Ableton Forum

Can somebody convince me ableton is worth the hassle
for DJ sets?

ok I am new to ableton but I have read lots of tips / tutorials and im not new to audio software at all.

Your probably already know what my issue is?

Warping tracks!

Ok I understand the process and have used various methods to warp but it does seen very time consuming
and a tedious process.

im setting my initial marker and creating a loop for 4 bars, once the loop is tight I drop a marker at the end of the loop position and use warp from here.
I continue to move the loop position to the next 4 bars, check everything is tight and drop another marker and use warp from here.

after doing the above a few time I set the loop length to 8 bars and continue the process and then 16 bars if possible.

I guess my issue is I didn't think I would have to drop marker every 8 or 16 bars throughout the whole track.

How many marker do you need ? How long should this process take for say an 7 to 8 min track?
im not warping vinyl just MP3 downloads @ 320K which have been saved as wave file.

The downloads are legitimate purchased downloads.

it doesn't seem worth all the time doing it when you want to spend your time being creative

If any one has any thoughts I would appreciate it

You gotta be shittin' me...

Have you DJ'd before? Setting warp markers is no different to giving the record a little push or pull when keeping it in time.

Head over to http://www.abletonlivedj.com and check out the Warping Guide.

Live is AMAZING for DJ'ing. Check out some of the mixes at ALDJ...

I understand the process but im taking about the time it takes to get these tracks warped.

how long should it take per tack, as a guide using a 4/4 track

how many markers as guide?

I think that depends very much on the type of music. With electronic/dance music you can sometimes get away with just setting a maker at the first beat and "warp from here". That will take you 30 secs, including checking that everything is ok.

It depends on a song. Some songs are so correct, that you'll need only few markers, but some songs are almost imposible to warp. Usualy tracks I buy from beatport etc. need 2-3 markers for start, 2-3 at the end, and that's it.

im using electronic tracks

4/4 house, electro, prog etc

just wondering on average how many markers people are using and how long it takes per track

Hmmmm... I usualy use 5-10 markers per track. If track is not so rhytmicaly precise (kicks are differing in time, it happens with some songs), sometimes it takes much more markers. I use more than 10 markers only if that song is really-really great.
And it takes few minutes per track, all with volume adjustment, pan envelope and all these basic stuff.
Why don't you try some, and you'll find your answer?
Cheers

Unless you illegally download music or use old vinyl rips, you should only need 1 or (rarely) 2 markers for each track. I spin mainly tech trance and dub tech and have only had to use more than that on extremely rare occasions.

For DJing Live can't be beat. However, you have to pay your dues, initially it's overwhelming so take your time. Warping is the same way, initially it's slow and tedious. Over time you will get very fast to the point it will take you 30 seconds or less to do an accurate job.

As was said if you are using vinyl rips or illegally downloaded music from P2P sites, warping is MUCH more of a pain in the ass. Tracks from sources like Beatport are a piece of cake.

Take a look at my warping guide at www.vinkalmann.com. Has everything you need to get started.

I use about 3-4 for most dance tunes, takes about 20-30 seconds a song for me now. But it's different fro each tunes, some might need 20 markers and take 20 minutes to do.

Usually if a certain track is giving you issues, it's best to clear all the markers and come back to it the next day. 9 times out of 10 it's way easier the next day.

convert wrote:I understand the process but im taking about the time it takes to get these tracks warped.

how long should it take per tack, as a guide using a 4/4 track

how many markers as guide?

it's completely a matter of practice, the more you warp the faster it gets.

I can do a straight up electronic tune in, I dunno, under a minute and most of that time is checking my work, begining, middle and end, also looking for any weird breakdowns in tempo in the song, just in case.

warp 100 songs, try some new techniques then get back to us. you can read all you want but the answer is in practicing.

I'm just a bedroom DJ but Live is great for mixing tunes together. www.abletonlivedj.com is the site for you.

I've warped 2000+ tracks (many of them NOT monotonous, constant tempo, constant time signature tunes).

Practice. Use keyboard and/or MIDI controller shortcuts. Warp with your ears and not your eyes. Make autowarp work for you.

Also, if there's no need to warp a particular section of a track because it won't be mixed with another sample or track, there's no need to warp it accurately. Intros and outros are the most important to me, after I realized just how cheezy mash-ups had become.

For many tracks, I warp mostly for intro and outro beatmatching, and for video and lighting sync, so I concentrate on the intro and outro. I'm not so concerned about the video and lighting being sample-perfect.

For computerized constant tempo, constant time signature tracks, one warp marker is often enough. I add 3-4 seconds of silence before the track (definitely helps... don't know why), accurately find 1.1.1, Warp From Here, done. You can fly back and forth through and check your results with keyboard or MIDI controller shortcuts.

I also render every track with a mini-mastering, so every track ends up with only one warp marker at the beginning, and they always sit back to back with similar levels and EQ. It's tidier to me and uses less CPU.

i can't see myself ever using ableton to dj.
not because it isn't a powerful tool per se, but because of the sheer time and prep required to warp everything(ableton never gets the warping right automatically... for me anyway) and have shit set up.

a big part of djing for me is spontaneity and crowd response and imo when you end up spending hours and hours prepping a songlist and template for the mixing, just how interactive and spontaneous can that possibly be?

You're right. If all you want to do is play somebody else's tracks, Live probably isn't the best application for you.

To get the most out of Live, there is some work involved, too.

That's what I was gonna say when I saw this title: stay unconvinced, then.