl also there was a time when even cds were considered not djing change is often hard for some people digital is the future no matter what anyone says we have clubs in london that do not even have cd players strickly laptop and what about ipods
…
It could be these learning places but marketing and corps insist on make us fight for better performance creating “false Statments” like neccessity of HID/closed solutions an so on…
This kind of “lies” (or missunderstandings if you prefer) are flames itself in the eyes of freedom to choice derivated of the non adaptability from corps to understand people far away from its “sheep” concept. The worst is when “sheeps” become “keeper dogs” of this status quo.
Look at monome/apc40 comparision.
But people loves be lazy or fight for first place.
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Hmm not sure its realistic to compare Akai with Monome.
Monome are all lovely “knit your own yoghurt” hippies. Akai are a huge tech company.
Monome are a very small company but they do very well from their products !!!
Id be happy knocking out a few 100 machines every now and then at those prices.:eek:
And how long do you have to wait to get a Monome (or a kit).
You can buy any Akai product pretty easily .
Ultimately thats where the difference lays.
The music industry would be fucked if all companies were like Monome (as lovely as they are, dont nobody shout at me) cus hardly anyone would have the gear. And probably just the wealthy.
Just a thought.
Yeah i agree there.
Also i dont think Akai is going to impede on monome sales because the monomes are already made in such limited numbers that they have will still have enough people that still want a monome to keep them busy.
Yeah when you see that the average run is 100 units and the $500 unit sold out in 2 minutes. Thats $500,000 in 2 minutes just on one model . Theres 5 models going up to $1400 each. Thats some ‘small’ company then isnt it.
I mean theres no doubting their eco credibility and their great attitude to Open Source and all that but its a very nice position to be able to afford to have, if you can afford it.
Did we drift off topic here?
Actually $50 000 - big difference 
but erm yeah.. back on topic…
Wow, some really good points in here. I didn’t start this thread to create any battles with anyone/anything, I was more curious if other people had experienced this or felt this way.
I do try to push myself and my equipment further when possible, but I don’t feel it should be a “requirement” that I go far beyond the capabilities of vinyl/CDs just because I use a digital setup. I’m the biggest proponent of the idea that it’s all about rocking the crowd, no matter how you do it.
i’d be happy if most djs (no matter what format) would stick to simple transitions and not mess up the good music with stupid fx and loops.
i love all changes made by djs when theyre good but you can really mess the music up. i mean whats flangers for anyways lol.
theres so many bad djs out there - i think any digital dj that just has a ear for what sounds good is ways above average.
question:
does anyone know why others (djs) talk down digital/controllerist djs?
is it because vinyl (sound quality) is superior to digital? is it because what took them time to master (beat matching) takes digital djs no time, if that dj is using the sync button? what took them years of crate digging, takes digital djs minutes to google?
i have noticed in my city some veteran vinyl djs nonchalantly brushing other djs off that use digital devices. funny thing is, this happened years ago (as several previous posters have mentioned) when cdjs starting coming out. ironically, even some cdjs have passed down the torch of frowning upon the midi-controllerism technology. i was recently told by a fellow dj friend of mine that i should invest in serato and turntables (i currently use vci-100, laptop, and audiofire4) just because it looks better, more professional!?!?
it is easy to argue both points of view, but can money also be a factor of these new format issues? a fear of a whole new crop of laptop djs competing for the same limited venues and cash crop? not to mention many of these new djs have access to whatever the internet has in its infinite universe, and for quite less the price and wait time of vinyl (giving the benefit of doubt that they actually pay for these downloads).
truth be told, there is a quality issue at hand as well: how many digital djs care to download the best bitrate for their performance? how many give back to the artist(s) they are playing (by paying for their downloaded tracks or by naming the song being played when asked by listeners/guests/other djs).
there is no need for history lessons here, but djing used to also be about the music as well (sarcasm intended). seriously, how excited were you when you heard the dj grab the mic and say: “yo, i’m about to play some exclusive sh*t right here, give it up for (so-and-so’s new release)” this is also a quality issue, one dealing with the dj aka music selecta. how well do they know the music they are playing for their crowds? can you feel the passion from the dj when he/she drops a track? are they themselves fans or just going through the motions syncing bpms, eyes gazed on a laptop? some djs back then, and still to this day don’t even blend beats or do turntablism routines, they just simply drop jewlz. keep it moving. i think much of this passion gets lost in translation with some of the new breed of djs. this may not apply to a majority of us digital/controllerist djs, but as you know, it does not take a majority to contaminate the water, er digital stream.
i suppose some of the elements of a djs performance is also determined by the genre of music they play. personally at my gigs, music comes first before my controllerism routine (after i am lowered down from the cieling in a cloud of smoke in my gold crescent leather cape). and i can also understand why some djs do not like to tell other djs what is on their playlist. biters suck, especially if they don’t give you credit. but, the world still turns, on vinyl and digital bits.
as a couple of the veterans have said, do your thing, do it well and confidently. and other dj (vinyl) veterans’ egos/fears/concerns won’t affect your output. as you see, from both sides of the stream, there are a variety of factors that can taint a digital djs image: techniques/methodology; sound quality/selection lack of respect for the music. don’t be that dj, but at the same time, don’t join the cesspool of hate. bring up a newbie brother or sister once in while. each one, teach one. that is how the forum functions, take it live as well.
i dont get the beef…I can throw some clean sets on vinyl or cds, but my weapon of choice is Traktor 3.4 w/my Vci-Se they dont see whats coming with I fire up my MB. Plus I prefer carrying my vestax bag vs 4 (or more) crates of vinyl to play the same set.
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Which analog setup will be the same functionality than Ms Pinky synced with Ableton live synced with Resolume Avenue?
Pioneer dvdj?
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haha tell them to piss off. coming from using 100% vinyl, then over to this traktor pro/controller setup, i will tell them to piss off too this is the best upgrade i’ve done. the only thing this controller does is link up the beats (for the most part) but you still have to do everything else. if they think beat matching is all it takes to dj, then they are the retards
Beatmatching…is only one piece of the pie when it comes to djing. I think the most important thing is how you transistion from one track to another. You can be mixing on 2 or 4 decks but if it’s sound like crap, in my book ur a crappy Dj!
so, what would be a peaceful resolution to end the vinyl vs. midi dj debate?
so far, established is the fact that beat matching is not everything. it can come down to performance, music selection, transitions and context of track placement, etc.,…
has anyone considered doing a friendly vinyl vs. midi dj battle in their hometowns? taking it back to the old school, when dancing break battles and mc battles did not result in broken glass bottles over heads. same can be done perhaps between djs, instead of resorting to insults and what not.
anyone heard of promoters organizing this or has anyone competed in something like this?
The extinction of the human race
No… what would be the point. Have you ever tried to have a discsussion with a 17yr old about music or DJing, vinyl or digital.
Or the same discussion with some old vinyl bore?
Some people will NEVER change their minds and i see no point in trying to change the view of close minded people.
If they are young and full of that “i know everything attitude” only growing up will change their attitude and old bores are just gonna be stuck in their ways.
As Bento says the only solution is the end of humanity or
you all finally realise that MY opinion is the only one worth having and that i am right 100% of the time 
already tried, the dj I called out turned it down on the spot, he said it wasnt fair cuz I had a advantage to mix more songs than him.