Mixing 2 Songs Together like DJ'ing in the Sequencer!

[Creativemind]

Hi All!

Trying to mix 2 tracks together:-

This is old skool house.

Thought this would be a good starting track:-

then was trying to mix this into it:-

having trouble though.

If anybody is an electronic DJ here and can help. What's the first thing you do, maybe the 2nd track isn't a good one to mix into that fist one?

Let It Move You is 124bpm I think and Sweet Sesnation is 120bpm

Thanks!

[PhillipOrdonez]

I'll listen later. But are you trying to do this in Reason?

[jam-s]

I'd simply use the right tool for the job.

[PhillipOrdonez]

Just from the youtube links: They might sound good together, at least harmonically. The second one has way more high-end energy compared to the first one, which is darker but has more energy overall, so in my opinion the second one would be a bit jarring after that one, especially if the point is not to bring the vibe down but to turn it up.

If you want to do it in reason, you first have to set the tempo to the tempo of each song before importing it. Otherwise it will not work. I would do it in Live cause it is way easier there, but it is not impossible to do in Reason.

edit: in order to set the correct tempo in Reason, I would beatmatch Reason to the song using the metronome until they are totally in sync. Might not be that easy if you have no DJing experience.

[Popey]

god i love that track (sweet sensation)

I remember the area 51 track but did not own it however i dropped sweet sensation many times (and still own the vinyl). Phillip is correct your first point of call is to make sure they are the same bpm (as these are of an older era you may find the bpm is not as locked in as they are now timing wise). You may need to look at them closely and tweak a few transients as there is likely to be some drift (based on my recall of having to touch the turntable platter to keep in time more in the old days)

I would then think about if you want a flowing mix or more choppy and cutting the new track in more abruptly. I would suggest a flowing mix but this needs better timing. In the old days we used to just drop this with a quick transition but that was very much the norm back then.

The advantage you have over vinyl is that once beatmatched you can then loop and use the intro to aid your mix bringing in the Ahhs etc over a longer timeframe. You will have to use some eq so they kinda match across the frequency spectrum as phillip is right that they would be too different to mix seamlesly without.

I am working tomorrow but if you have the wavs and want to pm them to me i could do a few different mixes by the weekend to give you an idea as i still have a dj controller and software.

[Billy+]

tracks.jpg

harmonically speaking there's a very large gape 12m -> 3m, generally speaking you should be looking for something closer in value.

FYI youtube-dl is dead for the moment but you can swap out for the updated yl-dlp available here :-

https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/releas ... 2023.03.04

to download and rip to audio :-

yt-dlp.exe -x --audio-format wav "link"

[PhillipOrdonez]

Oh, great, let's download the very bad quality rips someone uploaded to YouTube probably ages ago at very low quality, but in wave format! That should be good enough

[Billy+]

Oh, great, let's download the very bad quality rips someone uploaded to YouTube probably ages ago at very low quality, but in wave format! That should be good enough

was a simple example used to find the key and bpm in traktor that's all

[Billy+]

if your looking for dj style mixing you could try Executioner dj mixer RE

but using the sequencer really isn't optimal.

[dioxide]

It'd be easier if they were modern tracks. Older tracks often have drift or edits that mean they don't import well to the sequencer. If you have a modern track and can figure out the tempo then it is much easier.

I built a basic track player using Mimic if you want to have a go at this mix as if it were a CDJ.
viewtopic.php?t=7530957

[Creativemind]

I'll listen later. But are you trying to do this in Reason?

I was actually doing it in Reaper but the principle will be the same won't it, I know this site is a good site for getting good responses that's why I posted it here.

[Creativemind]

I'll listen later. But are you trying to do this in Reason?

What do you mean, using decks?

[Creativemind]

Oh, great, let's download the very bad quality rips someone uploaded to YouTube probably ages ago at very low quality, but in wave format! That should be good enough

[Creativemind]

god i love that track (sweet sensation)

I remember the area 51 track but did not own it however i dropped sweet sensation many times (and still own the vinyl). Phillip is correct your first point of call is to make sure they are the same bpm (as these are of an older era you may find the bpm is not as locked in as they are now timing wise). You may need to look at them closely and tweak a few transients as there is likely to be some drift (based on my recall of having to touch the turntable platter to keep in time more in the old days)

I would then think about if you want a flowing mix or more choppy and cutting the new track in more abruptly. I would suggest a flowing mix but this needs better timing. In the old days we used to just drop this with a quick transition but that was very much the norm back then.

The advantage you have over vinyl is that once beatmatched you can then loop and use the intro to aid your mix bringing in the Ahhs etc over a longer timeframe. You will have to use some eq so they kinda match across the frequency spectrum as phillip is right that they would be too different to mix seamlesly without.

I am working tomorrow but if you have the wavs and want to pm them to me i could do a few different mixes by the weekend to give you an idea as i still have a dj controller and software.

Thanks mate. I just used a You Tube to MP3 converter online.

https://www.yt2conv.com/v118/

I know the quality isn't great as stated above but just wanted to see what I could do mixing wise.

[PhillipOrdonez]

I'll listen later. But are you trying to do this in Reason?

I was actually doing it in Reaper but the principle will be the same won't it, I know this site is a good site for getting good responses that's why I posted it here.

Won't. Reaper probably handles times trenching differently so it will not be the same principle. First you got to have both tunes at the same BPM.

[Creativemind]

I was actually doing it in Reaper but the principle will be the same won't it, I know this site is a good site for getting good responses that's why I posted it here.

