Become a DJ with these three tools for your PC or smartphone

If you want to break into the world of music mixing but you don’t have a mixing console on which to cut your teeth, you can always use virtual simulators to get quality results without needing any actual, physical hardware. Below we present three tools to make mixes from your PC or smartphone.

Virtual DJ

This is the successor of the mythic AtomixMP3. This program is perfect for training yourself as a DJ before graduating to a real mixing console. Virtual DJ is very visually attractive and quite popular among users thanks to its simple interface and good results. With this tool you can even add effects to your output, scratch, play loops, and even automatically sync the latency between two tracks to be mixed, whether automatically or guided by the waveform of both tracks based on the peaks in the low notes.

A great feature of Virtual DJ is that you can work with the audio tracks separately because each plate has its own mixer, equalizers, pitch regulator, and loop control, as well as an individual volume regulator to superimpose one track over another.

The only bad thing about this software is that if you’re looking for a free app, Virtual DJ is not it. This virtual console has a free trial version that lasts 20 days, but after that period you’ll need to register for the paid version (although you can always use it only for particular moments when you need to take charge of livening up the party).

DJ ProDecks

A very similar tool to Virtual DJ, although in this case it’s totally functional without costing you a dime. The two programs’ interfaces are very similar: the two virtual plates sit next to the effects controls in the upper part and your music library—with a very useful search tool—in the lower part. So if you’re familiar with the previous program, this one will be super easy for you to use.

This program also automatically detects your tracks’ BPM, has a scratch mode, and includes an individual console for effects and loops, although in this case you’re limited to three effects for each plate. In addition, and like Virtual DJ, you can record your sessions. In short, DJ ProDecks gives you practically the same features as the previous app but with a freeware license, being monetized instead by the suggested add-on programs during installation.

Edjing DJ Turntable

Imagine! There’s also tools like this for smartphones and tablets! Edjing DJ Turntable is an app available for both iOS and Android (although it also has desktop support) that lets you do your mixing directly from these devices.

You just need to have your music available in MP3 format on your device’s memory and then get mixing, adding effects and creating smooth transitions just like you would on its desktop counterparts. Edjing has a wide variety of totally free effects and overlay samples, as well as equalizers at different levels and scratch tools. In addition, you can get more features in the app’s official store.

Edjing includes the option to share your mixes via Twitter or Facebook. The other social component lets you add songs from popular services like SoundCloud and Deezer (though the latter is only available to paid users).