So im browsing around the forums on Resident Advisor and I end up in the general discussion part. Now I dont normally go in there because I use RA strictly for music but I found a thread in there with some serious hate in it. To spare you from clicking heres what it said:
"Since the advent of the dreaded laptop sync selector there’s obviously a lot more time on the dj’s hands. After he’s selected the next tune from his hard drive, checked his emails and updated his Facebook status there’s not much else to do apart from stand and wait. Cue effects. These things are a god send for the syncers – a great time filler. Piddling around endlessly with delays, flangers, filters etc makes the whole experience much more bearable, and it even looks like you’re actually doing something. The equipment manufacturers have obviously picked up on the growing demand for things to fill the time that was originally allotted to matching the speed of two records. So effect controllers are the order of the day - flashy knobs and a multitude of zany sound manipulations all at your fingertips. Well guess what guys? Leave the controller alone. In fact, smash your controller over your laptop and then smash your laptop over your head until you banish any ambition to ever set foot behind a dj console. Dance music wasn’t meant to be tampered with like this. It takes a lot of time, effort and love to make – all for you to ruin it like a demented monkey with OCD. Conserve your energy (and a possible chronic RSI condition from your twiddling) and redirect it to using your laptop for something more appropriate, like looking up porn. So please spar us – we’re not all converted to your mindless idiocy yet. Some of us can see through the façade that by barraging us with endless delays and filters will shield your complete and utter incompetence. "
Now I’m very aware that theres people against controllers but being a bedroom dj for the most part I dont really get exposed to them and this is the first time im seeing full out hate against it. Im a little taken back on how ignorant some of the things said in here are. what do you guys have to say?
There are plenty of big DJ’s out there who only beat match songs and then stand or dance around behind the decks. I learned how to beat match on vinyl, moved to CDJ’s, and now I’m using Traktor. And honestly… I’m glad I don’t have to worry about beat matching any more. It allows me to focus on more important things, like presentation, making the mix more interesting, and doing fun things with controllers.
Besides, there are people out in the audience who don’t dance to the music and just stand around watching the DJ. Might as well give them something to watch.
because people who also produce as well as dj dont use effects or juggle between cue points…COUGH Armin does this all the time, though not as in depth as say someone doing it with a zillion cue points and 4 decks (REALLY limited on it on cdj1000-2000) and he also uses delay quite a bit as well as filters.
I believe controllers add more livelyness to a DJ’s performance. although im not one to sync up songs and would prefer to beatmatch i have to admit its fun “remixing” the tracks. I think controllers are a fine addition to the many tools a DJ can muster and all this hate is just plain close mindedness.
In the end it’s all up to the DJ how he wants to play the music. Whether it be letting the music speak for itself, or taking your favorite tracks and turning it into a blended, glitchy, complicated performance, it’s all personal preference. There is no right or wrong choice.
That’s not to say there aren’t people who are just terrible at it, though. lol
That was a fun read… I always thought f1 had an auto pilot , 95% of people dont even care or know what the dj is using or how, the other 5% are prob djs them selves which if theyre going to give out… My thought is why arent they up there instead?? Not good enough at beat matching i chink soww
At the end of the day a monkey would suffice for some of the DJ-Jobs and what is required for them. First come, first eat but not actual skill is needed IMO. All this counts for mix-dj-ing of any genre…
Waddup bruh, but dah mane ting is, is dat tis all bout song selection if u as got dah songs 2 rock de floor den who cares phow you is doing it if dey be dropped at right times…
The poor dude is prob annoyed because he spent thousands on 1200s a mixer and vinyl and carried that shit from gig to gig for years and now a 12 year old with dads laptop, keyboard mapping cracked traktor and ripped music can pull off the old dudes set much cleaner and hassle free
Actually he’s right in a sense. Some people do think that playing with a LOT of Fx is the way to go, but then most of the time it isn’t really (without saying it’s always applied with good taste or with the right timing). More isn’t better.
[quote]There are plenty of big DJ’s out there who only beat match songs and then stand or dance around behind the decks.[/quote] Hopefully being a good dj doesn’t mean you have especially technically skilled as it’s more about selection, mix phrasing, crowd control, etc… If you can do that AND have technical skills, great of course.
[quote]Whether it be letting the music speak for itself, or taking your favorite tracks and turning it into a blended, glitchy, complicated performance, it’s all personal preference. There is no right or wrong choice.
That’s not to say there aren’t people who are just terrible at it, though. lol
[/quote] Best balanced commentary so far.
I can understand him, it must be a frustrating feeling.
I was very recently introduced to the world of DJing, and have so far only been practicing beatmatching using Mixxx on my computer (controller takes ages to arrive in stock at the store). When I first started asking about DJing on various sites, the responses I got was almost exclusively in the vein of “Learn to beatmatch or die”.
Then I found this place (thanks to a friend who loves all things MIDI). Here, the opinion seems to be the opposite. “Beatmatching is only a means to an end, focus on making your mix sound good instead” is a sentiment I’ve often seen repeated around these forums.
This leaves me in a somewhat conflicted position. One one hand, I feel that beatmatching isn’t the only thing a DJ should be doing, that beatmatching is “a means to an end”. On the other hand, I cannot help but feel that having the computer sync your songs for you is “cheating” to a certain extent. Now, I’m not here to hate on people using syncing, all the power to you, you’re in all likelihood better DJs than me anyhow, but personally, even though I’m using a controller & computer, I will try to learn beatmatching.
Yes, that’s actually a thing which annoys me a bit about the DJTT blog (and also this forum sometimes). I mean all those super-fancy FX transitions might(!) sound nice once, but are very easy to overuse (twice in a set is probably too much already). And more often than not FX and stuff will probably not improve the track that you’re playing. So, I don’t really see the point in a Midi Fighter (and am therefore confused that it’s suggested in virtually every one of the myriads of “what controller should I buy?”-threads).
To me all that hocus-pocus about “more creative mixing” and stuff is mostly nonsense. It’s about playing good music which fits well together. If you want to add more “creativity” (btw, is it actually creative replicating fancy transitions from a DJTT tutorial vid? justsayin) because there’s more free time due to using sync, then do it, but don’t let that have an impact on the important things and/or ruin the tracks you’re playing (and chances are, you will).
It is better to master one effect and no to use it well then to try tomuse all effects and make a train wreck… Delay freeze ftw but i use mine purely like a loop
Sure, but it’s a point not nearly stressed enough, especially when figuring in that DJTT does attract lots of people just starting out. And the results of this can be observed in many threads in this forum
, 95% of people dont even care or know what the dj is using or how, the other 5% are prob djs them selves which if theyre going to give out… My thought is why arent they up there instead?? Not good enough at beat matching i chink soww