I HATED Using CDJs Until I Learnt This Hack

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Having your gear set up the way you want it can make all the difference in your performance. If you’ve been struggling with DJ changeovers, or getting lost in the depths of the settings menus of CDJs I want to show you a better and faster way. Waveforms, hot cues, and more - I reveal the secrets of a seamless transition between your home setup and the club environment.
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🙏 Lots of people helped make this video possible:
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[@ReallyChrisM]

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[@victorfrances]

Hi Chris, can you tell me where is the link for the energy playlists? Thank you :)

[@djhemirukahemisphere8893]

Love the sarcastic tech house bpm remark

[@natecyaheard]

That was funny af 😂

[@OddlyEDM]

Came here for this

[@franciscobarrios5752]

Yesss

[@ryankmcgrathsr]

.2 bpms. Dude that drop was gnar

[@74Cheshire]

As someone who has been through all this - Good video! On the colour / vibe suggestion, if anyone finds themselves struggling to know which colour to assign a tune to sometimes, I would suggest an alternative. Create playlists that are labelled by vibe - This is useful for two reasons. 1) You can put a tune in multiple 'vibes' if you feel it qualifies for more than one, and 2) It's super easy to just look into a playlist folder to grab a tune.

[@Bobaybeto]

Took me a while to get to this style of organisation… Pure vibe finding bliss… I’d liken it to A Painters Pallete Awesome to see this advice

[@edubblesspirit]

You’re the only one I’ve found to cover this much information on rekordbox. So many little features I never would have found until it was an accident.

[@georgepoullo8833]

Surprisingly few djs change the settings to their liking, good job making a video about how to customize the settings through RB! I have a few additional tips after +10 years working with pioneer gear. 1. After selecting sort options and displayed columns, arrange them in order after what you use the most. This will save you a lot of time in the long run. I have Search first, Playlists as second, BPM third, etc. And BPM, Date Added, Key, alphabet, default set as sorting options. 2. If you're comfortable with pioneer gear, turn the brightness down, not up. It's way less tiring on the eyes, especially in dark clubs and your eyes get adjusted to it. 3. You can choose what fields of your files you search in and adjust general search preferences. I'm not sure where it is, but it's highly customisable too. 4. Start using Smart Lists and learn different tricks. It will take time, especially if you have a big library, but definitely worth it. 5. Add a text file on your USB with your contact information. If you ever lose your USB key, there's a better chance someone who found it will reach out to you.

[@ReallyChrisM]

Great tips! 5 is *chefs kiss*

[@Lostmusicvideos]

Yep 5 got me a USB back

[@MathiasModel]

Sounds like some good tips, what’s a smart list?

[@daub1]

number 5 is a great tip, never would have thought of that @@Lostmusicvideos

[@PatiasPlays]

@@MathiasModelIt creates playlist automatically with parameters you choose! E.g. if you set up BPM from 90 to 110, then you have in playlist only tracks with BPM in this range!

[@Ruby_Mullz]

I’m blind but want to start mixing in clubs and bars, this vid is actually so helpful. I can’t use the CDJ menu, so just jamming a USB in and let it just magically go to what I need is awesome!

[@ReallyChrisM]

So happy it helps!

[@legendeddieoficial]

Your Channel and Dj Carlo's channel are my go to when it comes to rekordbox! Thx a bunch for your tutorials!

[@redmangoose182]

This chart and video are super helpful! You really are one of the few channels shedding insight on all these not so obvious Rekordbox features. Bless.

[@ReallyChrisM]

I appreciate that!

[@Martian___Productions]

Been looking everywhere for something to go thru all the settings and explain them. Your guide is clutch in this! Thank you!

[@Lavonda_Rocks]

I love your videos sooooo much! I expect a dig to tech house DJs in EVERY video 😂

[@Nite85]

Its rare I learn anything new in Rekordbox since I have geeked out so hard on it over the years but I still watch your videos just in case. They are really well put together. Keep it up

[@iliketoast-q9b]

If you can actually DJ on a controller, switching over to a XDJ/CDJ should not be much of a challenge. If it is...I don't know what to say, really. My mind boggles how so many "DJs" are inept at the technical side of their craft.

