I’ve been bedroom DJing for a year now and my mixes aren’t sounded great because basically I haven’t a clue how to EQ correctly! Can someone please help me out with this? I’ve been watching some videos on youtube and there helpful to a point but I need someone to explain it a bit better when EQing in the mix etc.
Next, tips/tricks, what do you guys do to make your mix different? any advice for me?
I want to get out playing bars/clubs soon but I haven’t got the confidence yet and my mixes are ropey as hell. I really struggle to get a nice continuous flow.
Well aside from the obvious and basic idea of turning down the bass of the incoming track an swapping the bass mid mix, one of the things I like to do set the eq’s of the incoming track so that track is sonically similar to the currently playing track. It makes for smoother transitions. I also tend not to ever boost frequencies and only cut them unless a particular track is poorly encoded or anemically mastered.
Sure. Often times the high hats of an incoming track may be too bright or clash with the master track so I’ll cut them a bit. You should keep in mind that EQing goes hand in hand with overall level of the track too. Do you use the crossfader or the line faders to mix? I use only the line faders unless I’m doing quick cuts and then I’ll use the crossfader. My mixer has parametric EQ’s which allow for really being able to dial in the exact frequencies of kicks or hit hats and manipulate them accordingly to what I’m intending for a mix. Since you like to do longish mixes, you should strive for a mix where the listener can’t tell when you’ve dropped your next track.
I first read this thread title as a mispelling of “edging tips/tricks”, which is something as unrelated as it is difficult.
Don’t be afraid to experiment in boosting mids and highs once in a while. When I am trying to isolate a hi-hat, lead melody, or a vocal in transition, sometimes one or two ticks up on the mid or high have helped me get it.
I’ve never been in a situation where I’ve had to boost low unless the track is mastered/mixed/encoded horribly, so that “wag of the finger never boost your EQs rule” sort of still applies.
Something that has helped me (and I am still practicing) clean up my longer transitions is getting to know your songs in phases. Really listen to each frequency; know when and how they come in and out.
Usually, the track you are playing has been mastered. This means that it should not need any boosting.
Your EQ’s shoudl all be level at 12.
Use your GAIN if the volume of the track is too soft compared to the others.
Boost the EQ’s if needed, but you really don;t see that often. Its usually cutting the EQ back to sit better in the mix. Once it has become the dominant track, you can level out again.
Use the gain to set the body of the track to peak at 0db with all EQs at 12 and then use the EQs on both tracks to introduce the new one while cutting from the other without causing the master output to go over 0db. By doing this you can get complete control over the volume of your mix very easily, which is awesome.
Pretty much never play two basslines at once, it’ll turn into an overpowering mess.
i go past 12 o’ clock fairly often, depending on the environment im playing in (sound setup, bass-mid-high levels etc), levels of the current track, alot of different factors, imho i wouldn’t swear upon this approach.
i agree, usually if i do past 12, rarely do i go past 2 btw, i compensate with my gains slightly attempting not to redline, although, as the energy and crowd picks up i find myself slipping into the red if not careful
