How to set the winnings correctly

So how do you set the winnings?

First, let's look at why setting gains is important. In a DJ mix the ideal is to obtain a similar sound level between pieces. But the tracks we're about to play have different sound levels. So we use the gain on the track channel to adjust this level..

In practice

For a DJ, there are 2 ways of analyzing the sound level of a track. The vu-meter, which is a visual means, and the headphones, which allow us to listen to the track to come.

Let's start with the vu-meter. The vu-meter analyzes sound level in terms of electrical intensity. Think of the track as a light bulb, and the gain as the dimmer that changes the electrical intensity. So, it's easy to adjust the gain: just align the vu-meters of the 2 tracks and you're done. However, when we mix 2 tracks together, sometimes this is not the case. That's where the question lies: how do we get the gain right? Undoubtedly, adjusting the gains with the vu-meter isn't enough.

Then we pre-listen with headphones. This allows us to listen to the track before sending it to the master. So we can compare the sound in the headphones and the output to the master. Once again, the adjustment will not be identical depending on where we're mixing. Note that we can remedy this environmental problem with the headphone mixing.

What you need to understand

The tracks we use have been mixed and mastered. Two tracks by the same artist can have different sound levels. So the maximum electrical level can vary, and so can the sound level. The most important thing to take into account is the level of compression. In other words, the difference between the lowest and highest levels. You've probably already heard of db RMS. That's what you need to adjust: decibels in RMS. This is why the vu-meter can be misleading when setting gain.

Conclusion

Taking into account the compression level is important for setting gains. That's why you need to know how to read the VU meter, and not just see the maximum level. Watch the video to see the difference in compression levels for a single track.