Thread: need help with my mixing

firstly going to appologise for a lenghty post. i got a pair of numark belt drive decks a few months backs and for some reason still having problems mixing again, i say again because years ago i used to own a pair of 1210s and had no problems putting a set together but some 15 years later it seem like im starting all over again and keep messing up my mixes , the same mixes i had done years ago with no bother , i dont know if its a lack of confidance or i have lost the nack over time , anyway if anyone has any surgestion or advice i would be very greatfull , thanks

Originally Posted by topbuzz

firstly going to appologise for a lenghty post. i got a pair of numark belt drive decks a few months backs and for some reason still having problems mixing again, i say again because years ago i used to own a pair of 1210s and had no problems putting a set together but some 15 years later it seem like im starting all over again and keep messing up my mixes , the same mixes i had done years ago with no bother , i dont know if its a lack of confidance or i have lost the nack over time , anyway if anyone has any surgestion or advice i would be very greatfull , thanks

I'd suggest trying to get some direct drive ones, those belt drive ones are a nightmare, I remember I had some for my first set of decks, awful soundlab ones
even the most rubbish direct drive ones would be an improvement, But you can't beat a pair of 1200's, I got my ones for £275 for the pair and they were practically new(the guy used them to spin house records)

you can't be a Dj with belt drives mate,

well, i believe the mixing is like riding a bike - you just don'tf orget. If you've given it a fair crack & you're not sounding like you think you should then its one of 2 things imo:

1) Either your pitch or your belts are fooked, or

2) you've been lying to yourself for years

yeah, check your belts, that might be the problem,

I agree about the belt drives, they really are not suitable for even slightly accurate mixing.
I would look for some cheap direct drives, I sold some gemini XL500Mk2 (a pair) for £30 a few years ago, they were ok really for the money, reasonably stable if a little weak in torque.
If you can afford to, something like stanton's can be had for just over £100 each brand new, and they are pretty damm good for the cash.

Originally Posted by Ray Sparra

you can't be a Dj with belt drives mate,

i beg to diffa


though as nik quite rightly pointed out, you aint gonna get tight as fuk 4 min mixes with em.


when i stepped back onto it i weighed out £150 for 2 genini's and a mixer (and still have them).... loved em, worked a treat, and as a major bonus... the 1210 bum boys couldnt use em (just goes to show how great they are at mixing if all they can use is 1210s imo

check out ebay for a setup of turntables, mixer and if needed some speakers.

gemini good dex and cheap.

stantons if ya can get them even beter (all about the STR8.150 )

dont waste ya money on 1210s..... not even industry standard anymore

and to be totaly honest..... unless you already own alot of vinyl and / or serato.... by some CDJs. or you will be spunking a shit load of dolla every week of wax.... when yacan just come here and download for freeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

I learnt to mix with cheap as fuck belt drives, can't even remember what they were, but they were black...

I did alot of house parties for my mates with them & they were perfect... Simply because i had learnt how they worked & got on with it.

When i got direct drive decks i was shit, not used to the torque etc & it took me some time to understand how to work with them & then it was all good

Not been on the decks for years, using auto BPM software & still fucking it up proper

Take your time to learn & understand what you're using mate... Mixing is like making love to a beautiful woman

EDIT* If you've heard any of my mixes you'll notice i fuck slags

Originally Posted by Renegade Radio

i beg to diffa


though as nik quite rightly pointed out, you aint gonna get tight as fuk 4 min mixes with em.


when i stepped back onto it i weighed out £150 for 2 genini's and a mixer (and still have them).... loved em, worked a treat, and as a major bonus... the 1210 bum boys couldnt use em (just goes to show how great they are at mixing if all they can use is 1210s imo

check out ebay for a setup of turntables, mixer and if needed some speakers.

gemini good dex and cheap.

stantons if ya can get them even beter (all about the STR8.150 )

dont waste ya money on 1210s..... not even industry standard anymore

and to be totaly honest..... unless you already own alot of vinyl and / or serato.... by some CDJs. or you will be spunking a shit load of dolla every week of wax.... when yacan just come here and download for freeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

With the greatest repect, I agree with what you said(I learn't to mix on belt drives)

but Dj's don't use belt drives

unreal
ps. I'd like to see a Serato dj using belt drive decks, now that would be fucking funny

Originally Posted by Ray Sparra

With the greatest repect, I agree with what you said(I learn't to mix on belt drives)

but Dj's don't use belt drives

unreal
ps. I'd like to see a Serato dj using belt drive decks, now that would be fucking funny

Originally Posted by Leonized

I learnt to mix with cheap as fuck belt drives, can't even remember what they were, but they were black...

I did alot of house parties for my mates with them & they were perfect... Simply because i had learnt how they worked & got on with it.

When i got direct drive decks i was shit, not used to the torque etc & it took me some time to understand how to work with them & then it was all good

Not been on the decks for years, using auto BPM software & still fucking it up proper

Take your time to learn & understand what you're using mate... Mixing is like making love to a beautiful woman

EDIT* If you've heard any of my mixes you'll notice i fuck slags

You're pressing too hard on the records mate, get some skiddier slipmats

Torque,thats a spanner

(or a wrench, sorry)

Originally Posted by Ray Sparra

You're pressing too hard on the records mate, get some skiddier slipmats

Torque,thats a spanner

(or a wrench, sorry)

Torque - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Belt drives have fuck all torque which is why they go slow to fast when letting the vinyl go (with very little finger pressure to hold the vinyl).

Direct drive have better torque which means when you let the record go it continues at normal speed instead of slowly to correct speed like a belt drive.

I've used them both & know what i'm on about

You need to be more hands on with cheaper decks imo, it's just a slightly different, slower technique that you're probably not used to yet.
If you're not doing it already, try pushing and dragging the platter while you're adjusting the pitch. When you think it's right, keep your finger on the sticker and see if you can feel the platter changing speed. If the pitch isn't right you can easily adjust with your finger on the sticker to speed it up a touch or slow it down with a gentle touch on the edge of the platter and adjust the pitch fader accordingly.
If you are doing that already, I think you just need to do it for a bit longer
With Technics I can pitch bend to get the pitch (up n down in smaller amounts each time, honing in on the right pitch) without touching the platter, with cheaper decks I have to touch the vinyl as outlined above.

I'm not best qualified to advise here but just keep at it is my advice. I had belt drives for 6 months and they do learn you a lot imo.

Originally Posted by Leonized

Torque - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Belt drives have fuck all torque which is why they go slow to fast when letting the vinyl go (with very little finger pressure to hold the vinyl).

Direct drive have better torque which means when you let the record go it continues at normal speed instead of slowly to correct speed like a belt drive.

I've used them both & know what i'm on about

with the belt drives you can't press your finger down on the deck at all, you have to bend down and look at the things on the side of the platter that the light goes on and mix in by letting go of the edge of the record, that's where the expression "taking it from the edge comes from"

Originally Posted by Ray Sparra

with the belt drives you can't press your finger down on the deck at all, you have to bend down and look at the things on the side of the platter that the light goes on and mix in by letting go of the edge of the record, that's where the expression "taking it from the edge comes from"

When i started mixing i never looked at the platter... I understand what you're saying about holding the edge of the record & letting it go, i did that.
But when it came to scratching with belt drive i had to give it a push as i let go to (try &) get the right speed.
Direct drives i scratched & just let go & the speed was pretty much perfect due to the torque from the direct drives...

Originally Posted by Leonized

When i started mixing i never looked at the platter... I understand what you're saying about holding the edge of the record & letting it go, i did that.
But when it came to scratching with belt drive i had to give it a push as i let go to (try &) get the right speed.
Direct drives i scratched & just let go & the speed was pretty much perfect due to the torque from the direct drives...

you definately can't scratch on belt drives that's a disaster, not even Dj Hype could do that.

Originally Posted by Ray Sparra

you definately can't scratch on belt drives that's a disaster, not even Dj Hype could do that.

I learnt to scratch on a hifi unit with a record player on top, when i got belt drive turntables my scratching was fuckin' awesome

Direct drive made it better but it was the belt drive that made me appreciate scratching

I'm selling my Technics and gettin belt drives

Originally Posted by Ray Sparra

I'm selling my Technics and gettin belt drives

Don't take my advice mate

Just telling you how i started & learnt... Definitely need direct drive if you want to be good at it... Belt drive is hard work

thanks everyone for advice , i think forgot about all the benifets of direct drive vs belt drives , going to check the belts in the morning , i think im going to change over to cdjs (money permiting) later this year , in the mean time going to keep percisting with these decks and just try all the tips given , feel lke a muppet thank you all again for your advice

Originally Posted by topbuzz

thanks everyone for advice , i think forgot about all the benifets of direct drive vs belt drives , going to check the belts in the morning , i think im going to change over to cdjs (money permiting) later this year , in the mean time going to keep percisting with these decks and just try all the tips given , feel lke a muppet thank you all again for your advice

Don't feel like a muppet matey, different strokes for different folks & all... Do what feels right for you

Originally Posted by topbuzz

thanks everyone for advice , i think forgot about all the benifets of direct drive vs belt drives , going to check the belts in the morning , i think im going to change over to cdjs (money permiting) later this year , in the mean time going to keep percisting with these decks and just try all the tips given , feel lke a muppet thank you all again for your advice

well done, what ever you do stay away from the belt drive Cdj's,


cause the're well shit

I think most of us oldskoolers learnt to mix on belt drive turntables - i did on a set of Soundlabs and then i got a pair of Numarks - i didn't want to invest my money on direct drives just in case i couldn't get to grips with my mixing. Yes they maybe hard work but i fully enjoyed learning to mix with them.

Yes it's easier to mix on direct drives as the platter goes at one speed but there are ways around getting a record to keep going at the speed you want on belt drives like applying a bit of pressure to push the vinyl while adjusting the pitch so the tune stays in time and then if it's going to fast slightly rub the spinning turntable to slow it down while adjusting the pitch plus a having a good set of slipmatts

I used to use my mates Technics on a regular basis and i mixed fine with no problems - so if you can mix on belt drives, you can mix on direct drives.

I also haven't mixed using turntables for years so i know when i do (if i do) my mixing will be shit If you know the basics of mixing from before then all you need is a bit of practice to get good again imo - so my advice would be to practice - whether you use belt drives or direct drives well that's just a matter of taste

cheers for all the advice , it cheered me right up

wait a minute! Topbuzz?! Needs help?!?!?! With mixing?!?!?!?!

Surely I've misread this thread?!?!?!?!?!