Quick hands eq technique?

DJ Life & Community General Discussion
1

Quick hands eq technique?

I’ve had the chance to watch some bigger name DJ’s from a vantage point where I can see what they are doing. I’ve noticed many of them doing what I can only describe as quick hands. Their hands will move quickly back and forth between the different eq knobs with 8 or more touches over the course of a second or two. Sander Van Doorn in particular did it a lot. Their hands move so fast I have a hard time seeing how they are even turning the knob when they do this, but I’d assume the changes they are making are small.

What exactly are they doing? Is it a way to modify a lot of parameters subtly at once, or is it all for show?

2

Subtle changes…I would guess.

Else its just Hot Hands…touching the EQ knobs a lot…its a habit of many DJ’s.

LOL

3

I do this. It’s like a self-reassurance that everything’s centered, kinda like looking in the mirrors while you’re driving.

4

Yep!

Aka OCD…

LOL

5

Lol, sometimes it’s just pointless maneuvering.. I do it sometimes but when I catch myself doing it I stop lol.

6

Subtle changes usually needing to be done quickly due to not having time to cue properly.

7

The key to proper EQing is to only touch each knob for 1/4 of a second, and switch between your 6/8 knobs. That way, during long transitions you don’t need to jesus pose the whole time.

8

I see a lot of DJs do this without touching/changing anything. I don’t understand it whatsoever.

9

Insecurity.

10

I just slap my mixer to stand out against other DJ’s

11

I do it, sometimes unconsciously (is that a word? xD) but sometimes also in order to appear that I’m doing something else than just standing there when it’s not a transition xD

12

Its something that house and djs with long transitions do often.

In midtempo a filter is more benificial for the 8 -16 bars you have to mix in.

13

It’s DJ rule number one: Always look like your doing something :wink:

14

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

So true… Lol

15

Haha I’m always constantly checking to see if my faders are down when I’m cueing, that’s about it.

16

I’m always making sure my filter is centered. I have a bad habit of leaving it slightly askew :disappointed:

17

nothing.

18

Hahaha. I do the exact same thing

19

The amount of eqing that you do depends entirely on the music that you play and the mixer use. I use a battle mixer and find the eq’s almost useless for anything other than preventing thud rumble. Traktors filters do a better job than it to cut bass while still leaving depth to male voices.

20

fixed that for you :wink: Truly I don’t think it’s dependent on the kind of music at all; some DJs really like heavy eqing during longer mixes, and others don’t. You can mix with eqs in a long slow manner with hands on one or two at a time, or you can do the same thing by going back and forth between each knob, adjusting a little at a time as you go, which will look a lot busier. It makes a subtle difference that you can probably notice if as a listener you know both songs and are watching what the DJ’s doing, but chances are you wouldn’t know the difference listening to a random mix.

Then there’s also the DJs who like to pointlessly switch out the midrange or a filter during every mix (or even use a full mix isolator aggressively for similar effect) just to remind the crowd that they’re doing something. Can’t stand that myself, heh… though plenty of otherwise very good (and well known) DJs do it constantly and nobody really seems to take the piss out of them for it.

(Edit): Also about the battle mixer - get a Rane or Ecler if you want a battle mixer that handles eq VERY nicely. I have a TTM56 and I LOVE the eqs on that. And Eclers are even nicer. Not all battle mixers have shitty eqs :wink: