Dubstepforum.com

Hi, Im kinda new to mixing dubstep and im finding it pretty difficult. Im determined not to give up and I do have a some dj knowledge from mixing dance music previously.

I was just wondering if anyone has any good tips to help me.

As in like when do you find the best time to drop the 2nd record when cuing it up, how many bars etc...

Whats your structure for bringing it in? Do you prefer to let them both run for a bit or drop the 2nd one after the build up of the 1st so it drops after that build up.

I seem to be pretty poor at beat matching dubstep too, Does anyone have any tips on how to help me improve.

Sorry for the essay folks, Thanks to anyone who can help.

1. Practice practice practice. Seriously. Lock yourself away for a couple of weeks and just practice the hell out of things. You'll find which way works for you.

2. Get hold of a copy of How To DJ Properly - it'll be like a bible for you

3. To improve your beatmatching, start out with two copies of the same tune. Practice getting them in time and mixed. When you've mastered it, bring in another tune and practice the hell out of that.

4. See step 1.

yes How to DJ Properly is an invaluable resource (we call it How to DJ Right in the US... lol) just buy it you'll be glad you did.

when I started mixing dubstep I found it useful to match up the snares...

then I realized that not all dubstep tunes have snares that fall on the third beat... this can make things confusing so ultimately not a great habit to get into.

my advice, listen for the beginning of the melodic phrase and first kick drum on the one. don't just match up the downbeats, count them out and listen for when the phrases start. 1234,2234,3234,4234 that way you know when to drop the record.

it doesn't have to be perfectly in time immediately after you let the record go... e.g. you can adjust it by pushing the record forward a bit if it's too slow or guide it with your finger to slow it down while adjusting the pitch. just worry more about when to bring in your records more than anything else.

this will come easy if you know your tunes like the back of your hand...

my bad if this is just a bunch of obvious info... in the end practicing everyday is always a good idea.

Two things:

1) Listen to records and learn how they are composed. Learn about measures and phrasing (meaning, how most things are built in multiples of 4).

2) If you touch the record in any way to speed it up or slow it down, make sure to make a corresponding adjustment with the pitch control.

One big help is watching other djs and listening. I learned more just by paying attention that I could have anywhere else.

Listen to your tunes,Love your tunes! Find and arrangements of 2/3+tunes that sound in key with each other. If tunes jump out from your subconcious while listening to another try a test mix, even if you think they wont go...you may be pleasently suprised!
Learn your tunes, how they build up and drop. Once you know this you can usually rely on the structure of tunes in general which mostly work in multiples of 4.
Aim to double drop, then you also have the option just to switch or carry on if its sounding Phat.
Make good comon sense use of mixer high, mid and tops controls & watch the Bass levels during double drops.
Practice makes prefect with beat matching, most people find slow open beats and long sounds harder to decifer, so get you own metronome going on inside your head, double time might help.
Use your Headphones to get the pitch & once youve released your vynil try not to touch it, listen and try to anticipate what size of adjustment is needed on the pitch control, which may take time to develop
Keep the energy in the mix high and your head fresh by mixing tunes every couple of minutes or less.
HAVE FUN AND EXPRESS YOURSELF! Once you start having fun and going with the flow you will be amazed at how things slot into place!

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practise like crazy, 4 6 monthes, do nothing else but mix n you'll b as good as hatcha! (mayb)....

Also just go for the doubledrop mampi swift style!!! you cant gowrong.

peace

19nighty wrote: Whats your structure for bringing it in?

4/ 8 bars...naturally...kick drum generaly, some tracks can be tricky, so know your tunes...
\also i never use the cross fader, just the channel volumes, i can do a whole set without using it. thats just the way i do it though, a habit i caught off a fellow dj, works for me.

When playing a 1hr set think about dynamics.
Simply playing massive b-lines one after the other will cause them to have little impact.

Learn your records

thanks guys for the advice.

What they all said.

Practice and it will "click"

Docwra wrote:Learn your records

if ya gonna do one thing, do this ^^

even if you can't beatmatch, if you know your records, you can just drop them in at the perfect time.

djing doesn't = beatmixing