[@kiteretsumalinga1292]

If it’s for the first time it isn’t that easy the bom is double timed but sounds as it should be, the songs that were playing on rekordbox have vanished on CDJ, if you don’t have people helping you out in the moment it’s damn confusing clearly you had the time to be around the console more than people who have a ddj, stop crying “oh no it boggles my mind” if you can’t help gtfo

[@Terry-hb6wc]

I started on vinyl and can mix on anything. Didn't find it overly had to start mixing digital just takes ages to get used to using the settings 😊

[@alphajay_dj]

Not gonna lie. This one had me in stitches. Perfect content too! 🔥

[@djse]

One thing I do is changing the background color (it only change the USB light on older player), it's not really useful but that way I can quickly see if my setting are loaded

[@sweeperxd5221]

How do you do this?

[@kerimallami]

Probably one of the funniest videos and channels i've found about music. Love this, keep it up!

[@bliss_555]

dude. you're the man. i love your deadpan humour.

[@lavenderllamamusic]

This is gonna come in handy when I eventually upgrade to the XDJ-XZ i've been pining for since it's the closest to the industry standard CDJs. Might take me a couple years or less, but I reckon it'll be worth it

[@DjItchyNipples]

I have the XZ and love it. Theres a video on here that are 2hours + long that show you all the settings on the XZ. Do them once and you have your new XZ controller updated just like you want. I forget the name just search for XDJ-XZ torturial and it will be in the top 5-10 i think.

[@lavenderllamamusic]

@@DjItchyNipples my apologies, i might've misworded in my original comment, but i don't own the unit yet. I'm making do with a Numark NVII controller that's been doing me well for the time being. Just recently played a b2b gig with a friend of mine using his DDJ-1000 and it was such a good feeling. Thanks for the resource though! I'll definitely take a look at that when i get it

[@lvnd98_]

You are my favourite dj KZbinr rn, up there with the big ones like Carlo Atendido, Crossfader, etc… I hope you blow up, subscribed!

[@ReallyChrisM]

Thanks! Good to have you on board 🙌

[@robertgarvansnyder4665]

Been using CDJs for 10 years, and this is legit helpful content. Thank you so much. Just subbed. I'll say my #1 favorite underrated feature on the CDJs (going back to at least the NXS1), is the "Tag" button in the upper right. As someone who only loosely plans my sets in advance, I love being able to flick through hundreds of tracks quickly, and then "Tag" anything that I might play, like putting a record on it's side in your crate.

[@ReallyChrisM]

Great tip!

[@djranx5519]

From belt drive to direct drive, and then on to weight adjustable jog-wheels! I've played on them all. I find it easier when playing House, R&B genres on jog-wheels to operate effects and loops. I prefer to play Reggae and Dance hall music on Technics SL 1200 Mk 2's. Great video. Good advice 👍🏻

[@WillyJunior]

Rating as an energy tag yesssss, been doing that for years 🤘🏻

[@talonsid]

I’m so old I thought this was gonna be about moving from turntables to cdjs.

[@jus1taj]

Helpful for those starting out. Thank you.

[@indiestylejunkie]

I hope you grow exponentially in subscribers. Such a helpful video. Clear, concise and funny

[@aminoacids13]

I have to spin at 2 upcoming gigs and the last time I spinned with cdj's was in the cdj1000 time. I still prefer vinyl but your videos will help 💪

[@DJTHRILLER]

Damn I didn’t know this…. There’s goes some of my anxiety 👋🏻 lol

[@RunTFC]

First video I've seen of yours and must say I was entertained! Not every knows how to use comedy properly so cheers to you.

[@ReallyChrisM]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@angusgibbins4954]

Also if you connect your decks to your rekordbox computer with export/link mode (this is what I do at home to save me linking/unlinking USBs all the time) it'll load the setting too.

[@simonmccullough7765]

Fantastic overview, easy to follow and really entertaining! 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻 Apart from now knowing exactly how to manage life now that I'm dropping the Bedroom DJ tag I also have learnt that Nigel is a great way to describe the tone of my pink shirt

[@francoisiswatching]

Thank you for these tips served with the well deserved sarcasms.

[@CrackerJoe1231]

love your sense of humor 😂

[@DJAUDIO1]

Really useful advice. Many DJs are simply unaware of this.

