Ok, i’ve been wanting to post this one for a while. Here’s the deal->
Post at least one of your go-to mix techniques, be it beginner or advanced, any platform, plus some quick details on how to execute it properly in your set. Post pictures or video as needed!
Simple enough, and if done properly it will make a great archive of techniques. I’ll start with an easy one:
Mix A->B using delay & EQ:
On Deck A, slowly fade the bass out OR sweep the filter to high pass, while raising the wet/dry on your delay (i’m using Traktor). Once the track has a good amount of delay going, stop the track on a downbeat. Let the echo of the delay ride out and start your song on Deck B.
This one’s good for jumping between genres and big BPM jumps. It’s the most seemless when Deck B is loaded with a dramatic intro or build without a beat (drums). Additionally, you can keep the Decks beatmatched and simply fade Deck A out as Deck B starts with the Delay and EQ, although it’s a bit more difficult to keep things from getting muddy.
As with any technique, experiment with some songs to get the feel.
Heres a transition I used for the first time a couple of weeks ago. Works really well for dramatic tempo-changes, and when you feel like getting some filth on the dancefloor.
Using Traktor;
Play the tune on Deck A. When the (second) breakdown comes start spinning the “timestretch area” on the jogwheel as fast as you can counter clockwise. The tune will drop in tempo a lot, leaving you with mostly noise. Keep spinning, as soon as you stop the track will play at normal speed, you dont want that to happen. Start the next tune on Deck B. Now you have two choises;
A) If tune B starts with noise, good for you. Just kill the sound on A when the beat drops.
B) More melodic start of the tune? Slowly add in reverb and filter down track A at the same time.
And dont forget to add some overdrive for that extra crunch!
I think that this thread is baller! I was honestly thinking about my mix techniques and how each one lends itself to the music itself and what it does for/to the crowd.
A go to favorite mix technique for me for dropping a track over another is what i call the “sample stab drop”. It works well when your wanting to either drop in a song with a different bpm, or even a different key. It also works GREAT for beatmatched tracks…
Here is the break down:
I normally use this as a way to bring in the build up or bangin part of a track over the outro or even a looped non-vocal chorus. Working it in over other vocals is tricky but it can be done!
Set a cue point on a good sample to stab with…
I tend to use a downbeat sample, it might be vocal or it might just be a sound.
then before you want the actual track to drop, normally about 8-16 bars before, stab that sample once on the down beat
do it again 4 bars later
then 2 bar later
then 1 bar later
Etc, until your just crabbing your stab so you only have the beginning of the sample
Do that crab for only about 1 beat and then drop the song and drop the bass out of the first (original) track and let that baby play
now if you are changing tempo, or key sometimes it is better to just add a lil echo delay on the first track… otherwise you can gently fade out the first track and maybe even throw in some cuttin.
I’ll try to get a video up of this one, and of my other ideas about mixing technique.
^^love it. Both great techniques I wouldn’t have thought of. I actually heard the sample stab one just yesterday on the radio. The DJ was ‘teasing’ it for a bit, then finally dropped the track. Gonna practice these next time I mix
cut/fade in new track (b)
set 8 beat loop on outgoing track (a)
drop gater on ‘a’
then either some delay followed by lo-fi or other way round on ‘a’
progessively reduce loop size (optional) on ‘a’
increase key and twist the filter knob in lo-cut direction (clockwise) on ‘a’
get it sounding messed up and glitchy
when ready to cut, crank delay on ‘a’ all way up, stop deck and kill gater/lo-fi effects, leave delay to fade out
Good thread. I don’t exactly have any special mix techniques, they’re all fairly standard really - probably all already been mentioned. But good thread.
Nice idea, you can do that really easily with the midi fighter deckalized mapping since it has a dedicated button for pitch bend. Also works in the other direction if you wanted to really slowly start up a track although if you then press play when it reaches normal speed you have to be quick fingered or it’ll start playing at 200% speed
I do something very similar, but additionally I sometimes use the freeze in traktor, when you get track a to the point its crazy delayed(can combine with lowpass filter) and coming out play around with the time parameter and just before freezing set it to 1/4, generally with this time it gives a smooth fade out for 4/4 songs and other beats too. You can later come back in with these noises into the next song by releasing and re engaging the freeze, and if you move the time parameter before/after it will give it an extra twist! Just remember to deactivate that freeze before next track plays!
one basic but effective method i use is during the mix (i always kill the bass on the incoming track initially) either just before or after the bassline of the new track has started, i start to use a high pass filter on the master channel slowly removing the bass of the current trackwhen the bass is gone, i use the eq to kill the bass of the first track and restore the bass on the incoming, then when the time is right, drop that sucker back in.
The whole thing might be done in about 8 beats, and works best coming up to a natural drop
so glad to keep seeing other people posting techniques… I really think DJTT blog could really use a boost of these sorts of things, and showing people the true grind of djing also (aka setting up tracks, picking tracks, etc.)
Can’t wait to get my tripod back from my friend to make a vid of a mix!
Love this idea! Always looking for new transitions!
My go to is normally just counting measures, bringing in track B on top of A with Bass killed and mid and highs down a tad, do a bass switch, or maybe kill the bass altogether for 1 measure, then crank it up on B. Find a nice place to cut track A by either fader, filter, or echo/freeze.
