Can Elektron gear compete with modern DJ equipment?

[tsutek]

I disagree! beatmtching with any elektron box is a piece of cake. try it sometimes, you might be pleasantly surprised

As for this thread, I’ve been bored to tears by “karaoke gigs” (DJ presses play and vocalist does their thing on top), and have also seen killer OT performances. Its not so much about what you use, its more about everything else (having the right music for the event and time, having the right attitude, doing right things on the stage, and on and on…)

All CDJs dont even play back 24 bit audio masters… Surely an OT can sound just as good as a CDJ?

Also, you defined “competing against polished DAW music”… why compete? Do your own thing man! I’ve seen killer gigs played with the crummiest gears, just as meaningful as “overproduced diatonic sh17 from a fckn DAW”

[Martebar]

Honestly, I have trouble seeing how you could reproduce those huge and multi layered EDM rises and drops, or stuff like Skrillex growl basslines with sounds that change every step (I know there are p locks, but this is something else) that are all super produced and then mixed and mastered by a team of people with several pass of plugins and high end equipment in rooms designed to explore and correct every little aspect of the sounds.

Except playing back the files on the OT maybe.

But on another hand, that’s not the point of playing live with elektron stuff, you can play live with the sounds and pattern in a way a DJ can’t and mix and mash your material in a totally different fashion, taking a drum part from one of your song and play the melodies of another one, and creating a new bassline on the spot.

TL;DR: I don’t think you can (depending on the music you intend to play) but I don’t think that’s the point of the machines either

[anon64972012]

Nice condescension there. The digitakt is not a good piece of equipment for DJing. For playing stuff you made it in the digitakt, it’s awesome.

No condescension intended, we just disagree.

[mkdsl]

I actually use the OT as a dj rig, with two decks and some extra bells & whistles. All I can say, it does an amazing job. There is a lot of prep work involved, every song has to be made to start and end on exact bar points, you beet to know the bpm, and needs to follow the click exactly. But, boy oh boy, no dj can replicate this on a cdj setup. Think slices with grooves from selected songs, mixing litteraly anything, having a plethora of effects at your disposal… Made a sidechain with the filter to take away the kick from the track so I can superimpose mine, and it’s brilliant the way that sounds.
So, yeah, you can compete with the dj rigs with just one Elektron box. Add more and weeeeee

[mpiecora]

I’d like to hear that and see it if you have some video!

[Francis]

Interesting thread. My opinion is to find the process which inspires you regardless of what idiom the gear supposedly belongs to. I e ‘invested’ quite a bit of money in that pursuit but now have a setup that works for me.

[mkdsl]

here is a set from two and a half years ago, mostly mixing my own music, full songs, but with the kicks and hihats coming from the AR.

this one is a more recent one, mixing old Serbian folk music with techno, without a mixer, just OT->AR.

it is my gigging rig, and gets a TON of use. the best sets, of course, are not recorded. but it’s just the way it is.

[Purusha]

If you’re playing other people’s music, then DJing with DJ targeted gear is the obvious way forward.

DJing your own material though, seems a bit pointless.

I do both of the above, so have XDJs and a DJM900NX2 for DJ gigs.

I have recently started to consider using the DJM as a creative mixing platform for live gigs (my own material) though. I tend to take a fair bit of kit with me though, so would have to sub-mix.

[Cosmic]

Djs like Armin van Buuren dj their own tracks in their sets but it seems like a narcissistic thing to do.

[Purusha]

I sometimes drop the odd one of mine into a DJ set, but wouldn’t do a whole DJ set of my own stuff.

[anokah]

I was only referring to actually djing with the DT, which any way you look at it, is not geared towards that particular task. Which I think we agree about Also hard to have a collection of songs on the DT when I think about it

[dtr]

I sometimes drop the odd one of mine into a DJ set,

Many producer/dj’s do. I see no problem there.

[MRNXGBRL]

Hey there,

i’m not saying Elektron gear doesn’t have a place on stage, to the contrary. These machines are very capable!

If you aim to perform at that big mainstream EDM event, kitting your Elektrons up with perfectly mixed-down prebaked sample content + some mixing trickery and you’re half way there, i assume?

I myself, guess have lost that sense of youthfulness as i’m not aiming that high, to become a rockstar or public figure, that’s just fools gold to me. (besides my age, already being too old for the market/target audience to drain their wallets dry) Being famous seems to me to be a world of make believe and will end up in having two lives that both suck I just try to find an escape in my music, open some portals and ground myself, i produce stuff when the moods right and it takes my mind into another state/dimension if you will. (the occasional ‘live performance’ is more about sharing and feedback)

Besides, Producers get the real money while the artist is just part of the product, you know? (with a few exeptions) Ofcourse not having to check my balance/pockets for small change and blindly stock up on any great studio gear and mouthwatering synths i’d come across on the internet would be like living the dream.

Elektron vs. any random gear…
It comes down to personal preference i guess. If you’re an aspiring DJ, a musician, some tech savvy freak, noob, etc… It’s how you handle your tools to get the job done and get to your desired destination?

I covet my Elektron gear for many reasons. Happy accidents, exploration driving my creativity in new directions i haven’t thought of before. It’s refreshingly rewarding.

But offcourse secretly chipping away in the basement going for that commercial MOAB of an album that saves me from ever having to worry about money-troubles again… Just need that nice sexy voice, sexy appearrance, attention lovin’ (preferably female) ‘artist’ to be my product-packaging/vehicle to drive it home. $$$ and nothing but blue sky

[MRNXGBRL]

Thats just marketing/branding, very logical and not being dishonest or full of oneself. There are DJ/label owners who only spin artists signed to their label to ‘push’ or ‘promote’ sales while their sets seem to have a broader range of tunes. But i agree, they could also book me to spin Armin’s tracks for that amount of money, half the price even. But my name in the line-up wouldn’t draw so much of a crowd i’m afraid. Big festival organisions main motivation is money, and so they cater to the big mainstream crowd who in return demand to hear these ‘straight arrows’ from top cats in the business Its the psychology for the public to buy overpriced tickets/food/beverages/merch. (cashcows)

[Cosmic]

Yer I know.

[RandomNoise]

Reading your post reminded me of this video that a user here uploaded recently. Watching the video again, I am not sure if there is anything that a DJ could do better. He has some good notes on his setup and recording as well in the post.
After one year playing exclusively on Elektron devices, I think I finally get them : - )

@HoldMyBeer thank you for using me as a reference
it really means a lot to me

regarding the OP,
as much as I like to listen overproduced tracks played by (press play on tape) DJ-s,
the more I am into music, I am starting to appreciate live music, where the energy is produced in the moment, reflected back from the crowd and amplified by the musicians.

it is not so much about the sound quality, as it is about the experience of the present, and feeling that the sound is being created in that very same moment.