Sign In:     

Forum: General Discussion

Topic: Why does everyone down vdj? - Page: 2

This topic is old and might contain outdated or incorrect information.

For me its like this, I use VDJ and Serato. If I'm doing a party with just basic beatmatching then I use VDJ if were throwing a Hip-Hop show then I use Serato cause half of the DJ's that come in use it plus the timecode is much better. If the timecode for VDJ was spot on and the sampler was given some TLC I'd force them all to use VDJ no questions asked!!

Huey

P.S. In the end it really doesnt matter what I have to use cause I'm gonna get the job done no matter what!! And thats what counts.........
 
beatbreaker1 wrote :


In the end it really doesnt matter what I have to use cause I'm gonna get the job done no matter what!! And thats what counts.........


NO DOUBT!!!
 
I have been mixing for about 10 years.

I started on some crappy numark's and drove technics for over 7 years. Now I am 100% VDJ w/ HID controllers. I have tried serato, traktor, and the pioneer software, I chose to buy VDJ because it is the best. THE BEST. No joke, the best!!! Effects, sampling, latency, skins, plugins, hardware compatibility, speed, and other features set it far above the rest that I have tested.

Some people bash the digital dj, those people bash all software. I specifically hate when people that use COMPETING software products hate on VDJ. That is what really gets me. Everyone thinks Serato is the best, however I find it very limiting!! and so darn expensive, why?

People bash it for the same reason MAC users bash Windows.... they have the popular and more expensive product.

I used to be a hater, and I still am for certain things... I personally hate that kids call themselves DJ's when they tap a sync button and move a crossfader, when I spent YEARS learning to beatmatch 100% by ear with zero visual aid or BPM counter. Not that these people cannot learn, but I do not consider them dj's at all. However my personal thoughts on this have nothing to do with software or the technology used.

Embracing the technology is needed. Even though I spent those years tuning my ears to beatmix and learn about patterns and musical structure, I do glance at the bpm counter and will look at waveforms to help me out, it helps to get the job done faster and can allow for more dynamic mixing. On the other hand, I have NEVER, ever, not once used any sort of auto mix or sync capabilities and I have no idea how to use those features because that, in my opinion, takes the fun out of throwing down some tunes!! Getting those tracks matched by ear in 10 seconds and swapping the fader is a very rewarding feeling that nobody pressing auto-sync or whatever will understand.

Anyways enough of my rant, let the haters hate, let the wannabes think they got skill, and let the Serato users waste their money...
 
welp, I bought this program at version 6.something, and years before that, I had a cracked copy. I bought the program without owning any physical equipment anymore.

I think that without using any equipment, that the autosync function is only as good as the program reading the actual beats. In other words, if the program actually reads the BPM correctly, then a sync function is never going to fail you. Of course, that is also why they have pitch controls as well. for when the BPM HAVEN'T been read super accurately.



But if there was a major computer virus that got rid of all computers, I would have no problem going back to turntables, like I did back in the late 80's. I still have my crates of records, and there's no reason to think that I couldn't go back.

Hell, I'm in the house music scene, and out of all of the DJ's that I have seen only two of them actually use a program, (and I believe one is SSL, and the other uses traktor). That was the reason I was prompted to question the validity of a program to begin with in some of my earlier created threads. But hey, you will ALWAYS have guys that have issues. One guy will have an issue with DJ programs to begin with. the next guy will defend programs, but down SSL and Traktor, while promoting VDJ. And the next guy will defend VDJ, but down autosync. It's a cycle that NEVER ends......
 
djlowtek wrote :
I personally hate that kids call themselves DJ's when they tap a sync button and move a crossfader,


What has always perplexed me on that statement is "How does VirtualDJ get the bad wrap association for having a Sync feature?" Not questioning your statement - can't stand the same Sync-Only DJs (SODs as I like to call them).

So why is it that the majority of the time the only argument made about VirtualDJ is that it is a 'toy' because you can 'sync' tracks?

Traktor has it - even promoted in a recent video about the DDJ-T1 as an 'innovative feature of the software'

Itch has it, Torq has it, MixVibes has it, do I need to go on :)

Really the only software on the market that doesn't have a Sync feature is SSL. But 'sync' is the most requested improvement feature asked for -- hmmm??

