Multi Genre The death of the skilled DJ.

Agent Smith

Agent Smith

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Lots of talk and general conversation recently revolving around the death of beatmatching and the skilled DJ. Saw a load of stuff on Cyantifics FB from him saying that CDJ's effectively killed beatmatching. I always considered beat matching the be all and end all of mixing...if its locked you can do so much more with the mix as your letting go of the pitch completely.

I've always been an vinyl head. I have dabbled on CD's and know that it is a heck of alot easier to get a mix tighter on them than Vinyl. In fact, because I ride the pitch 99% of the time most of the mixes on CD's sounded rock solid. Take Friction for example. Seen stacks of vinyl mixes from him, always pretty solid, may be prone to a skippy needle...nowadays its all as solid as a CD you'd buy in a shop.

My question to the forum is...

What do you consider a skilled DJ? Is it the medium they use that makes a DJ more skillful? Or is it now really down to selection that separates the average to the very best?
 
I think when people are seeing what you are doing Vinyl wins.. i think if no one can see what your doing, anyone can look amazing with the click of a button!
 
how the fuck he does that i dunno.
thats next level dj material.

for me its selection. knowing what to play and how long to play it for.
too many people are concerned with the whole "recorded on 23 decks - 94897 tunes in 5 mins" fuck all that. i prefer to hear some tunes actually rolled out and not 17 teases over 1 tune. if ur selection is tight and fits the atmosphere u can pull it off, play something that i actually want to listen to.

i dont really care about format/media. unless ur doing some battle shit like in that video im not watching you mix, im listening.
 
TeddyBizzle said:
how the fuck he does that i dunno.
thats next level dj material.

for me its selection. knowing what to play and how long to play it for.
too many people are concerned with the whole "recorded on 23 decks - 94897 tunes in 5 mins" fuck all that. i prefer to hear some tunes actually rolled out and not 17 teases over 1 tune. if ur selection is tight and fits the atmosphere u can pull it off, play something that i actually want to listen to.

i dont really care about format/media. unless ur doing some battle shit like in that video im not watching you mix, im listening.
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Nail, head.

For me personally, after switching to digital from vinyl it is a piece of piss to mix on CD's compared to vinyl. It definitely has killed beatmatching in the sense that once its locked its not going anywhere.

In a way I prefer to use CD's because I can put on more of a show, with looping, cue points etc and I dont have to worry about skippy needle, dust, decks being fucked. As sad as I am to say it, I enjoy it more. Format isnt an issue for me at all, its all about selection and eqing for me. I dont care if you play off to cat's nipples.

Will never get rid of my vinyl or turntables though.
 
DJ NUERA said:
Format isnt an issue for me at all, its all about selection and eqing for me. I dont care if you play off to cat's nipples.

Will never get rid of my vinyl or turntables though.
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Eqing is very important regardless of the format.
99% of the time a mix entices me based on the TL. if its good and what I'm looking for I will listen regardless what you play on.

Wouldnt ever expect you to get rid of your turntables Matty! they should be an extension to your arms! haha.
 
I love to see DJs mixing vinyl. So if there would be 2 DJs on the same level considering selection and EQ'ing, I would always prefer the one going down the vinyl path. That being said, the thing I rate the most is the overall vibe of the mix. Seamless mixing, being able to change the mood by throwing some tune with a different drum pattern, creating a certain flow and being able to keep it or change it when necessary, that's the key to DJing for me.
 
Just mixing / double dropping. Basically it doesn't happen in Jump Up lol thats why I'm glad Mampi's back on the circuit the only dj from that crowd who can actually mix.
 
stusmith said:
Eqing is very important regardless of the format.
99% of the time a mix entices me based on the TL. if its good and what I'm looking for I will listen regardless what you play on.

Wouldnt ever expect you to get rid of your turntables Matty! they should be an extension to your arms! haha.
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haha yeah man! I use Traktor at home as I dont own CDJ's.
That way I can use vinyl format to practice without the ballache of having to take my macbook out and setting up shit etc.

