What do DJs use for Sound Effects? DJ Advice | Beatmatch Guru

What do DJs use for Sound Effects? DJ Advice

There are a lot of DJ effects available for DJs to use, not all of them are used that often though. There are benefits to DJs using effects, such as helping a DJ mix, blend and transition between two different tracks and build up to the drop of a track e.g. applying HPF effect sweeping before a heavy bassline kicks in.

Applying DJ effects is about having a ‘less is more perspective’ because DJ effects can easily be used too much, trust me I’ve been there, it doesn’t sound great.

Sound FX for DJing Include:

DJ EffectDescription
ReverbReverb adds a spacial depth to the sound it’s being applied, which can be identified by how short or long the decay of the reverb is.
EchoEcho is a lasting delay of a sound that it’s being applied to with some natural ambiance, similar to how we’d hear Echo in the natural world e.g. in a cave or canyon.
DelayDelay is the repetition of a sound, usually set to a specific rhythm or beat e.g. every quarter beat, or every sixteenth beat.
Auto-Filter (HPF/LPF)Auto-Filter FX manipulates the frequency spectrum of a sound in time with a beat e.g. every 1/2 beat. The filter switch can manually apply to sweeping towards only playing low end frequencies (sub bass sounds) whereas HPF plays high frequencies.
PhaserPhaser sounds like a swirling effect that makes a sound more synthesised and airy.
Vinyl BrakeRecord vinyls have a play or stop button whereby the record vinyl would slowly slow down after hitting ‘Stop’. Digital DJing does not have this (unless set in advanced settings) or is applied as a DJ effect.
Reverse SampleReverse sample DJ effect is simple, is literally reverses the music track you playing.
FX SamplesFX samples are sound sounds that already have effects applied to them, and are triggered by DJs usually using the hot cue pads on the DJ equipment.

In this article we’re going to look into DJing effects from two perspectives. Applying DJ FX to music in the mix and also sample sound FX that can be triggered during your DJ mixes.

General Advice

DJ effects can be found on most DJ mixers, DJ controllers and DJ Software. Applying DJ FX to your music is easy, simply:

  • choose an effect
  • set channel 1 or 2, or master
  • press ON for the effect to be applied
  • switch up the FX volume

FX samples are different, they can be purchased online from sample banks or from a music producer.

Samples can be simple, such as a crash cymbal or complex, such as DJ Drop which is a lot of manipulated sound effects with a voice over stating your DJ name. These can be applied by:

  • loading your FX samples to your DJ software
  • activate them using a hot cue pad on your DJ equipment
  • Or activate using the DJ software / dedicated DJ turntable

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Reverb

Sounds like…

DJ Transition Tip: How to use Reverb in the mix.

Reverb is a great tool for a smooth transition, either mixing into a track or out of a track. Particularly useful when mixing out of a track (without any bass frequencies) when dropping into the breakdown section of a new track.

On your DJ mixer or DJ controller there’s a left and a right arrow button, usually under the name ‘BEAT’. This allows you to change or short or long the effect is, once it’s applied. This applies to all of the DJ FX highlighted below

TOP TIP!

Echo

Sounds like…

DJ Transition Tip: How to use Echo in the mix.

Echo can be used similarly to reverb in the mix, and can be applied to help smooth out the transition from one track to another.

Delay

Sounds like…

DJ Transition Tip: How to use Delay in the mix.

Delay is a great DJ effect that can be applied to a vocal chop for example. Your music track that’s playing in the mix might have some vocals and what you can do is utilise the delay and the channel fader by chopping in a snippet of those vocals. The delay adds to the character of the vocals and your mix. Plus it’s a lot of fun chopping around using the delay also.

Filter / Auto-Filter

Sounds like…

DJ Transition Tip: How to use EQ Filters in the mix.

Filters are a great way to transition from one track to another, and really does compliment you using the channel or crossfader. Filter switches such as the HPF and LPF can help a track stand out in the mix or let another track pop out in the mix and let you transition over to the new music track.

Phaser

Sounds like…

DJ Transition Tip: How to use Phaser in the mix.

Phaser is a cool DJ effect that should be (in my opinion) needs to be used sparingly. A really great use of Phaser is by applying it 4 or 8 beats before the drop of a track e.g. when the initial bassline hits of an electronic Dance track. This is quite useful as the Phaser effect can add to the build up of a music track. Note, this effect might not work for all music genres or music tracks.

Vinyl Brake

Sounds like…

DJ Transition Tip: How to use Vinyl Brake in the mix.

Vinyl Brake is a cool effect that can be applied towards the end of a phrase to be a little bit creative. If you’re looking to drop in another track e.g. simply switching the crossfader from track to another “on the one” then you can use the vinyl brake effect on the 8th beat of a bar, at the end of a section (phrase).

Reverse Sample

Sounds like…

DJ Transition Tip: How to use Reverse Sample in the mix.

Reverse sample effect is great for being a bit more creative in the mix, you could use it at the beginning of your DJ music intro to get a bit of a groove going. Also you could use it as an effect just before the breakdown of a music track to give a signal to the crowd that this is the end of this section, now we’re going into a new section of a music track.

FX Samples

Sounds like…

Make sure you load more than one sample on your CDJ / DJ mixer or DJ Controller, that way can trigger samples at any given time, or combine them seamlessly one after the other. Similar to how I’ve order the above sound FX samples.

TOP TIP!

DJ Transition Tip: How to use FX Samples in the mix.

FX samples are a great way for DJs playing live or even on radio / podcasts to add extra character to your DJ sets. Turntablists also use these as samples to scratch with and other DJs such as Reggae DJs play sounds when a particular track is reacting really well with the crowd e.g. the classic ‘Siren’ sound.

You can get hold of sound FX samples from the below online stores: (there are plenty of stores online, but here are some free examples for you)

Related Questions

How do DJs get sound effects?

DJs utilise effects via their DJ software, including Rekordbox, Serato, Traktor and more, and are applied to music being played on their DJ equipment. Sound effects can also be downloaded as samples from sound sample library websites.

How do I use rekordbox effects?

Rekordbox DJ effects are used by loading an FX, activating the ON button, highlighting which channel or master channel the FX are to be applied and to increase the volume of those FX.

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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