jeljms
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Posts posted by jeljms
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On 7/20/2023 at 4:30 PM, TBearOne8III said:
its possible that it was never opened up and has 25 years of loctite on the screw threads. try soaking the area with acetone or nail polish remover for a few minutes. a few years ago, i bought a precision screwdriver set that has regular grips on them like full size screwdrivers. those are a life saver, i can actually grip the drivers with my hand and not just fingertips. plus i can put enough downward pressure on a screw when they are on tight. they are by mastercraft. i got them at a hardware store. but there are loads of options on amazon.
Thanks for this - I picked some new precision screwdrivers up today and they did the trick. Opened it up and was surprised to find a P&G in the crossfader slot.
Paid £60 for the mixer so that was a nice bonus.
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I just bought a Vestax PMC 06 Pro A.
Line faders are quite stiff so want to open it up and clean the faders but damn, those faceplate screws are tight (my guess is it hasn’t been opened up at all in 20+ years). Anyone got any recommendations for decent mini screwdrivers to loosen up those faceplate screws?
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I just bought a white Vestax PMC 08. Should be arriving by post tomorrow. Used to have a black 08 which I sold a long time ago but always regretted it.
If everything works as it should, it’s going to be sweet.
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What are Disk’s innovations in turntablism (apart from putting his mixer at a slightly jaunty angle)?
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The old battle mixers from the early to mid 2000s are the best you can potentially get for that money. I’ve owned 3 - the Vestax PMC 08 (would definitely be outside that price range though), the Rane TTM56i (would be around the £200-300 mark) and the Allen and Heath Xone 02 (anywhere between £100-300, depending on condition). All three have send and return for an external fx unit.
I loved the 08 for the sound but I had a couple of them both with problems (the left channel volume was wrong, then replaced it and the crossfader burned out in days). The Rane TTM56 is the old warhorse of battle mixers but apart from the faders, I never really loved it. Plenty of people swear by it, though. Both of those have good external fx options. The 08 is more sophisticated with two different fx loops but the TTM56 has a very good single loop.
But I really loved the Xone 02. Decent faders and upgradable too and just felt really nice - utterly solid and dependable. Very basic fx loop (no wet/dry control onboard) but absolutely fine. I had to get rid of mine but am still on the hunt for one and you could get a bargain. In fact, there’s one on eBay at the moment for $129. You can’t go wrong…
Haven’t tried the 707 but they tend to go around the £100-200 mark, I believe.
I’d go for something like those over a cheap newer mixer.
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On 7/8/2022 at 4:49 PM, JHouse said:
There are plenty of second hand Z2s on eBay, some open box and a couple new ones. Still pretty happy with mine and I've had one for about 7 years now. Mini Innofader worked pretty well, but I eventually switched it to the InnoPro 2.
Big difference between the two?
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This is a great update and if they keep rolling out the support for more and more hardware, I think it’s a persuasive argument for switching software (assuming people are using Serato and not djay already).
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Good topic.
I'm not going to talk about my own scratching (in)ability but there was something interesting that I heard about, which is a willingness for hard work itself being a talent. It was something Alex Ferguson used to try and drum in to his players and that he would also look for in his players - that willingness to go the extra mile and practise more.
Sorry for using a football example, but look at Cristiano Ronaldo. He is obviously phenomenally talented but I'd doubt he's among the 100 most talented footballers that ever lived so if talent was the only measure of greatness, he'd still likely be a very good player and a fine talent. But his drive and determination to improve is arguably as great as any footballer and that is why he'd be in most people's top 10 of the greatest footballers that has ever lived. His will/talent for improvement is what has made him extraordinary.
For me - natural ability/talent + application/drive to improve is what likely equals greatnesw but I don't know that first hand because I have neither!
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I'm probably the wrong person to answer this question but I'm going to anyway...
Looking at new 2 channel DVS mixers like the Pioneer DJM S11 or the Rane 72 mk2, I find it really hard to think that there are more features that DJs would really need or use for mixing two records together. From that point of view, 90% of the features on those mixers are overkill. So, purely for DJing, I can't see it. But then, if your intention is to have a mix or a scratch, then the non-DVS mixers from 15-20 years ago would still work perfectly well. I don't think mixers like the S11 or 72 are aimed at those people, even when they are referred to as turntablist mixers (the last dedicated pure turntablist mixer may have been the Scratchbox in 2006). I think these DVS mixers are designed for people who are trying to straddle DJing and production, to try and make live, "on-the-fly" musical compositions with their mixer, not just mix or scratch records. I'm dubious about this area as most of what I see or hear, even from highly skilled turntablists, leaves me cold. One or two manage to make something memorable but a lot of it sounds worse or at least no better than the record they are re-working. But maybe that's just me.