[@DJTHRILLER]

I know I was lol I mixed on turntables in the late 90’s early 2000’s so I was just gonna wing it lol

[@DJAUDIO1]

@DJ THRILLER I was the same until I took a deep dive once I had to ditch the 1200s for a tour back in the 2000s. It's great that Chris covers all of this for all generations of DJs to find value in their craft.

[@DJTHRILLER]

@@DJAUDIO1 yeah man I even promoted his page on my page cause I like him so much lol very informative and down to earth is what I get. Gotta support the good ppl!!

[@unclebob8139]

Your channel has been a god send for me, i moved over to rekordbox from serato and my head was spinning from it, big thanks for your videos Chris, also a cracking sense of humour 🤣

[@ReallyChrisM]

Glad I could help!

[@DJTimeLock]

how do you like it compared to serato? i actually switched from a ddj 400 to a denon prime 4. and i love the features in serato but it feels a bit laggy sometimes

[@unclebob8139]

@@DJTimeLock Yes Serato can be laggy for me at times, But i do preferer serato over recordbox, I've been using serato for years so the move over to recordbox as been a struggle for me to be honest, but i got my hands on a cheap DDJ 800 so i thought i would give it a go, just need to get my head down and practise more with recordbox, and hopefully find my way round it like i can with serato..

[@tgg_music2]

I appreciate the video and effort making it. But I was expecting to learn a hack, not about standard features I knew about haha. Still good to let others know so they can learn, well done.

[@goligoodgood]

im laughing so hard at the tech house diss

[@Hoodie1878]

Oh boy. You're quips are so dry. Love it. Subscribing.

[@Whopcap]

I use Hot Cues A LOT and that has been what scares me the most if I'd have to use CDJ:s

[@ReallyChrisM]

Hot cue fan too, I find myself relying on the main cue button a lot more when I play on a CDJ

[@Motel-Music]

Yeah I have the same issue, I use Denon Gear now tho and they have plenty of cue points, however I'm still not ready I guess to play on CDJ's which is a shame.

[@Whopcap]

@@ReallyChrisM do you have to manually set them? Could you please do a video about it in that case?

[@mckillen30]

Thanks for all greats videos, its so good and help us , i also hate CDJ and have use it since CDJ came. Now i use Denon SC6000m and i love them because its so easy and have som much feature

[@Techy1210]

Thanks, this is very useful, particularly the 'Column' section which is what i was looking for! :)

[@marleycarroll]

This is super helpful, thank you Chris!

[@toru_dj_uk]

Incredibly helpful video!

[@TriplicateTrey]

*he sat down his monster triple energy intensely, nearly knocking over his collection of funko pops. As he lurched forward to put his hands on the keyboard, he felt the pulling stretching feeling of long dried body fluids tugging his thighs and abdomen. Pushing up his glasses and snorting he typed* Hey! Sometimes we use 128 bpm too!

[@DjItchyNipples]

Thanks for sharing good tips. Im new to Djing and have 5 gigs behind me this year and more to come. I have a question to you and other Djs that follows you here on youtube. What do you all do in between the mix and the next track ? To be honest i not use anny effects at all, why ? I think they sound bad and are boring. To many Djs over using effects and it sounds messy and bad imo. You guys/girls jump around and dance,stand still or what are you all doing ? My wife supports me and going to all my gigs. And the last one i had was this Saturday at a forest rave. My wife told me to look more at the croud, and stop taking my headphones off 😂 i only have them on when i beat match. And from there i have them around my neck until the transaction is over, and i like to put them on the top of the mixer. My wife dont like that obviously. I not mind jump on drops and bring on a short dance. But im a Dj and not a dancer. If i dance for 1-2 hours i get tired and can not focus on my Djing. By the way i not use drugs and hardly drink a few beers. I drive car to all my gigs. Hope some of you will chime in here 🙏

[@ReallyChrisM]

I like to play sudoku. Just try and enjoy the music and that will come across :)

[@tsipiti]

Thank you.

[@modelbashir2365]

The 126 to 126 pbm change the crowd will never expect. What you got aginst techhouse lol

[@ReallyChrisM]

I just like picking on it 🥸

[@brettpiggott2664]

0:57 Now in subscribing at “cakes”😂🎂🎂

[@paulisawesome10]

You have made me a new man

[@deejayinzaneofficial]

your presentation is always so funny and accurate.

