I was originally going to post this in the other Sync thread that was started today, but out of respect for the OP, I thought it would be better if I just started my own thread. Hopefully the replies (if any) are just as friendly
Does anyone think that Sync can seriously handcuff DJ’s into being stuck in the same tempo range with all their music, or maybe just not being versatile enough to mix in different tempos, at a moments notice, at will, constantly throughout the night? or handcuff them from learning any other transitions, and just relying heavily on blending? If so, do you think Sync does more harm than good to those DJ’s who are just starting out?
I’ve kinda seen this trend in people who started w/ Sync and use Sync, and have been DJ’n anywhere from 3 years or less, so these questions are mostly directed at that crowd
Sync doesn’t stop you from changing the tempo, so I wouldn’t say that it’s responsible for this.
However, I’ve noticed that some people drop too many tunes too quickly because they’ve got nothing else to do and don’t wanna seem like they aren’t doing anything.
I think it can. But only if you let it handcuff your creativity.
If I mix in sync it gives me more time to do other stuff such as looping, cue-point jumping, and adding effects when mixing one song into an other or playing 2 songs together for a longer time.
But I do like to beatmix as well, it depends on the situation.
It can in a way be bad. If you can manually beatmatch then you will be able to use Technics or CDJs. Being able to use all formats and all types of gear will open you up to more venues and connections. Depending on what circles you roll in it can also get you respect. Also, your computer will definitely crash at some point. If your playing a club that has CDJs(which most do) and your computer crashes then you can just pop in a CD.
Surely it can hold DJs back. There are lots of things that hold some DJs back indirectly/unintentionally. Even things as positive as DJ schools and tutorials, as much as they help people get started quicker, can limit how they look at the artform as well. I think both things are a cases of giving a man a fish vs. teaching a man how to fish. Some people are going to use the tools given to them as a stepping stone, and some aren’t going to look any further.
I’d say it definitely does a bit more harm for most beginners, but it’s hard to quantify how much harm it really does. I don’t think it’s something that will make or break a potentially great DJ, it’s probably just people who would suck anyways who would be that held back from it, lol. I think DJs who are gonna become good are gonna try to learn as much as they possibly can anyways and not just use sync as a crutch.
I do this myself and it creates shitty sounding mixes. I think that’s what happens when you have too much time. But once you get over doing this…and realise it sounds crap, you’ll start to use the time properly. Being more creative, choosing better tracks etc. Just takes time for people to adjust.
Traktor’s BeatSync seems really limiting - it makes it tough to do double-ups and other kinds of trick mixing. Temposync is no so much a big deal to me.
In the end, though, the sync button also turns sync off - it isn’t limiting because it doesn’t need to be used.
Sync certainly should not be relied on by beginners until they have learned the basics of beatmatching manually. Beatsync can be quite restricting compared to Temposync, as a beginner may not realise when the phase is off if they have no beatmatching experience.
i feel the exact opposite. i think sync should definitely be relied on by beginners until they have the learned the basics of djing. throwing beatmatching on top of everything else is usually a frustrating endeavor…i know it was for me when i started before all this software came out. i had no choice though, and had to keep banging away until it all started to make sense. technology now allows you to learn a bit more incrementally, which seems better for most people. once you’ve got the phrasing, eq, and ability to pick proper tracks while keeping a good flow…that’s when you should learn to beatmatch imo.
You can easily begin learning to beatmatch without doing any phrasing or EQ. It’s a skill that takes practice moreso than other techniques, and starting with beatmatching is no less incremental than starting with any other skills.
i disagree, of all the things, i’d say beatmatching should be the first thing to learn along with phrasing (seriously, it baffles me how many people play tunes totally out of phrase) it’s essential, the transitions themselves and selection skill come pretty much naturally.
Knowing your tunes and feeling them is pretty much essential and i think it’s easier when you are forced to listen to them as opposed to a visual aid.
Sync can be turned off as well as on. Within traktor the following decks follow the master. through intelligent looping and effects you can easily utilize sync to change tmepos or disable sync for cuts, drops, and scratching in intros, etc.
I agree in some respects with Johney, but then again I also agree with squidot. Sync (Tempo only) allowed me to actually give DJing a go without using a controller or headphones, and just messing around in Traktor. That was when I first fell in love with DJing, and it is now one of my biggest passions.
If the learning curve had been steeper, I may have never given it a go due to lack of time. I played some gigs before I had ever heard of manual beatmatching.
On the other hand, except for pre planned sets, I was useless, especially if my songs werent beatgridded, For the first few months.
It kickstarted my learning initially, but then I got comfortable doing average blend mixes and my learning slowed. So i see it as a double edged sword.
Explain how you mix a different tempo track into another tempo track, at a moments notice, at will…you can’t just suddenly just up or down in speed.
I do hear what you mean, but at the time why is there another topic about it - when people moved to CDJs, suddenly it told you the BPM on the readout what speed the track was going. In the newer models of the CDJ this became .00 accurate so you could mix by sight instead of hearing…it’s just how the World evolves.
I first read your question and decided to only answer it after the party I hosted last Saturday. This “gig” was the first time I did a longer set than usual and also a tag team with one of my friend. Everything went pretty well during our set. We did use the sync here and there. Why? Because it was often easier to just hit sync to adjust the tempo (my CDJs were vibrating too much because of the subs that were right next to it) than to actually fix it every time the fader would move.
Can we beatmatch by ear? Yes, my friend a lot better than myself to be honest. Why did we use the sync function? To save us time when the booth was vibrating a lot and not have to worry about re-adjusting the tempo all the time. Did this handcuffed us? I don’t think so, it made us save some precious time and because it was our first time playing together, we had a lot of other things to think about.
Can it handcuff DJs? Yes. If you don’t learn how to beatmatch by ear, if you rely on it all the time, if you can’t mix without a sync button. It can. It will. That’s why everyone tells the new DJs to not use the sync button (oh how often have I heard that). But once you learned how to beatmatch, why not? It shouldn’t be replacing learning any DJ skills but once you know them, why not use it once in a while?
Let’s discuss sync on CDJ’s… Pathetic in my opinion.
Completely takes the art out of dj’ing.. Mixing is of course only a part of the job in hand.. With the main part being music selection.. But seriously.. Sync on CDJ’s is such a cop out.
But the thing that sync takes out of dj’ing across the board… is FUN. Regardless if it’s laptop of CDJ.
Cue track, press play, press sync, move fader up, twiddle with EQ’s to look busy, lock in a pointless loop, trigger some out of key samples, move other fader down.. Rinse & repeat.
NO SKILL REQUIRED, NO FUN TO BE HAD!..
There’s no satisfaction that you’ve got those tracks perfectly in time and held them in place.
The true art of DJ’ing is using the skills that you have meticulously practiced and honed.. So my answer would be yes, sync holds you back.