So, how does the Sync feature always become the 'sore' point for people about VirtualDJ?



I know the other argument is usually around our 'auto-mix' feature - but it is there for a convenience - we don't FORCE people to use it.
 

The bottom line on that one is the creativity. It was like this when rap music was becoming popular, a lot of musicians would say that is not music because all they do is play the beat back over and over again. I personally don't have a problem with the sync button and I been in the game almost 3 decades! I love it for the fact, I can be a little more creative with my sets! Do I need it? NO, but I'm not going run up a hill when I have a car! Also one thing we all must remember is that the SYNC button is an option, not a must use! So no one is going to push a nuclear button if you don't use it. Especially the people who hire you, because they're not concerned with what buttons you pushed, but the fact you do what they hired you to do and that's keep the people on the dance floor!
 
X2
Far too many people trying to re-invent the wheel. Wheels are round and thats that! Why try to use a square one!

Daz
 
Dazmax wrote :
X2
Far too many people trying to re-invent the wheel. Wheels are round and thats that! Why try to use a square one!

Daz


Oh is that why turntable with the squares didn't work? lol! You're on point with that one Dazmax, lol!
 
cstoll wrote :
Really the only software on the market that doesn't have a Sync feature is SSL. But 'sync' is the most requested improvement feature asked for -- hmmm??


I'm sure I remember a post from someone at Rane saying that autosync is coming to SSL as well...
 
^ maybe just to the SP-6 feature, i doubt they will put the sync featurefor the actual decks, that will make a lot of ppl pissed.
 
In response to someones sarcastic request for auto-sync:

Steve From Rane wrote :
I know it's on their list. Timing unknown though. It is a popular request (not surprisingly).


I think you over-estimate the amount of people that will be upset. Sure a vocal minority of self-proclaimed purists will be, but those same purists still seem to want SP-6 syncing, use auto gain, auto BPM, waveforms and so on.

As with any feature - if you won't want to use it, don't use it!
 
SBDJ wrote :
As with any feature - if you won't want to use it, don't use it!


That is the smartest thing ever said in any software debate.
 
it is definitely been asked to be a feature and on the list, if it will see the light of the day: unsure.

SP-6 autosync feature is a different story
 
Some of the reasoning I see here seems unusual to me. I am almost 50 years old and I have lived long enough to see a lot of things that are now much easier than they used to be.

Most vehicles now have an automatic transmission and power steering. When I learned to drive we had a manual transmission and no power steering. A lot of you probably don’t even know what that is.

I used to shovel all of my snow by hand. Now, I have a snowblower and a plow.

The first computer I ever was exposed to received its “programming” with punch cards that had to be read every time a particular piece of “software” was executed.

I worked in radio stations from the time that all of the music and commercials were on tape cartridges until every audio machine in the building was replaced by digital work stations. We used to do edits with a razor blade, tape and an editing block. All of that was replaced by a computer that could do the job in 5 seconds.

I started beatmixing in clubs in the early 1980s and it was much harder than it is now. The songs did not hold tempo as well and the 12” versions were not always the greatest. A lot of times we had a 45 or an album and would do the best we could trying to mix with that. Before the SL-1200s we had belt-driven tables and that was a challenge.

I also programmed a 70s night where we played exclusively disco and tried to mix most of that music as well. That was not always easy.

Over the years I have manually mixed thousands upon thousands of songs as I worked in clubs five to seven nights a week for over 15 years. I know how to do it.

The technology and machines have come a long way since the time that the technique of beatmixing was invented. See this article: http://www.djhistory.com/interviews/francis-grasso

I use the synch button. You can slide the pitch control up and down and look at the screen and do the same thing. If you are playing a song that is 127.51 beats per minute and you move the pitch control on the other deck in VDJ you will see when the speed is the same. As noted by other posters, this does not ensure a “perfect mix” and skill is still needed to produce a “perfect” mix.

A lot of DJs that are playing, and mixing, now probably do not know how to manually beatmatch the music just by ear. A lot of DJ’s (some I’ve heard) use the software to match the beats nearly perfectly but have no idea how to align the beats on the musical phrase or how to make a smooth transition between songs.