[@jaddofficial]

Well on the nxs2 you have to press menu and then load preferences will occur

[@reezevlog]

i miss the days when we used CDJ500s/CDJ1000 with a DJM500….. im old skool…minimal efxs…just pure skills

[@Ihateevilpeople]

Thank you so much for your videos 🙏. They have helped me tremendously!

[@djjeffbomb]

126 to 126.2. Brilliant

[@ArawakMusic]

3:37 you earned a new fan 😂

[@user-xb6xf3np3e]

Such a nice Video :D

[@peterbordi2614]

Just in time. Thank you for this tip.

[@mausalazar]

very helpful! thank you so much

[@EDITSbyVELOCITY]

Thank you

[@cruzpatterson]

these jokes are fire

[@SourEater1]

I think this video saved me! Thanks bro!!!!!

[@bitbotrecords]

nice one Chris great video!

[@user-cv3ft5mq9x]

thank you for sharing the knowledge bro

[@beatfreakinbadger]

Silly question...... but if i import all my settings to a usb stick, will they stay for the following DJ or will they revert to default upon removal of the stick?

[@laurakhm7306]

Great video!! Thank you!!!

[@djcvmusic1]

Im sure I not the only one who prefered ''Rekordbox 4.5 Gui'' VS New Ui. Still on 4.5 version just for this ;)

[@angusgibbins4954]

This guide is helpful, I agree, rekordbox documentation is lacking, one thing though is you might be able to do is go into detail with the various options on the less obvious ones, eg, I'm an old guy, I grew up on vinyl, I have no idea what these mean (and I can't see any difference between the options on my XZ) Phase Meter Waveform / Phase Meter Waveform Divisions

[@ReallyChrisM]

I’ve added a bit more info into the guide i linked to in the description. But basically phase meter is an alternative to showing an actual wave form. Its just like a little bar/block thing that gives you a way of seeing where in a bar you are

[@angusgibbins4954]

@@ReallyChrisM ahhh right thanks. Basically what CDJs did before the original CDJ1000. That's good to know!! Depending on how much effort you wanted to go to, you could include screenshots or photos of the various options/settings too. That's a hell of a lot of work though.

[@chefarito52]

bro, thank u

[@FelipeComunello]

Great vid

[@cheeky6865]

The settings didn't apply to my gin and tonic!! :D Really helpfull video, amazing flow of information, and fuckin hillarious!

[@TequilaDave]

I thought this was going to be for DJs coming from vinyl 😀 Still watched it to the end though, quite interesting.

[@basslinepromotions]

I've always wanted to use colors to rate type of vibe at a glance but didn't because didn't realize you could rename them..of course didn't even think to just double click on it 😅

[@ReallyChrisM]

Rekordbox 🏆

[@tiamusic_]

awesome video, that's really useful, thank u 🔝❤

[@mikhailguwwup1016]

Glad i learned on cdjs

[@Koman-ww3gv]

Are CDJs good for just listening to CDs at home? Not a DJ, but I love how they look and looking for a vintage cd player. Thanks!

[@dj_lee_official]

learned something...thnx!

[@johndavid7759]

PLAYER = CDJs MIXER = Gin and Tonic 💀💀💀

[@DJXentar]

Awesome, exacly what i need..I sell my DDJ1000 and got a new XDJ RX3. Your Videostyle is very cool amd funny, makes fun to Watch 😊❤

[@michaelp.7965]

I just found your channel a few days ago and so glad you made all these super helpful videos - thank you! Just wanted to update my preferences like you showed in this video, but I am missing the "DJ Systems" (better said: I have something "Controller" instead) - anyone got any tipps?

[@ReallyChrisM]

Make sure you are in export mode not performance 👍🏼

[@michaelp.7965]

Thanks for the fast reply! (: @@ReallyChrisM

[@orsheeboo]

I like your style. You're funny

[@freedomempireofficial3001]

the nigel part killed me lmaooo

[@stressedandblessedlena]

Thankssss

[@francisyap41]

TY VERY HELPFUL!!

