ok so i understand having at least two outputs is what DJs need. headphone cuing with one set of outputs, and the regular speaker outputs for another.
my question is… what purpose would more outputs serve? does it mean if you have two sets of outputs, you cant hook up more speakers for louder music? or is there some other purpose?
only reason is, im deciding on buying the Novation NIO 2|4 for use with a VCI-100B, however I dont want to spend the money on it when the equipment will not be suitable for use in school dances and small parties.
In certain venues, you will need four outputs, the other two will be used as monitors for you. This is good when there is loud sound system and what you hear is different from what your audience hears. Since its all about where your ears sit.
well i understand like outputs 1/2= what the crowd hears and outputs 3/4= what DJ hears in headphones. but is the only use of more outputs like 5/6 and 7/8 for louder music or do they have another purpose?
im not going to be DJing for Sensation White or anything. not even close- lmao.
EDIT: Just noticed the reply ^^. isnt monitoring the same as cuing or am i missing something?
2) since i dont own any audio that is surround sound- its safe to say i wont need more than 2?
Monitors are basicly a repeat output of what the crowd hears - basicly the same audio thats comming out of the clubs speakers will come out of the monitors.
Monitors are there so you can hear what the crowd hears - they are installed into clubs where you dont get a very accurate sound of what the floor is hearing from standing in the dj booth.
Between sound reverberation in the club and the time it takes for the sound to reach your ears(in big clubs) you dont get a very great sound. Ontop of that, if your beatmatching to the delayed sound that you hear from the dj booth your mixing will be slightly out of time because of the delay that is caused by the time it takes for the sound to reach your ears. Monitors are installed as to get rid of this delay and so that you get a pretty good picture of what sound is on the dancefloor.
Immagine trying to beatmatch to a delayed signal - its impossible ! Thats where monitors step in.
output 1/2: master speakers
output 3/4: monitors (another set of speakers facing DJ in the booth)
output 5/6: headphones (for cuing songs)
is this how the setup works?
that way a DJ has their own set of “local, external speakers” so they don’t have to deal with the delay or is their another solution to it?
with hard surfaces everywhere in a gym, you are going to get major echo and lots of booming bass… you will definitely need some sort of monitor - if you want to have a clear indication of what’s coming out of your system.
I remember as a high school student, that djs played our pep rallys, all I could hear was echos and booming bass…
I may be completely wrong - maybe the dj’s didn’t tweek their systems enough, but i could have sworn that the venue’s hard surfaces didn’t help the situation…
In my opinion, if I was playing in a gym, I wouldn’t touch a monitor. I do most of my mixing in headphones, and, well, I don’t think that a monitor would help unless you had a booth of some sort, cause the echo and sound is just going to be so overwhelming. But then again, I do almost all of my mixing in headphones and have learned to work with that delay where I regularly spin, so you can adjust, just takes time.
Don’t get me wrong, though. Monitors can be a great tool. But, to me, a great pair of headphones and a little discipline at regularly checking the sound can go a really long way.
interesting. so im confused because these sound cards offer so many different options.
the novation nio offers:
"Outputs:
4 RCA Phono
2 stereo 1/4" Headphones Jacks"
so what i wonder is… if i have one of the headphone jacks going to headphones, is that a separate output on the software? like… i just cant understand how this works. when i use traktor DJ studio, the only time i can hear sound when i press the CUE button is when the sound is output to “Monitors”. which would mean even if i have monitors (separate pair of speakers), i would hear the cue coming out of them too.
EDIT: AHA! so if i can output to multiple sources… i would have it setup in traktor this way:
Master outputs = speakers
Monitor outputs = headphones
Booth outputs = DJs speakers (used for monitoring)
I would stay away from monitors because it’s just another thing to worry about and it will fruck up your hearing even more then the bouncing sound that is already making it to loud for you to mix in your headphones.
Solution: In ear plug headphones.
It’s the best idea ever! It protects your hearing and gives you a super nice sound quality at the same time as you don’t have to blast the volume to hear what you are cuing and monitoring.
A nice added bonus is that you have one less huge thing to fit in your DJ bag because much like dildos, DJ’s think bigger is better. Being a minimalist and a big fan of hearing in general, I strongly suggest you stick with a basic setup of 2 stereo channels. One that goes out to the crowd and the other one that goes straight into your ear.
so to conclude… would you say for me to use the Novation nio 2|4 is the right choice for me?
staying away from using monitors
i can output to the crowd with 1/2
i can listen to the music and cue with headphones on 3/4 (or actually headphone output)
would u recommend a specific sound card? only reason i figured the novation nio 2|4 is because Eangolden has said it has super low latency and reliable drivers.
Setting up a soundsystem in a large, echoy place is not easy, and the best advice is not to make the speakers face the opposite wall (otherwise the sound waves cancel out all through the dance floor area making it sound mushy), instead set up in a corner and bounce the sound diagonally into the room. This won’t remove echo effects but it will at least make the dance floor sound better.
Then, as a DJ you can either use monitors if you are sitting behind the soundsystem and have good baffling behind you (like curtains), or you can just have your headphones on all the time and use the Master/Program knob to swap between listening to the master output or your cues.
No technical need for monitors in a DJ booth AFAICT (unless you need to feel your bass), it’s just more relaxing and sociable.
