What actual hardware (sound cards, etc.) do you need to be able to mix digitally? I'm keen to start learning how to mix but can't really afford the initial outlay when it comes to hardware and would prefer to be able to do so just using my PC?

Hey phool.....

If you don't want to pay for hardware, and only want to use your pc, I would strongly recommend MixMeister to begin with, and then once you have mastered that, you can move on to ableton.... Or, alternatively, you can go straight to ableton...

MixMeister is easy...

Ableton is complex, but not impossible to master....

These two programs will enable you to save your mix and play it back. If you want to play "live", I'd suggest getting a midi controller (mixer) for your pc or get a cdj or vynil setup.....

Thanks for the response timmyt

I was looking at mixxx (http://www.mixxx.org/) since it's open source (and free) to start off with.

I think what's put me off getting started is I'm not sure what's required for setting up headphones to work in conjunction with one's speakers connected to the PC. Is an additional soundcard required? Are any special channel splitters needed?

Apologies for the noob queries but I guess we all have to start somewhere right :)

You need atleast 2 (stereo) outputs to use your speakers and headphone at the same time. Most pc's have an onboard soundcard which has 5.1/7.1 audio support so you can use the front for the speakers and the rear for your headphone for instance.

Using 1 output works too, but you aren't able to prelisten the tracks you want to mix while the other is playing.

Thanks for the info Kris, I'll be giving it a go this weekend and see where I get :)

I Need to pratice my mixing.

HAHA. Maybe I am just that tired? I have a serious question though and I think it just might pertain to this her forum, when it comes to decks and mixers and such, should you go all out right away and get top dollar top notch? Or is it smarter to get a "starter" kit, like a Gemini set on eBay? Comes with 2 cdj's, a mixer, speakers and head phones. For like 900 bucks!!! I was contemplating just nabbing it but figured I would get some info from people in the know.

Get a midi mixer instead, they cost around 200,- (and up of course) And do the same thing only the package is smaller. If you like it, you can invest in more expensive stuff.

Going straight for CDJ in this time is a bit useless imo. I mean you got everything on your pc, why copy it to cd's when you can play straight from the pc.

Tuesche? That is so not how you spell it. Midi mixer huh? And run some pcdj software? Something like Frooty Loops or Logic or PCDJ? It does seam a bit more affordable. Thanks for the input!

I Suggest Traktor for that.

How about a Behringer BCD 3000 MIDI Mixer for 169 and a M-Audio Oxygen 49 v3 49-Key USB Keyboard MIDI Controller? For under 300 bucks? I hope this is a good deal! Work with it for a couple months... Until the WMC and show people my progressing skills!

OH I CAN'T WAIT FOR ULTRA/WMC/ASOT 500!!!!!!!!!!

Sorry... Probably wrong thread now.

I've owned a BCD2000 for a while, the hardware itself was pretty descent (the BCD3000 is basically the same hardware) for it's price, but the drivers were horrible! Getting it to work stable on a laptop or on newer versions of windows (Vista/7) is just a pain in the ass.

Hercules also makes reasonable priced mixing hardware which you can also check out, I don't have any experience with those though.

After the BCD2000 I bought a Vestax VCI100 which was so much better, true it costs double of the BCD, but the build quality is much much better (Aluminum instead of Plastic) and best of all it's Plug'n play so no hastle with crappy drivers. You do need a soundcard though, since it's only a midi device, so no internal soundcard.

Yep, went with a bit cheaper model but got the Hercules Steel console. Now I just have to find the time to fiddle. Maybe I'll just start bringing it to work! I rarely do anything there anyway... I hate my job! FYI.

need to get my equipment.

Personally I learned to mix on Virtual DJ. If you have a torrent downloader like BIT torrent or something . You can go to the piratebay.com and get Virtual DJ. For free . Its a 99 dollar software i think . and i learned alot of the basicss on it. You can learn about beatmatching. Bars and Phrases and all that good stuff. Im still trying to get as good as i can on Virtual DJ. Then once i get the money buy a turntable set and once i get my first set i will have like a year of Dj experince already. Its a big jump in the game