[@IntimacyLiberationArmy]

You are low key hilarious 😂😂

[@DJMagri]

very nice stuff, bro. Thnk u

[@anthongethuveronnback4424]

Thank you boboooo 💖

[@shortcutDJ]

i wish there was a feature to sort songs in original keys and up or down by fifths or fourths.

[@MACODJ]

Who is you video editor? the video graphic and editing it is really fantastic!

[@ReallyChrisM]

That would be me! Glad you like it 🙏

[@MACODJ]

@@ReallyChrisM good job! I can hire you

[@DjPrincefianso]

good dj tips

[@IamPreacherMan]

Brilliant.

[@scoob101]

Keep `em coming Chris, your content and delivery are freaking awesome. D&B`s a bit shit tho.....😝

[@stef.ambrosio.pizza.merchant]

How th e he 'll should I go about moving off vinyl decks to a controller or CAN

[@stevechan8505]

This video telling people, moving forward and know the new stuff ofcourse its good for you, but don't forget look back, thats so many stuff you need to know too, dj are getting more convenience and easy to learn, but back then , People could learn the classic way to dj , for example using by ears to beat-match , setting up with vinyl system, have some fun with a sticker cue point, basic cdj mixing etc... its not necessary to learn but, have extra skill is not a bad things right? anyway happy and enjoy dj'ing people. have a good one.

[@Subface69]

Yes The Poor and Souless Music is Coming from the most Digital DJ’s. no Hate From my Side. Let me Try to explain This. We Humans Need Ears to Recieved Music. You Have no Ears you cant Hear the Music is a Fact That Music Need a Ear. Now is the Phuture Here. The Maschines will Help you to Make the Mixes Perfectly. But You dont learn the Harmonics From Tracks, You Can still See the Key From the Track on the cdj Screen. What is with Beatmatching ? you Can Look in Deck A 128bpm so we Make deck B at Same Point. Or press Sync you dont Need Your Ears to Mixing just Fade in. because you no longer need ears, it is not necessary to listen and loads 1000 tracks onto the stick, the digital DJ does not even know 200 track names From his Proper Magic Stick. The handwriting of a DJ develops with what? You can Hear when a DJ do it Right or Not. So what is a DJ if he cant Scratch 🎉

[@MagnumDB]

Can you save the zoom of the waveform? On the RX3 I zoom in all the way but when I turn it off/on again it's zoomed out. I see no setting for that on the device itself or in Rekordbox :(

[@dj-peterofficial2753]

Of course you can use gated hot cues on a CDJ. The settings are in Rekordbox in Export Mode under Preferences/advanced/Others/Hot Cue.

[@ReallyChrisM]

Only in performance mode not standalone unfortunately

[@dj-peterofficial2753]

@@ReallyChrisM I'm pretty sure that setting has been there since before performance mode. Fortunately I have both NXS2 and XDJ's to test it. I never had interest in using gated cue's so I have never changed the standard option.

[@ReallyChrisM]

@@dj-peterofficial2753 interesting. I'll dig into this

[@YRR_J]

Beat jump beat value? Is there just + and - beat jump buttons on those things? With fixed values? I use an age old Xone:DX and I got the beat jump value behind an encoder. Also pitch is done with an encoder with 0.01 BPM per step, or a bit rougher when the encoder is pressed and turned and shift+turn for tempo range. I really can't figure out why any modern digital thing that has the ability to display the BPM should have the pitch on a slider. It seems there is no way to get a modern day compact controller with the same amount of encoders, buttons and inputs/outputs as the A&H has. I'd just want better resolution, less delay, and a proper sounding key lock (just a newer version of Traktor), as I've had the setup since 2014, when I got them for free... But ok, I would also want at least one or two more VU-leds for the channel VU's.

[@MarcusBrown11]

Like A Good Neighbar

[@RasputiaInYourMom]

3:00 you didn't have to do tech house djs like that LMFAO

[@armonic7956]

When I use cdj’s I use them just like turntables lol I use my ears 🙏🏽🙌🏽

[@Braindizruptor]

i dont even use CDJs but this guy is fkn funny.

[@dennisskyden2939]

Is it not possible to adjust the column "My Settings" without the CDJ plugged in? It looks like the settings are only listed and it's not possible to toggle them.

[@jgonz3542]

Missing out on including a column for XDJ 1000 mk2 is rather unfortunate.