Over the past few years, we have shown everyone a fair number of controllerism tricks and techniques on this site. Through that time, everyone has consistently expressed a desire to see them used in the context of a real dj set. While it’s not realistic to beat juggle for 30 minutes and keep a dance floor rocking it IS realistic to sprinkle the mix with some amazingly fun routines. In the video above I condense a 30 minute set into 10 minutes of quick mixes that use controllerism as a tool for creative transitions.
Read on after the jump for the full 20 minute mix, and a contest in which you can win the midi-fighter controllers.
Today’s article never got written, its been 4 days since I last checked email and my 3 man team is starting to drink double espressos inside a coffee. Why so nuts at the TechTools labs? Because we started selling batch # 2 of the Midi-Fighters on Saturday night @ 12AM, they are already 50% sold out and we have hundreds of orders to fill for anxious customers. Painting, building, photographing, and hand signing midi-fighters is taking way more time than expected so shipping is a little behind schedule and I don’t have a fresh article for our dedicated fans today. The good news? Everyone loves the new “design your own controller interface” and the controllers are looking awesome. There are still 200 available from this batch, so check them out in the web store if your interested. After the jump I have posted a few scans of the first midi-fighters built.
Last but not least- this Friday, I am finally going to publish the 20 minute video of a mix/routine I have been promising for months!
Today I want to share my personal mapping for the midi-fighter with our readers in the hopes that you can use it with any controller or learn from it in your own mapping pursuits. One interesting technique I demonstrate in the video that might be useful to everyone is how to use multiple versions of the same controller without conflict. On Friday we are going to put the 2nd series of 500 Midi-Fighter’s up for sale. Hopefully this set should last a bit longer than the first batch, which sold out lickety-split. Download the Mapping and check out the new Midi-Fighter Builder page to design your own controller.
Serato Itch is well known for its tight controller/software integration, but this comes at the price of having no externally mappable functions. With its fixed controller layouts, many have longed to have at least cue point juggling from a controller that is better laid out for that purpose, like the Midi Fighter. Using a couple of simple tools, I will show you how to do just that, and more.
Last month we started a contest that challenged all of our readers to use the samples from the video above and re-arrange them in their own unique way with any controller. It was my hope that people would be inspired and take the clips to an entirely new level. I am very happy to share the winning entries with you. Several people came up with arrangements and performances that might have even smoked mine!
On friday we published a reader submitted video, which demonstrated video clip juggling in Ableton Live using a 4×4 grids of buttons. His unique layout inspired me to try a new way of working in Traktor Pro, with 4 deck of cue points triggered on a single controller. The results speak for themselves, this concept is a lot of fun, easy to understand and very expressive. I spent just a few hours working out a basic proof of concept (above), in the hopes of inspiring you to take it further. Read on for the MP3’s and the mapping file from thr video plus information on how you can use them both to win your own Midi-Fighter.
Every once in a while some one sends me a video that is super inspiring and a lot of fun to watch. Today’s video is one of those pieces in which Malaventura takes cue point juggling arrangement to the next level with 2 important evolutions: Multi-track juggles and perfectly synced video content. Read on for more videos and a mapping file for traktor pro.
Most smaller MIDI controllers are low profile, allowing them to slip easily into your bag but are too low to use with turntables and mixers. This makes using small controllers along with standard DJ gear slightly awkward. Those of us who are on the taller side also suffer from controllers that are too far away and not at playing height. The solution for both problems? A few pieces of gear that are already in your bag + a very simple 25-cent investment that will raise up most small MIDI controllers to a playable height without adding any weight to your bag.
Here is the long awaited video explaining my Midi-Fighter mapping for Traktor Pro. There is some seriously cool stuff in there, so even if you don’t have a MF, check out the video and borrow the concepts. For the month of February, we are running a special video contest in which the winner will get a brand new Midi-Fighter DIY kit. To enter, just download the songs below and record your own personalized performance using the same songs, ANY controller and your personal style of DJing. Add your video as a response to the tutorial above and whoever has the most YouTube views at the end of February will win a free Midi-Fighter!
Third Prize: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2aK5ttpeI8 (9k views)
Given the talent of all prize winners, we have decided to grant everyone in the top 3 something. In the future Contests will be judged with a combination of metrics including judges rating, youtube rating, public rating and others.
First Prize: Midi Fighter + Dj TT T-Shirt
2nd Prize: Midi Fighter
Third Prize: Dj TT T-Shirt
Thanks to everyone that entered. Even if you didn’t win a prize, you deserve one for putting yourself out there!
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