Looking to start DJing/mixing

Beeers

hello,

well as it says im looking to start djing, not for money or anything just for fun.

ive pretty much no idea at all about equipment other than u need turntables/laptops and a mixer.
just curious if anyone could give me some info on a reletively cheap mixer that would work with laptops and djing in general like whats involved. I'm new to this pretty much but been listening to electronic/house for a good while now, listen to everything from deadmau5 to bloodybeetroots, justice, boys noize to name a few.

any info would be great!

cheers

VinylJunkie

Depends on what way you want to do it, Vinyl/CD/Software or a combination of them. Learn your music learn how to count bars then learn how to beatmatch. It could take a few months or it could take a few weeks depending on how much time you put into it!

Here are a few links to get yourself started there are plenty of others out there obviously.

Tunes
http://www.beatport.com

Equipment
http://www.thomann.de

Lesson's
www.djtutor.com/

Check out our radio channel on ustream, sign up and chat with the lads we are happy to help, schedule in my sig!

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/kitchen-sync

Beeers

cheers!

well i was thinking of cd turntables instead of vinyl, or even just software for a laptop.
is it possible to just hook 2 laptops up to a mixer then dj off that using itunes or something? even though thats probably not real djing! just wondering.

VinylJunkie

no wont work you need one laptop with an external soundcard such as the maya 44 then get open source software such as www.mixxx.org.

If you have a few bob buy the torq xponent or a vestax vci-100

hectic79

u could try virtual dj 4 d laptop to start u off would be a good first step, or u get a cheap set of decks n mixer if u want hands on approach

Run_to_da_hills

hectic79 wrote: »

u could try virtual dj 4 d laptop to start u off would be a good first step, or u get a cheap set of decks n mixer if u want hands on approach

Text talk :mad:

sweetie

Beeers wrote: »

cheers!

well i was thinking of cd turntables instead of vinyl, or even just software for a laptop.
is it possible to just hook 2 laptops up to a mixer then dj off that using itunes or something? even though thats probably not real djing! just wondering.

hi beeers,

I have my Hercules dj console for sale with Virtual Dj software. All you need to get started (apart from a pa!) Check it out here

Beeers

yeah i have the virtual dj, been messing around with it a bit seems good, i really wouldnt know tho! im a bit of a complete beginner, not up to date with all the terms/equipment yet!

what do i need? decks, mixer, speakers, headphones?

cheers sweetie ill give it a look, im a bit broke at the moment though!

anyone got any other sites i could check out or any other advice?

thanks

sweetie

Beeers wrote: »

yeah i have the virtual dj, been messing around with it a bit seems good, i really wouldnt know tho! im a bit of a complete beginner, not up to date with all the terms/equipment yet!

what do i need? decks, mixer, speakers, headphones?

cheers sweetie ill give it a look, im a bit broke at the moment though!

anyone got any other sites i could check out or any other advice?

thanks

with a midi controller like the hercules all you would need is headphones and some sort of speakers. It acts as a mixer and decks in one unit. Basically allowing you to play a track and listen/cue another for mixing in at the same time.

Beeers

cool thanks,
just wondering also are there any mixers that you can use with cd decks and a laptop?
also sorry for the stupid questions but its the mixer that lets you loop and all that too isnt it?

hectic79

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

Text talk :mad:

what do u mean by tat ???

sweetie

Beeers wrote: »

cool thanks,
just wondering also are there any mixers that you can use with cd decks and a laptop?
also sorry for the stupid questions but its the mixer that lets you loop and all that too isnt it?

the hercules mk 2 can take upto two audio inputs (one to either channel)
from a cd player, turntable etc and also can be connected to a regular mixer
and have the channels of that mixer control the decks (mp3s) aswell as the
controls on the unit itself. I have done this in a club setting and it worked
well.

As it is a mixer, there are loop buttons on the interface that let you...loop!

bananamansgay

il take that mixer off your hands for €100 sweetie ??