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Apparently the "any other inmoral purpose" part was removed from the Mann Act about 35 years ago on account of it being ambiguous. This was the same law that allowed Jack Johnson to be arrested in the early 1900s and was said to have been enacted in part because of Johnson and his behaviour (marrying and sleeping with white women).
The application of the law towards R Kelly seems to be actually in line with the modern purpose of the Mann Act. So hopefully he doesn't start claiming that he is a victim of racism like Jack Johnson actually was. Not that anyone would be listening to him if he did say anything.
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I don't think there's much doubt that Bambaataa did this stuff. The only surprise is it took so long to come out as it was going on in the early to mid-80s and only eventually became common knowledge a few years ago. That's a 30 year conspiracy of silence. He's no longer in the Zulu Nation as far as I'm aware and the Zulu Nation came out with an apology to his victims after initially refuting the accusations.
As I say, at least from what I've read, this goes back years and there have been at least two people who have publicly announced they were abused by Bam. One other person who I believe was abused (again, from what I've read) was Sipho from London Posse during one of the mid-80s Zulu Nation tours in the UK.
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1 hour ago, Mista_Ed said:
....u could always get a mister or retropi set up too?
Mister is also FPGA , but multiple cores / systems can be installed. it all looks like a bit too much work for me as it needs a fair amount of tinkering and set up...
I'm definitely more interested in plug n play systems. I know I'm not going to start faffing around with set ups as I don't have the time or inclination in the same way I don't with midi mapping.
It's also why I'm wondering if the mega sd (amazing as it looks) might even be overkill for my needs - because I'd probably just stick with the default settings, in which case why not just get an original megadrive?
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1 hour ago, Mista_Ed said:
right yeh - they sell out super fast......you gotta be on the ball with new stock, without a doubt. I got mine on the first run on pre order....but they're only ebay now for crazy monies
that said, its the absolute ultimate MD experience with modern equipment - its without a doubt the best option - but I hear ya about import / tax etc - I got mine shipped to fuckin new zealand mate....cant get any more expensive, tbh....but its totally worth it - for me personally, anyway.
Its still emulation in a sense - although the part that's emulated, is the machine itself - as opposed to the game. regardless...its truly an amazing piece of kit - very, very solid build, feels like it'll last a lifetime and hosts every possible feature you might ever need in terms of tweaking settings - and with the firmware jailbreak, you can play shit from the SD slot - which is what I basically do all the time now...none of the carts even come off the shelf anymore so it keeps my collection pristine
I grabbed a couple of these wireless controllers from Retrobit as well - so I'm hopefully set for life haha. these controllers have been fine so far, prob nearly 2 years of use....but I've heard some people say theirs have broken, but it seems like it was the initial batch that had some manufacturing issues with the Dpads. the 8bitdo MD wireless pads are built like tanks and people rave about those, too....but the Retrobit ones are more like the OG pad releases /officially licensed, which to me feels a bit more 'genuine'
you could also look at the hyperkin systems if you wanted something cheaper?
hear they're also pretty good, and very cost friendly!!!
https://www.hyperkin.com/megaretron-hd-gaming-console-for-genesis-mega-drive-hyperkin.html
outputs only at 720p I think - but really, would you even notice? unlike the Mega SG, the hyperkin systems ARE emulating the games...so there's likely to be slight annoyances with this here and there if you're deep enough into the games to notice, I suppose.
Even the Megadrive Mini released by Sega last year has emulation issues on games like Thunderforce 3 (sprite flickering an shit) which basically makes it VERY challenging if you're used to it playing properly...if you're a casual gamer you'd be unlikely to detect any issues - if you're a hard core Megadrive nerd, then you probably would
how many games you got dude? I've been collecting on and off since they were first released...im up to just shy of 300 games now....pretty much all killer, not much filler - I'm down to about 20 games I really want....then I'm done.
shits expensive these days, I got most of my collection about 15 -20 years ago and snagged most titles for a couple of quid each on ebay - not a chance now....sheesh. the last on my list are gonna cost me a small fortune - but hey - I don't have kids, so I've gotta spend my money on something, right?
