Vibrant Sounds
31-10-2007, 04:12 PM
Following on from another thread where a DJ was having difficulty normalizing the sound between concurrent tracks I wondered how others set up their signal/sound path and how they adjust for variations.
This is how I do it, I may be right, I may be wrong, but I get very little if any background noise (even at loud volumes) and no distortion. It seems to work for me.
Using a Denon HD2500 player, Denon X500 Mixer and Bose L1 system.
I set the attenuators on the Bose PS1 powerbase at the 2pm position.
If I was using an ordinary amplifier I would have them fully on. If I was using Mackie SRM450s I would have them set to 12 o clock.
I set the master volume control on the X500 mixer at about 3pm. I then adjust the microphone level until it is just below feedback volume. I then take the master volume control back down to the 12 o clock position. I now know that if I really need it I can take the master up to the 3pm position without the mic feeding back and there being any background noise.
I start with the channel faders at about level 2 on the mixer (level 8 is 0db)
I adjust the volume levels through the night by moving the channel faders up and down (in unison), not the master, unless I get to level 8 (0db) when if I need some more volume (only happened once to date) I will raise the master volume further.
On setting up the channels (channel 1 is for the backup laptop, channel 2 is for an MP3 player for background music whilst I set up, channel 3 is the left channel of the HD2500 and channel 4 is the right channel of the HD2500).
I play the same track on all mediums/decks and adjust the input gain of each to give one yellow led on each of the channel VUs. These are now all at the same volume regardless of the medium used. When playing tracks, to adjust the next track to a form of parity with the previous one, I use the gain control, and I adjust each track individually (whilst the other is playing) by holding down the cue button of the deck with the next track in and adjusting the channel gain control until the first yellow light comes on on the channel VU meter. Every track is set like this so the sound should be more or less similar, allowing for variations in the music. Obviously the x-fader is set to the playing deck so it does not come out of the speakers.
This also means that at no stage do I send a clipped signal through the sound chain, which could lead to distortion being amplified further down the line and in severe cases damage to your equipment.
It is important to realise though that if your medium has it's own pre-amp then you must make sure that the input signal is not being clipped before it even gets to the mixer. Many software DJ programs are guilty of this, and it is important to keep an eye on the programs VU meters and ensure that when playing the tracks the VU meters do not go into the RED. I use SAM DJ on the backup laptop and have actually set the channel sliders at -6db each to prevent this occurring. It does mean on occasions that I have to raise them for some tracks ('greased lightning' for one), but knock them straight back down again after.
Okay, that's how I do it, how do you?
This is how I do it, I may be right, I may be wrong, but I get very little if any background noise (even at loud volumes) and no distortion. It seems to work for me.
Using a Denon HD2500 player, Denon X500 Mixer and Bose L1 system.
I set the attenuators on the Bose PS1 powerbase at the 2pm position.
If I was using an ordinary amplifier I would have them fully on. If I was using Mackie SRM450s I would have them set to 12 o clock.
I set the master volume control on the X500 mixer at about 3pm. I then adjust the microphone level until it is just below feedback volume. I then take the master volume control back down to the 12 o clock position. I now know that if I really need it I can take the master up to the 3pm position without the mic feeding back and there being any background noise.
I start with the channel faders at about level 2 on the mixer (level 8 is 0db)
I adjust the volume levels through the night by moving the channel faders up and down (in unison), not the master, unless I get to level 8 (0db) when if I need some more volume (only happened once to date) I will raise the master volume further.
On setting up the channels (channel 1 is for the backup laptop, channel 2 is for an MP3 player for background music whilst I set up, channel 3 is the left channel of the HD2500 and channel 4 is the right channel of the HD2500).
I play the same track on all mediums/decks and adjust the input gain of each to give one yellow led on each of the channel VUs. These are now all at the same volume regardless of the medium used. When playing tracks, to adjust the next track to a form of parity with the previous one, I use the gain control, and I adjust each track individually (whilst the other is playing) by holding down the cue button of the deck with the next track in and adjusting the channel gain control until the first yellow light comes on on the channel VU meter. Every track is set like this so the sound should be more or less similar, allowing for variations in the music. Obviously the x-fader is set to the playing deck so it does not come out of the speakers.
This also means that at no stage do I send a clipped signal through the sound chain, which could lead to distortion being amplified further down the line and in severe cases damage to your equipment.
It is important to realise though that if your medium has it's own pre-amp then you must make sure that the input signal is not being clipped before it even gets to the mixer. Many software DJ programs are guilty of this, and it is important to keep an eye on the programs VU meters and ensure that when playing the tracks the VU meters do not go into the RED. I use SAM DJ on the backup laptop and have actually set the channel sliders at -6db each to prevent this occurring. It does mean on occasions that I have to raise them for some tracks ('greased lightning' for one), but knock them straight back down again after.
Okay, that's how I do it, how do you?