Beeers

soo whats the point in cdjs then if i can just hook up the hercules mk 2 a laptop?

sweetie

it's a cheaper alternative to cdjs, mixer and cds (laptop, midi controller, mp3s)
and is good for someone starting out. Some people will prefer the bigger setup with more options and others the go the digital way.

Beeers

ah its all just preferance then? i reckon ill try get my hands on 2 cdjs and a decent mixer if i can get a bit of money together! still have no clue about BMP and mixing at all though!

ED E

Little explanation might be usefull. There are three main types of DJs, you have to choose which route you want to go down.

1. Oldschool - Two (or more) turntables connected to a mixer in the middle. That outputs to an amp on one channel, headphones on the other.

2. CD DJ - Replace the turntables with CDJs of some kind, everything else is the same. Note though that this can be very expensive, as can option 1. 2 CDJs depending on the model will cost in the region of a grand. Then add everything else on top of that.

3. Virtual DJ - Many Oldschoolers and some CD DJs have a burning hate for us(yeah, I'm one, well one in training). Thats their problem. You can have several different setups here. If you have 4K, go get an all in one unit, with HDD, CD decks, USB ports and a handfull of inputs. If you want to have money for food for the next year, then there are cheaper solutions. Normally you'll have a MIDI controller hooked up to a laptop. A MIDI controller is simply like adding a load of buttons to your laptop, it controls the software, turn the knob in your hand, effect the bass etc on screen. The other component is a dual souncard. Few laptops have these, so most use an external USB one. Sometimes its part of the MIDI controller, but often not. The soundcard is what you connect your Amp and Headphones to. These setups can cost just a few hundred, excluding a PA system that is.

This is pretty much what I have: (Not using CU LE though)

Beeers

probably cdjs for me!
i was thinking about getting 2 Gemini CDJ203 CD Players & a Numark DMX 06 mixer, what type of speakers would i need? would i need an amp?

sweetie

you need an amp if the speakers are passive (cheaper) but not if they are active.

check out adverts for people selling gear. Have you considered something like
the denon hdn4500, twin cd decks. I think there's one for sale there now. You
would need a mixer with it too.

Beeers

thanks will do,
also can anyone recommend a decent cdj player that has about 3 hot starts feature?
im guessing the hot start is the one where you set it to a certain point in a song and when you press the button it plays from point?

http://www.thomann.de/ie/gemini_cdj202.htm
see the "3 optional Times" in the discription? is that the same as hot cues?
sorry for stupid questions its confusing!

jonny68

hectic79 wrote: »

u could try virtual dj 4 d laptop to start u off would be a good first step, or u get a cheap set of decks n mixer if u want hands on approach

I've got Virtual DJ Professional an i can recommend it as well.

Beeers

Beeers wrote: »

http://www.thomann.de/ie/gemini_cdj202.htm
see the "3 optional Times" in the discription? is that the same as hot cues?
sorry for stupid questions its confusing!

yeah i have the demo of virtual dj! it seems good.
but in the quote above can anyone answer that question?


thanks

Zascar

If going CDJ's - get Pioneer. Its a very ratre time I see anything other than pioneer out in clubs etc - stick with the norm

Beeers

ah they are a bit too expensive i think for me, im only beginning.
couldnt find a good pioneer cdj for less than 500 each, id be spending 600 max for 2cdjs and a mixer really. then was gonna just get a cheap enough active monitor for my room.

cheers for the help mate!

Zascar

Are you totally set on CDJ's? If you want a good solution but don't want to spend money on Pioneers etc - going fully digital could be a good move. If you already have a laptop just spend 500 yoyo's on an M-Audio Torq Xponent and you're sorted. IMO it's the best all in one solution without spending huge money.

VinylJunkie

Zascar wrote: »

Are you totally set on CDJ's? If you want a good solution but don't want to spend money on Pioneers etc - going fully digital could be a good move. If you already have a laptop just spend 500 yoyo's on an M-Audio Torq Xponent and you're sorted. IMO it's the best all in one solution without spending huge money.

Agreed, Torq is great software very easy to use and you can get mad creative with it