Mixing - does this happen to anyone else?

Zascar

Does anyone else's mixing go to sh!te when they are trying to record? I can be doing brilliant mixing for hours but as soon as I press record sometimes it just seems to go to crap.

Does this happen to anyone else, really pisses me off!

jonny68

Yeah i can relate to that, have had to press stop and redo a set several times after i completely fcuked up a mix and it can frustrating, my latest mix isn't the best mixing on it (that's my own fault for doing it locked:o) but the Techno/Trance one before that is quite decent,sometimes you get it spot on other times you fcuk it up.

tman

Yep... I always found that I tend to be more at ease and mix naturally if I record EVERYTHING.
Always helps if you warm up for a bit first as well, instead of just going straight into recording a mix

Scubadevils

Always used to happen to me... back in the days of cassettes and I'd have to rewind the tape and start again. It was really annoying when you had got maybe 3/4 of the way through the mix and really reckon it's a good job only to feck up the mix towards the end. I was always far too picky about the mix though and quite often the beat may have only been slightly out. Or I'd spend a couple of hours buzzing about on the decks and put together a set I'm really happy with and then as soon as I decide its time to record it, I start to question the track selection again - I wish I had the time these days to get stuck in again!

Daroxtar

Ya, happens me the whole time. I would say its stage fright but it never happens when i'm playing a gig(if i'm sober). Maybe i'm afraid of myself

SteveDon

i know the feeling,

the other week i was recording a mix and it was going really well was really getting into it,

at then end of the mix at about the hour and a half mark i just did the most bogey mix ever and ruined the whole set, was so annoyed.

ironically the last song i mixed in was camea - happy ending, needless to say it wasnt a happy ending

TURRICAN

Bloody bed room dj's.....fcukin ameteurs:D

cmon lads just press record and mix away,let it have ,forget about the recording.everyone makes mistakes.thats why you keep coming back.
:P:D

seannash

perhaps this is why so many traditional jocks have a problem with the ableton djs.they can just go back into there mix and fix any of the **** ups and put out a flawless mix when in reality the take could have been riddled with mistakes

VinylJunkie

It happens to everyone, however I find I make a big deal over even the smallest error when im recording. The error might not be noticeable to most people.

The best thing to do is record everything.

Zascar

I've recorded plenty of mixes in my time (all in my sig) and generally they go ok. I don't plan my sets really - I just ahve a gerneral idea of what want to do and a selection of tunes to choose from - but that's it. Unless I really totally fcuk something up I will carry on - I don't re-do my sets until they are perfect - all of mine will have some minor imperfection - but as people have said if it is 'too perfect' then it is not really real.

What is happening to me at the moment, is I mix almost every day, just fcuking around, putting on just whatever feels good at the time, bring really crash with the faders and eq's (I'm trying to experiment with trickery etc) but its going well and sounds good. However when I try to record this (I'm using a webcam to record a 10 Min Mix for youtube) its like I'm being more careful - but it just does not work out as well.

I think I'll just try recording everything, not think about it, and see whjats good at the end.

seannash

Zascar wrote: »

I've recorded plenty of mixes in my time (all in my sig) and generally they go ok. I don't plan my sets really - I just ahve a gerneral idea of what want to do and a selection of tunes to choose from - but that's it. Unless I really totally fcuk something up I will carry on - I don't re-do my sets until they are perfect - all of mine will have some minor imperfection - but as people have said if it is 'too perfect' then it is not really real.

What is happening to me at the moment, is I mix almost every day, just fcuking around, putting on just whatever feels good at the time, bring really crash with the faders and eq's (I'm trying to experiment with trickery etc) but its going well and sounds good. However when I try to record this (I'm using a webcam to record a 10 Min Mix for youtube) its like I'm being more careful - but it just does not work out as well.

I think I'll just try recording everything, not think about it, and see whjats good at the end.

yeah im very rough with the faders too.feels great slamming things around.i did notice that the first few times i played out i was very soft on the faders but the more experience i got the aggressiveness came back.i tend to do most of my mixing with the eq so i dont really gently increase the tracks volume i tend to cut alot with the eq and then slam up the volume and bring in the track with the eq.just works for me.love messing with the highs and doing flash bass swaps on the fourth beat so i have to be fast on the faders for that type of stuff
it also drives me nuts when you go into a booth and the dj before you has the volume faders set at different levels for the different channels.they always freak out when i come in and make adjustments so that i put the faders up full on both channels and level everything off with the trim.guess its just personal style.
bit of a rant there.
back on topic.when i did record mixes i used to just do the one pass.id hear flaws but most people wouldnt.we are our own toughest critics at the end of the day

TURRICAN

there's alwalys going to bo some imperfection.look at the quartz lock on your decks even they can go off pace .
then take your arm and fingers they are not as steady as you might think.you touch the record to hard or too soft ,your speeds will go out.
this is where a good dj will be able to see if he has gone to fast or slow and correct it without making it worse before he gets it right again.
i love that part where you can hear the bass drum kind of hovering on top of each other:cool:
so long as you dont end up with a bad dose of galloping horses:Dits ok i think,or dont hit the tone arm and end up with a big http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YY0cMWbFEvw

then you have fcuk ups

franklyshocked

I find it more difficult to get in the zone sometimes. You can generally throw any selection of tracks together but you know the difference when you are really rocking. Did my show on Monday night on the Kitchen-Sync (Shameless plug) and I'd say it took me 5 or 6 tracks to really start rocking.
Mind you right up to when I was starting I was having trouble getting logged in and set up so I wasn't really sure I'd be able to play so perhaps that stress was messing with my enjoyment of actually playing.

I fully agree with comments earlier about recording everything. Back before junior came along and the nursery was called the studio, I recorded every mix I did and there's a lot to be said for doin that. Some mixes work and others don't but the more you work at it the better you get

M5

Must be 2 years since i last fired up the decks. this thread mad me laugh tho, so true!!! I used to record every time i mixed. I'd listen to most too in order to see what tracks sounded good together and which ones just did not sit. But like so many ppl before have said it usually takes a few mixes to get settled in

BaZmO*

Happens to me all the time and it does my head in.

A lot of the mixes that I do I tend to plan out in advance, i.e. track selection, where to come in, etc.

And when I'm practising everything goes brilliantly and I can throw in little tricks, but as soon as the little red light goes on I feel the pressure and make silly little mistakes.

Never happens/happened when playing live though.

Photojoe

Oooh another deleted post, this place is worse than DMI.

Zascar

We try to keep things friendly around here. Unhelpful or abusive posts aren't welcome, and so sometimes get deleted. Boards.ie on the whole is quite restriective due to the nature of the site overall. Thankfully there are plenty of other sites that have very little rules, so if you find this not to your liking you still have plenty of other options.

Photojoe

Zascar wrote: »

We try to keep things friendly around here. Unhelpful or abusive posts aren't welcome, and so sometimes get deleted. Boards.ie on the whole is quite restriective due to the nature of the site overall. Thankfully there are plenty of other sites that have very little rules, so if you find this not to your liking you still have plenty of other options.

Heres an idea. Leave the post up but give me a little infraction so at least people get to read the thing. Or am I back seat modding now.

And the post was hardly offensive to any one individual.

SteveDon

in his defense it wasnt that bad! looked like a joke rather than anything malicious

Executive Steve

radio is the worst, not only are you being recorded and listened to but you're alone in a room and you're sober and you don't have all the visual cues of a crowd in front of you...