Great info mate - I'll have a look at some of those. Re the games, here's the thing... I had about 50 or so plus an original mk1 Megadrive but I got rid of them all a few years ago when I moved house and when my kids were really little. They're a bit older now and my son is getting into video games (obviously he doesn't give a shit about retro gaming but he's happy to play on my Xbox360, which is currently what I'm playing Megadrive games on via the Megadrive classics release which had about 40 games from the back catalogue and attempts to do some smoothing of the graphics on modern TVs but that looks a bit like a wax layer has been applied) so I would effectively be starting again from scratch. So it's possibly cheapest for me to pick up a CRT for 50-100 quid and then a cheap megadrive, which is still possible by the looks of it... but I've noticed the games on all systems have definitely gone up in price over the past few years. I did think about just getting a mini megadrive for reasons of space but there are some games that aren't on there that I would still love to play. I'm a massive procrastinator when it comes to this sort of thing. Anyway, thanks for all the really useful info - I'll check out the other options you mention as well and then attempt to make a decision!
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11 hours ago, Mista_Ed said:
yo - just seen this tag now
probably wont be much help with this tbh, as I'm rocking a modern flatscreen these days. that said, I used to big old CRT for years and years with both the Megadrive, Snes and PS1.
I guess it really depends on what you're wanting to play and which consoles / systems / machines you have?
I am an avid megadrive / genesis collector - so I've got myself a "mega sg" by Analogue.
its a modern day, FPGA Megadrive, which outputs HMDI - its customizable in every possible way from graphics to sound - there's basically nothing you cant tweak - so this works well for me having lots of physical games. so much easier than fucking about with yet another screen / CRT etc, its absolutely awesome.
the same company also make a super Nintendo equivalent (super NT), which will most certainly, be just as excellent as the mega sg.....I don't really own enough super Nintendo carts to warrant spending on one of these atm - they're pretty fuckin expensive....but it depends on what sorta "level" you're into the game, I guess. You can update the firmware on both sg and nt to play roms from an SD card too...
what are you looking to play @jeljms?
You know, this had passed me by completely! Thanks man! It would be Megadrive games mostly so this would fit the bill perfectly. I've just watched some reviews of it and it gets a lot of love. I like that it is basically the original hardware reconstructed and modernised rather than emulation. The only problems are the price, stock (they don't seem to have any) and location. I'm UK based but it looks like they are US based. They do a European model but I'd be a bit worried about import taxes on top of the hardware costs. Hmmm.... looks like a great option, though and I wouldn't need a CRT with this. Decisions, decisions...
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1 hour ago, Jam Burglar said:
What Dirk is saying is right. You get all sorts of issues when trying to convert an image that was built to be played on a CRT displayed in an newer, non-CRT monitor. The old systems tend to run and look better on the CRT monitors. The image size doesn't get distorted, the black levels tend to be better on CRTs. Lag time is another reason a lot of gamers like to use CRTs because they don't introduce any noticeable lag.
Then you get into optimizing the images beyond how they were back in the day by using s-video, RGB output, etc. It's a whole rabbit hole. The Sony PVM and BVM models are favorites for gamers because they are commercial grade and some will do RGB input. In the realm of actual, commercial arcade games, the vast majority of serious collectors wouldn't ever think of using anything but a CRT monitor. Almost all arcade games used RGB signals and that's one reason they looked better than the home systems, which all used composite signals. So now you have people modding the home systems to try to get them to look more like arcade games and converting the composite to RGB definitely makes and improvement. It gets pretty deep.
The other thing you can do is get a system that plays old-school carts but outputs a high-res digital image. I recently picked up an Analogue NT and that makes my classic NES games look soooo much sharper and cleaner than they originally looked on a CRT. The only thing is they cost like $500. The die-hard gamers still seem to prefer the CRTs though.
What it really comes down to is, how much do you care? It's very cheap and easy to hook your Atari or NES up to your modern TV as long as you can live with the picture looking kind of wacked. Once you start trying to get the best possible image out of the system, things get crazy. I tell people the same thing about arcade games. If you want to play Donkey Kong exactly how it was in the arcade, then you can't beat a real machine. Emulation is not duplication. But if all you want to do is casually play a game or two of Donkey Kong once in a while and want to be able to do the same with a ton of other games, then just play them on your computer for free.
Yep, that's it in a nutshell, Jam. I have the memory of the way the games looked when I played them in the 90s and having played them on modern TVs, there is such an obvious difference in the way they look that I thought the easiest way would be to pick up a CRT and not need to faff about with all the conversion nonsense. Trying to recreate scanlines or optimise the picture through a bunch of more complicated modern tech sort of seems overkill to me and likely to be more expensive than picking up a second-hand CRT, especially when the one I used to play megadrive games on was a pretty ropey 14" Bush TV in the first place!
