How to DJ Dubstep [4 Easy Steps] | Beatmatch Guru

How to DJ Dubstep [4 Easy Steps]

Do you love the sick slick sound design whomping bass lines of Dubstep? Want to jump on the DJ decks and start smashing up some tunes together, but don’t know where to start? This is 4 Step Guide to help you get on your way.

Follow the steps below to get an idea of how to start DJing quickly. And remember, if you want to learn ALL the skills on how to DJ, check out our DJ course here.

1. Tune selection

Download Dubstep music e.g. Beatport, iTunes etc

First off you need to get your teeth stuck into some Dubstep tracks that you like.

You may already have an idea of the Dubstep artists, labels and top tracks, but if you don’t check out the below information to help you out.

There’s even a Dubstep setlist ready made for you to start mixing, all tracks are in order ready for you to start mixing one by one.

Popular artists

Inspiration time: Sift through Trending Tracks on Beatport

https://www.beatport.com/genre/dubstep/18/top-100

What you can do is research and run through the top 100 tracks on Beatport and also go through ‘Latest Releases’ and ‘Staff Picks’.

Add a bunch of tracks to your HOLD BIN on Beatport.com, this will help you whittle down the final selection.

Delete any tracks from the HOLD BIN, then purchase, download your tracks, add them to you DJ equipment / software.

Tune Selection Tips:

You can use these tips and keep them in mind when research what you want in your DJ setlist.

  • Energy flow of your DJ set. Do you want it to start off “Deep”, Get “Darker / Heavy” then end on a high inspirational vocally type ending?
  • Drawing on a piece of paper the energy of your DJ set will help you determine this. E.g. over 20 mins = Deep, 20 mins = Heavy and remaining 20 mins = Lighter vocal sounds.

Done for you – Example DJ setlist

Check out a Dubstep DJ setlist that I’ve ready made for you to download from Beatport and get DJing.

You can see this list on Spotify or Beatport.

Remember to use Soundiz if you want to transfer the Spotify playlist over to Beatport to purchase the music and start DJing with it.

https://soundiiz.com/tutorial/spotify-to-beatport

2. Prepare your music for mixing

Set Cue points

Setting cue points at specific points during a music track is going to help you get ready to start pressing that CUE button and start dropping in Dubstep tunes at the right point.

Cue points are usually set at a set amount of beats before a key moment in a track in which you wish to transition into, e.g. when switching the crossfader into a breakdown for example.

Set Hot Cues

If you have a DJ Controller then you may well have Hot Cue performance pads. These are great for setting Hot Cues to allow you to play and around with different points of a track while the track is playing.

Hot Cues are also great for a scenario where you may of missed the point in which you wanted to drop a track in. Hitting a Hot Cue can help jump back to a point where you needed to be.

See below where I’ve put together the Hot Cues for the whole DJ setlist.

3. Mix transition types

Drop Mix

Drop mixing is one of my faves.

It’s super easy and effective, all you need to do is make sure you’ve got a Dubstep track lined up and the build up is rising (listening to in your headphones) then switch the cross fader over one the 1. Which means the first beat of the bassline kicking in.

Loop build up + Filter Sweep

Looping function allows you to have some fun with a breakdown section or a specific charismatic sound. Looping allows you to control the sound and apply FX such as a Filter Sweep.

In doing this you can get creative in how you transition from track to track. Of course there are many ways to transition in and out of a loop. One of them being combined with the simple and effective ‘Drop Mix’ as mentioned above.

Intro / Breakdown mix

A really cool and easy way for you to blend in music tracks if you’re really struggling to beat match too. Simply drop in the breakdown on top of another breakdown section, blend the crossfader / LPF filter. And you’re done son!

4. Record your mix

DJ Software

Depending on your setup you might have a DJ controller and Rekordbox for example like me using the Pioneer DDJ-400 DJ controller.

It’s super easy to record your DJ mix, just make sure you’ve set a desired folder location in preferences, then click the record button when you’re ready to start mixing and blending the Dubstep vibes.

More ideas on how to record your DJ mix, CLICK HERE or HERE.

Related Questions

How can I teach myself to DJ?

It’s possible to teach yourself how to DJ by practicing endlessly on your DJ equipment. Doing so will take a lot longer compared to someone learning via an online DJ course, personal 1-2-1 DJ tuition, reading books or watching YouTube tutorials.


How do you mix deep dubstep?

Select Deep Dubstep tracks that you feel work well together, practice mix all the tracks together to understand the structure of all tracks and then decide how all the music tracks will work well together when mixing into one another, e.g. understand the song structure of each track.


Is DJing hard to start?

It’s not hard to start DJing, all you need is DJ equipment such as a DJ Controller, headphones, a laptop (potentially) and speakers. Gaining music to DJ with and learning the necessary skills is all that needs to take place after you’ve setup your DJ equipment.

Dan Dracott

I'm Dan Dracott from Beatmatch Guru. I love DJing and have done since I was 15 years old. I want to share my knowledge and love of DJing to help you guys get better at DJing.

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