What matters to the people in a club is what comes out of the speakers. I am a beatmixer and have been for many years but in my hometown I used to go to a club sometimes where the DJ was very popular as a “personality.” He did not know how to beatmix at all and this was a dance club. Rather than learn how to mix he had mastered the art of choosing the right song at the right time, slipping the songs together with smooth segues, and saying witty things on the microphone. I don’t think most people ever knew there was a difference between that and what went on at the club where I worked. They had a good time and that was that.

I never talked on the microphone in the club. I just mixed dance music all night and although I was (in my opinion) always successful, this guy’s success drove me nuts until I accepted that there are different paths to reach the same goal.

If people use the synch button all the time and what comes out of the speakers is good, why argue with success? Technology will continue to make things easier in almost all areas of life.

To me, complaining about being able to automatically synch the music is like some 80 year old person complaining about how, “we used to do it in the old days.” I’ve seen the old days and I’m not going back.
 
Palladium wrote :


If people use the synch button all the time and what comes out of the speakers is good, why argue with success? Technology will continue to make things easier in almost all areas of life.

To me, complaining about being able to automatically synch the music is like some 80 year old person complaining about how, “we used to do it in the old days.” I’ve seen the old days and I’m not going back.



AND THE CHURCH OF DJ'S SAYS, AMEN!!!!
 


Edit: Quote of previous post removed
 
 
I wish some pecker-head would say anything stupid to me about using VDJ, while I am playing. The verbal barrage of the stuff that would be coming out of my mouth, would be harsh and never ending. Even though the truth is I don't give a flying squirrel what they think. I would just get a kick out of assaulting them verbally. I have said it before, Never let anyone define who you are. Here's a good example. Some of us (including me), use the term bottom feeders. Do you think they care that we call them that? They are bottom feeding their way right to the bank.
 
I think its a pretty solid argument that you need to spend time learning to beatmix, because it takes a sh*tload of time and practice to master, but that's the time you are also spending tuning your ears to different music and understanding the structure of music building a good taste in music and forming your own identity within the scene through the music, no 12 year old kid can press autosync and even have any clue as to what is meant here, but sure once you are ready to take your set to the next level because musically your capable of mixing more than two tracks by all means use autosync and 4 or more decks but, If I hear someone who just mashes up 4 decks just because they can, I stop listening straight away. but seriously if your going to play that many tracks why not just use abelton... what was this topic again.. Oh yeah VDJ rules mainly because of the online community and the fact that vdj users are generally very unpretentious, and the fact that you can do anything and more in vdj that you can do in other software, the only real drawback is the quality of the effects, but i use external ones anyway...
 
Hi I've been djing since the mi-eighties and totally understand what palladium is saying....I will add that after horrible back pains & a severe knee injury due to years of carrying heavy crates of vinyl, I started playing cd's( around 2005) and suddenly I got these kids looking down on me and saying that I am not a real dj because i use cd's....what?????? so I told 'em to bring some vinyl next time and show me what a "real dj "sounds like...to make a long story short I had a good time showing them how wrong they are, and to top it all off, i used their records after and showed them what a real dj could do with records...phaser effects, pitch and key changes, scratching, juggling, backspin, needle drops, echo and delay...ect....haaaaaaa vengance is sweet + I made two new friends.....after seeing coldcut's live video set(what do you know they where using virtual vinyl that comes with cue software) I bought virtual vinyl and later some cdj 400's and now I am starting to get the snobby attitudes from serato users.... I tried the serato video pluggin therefore judging for myself and I prefer vdj for a multitude of reason, the fact that it is included with the software doesn't hurt either...while serato you have to pay an extra $200 for it, hummmmm!!!!I think some people are missing the big picture here...you have to evaluate what your needs are...serato seems to be the industry standard and if you play at a gig with other djs it is better to use the same software therefore it wouln't hurt to know how to use it in case....same for traktor,,,,,me I hated cd's when they came out stating that they sounded crap and I was right but honestly not many djs can hear the difference so imagine customers....but i still learned to use cd decks....now people listen to mp3's which is even crappier than cd's and people still don't seem to make the difference so let's stop comparing dicks and focus on the entertainment side....cheeers
 


(Old topics and forums are automatically closed)