Phase 5:
Beatmatching — The Heart of It
Beatmatching is the core skill of DJing. Bringing two tracks to the same tempo and lining their beats up with each other.
Learn beatmatching by hand before you use sync. Anyone who only knows sync is lost the moment sync fails — and it does.
What you learn in this phase
Understanding BPM difference
What happens when two tracks run at different BPM
Using the tempo fader to match
Matching the BPM of track B to track A — step 1
Using the sync button (with understanding)
What sync does — and what it does not do
Matching BPM manually, without sync
Ears and tempo fader only — hearing whether a track runs ahead or drags
Nudging with the jog wheel (phase alignment)
Using the rim to push the beats onto each other — step 2
Aligning to the downbeat
Beat 1 of track B has to land on beat 1 of track A
Using headphone cue for beatmatching
Mastering the workflow: preparing track B while track A is playing
Spotting and correcting drift
When tracks run apart after 30 seconds
Beatmatching challenge: 20 tracks without sync
The mastery test — beatmatch every track by hand
What you can do after this phase
Every sentence is phrased so that you can check it yourself — on your own tracks, with a number rather than a feeling.
Hears across 10 attempts whether track B is running too fast or too slow, and is right at least 8 times.
Brings two tracks to the same BPM by hand and checks for themselves, across 5 sync runs, whether the beats really line up.
Pushes two tracks together 5 times using only the edge of the jog wheel, hitting beat 1 on beat 1.
Prepares track B fully in the headphones 5 times before it becomes audible on the master.
Keeps two tracks in sync for 3 minutes and corrects the drift before it becomes audible — demonstrated across 20 manual beatmatches.
Practical assessment: beatmatching without a net
This is how you finish the phase on the gear — as a self-check with criteria you count off on your own material. The quiz tests what you know; this shows what you can do.
One session of manual beatmatching, sync stays off. Count honestly — the notes are your piece of work.
5 manual beatmatches in a row, with a note of how many landed first time.
2 tracks kept in sync for 3 minutes with the drift corrected before it became audible.
Across 10 attempts, correctly named by ear whether track B was running too fast or too slow — at least 8 right.
XP reward
225 XP
after completing this phase + passing the quiz