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BeatMatching 101

Beatmatching or beat mixing is the backbone of all DJing. It is essential to get the basics of this skill before attempting anything else. Most people assume that beat matching is simply matching the speed of the beats (beats per minute, or BPM) of two tracks, but it goes a lot further than this. Good DJ’s must also learn to phrase match, which, in other words means to match different parts of a song structure.

Step #1 - Know your records!

The key to proper beat matching and phrase-matching is knowing your records. Learn the structure of the track (e.g. intro, breakdowns, build-ups, outro). Try to differentiate the parts of the track, like when a melody is started, or when the hi-hats enter the tune. Different styles of music will have different structures. Also, be sure to learn the different styles themselves. A hard techno track will have a significantly faster beat than a slower ambient track, and therefore would be hard to mix properly. This will help you pick tracks that will sound good together, as well as help you time your tracks perfectly. The more comfortable you are with your records, the more you will have that extra advantage!

This tutorial is intended as a guide on how to beatmatch using only your turntable’s pitch slider. This guide isn’t ment to be the end all be all of this technique, it simply outlines how I go about mixing in this way. There are countless ways that you can beatmatch, not only using other methods, but even different ways to apply this single method, so don’t take this as gospel. Also, this guide is intended for those who are already comfortable with beatmatching in general. Riding the pitch control, or pitch bending, involves being able to identify whether a track is too fast, or too slow, and then making fluid adjustments. Without that fundamental knowledge, this guide will be of no help and may even make your learning of beatmatching more frustrating.

So, first thing you’ll need is a record playing, so that you have something to mix out of. Having two very simple records that you can practice with helps ease the learning curve. On the other turntable, go ahead and queue up the track in your headphones, with your pitch centered at 0% (if using a turntable with a Quartz Lock, such as the 1200 M3D, be sure the Quartz Lock is NOT enabled). When you’re ready to drop the track in, go ahead and start it, while carefully monitoring the beat in your headphones.

One of the key elements in furthering your career as a DJ is creating mix tapes, or demo CDs. You could be the best bedroom DJ in the world, but if you have no means to let people hear your skills, you’ll never make it. Unfortunately, recording a mix isn’t exactly simple. First off, there’s the medium you want to record too, minidisc, tape, or CD. Tapes and minidiscs are much easier to record too, but CDs are more widely used, and (compared to standard tapes) sound much better. Secondly, there’s how you want to record it. Many people use computers, others minidiscs, some use CD recorders. Finally, there’s the issue of getting the music stream to the recording device. Well, this tutorial is designed to aide in setting up your gear for recording. Let’s get started.

First off, you must decide what medium you want to record to, minidisc (some people may opt to use a MP3 player with record capabilities, if so, the connections to these devices are identical to minidisc players) CDs or tape. The short answer is CDs. They last longer, are more widely used, and they have a clearer sound over a wider frequency range compared to tapes. If you happen to live in the stone age, and don’t have access to a computer with a CD burner, you’ll have to settle for tape or minidisc, but I STRONGLY recommend you either A) find a friend who has a computer and CD burner, or B) move out of the stone age, and buy a cheap computer with a burner. If your computer is in another room, you may have to settle for tape or minidisc and covert to CD later.