Won't. Reaper probably handles times trenching differently so it will not be the same principle. First you got to have both tunes at the same BPM.

Thought that ( bpm) but there is only 4 bpm difference.

[PhillipOrdonez]

Won't. Reaper probably handles times trenching differently so it will not be the same principle. First you got to have both tunes at the same BPM.

Thought that ( bpm) but there is only 4 bpm difference.

Yeah, they need to be made exactly the same BPM, otherwise it will not sound good. This is why you first figure out the exact tempo of one tune first, then import into reason, then figure the exact tempo of the other, and then import that one. Then you can set reason to any tempo and they will be locked. This is why I suggest beat matching using the metronome first, then import once locked... Obviously live or any dj software is the right tool for this and not reason or reaper. 4 BPM difference goes out of whack pretty quickly, that's a huge difference in sync terms, believe it or not.

[Popey]

Tried a few various mixes with these two tracks and I admit defeat other than just dropping sweet sensation in quickly.

You can beat match them fine but they are so different key wise even when in time they don't sound good together imo.

[Creativemind]

Tried a few various mixes with these two tracks and I admit defeat other than just dropping sweet sensation in quickly.

You can beat match them fine but they are so different key wise even when in time they don't sound good together imo.

So the choosing of songs is a big element in DJ'ing I guess. I thought a good DJ could just mix any 2 songs of the same genre together. I suppose one technique I could employ could be to find a mix on You Tube and see which songs are mixed together on that mix and try those 2 songs to begin with and then experiment with others from that mix later to help me learn why they maybe chose that collection of songs.

[PhillipOrdonez]

Technically any two songs can be mixed together. Certainly some combinations will sound better than others. One thing to keep in mind is if these songs are radio edits or video edits, they will not work, especially if they are "so out of key" and you're not capable of tuning then to the right key... You need the vinyl version which has a longer intro and outro so they can be mixed.

[LABONERECORDINGS]

Ok coming from a DJing background there's a few things to consider here.

0. Track choice. This is the pinnacle where you get this wrong the mix may fail from the off. Treat mixing records like a universal jigsaw, every now and again you'll get a corner piece with limited exits.

1. Timing is key. First of all the bpms don't match so you'll need to speed up one and/or slow down the other so they do beat sync. What's known as 'trainwreck' to 'potsnpans', or 'clanger' when the mix fits then instadrifts if you don't keep beats in sync throughout. Definitely a major part of the puzzle, and no one wants a clanger (crowd wince isn't a good look...)

2. Placement. What we mean by this is WHEN to mix the tracks. Usually tracks like these have intro, main drop (where the energy hits the crowd), breakdown mid section (could be a beatless part of a stripped back section, or what would be a drum or break solo) into 2nd drop to outro. Now depending on what's in each section for each track, you can mix the two by 'sneaking' in the 2nd track to enhance the 1st (if there's beats without melody they can be cool to mix on top). Watch how hip hip djs mix the section, spinback the record and mix it again, like cut n paste. They don't mix and let it run (unless you wanted to LTJ Bukem mix for 8mins solid which he does with ease), they replay the section (like retriggering a sample or Rex player, or copy-paste audio clip). While the 1st track plays and now hits it breakdown, youve got more mixing options; do you chopmix (slicing each track so you mix by "swapping" tracks stylistically to create another beat pattern. Or full bar mixing...) Choices

3, Style. Do you transition (which means step 2 above applies because you need to start track 2 at the right point so you fade mix) or are you going DJ Yoda route....or Grandmaster flash....or do you Jive Bunny Mixmaster it by solely doing it all edited seamlessly. The DJ route can be more natural but could be open to being too loose if you miss your timing (#2 above).

4. Tools. Depending on how you want to work your style relies on the tools of the trade. If you're a carpenter and you need to make banister spindles get a lathe, else doing by hand is way more work and end result doesn't meet expectation. Same for any trade or profession. Same applies for music writing. Before crossfaders were a thing djs used volume faders (same idea yet 2 level controls to cross mix). Think about how the equipment was in the era these were made, two turntables and a mixer, EQ or kill filter switches and pretty much it. So keep it simple, or.... If you want today's tech thees sooooo many cool tools that would have blown yesteryear's djs away "kids now got it good" and looking around today, they're not wrong.

5. Tuning. Yes if you tried these two together as they are the keys maybe out, but listen back to rave tapes back then. How many tunes WERE in key when mixing. People back then didn't care too much about key until people heard 'power mixes' which were in key which changed everything. And key editing returns back to tools needed.



These aren't rules, merely suggestions to what would be needed to help. You just need to take this recipe (not as gospel) to make your own mix your way. Hope this helps

With those 2 tracks, Area 51 track has 6mins to utilise with Sweet Sensation 'chops', and around 1min28 there's a quality beat loop we would use to 'tease' in the track and have some fun with that. There's a drop section in Area 51 around the middle, which is likely the best place to transition (use lpf tweaks to mask the highs) the intro to Sweet Sensation, there's not much time before Sweet Sensation beat kicks in so you'll need to be quick with it and then mix out Area 51 just before Sweets drop hits . You want that beat to have real impact so if you've got at least quarter to half bar before that's a smooth maybe less obvious transition (the filtering of Area 51 earlier gives more room sort of like how the track was intended to sound)

[mimidancer]

you can do it in reason, but I like Traktor for mash-ups. Just works.