So after about a year with the vci-100, I find myself in a hard place. I recently went to a club to see a dj play a hard techno set. I have really only see DJs play with cdj’s and mixers, so I was surprised when I saw this DJ running vinyl. Where I’m going with this is after watching his set I was thoroughly impressed with the performance, there is something in the performance on the tables that really intrigues me and I would love to get a set of turntables to go with my ddm-4000 mixer. However I think I would like go the time coded route, unfortunately I know absolutely zero about this process, (getting ready to pay my dj dues ) so I was wondering if anyone has any good links to resources I might be able to read, or if anyone wants to share their knowledge that would be abwesome! Thanks!
You’ll need at the very least an Audio 4 for 2 turntable timecode. As far as turntables go, my vote is for the trusty Technics SL-1200 or 1210, they’re tanks, they perform solid, and have a great feel. Theres other options though.
As far as needles go, if you want a nice headshell mounted one, I recommend the Shure M44-7, it was a standard for scratch DJs for a long time, and they had phenomenal tracking force. They’re not that pricy either. I would recommend an Ortofon, but in all honesty, I’m not even sure if theres a point in investing $100+ per needle if you’re using timecode, at that rate it’s pretty much your source music quality.
When you get the needles mounted onto the tone arm, make sure you reset your point of gravity on the tonearm to insure minimal record burn and optimal tracking force without putting too much wear on the stylus itself. This can be attained by:
1.) Rotating the counter balance weight on the back of the tone arm until the tone arm floats over the platter.
2.) Rotate the weight indicator on the tone arm to 0gm to indicate that point as the floating point.
3.) Rotate the counter balance weight clockwise until 2.5gm-3.5gm of force is applied to the tone arm.
Easy as that. This is a fairly overlooked procedure when it comes to owning turntables, but it insures that you are getting optimal performance while keeping wear and tear on your expendables (timecode vinyl/needle stylus) to a minimal.
Theres also an article on troubleshooting timecode issues within Traktor on DJTT, I recommend looking for it and educating yourself on how to deal with any potential issues with DVS usage
[quote=“eastcoastams, post:4, topic:9346, username:eastcoastams”]
@ mmauve, thanks for the article recommendation… Here is the link if anyone is interested
anyone know anything about the Stanton STR8-150 ? It’s a little more economical ..
[/quote] had a chance to hit up two str8-150s and elcer 310 mixer a while ago. the straight 150s are awesome AWESOME turntables. id recommend them to any style dj, scratch djs love them, but they do wonders for all styles. not only are they not that expensive but they control layout is awesome. nothings really out of place on them.
Dude, Eclers are hands down my favorite mixer. Rane is great and all, but holy shit. An Ecler Nuo 5/Evo 5 is like a Pioneer DJM-800 had sex with a Rane TTM-56. Tankish, feature rich, and great value.
Probably best to learn what you will most likely encounter in a club or rave setting. 9 times out of 10, you will find 2x 1200/10s mk2 or mk5 and probably a DJM 600 or 800. Although, there are those few times where I have encountered Rane 57 and the occassional Allen and Heath.
[quote=“mmauve, post:7, topic:9346, username:mmauve”]
Dude, Eclers are hands down my favorite mixer. Rane is great and all, but holy shit. An Ecler Nuo 5/Evo 5 is like a Pioneer DJM-800 had sex with a Rane TTM-56. Tankish, feature rich, and great value.
Their scratch mixers are also ace.
[/quote] same here man id take an ecler over any mixer any day. the ecler eternal crossfader is smoking gun and bloody side of the blade when it comes to scratch mixers. the nuo 5 has 4 mothafukin channels dood haha. and endless efx lol.
I owned an Ecler Nuo 5 for a while, and I LOVED the crossfader for wet/dry effects. Man, put the echo parameter on 2.0 and you could perform fatty double beat jabs over mixes which oozed energy.
Sadly thats the reason why I got rid of my Nuo 5 - the thing didn’t have any MIDI capabilities EXCEPT for a MIDI clock, which didn’t help my digital needs much. AUGH!.
After that mixer, there isn’t much that compares to it to be honest, and I’m a total equipment whore. Tried the TTM 56/57, every Xone, Pioneer DJM 909/800…they’re all great mixers but they just don’t compare in feel. The big ass ergonomic knobs, heavenly faders, great lay out, sound quality, ability to modify the effects processor from a PC - it was a surefire winner.
I’m in between mixers at the moment, still deciding where to go from here
They are sick turntables, my mate owned a pair and i really liked them so a couple of months ago i went out and bought myself a couple second hand. Really well thought out layout, simple elegance - perform really well.
I have even started a little bit of a vinyl collection since - it pays to be diverse in what you can do given the situations you are put in. If you can perform with CDJ’s controllers and vinyl your going to be in a better of position than a person who can just perform with controllers. Thats not to say at all that someone should start with vinyl then progress to other controllers - digital mixing can be a great way to quickly get into djing for a low cost and yet still be able to do ALOT of creative stuff, not something to be scoffed at what so ever.
Id also add that whilst its not the end of the world if you dont learn to DJ with vinyl if nothing else its a worth while thing to do that will give you great enjoyment.
Its not a case of either or. Its a case of adding to your repertoire .
Im a Guitarist. Didnt stop me from learning to play the drums and the keys.
Im a fair guitar player, less of a drummer or a key player but i get by and have fun. Stick me in front of a drum kit and ill kick shit out of it and have a great time. Doesnt mean i have to audition for Sepultura .
Learning to DJ with different mediums is just like a musician learning a new instrument.
It can only make you a more rounded musician/dj, not anymore important, but you just have more ways of expressing your art.
In our cases the art is DJing. And who doesnt want to better themselves at that ?
[quote=“mmauve, post:14, topic:9346, username:mmauve”]
Another kick ass homegrown brand of mixers which really deserves praise is Rodec. Phenomenal quality and build, worth every penny:
I recomend turning of the phase meter pretty quickly if you want to use Traktor Skratch, that just makes it like a slow form of djing using auto sync once you have the basic feel of vinyl down.
Learning different methods something I couldnt recommend more, you should always push your self
Yup. I learned to mix after burning out with guitars and drums (and having a heavy inclination to share music I love). Learned vinyl out of being bored with midi and CDs.
I imagine a lot of folks explore other disciplines similarly; out of curiosity, love of learning new things, and just the right amount of boredom. I really like seeing people do that.
By the way, MASSIVE plus one on Ecler’s mixers. I bought a Nuo 3 last year for a good price not knowing what I was getting myself into. . . all I can say is that I have absolutely no desire to play any other mixer in my studio. The big, fat knobs are luxurious (heyo), and that nice, round analog-ish sound it gets sits very well with me. I haven’t used the Eternal fader yet but I’ve heard people compare them in a favorable light with the Innofader. Allegedly the dog’s bollocks.
