Cueing for turntablist

[Lam]

I may have asked this before but how do turntablists that use vinyl cue so fast? I see that the stickers are on the inner shiny label that doesn't produce sound. They just drop the needle somewhere on the groove and they immediately find their cue point. They accurately hit that spot without going over or before.

My method is placing a sticker before the part I want on the grooves. This allows the sticker to push the needle in the spot where I want to start. However, the needle has to grind along the grooves because the sticker is pushing the stylus. This damages part of the record so I'm looking for an alternative.

[Sigma]

There's 2 ways to use stickers: -

1. As visual markers. Those are the ones that you see placed either on the label or the lead out section of the record. Those are used so that the DJ knows where a sample or section of beat starts, in terms of the rotational position of the record. They may use multiple stickers (often different colours) on the same record.

2. As cue markers. This is the method you're already using.

If a DJ is only using 1, then it could be that they're using skipless records, or they could be using a DVS where they can use cue points, as it's still important to have a visual marker on the record in that case - there's just no need for cue markers.

With real vinyl, if you don't use cue markers then all you can really do is drop the needle in a certain spot based on your knowledge of the track, then wind a few rotations back/forward if you're out. Obviously, when you need to quickly cue up a record during a routine, it would be better to use cue markers.

EDIT - The third way to use stickers is to use them to deliberately cause the record to skip back in the groove in order to create loops, but that's not relevant here.

[Lam]

There's 2 ways to use stickers: -

1. As visual markers. Those are the ones that you see placed either on the label or the lead out section of the record. Those are used so that the DJ knows where a sample or section of beat starts, in terms of the rotational position of the record. They may use multiple stickers (often different colours) on the same record.

2. As cue markers. This is the method you're already using.

If a DJ is only using 1, then it could be that they're using skipless records, or they could be using a DVS where they can use cue points, as it's still important to have a visual marker on the record in that case - there's just no need for cue markers.

With real vinyl, if you don't use cue markers then all you can really do is drop the needle in a certain spot based on your knowledge of the track, then wind a few rotations back/forward if you're out. Obviously, when you need to quickly cue up a record during a routine, it would be better to use cue markers.

EDIT - The third way to use stickers is to use them to deliberately cause the record to skip back in the groove in order to create loops, but that's not relevant here.

Thats what I expected. Thanks Sigma.

I also found this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqrGf8jJlaA

If you skip to 7:37, that is the method I use. When the needle has to drag across the vinyl I feel like it damages it a ton. Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be an alternative.

[L.O.]

Thats pretty much all you can do with real vinyl. Back in the days djs use to do something called "needle dropping". If the record had a "break" on it, the grooves on the record would actually be darker where the break is. So the dj would know exactly where to put the needle. Long drum breaks are easier to do this with. But other than that, the way your doing it is the way its been done.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMK1l0MmqoM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3D6JooB-yVg

[allensmusic]

Back in the days djs use to do something called "needle dropping". If the record had a "break" on it, the grooves on the record would actually be darker where the break is. So the dj would know exactly where to put the needle. Long drum breaks are easier to do this with. But other than that, the way your doing it is the way its been done.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMK1l0MmqoM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3D6JooB-yVg

this.

[DJ Straxger]

Right before I read this I watched a DJ Scratch routine where he was cueing up records and beat juggling and he didn't have any headphones on at all

[akswun]

Right before I read this I watched a DJ Scratch routine where he was cueing up records and beat juggling and he didn't have any headphones on at all

Thats the thing about routines, especially the ones where they're super intricate/complicated and the dj is doing it with ease. They've been practiced for thousands of hours, weeks, months, years! I'm sure if you did something a few thousand times you wouldn't need your headphones anymore.

[DJ Straxger]

True that

[DJ Nada]

Skipless records is how it's done.

[DJ_GQ]

Thats the thing about routines, especially the ones where they're super intricate/complicated and the dj is doing it with ease. They've been practiced for thousands of hours, weeks, months, years! I'm sure if you did something a few thousand times you wouldn't need your headphones anymore.

preach!