loki
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Posted : Apr 6, 2013 02:59:07
Okay so: let's say that (just in theory) you had a pretty cool chance to play a bunch of your tunes live or dj'd and wanted to prep. You are pretty confident in your recent stuff and have some rare underground repeases to round out the mix.
Only catch is, you don't really know what you are doing with this jazz and it's in ONE WEEK. You can use logic very well and own ableton, and for some reason an apc40, but never touch either.
Where would you start? Is it possible?
Hypothetically of course.
Fuck.
Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room. ~Kurt Vonnegut
www.soundcloud.com/mixyott
snowdogg
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Posted : Apr 6, 2013 03:14
well with ableton and the apc you should have all you need for a dj set!
snowdogg
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Posted : Apr 6, 2013 03:15
tbh, i'd just arrange the whole thing in logic and hit play.
one week isn't enough to get enough skills in ableton to do something meaningful during a live set.
if you can dj with some other program or even cds that would be an option.
i have thought about the same issue maybe coming up in my future, so i tried to learn ableton, but it doesn't agree with me at all, so i also have it but never touch it and can't do anything with it.
willsanquil
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Posted : Apr 6, 2013 04:15
I would make an extremely basic emulation of a standard DJ mixer in ableton for the APC40, warp the songs that you want to play, and then practice a couple hours a day.
The APC40 is the perfect tool for a DJ console and I can walk you through setting up a very easy template that you can make with just the APC and Live (I assume you have 8?), no fancy extra bits, all ableton plugins so no worrying about VST hassle and all that jazz.
It's totally doable if you constrain yourself to learning only what you need to know and practicing. I am actually thinking about doing a tutorial on this very thing and if you like I could promise to have it finished by tomorrow so you could check it out.
If you are not expected to in any way fool the crowd that you're 'doing stuff' you should totally just do a studio mix in logic with proper crossfading and shit and burn a pre mixed CD and pop that into a CDJ or bring your ipod. It would be a very high quality musical experience but there would be no 'showmanship' to it from a DJ perspective....but if its a small intimate show and no one cares that's totally an option. If you want to make an apple pie from scratch...you must first invent the universe
www.soundcloud.com/tasp www.soundcloud.com/kinematic-records
loki
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Posted : Apr 6, 2013 05:10
Thanks so much snow and wil!
Wil- It's no paid gig, just a close producer friend's party who demands I get up off my ass and play some sort of set, so I'm not worried about fooling anyone. Even basic filter and delay work would be fun. And I can pre-plan the set as needed.
Really I want to avoid just pressing play- my musician pals will be there, and though I have little experience, I want to make a good effort. The hopefully endearing village hippy factor will have to do in place of showmanship.
Would love it of you could get that tutorial up!! And I will ask you about setting up a template perhaps.
This is totally doable... Hehehe
Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room. ~Kurt Vonnegut
www.soundcloud.com/mixyott
willsanquil
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Posted : Apr 6, 2013 08:19
I can get you started with a template and some basics, and I will do my best to put up the tutorial tomorrow that should answer any additional questions you might have.
There is a live 8+ compatible template. It has a max4live plugin but if you don't have max4live it is not essential but it is really, really nice.
Basically you have 4 virtual decks. each deck has 3 band EQ, and there are 4 send/return channels each with 4 available knobs of your own choosing.
Your first 4 faders are volume faders for your 4 decks. the second 4 faders are the Bass EQ for your 4 decks.
the 8 Device Control knobs on the bottom right of the APC are your High and Mid EQ knobs for your 4 decks
your 4x8 bank of Track Control knobs at the top right of the APC are your Send/Return track controls. The top row of each Bank (as selected by Pan/Send A/Send B/Senc C) is the routing of the Send out from your virtual Deck into the Return which would be your Delay or Reverb or what have you.
So, if you go to the Send B bank, the top 4 knobs will be the Send knobs for the 3rd Return track in ableton, the Send C bank top 4 knobs would be for the 4th Return track.
I have left the bottom 4 knobs in each Bank unmapped so that you can map them to whatever you want.
The Master Fader of the APC controls the levels of all of the Return tracks so that if shit gets crazy you just grab that and yank it down. No control over the actual ableton master fader is needed - you just set it to zero and then adjust volume on your soundcard to taste.
The max4Live plugin thats there is to make it easier to navigate around in teh session/clip view without using your mouse. If you have a track playing in Deck 1 but you also have a track playing in Deck 2 and you want to flip between the waveforms of those tracks you have to use your mouse - but with this plugin, you just hold down the Track Selection button of the track that's playing a clip and ableton will automatically show you the waveform of the clip that's playing.
So, you just triggered a new track in deck 2, but you want to go back to the waveform of deck 1. just hold down Track Selection button #1 and it will show you the waveform of the clip that's playing. this is essential for doing the whole set without having to use your mouse which can easily have you looking like you're checking your email.
oh, and you'll need to warp the tracks you're playing. here's a great tutorial on that:
it's totally doable and once you get your template set up you can practice it and perfect it and it's going to be fucking awesome
I'm logging off for the night but I'll be back on tomorrow to answer any questions you might have and to make that tutorial.
Edit - I realize that if you truly have never opened up Ableton I may have just scared the fuck out of you. I would be surprised if that was true considering you actually own it and the APC but if so, don't worry it sounds more complicated than it is If you want to make an apple pie from scratch...you must first invent the universe
www.soundcloud.com/tasp www.soundcloud.com/kinematic-records
supergroover
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Posted : Apr 6, 2013 12:53
Just lay out everything in Ableton and add sounds while your finished tracks are playing. And put some fx on the master that you trigger with your apc.
Make some nice fx sounds that you could layer on top of any track. Make sure you know the key of the track and you can use your laptop keyboard to trigger the notes.
soundcloud.com/supergroover
jekvan
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Posted : Apr 6, 2013 19:29
Good luck dude!
From all the things I lost,that sandwitch cost me most :)
loki
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Posted : Apr 6, 2013 20:35
Thanks! I think it's going to be fun but I can't say I'm not nervous.
Better start sometime - might as well be with my good friends and a small scene. I feel so novice! It's like being in high school again playing guitar for the first time in front of an audience.
Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room. ~Kurt Vonnegut
www.soundcloud.com/mixyott
willsanquil
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Posted : Apr 6, 2013 20:48
I remember being in the same position a couple years ago. I had been producing for a while and knew I could probably pull of a DJ set if I wanted to but had no opportunity.
A friend booked me for a small show, I was scared shitless, but I prep'd and knew my setup and made it as simple as possible for what I wanted and it turned out great If you want to make an apple pie from scratch...you must first invent the universe
www.soundcloud.com/tasp www.soundcloud.com/kinematic-records
willsanquil
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Posted : Apr 7, 2013 01:02
lol trying to do the tutorial right now, im on take #4. definitely shouldn't have ripped the vape beforehand.
If you want to make an apple pie from scratch...you must first invent the universe
www.soundcloud.com/tasp www.soundcloud.com/kinematic-records
willsanquil
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Posted : Apr 7, 2013 01:18
OMG I just did it the whole way through and it was pretty good but I didn't have the freakin camera on. eesh.
If you want to make an apple pie from scratch...you must first invent the universe
www.soundcloud.com/tasp www.soundcloud.com/kinematic-records
willsanquil
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Posted : Apr 7, 2013 01:51