Best of both worlds, imo!
 
skilled dj is in my opinion a dj that deliver good sounding live mixing be it on cdj or vinyl

cdj is easier and more capable tool,so in my opinion the dj must really do awesome mixing in order to make me think hes skilled dj while using cdjs


also vinyl is thing of the past,love it or hate,digital is better in everything so its no wonder its being replaced,trough it doesnt have charizma like plastic,it doesnt look so cool to spin cds but the advantages of digital are so severe that one day there would be nearly if not none vinyl in the dnb
 
I personally dont see much difference between CDs and Vinyl, as the dj still has to do something pitch-wise. Its the laptop dj with the sync button that i feel are cheating. I admit to lap top djing at home, as space is limited, but i have insulation tape over the bpm and sync indicators to keep my beat matching hand in, then play on cds when out and about.

It seems the years of perfecting technique go out the window these days though, i like to think that the only thing that can set me apart from newcomers to the scene is the music collection i have built up over the last 10 odd years.......no laptop can do that.
 
What you got to remember is 99.99% of ravers could not give a fuck about how a DJ has mixed there set, they have paid there money to be entertained, that's it. There aren't people sitting in raves chin stroking, saying 'Well to be fair, he is using vinyl so he is extra amazing', they are listening to the set, end of. People don't care what medium is being used, they are there for fun. I don't agree with by the way but it is fact.

It's only going to get easier to DJ which is worrying...

As touched on the only true skill is really selection.
 
The format doesnt matter......a dj's job is to make people dance.......forgetting the beard strokers having the vinyl vs cd debate whilst hanging around the booth like vermin, ask yourself as a raver what you go out for.....me, i want to have a good time maybe a dance and look a cunt on the dance floor for a few hours.....thats what a djs job is.

And whoever mention double dropping makes a good dj is talking out of their gary......anyone can DD as long as you know your tunes......LTJ Bukems not known for double dropping but hes had me going mental on the dancefloor...

Teddy is right.....its the selection and the way you drop certain tunes and when you drop them.

And all that scratching and doing gymnastics at the same time is just for winning competitions and looking good on youtube....i dont wanna dance to that when i go out
 
id also like to say....because someone uses cdjs doesnt mean they are lesser of a dj than somone using 1210's.....i can mix on both, and im guessing most people can....I dont see the point in using 1210s if you find mixing easier on cdjs......Its called progress. People should start to embrace new technology instead of fighting the inevitable......if you had your way youd still be listening to jive bunny
 
miszt said:
selection and creativity is all that matters to me
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Glad someone touched on the creativity aspect of a DJ set. big up Miszt.

I still think it would be easier to be creative if you were on CD's...once its locked its locked, & then you can focus all your attention on your mixer for cuts, switches and EQ work.

Even more easier potentially for some Laptop DJ's. While I will be there for example attempting to cue tunes quickly 16 bars before the drop...Mr Laptop DJ might have all of his tunes lined up, cued and ready to go...

I don't see that as being creative, I just see that as planning ahead.
The Laptop DJ certainly has the upper hand from the off, picking and cueing tunes pre-set, so they could potentially be very creative in their set...but the harsh reality is some are quite lazy and cut corners with it all...
 
I think you have to check it from 2 sides to consider what a good dj is.

From the dj-side (the people who are familiar with dj'ing and stuff)
--> I think it's a combination of technique and selection. First you have to learn to beatmatch correctly. Thats a standard for me. Than, it all comes to your style of mixing (fast mixing, slow, lots of teases, double dropping all the time,...), and selection.
Then the medium you use. Vinyl > cd's> software (imo). Vinyl is i think the hardest way to learn beatmatching and stuff. With good cdj's like pioneer cdj 2000, even my granny could mix a couple of tracks... With software she might trow a complete set lol.

Than the other side: the party people side. (Those who aren't familiar with dj'ing and stuff.)

TO be honest, the party people just consider a good dj those who can play energetic sets and make them move all the time.
An alcohol/ drugs influenced crowd doesn't give a fuck if the dj uses vinyl or cd's or whatever. They just want to dance on good music.
THey won't even notice if he's a bit uncorrect with the beats. ( as long as you aren't 2 bars wrong for like 30 seconds of course).

COnclusion: It depends on who you are imo how you can consider someone as a good dj.

Hope someone reads this half page of bullshit lol
 
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