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Thanks for the replies.
I guess it's a space vs cost issue as I can probably pick up a decent-enough CRT monitor for under £100 and then it would be plug n play with a SNES or megadrive or I could spend over £100 on what looks like a very smart device in the OSSC (probably about £130 all in) and then have cleverer options on what I can do with the picture quality that I'll probably never use. A CRT TV though is just a cumbersome thing so not sure I've got the space for it...
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Yeah, sorry @Deft, I should have been clearer. I was talking about for playing old console games (SNES, Megadrive, etc).
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What are your thoughts on these? Is it worth picking one of these up to play video games on? Are they generally better than digital TVs in terms of picture quality?
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The only version of the PMC 05 III that made any concession to DVS was the DX model which had DVS connections so you could hook up an external sound card like an SL1/SL2 or the Native Instruments audio interfaces and still keep your other connections free but you obviously would have to pick one of those up separately to use with it. What model 05 is it? Just the regular mk3?
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5 hours ago, Deft said:
My initial reactions after using it for an hour or so is roughly what I expected. I always thought the Rane Twelve scratch performance was plenty good enough, and this is the same thing (no surprise). My frame of reference is a bit skewed, as I don't think I have ever scratched with real 7" records before. The acrylic disc thing on these (fake record) are quite light and slippery. My Rane Twelve has a real vinyl record on it (one of the first batches), but someone was saying they switched to this acrylic disc on those too. I'd be tempted to put a heavier real record on these, though I expect I'll get used to it. If you are constantly switching between real vinyl and this it could get annoying.
It's a nice size / format. I'm looking forward to actually doing some mixing, and I need to learn all the Serato features / effects / buttons on this thing which I've never used before. I used to just open Serato and cut, and never did anything else. The overall size means it feels a bit cramped for cutting. I'm strong hand on the record and tend to flap about and move my hand a lot, and you just kinda run out of space with 7".
Crossfader seems nice enough, and you can adjust the cut-in distance in software (thank fuck, the first thing I did was notice there was too much distance for me...). Upfaders are stiff garbage and I caught my finger nails on the metal panel groove / gap between the mixer and turntable bits. Again, even after 30 mins of cutting you start to adjust your hands / style a bit.
Realistically, I can't believe anyone prefers cutting on this kind of setup vs. a 12" format and proper scratch mixer. That's the compromise you expect. The platters have pretty strong torque. I'm a bit old fashioned and stuck in the past. If I could get 2x Rane Twelves (with pitch bend buttons), and use my Scratchbox I'd be good (basically my Technics and simple mixer setup circa 1997). Having said that, I haven't quite got the space for that anymore - and having all the Serato features accessible on your hardware should be fun. Like I said before, I'd tried mapping things to my Nanopad but I can't get on with generic mapping and no hardware labelling.
But in the end, like I said at the beginning - it's what I expected looking at the thing. No obvious issues with buttons / build quality.
YOU KNOW ME, I'M A JOKER. But more seriously, I have Serato running on my desktop computer which is a 90 degree head turn away - so am kinda interested in a ready to go solution on a tablet or phone, rather than investing in a separate laptop just for running Serato so I can stare at a screen directly in front of me. I could Google, but does Serato run on iPads / iPad pros? That would work OK and someone else in the house would get some use out of it more than they would a laptop on a stand.
Serato needs a laptop to run it - there is no standalone iOS app (wish there was). However... you can use Serato Remote via an iPad so you can keep the laptop more out of the way and use the iPad instead. I always thought 'What's the difference? You're still staring at a screen' but even when I used it with an iPhone it felt better than staring at a laptop, particularly if you are used to staring at a laptop for work, just using a phone or better still an iPad feels strangely liberating.
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That's a lot of dope documentaries, Steve. Another one I discovered the other day that I'd never seen previously:
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Just stumbled across this one on YouTube from '83. Have you guys seen this before?
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Since working from home, barely at all. Having my set up in the same room as where I work is off putting because I don't want to stay in the same room after my working day has finished.
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That's almost heartwarming. Almost.
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Scratching poll
in MUSIC/DJ RELATED
Posted
I’ve been without a mixer for about 6 months and finally purchased one the other week. My scratching skills are abject but I enjoy it anyway so looking forward to having another go now I have something to scratch on.