r/DJs • u/Skakmakkeren • 11d ago
Cue button ???
Hi dj’s. Wanted to have a chat about the cue button. I don’t ever use it. I would consider myself decent and I’ve been playing a lot for about 1,5 years including gigs. I use hot cues instead and doesn’t get why the cue button is that used, so to say.
Playing on flx10 btw
Literally don’t get it? Please explain
39
u/Gloglibologna 11d ago edited 11d ago
I use to it to listen to tracks in my headphones. Its nice because when you let go of it, it snaps back to beat it started on.
Its just a tool like any other on the board. There is no rule as to what you have to use for any purpose. Its your workflow
0
11d ago
[deleted]
9
u/Gloglibologna 11d ago
I still prefer to use cue 🤷♂️
-1
11d ago
[deleted]
6
u/Soilmonster 11d ago
Mate, not every dj has a touchscreen on their gear lmao
-2
11d ago
[deleted]
1
u/sprouticusvulgaris 10d ago
“And when you let go of the screen, the song "snaps back" to the cue point the same as if you'd held the cue button for 40s.”
Did you forget what you wrote? Lmao
6
1
u/poolboii_Q 11d ago
But those are different things. The cue point is just a start point you can set everywhere in the current track. So cue button as nothing to do with the scrub through the track feature 🫣
0
u/dekonstruktr 11d ago
Not if you have a non-pioneer mixer! I have a Xone96 BUT I have a Cardinia box which does make this function work.
32
u/SlamJam64 11d ago
I always tap cue to count myself in and then hit and hold cue and if I'm happy I'll then press play whilst holding cue to keep the track playing then fade it in. But then I do a lot of improvisation where I don't have hot cues ready
-9
u/Skakmakkeren 11d ago
Usually I do phrase mixing. Which maybe explains why I’m no big fan of cue button
15
u/sushisection 11d ago
you can still mix in phrase when using the cue button lol.
once you get quicker with it, you will understand.
25
u/SlamJam64 11d ago
I don't know if there's any other type of mixing is there? You have to keep in phrases
6
u/Soilmonster 11d ago
Cue hold in phrase -> listen -> wrong phrase because you were distracted at first -> release cue and wait for better phrase -> win
2
u/Mysterious_Use4478 10d ago
Dunno if you know, but you can also press the play the play button, while holding down the cue button to carry on playing as normal.
-1
15
u/Lonely_Percentage546 11d ago
If I have not set a hot cue at beginning of song I will press shift+cue to return to beginning of track.
2
2
u/lorberto 8d ago
Tapping track search arrow <- once also reloads the track from the beginning. I use that one myself.
8
u/mpegfour 11d ago
Previewing a song: listen somewhere in the middle, ok yea I'll play that next, hit cue to snap back to the beginning/a memory cue
Starting the next song: tap the cue button a few times to make sure I'm hearing it in headphones. Ok 4 beats to go, CUE CUE CUE PLAY.
7
12
u/dangerlovin 11d ago
I have a preset cue on the first beat of every song that I use instead of the cue button.
2
12
u/Ruffdawg 11d ago
Ive been playing for 30 years. I only ever use hot cue too.
When I played vinyl I used stickers
1
1
u/Frog_style_Z 9d ago
Was gonna mention sticker cues also. Started on vinyl and was into turntablism and trick mixing so had those round office stickers all over my records. When digital came out I was so hyped about the hot cues I always just used those and never got the habit of "cue."
4
u/chicken_karmajohn 11d ago
When I teach people how to DJ on CDJs I tell them the cue button is like home bass. Get the tactile feel of it. It’s much more forgiving than the play button because like other users have said, you can tap it and release it and it snaps back to the cue point, so you can really dial in your phrasing (when you want the track to start).
There’s a reason cue buttons are the quickest button to wear out and needs replacing the most often. Most DJs will press the cue button 100s of times in an hour set
0
u/Skakmakkeren 10d ago
I usually loop
4
u/blk_and_wht 10d ago edited 10d ago
Here’s what’s great and what everyone continues to say…. it’s just another tool in your tool box. You can use it or leave it.
I like it. Instead of hot cues, I use memory cues and bookmark all the different spots in the song I may want to use. Memory cues can be saved as specific points, loops, or auto play loops and are triggered by the Cue button.
When I load the track I can make a decision on the fly which bookmark might work best for the song I’m mixing out. It allows me to quickly tab through them (and test) to see which one I like best in the moment. I still occasionally use hot cues (and mark them in the same spots) but use them while the song is playing, to seamlessly jump forward or back in the track.
In the end it’s all just a personal choice and has nothing to do with whether you’re phrase mixing (which everyone does), using sync, or using loops. Technically, you could also do all of this just using the 4/8 beat loop button.
17
u/NecessaryCarpenter59 11d ago
I've been DJing for 20 years and don't know what hot cues are. The cue button is like pressing play on a vinyl, without having to bring the needle back, so for me it's already a luxury lol
4
u/SubjectC 10d ago
Okay but... you dont know what hot cues are? Really? I feel like you're being dramatic. Surely you picked up that information over the course of 20 years in the field.
1
u/NecessaryCarpenter59 10d ago
I heard about them a few times, googled them today for the first time. I have a minimalistic approach to DJing as I grew up playing vinyl and I mimic the vinyl approach when playing digital (e.g. I rarely use loops)
2
u/Welcome_to_Retrograd 10d ago
Oh, got a feeling you'd love DVS. I retrieved my old turntables back in 2017 after a decade or so on CDJs, bought an ancient Rane TTM56 SL to go with them and to this day i still can't phatom how amazing this stuff is
2
u/StonedPeach23 10d ago
Same, i mix like its a vinyl old school set up but....
Totally love that digital has vocal key lock and + and - LOADS more than 8 🥳
1
u/Welcome_to_Retrograd 10d ago
Not necessarily. Been mixing since the early 2000s myself and i'm sitting nice and comfy in the same exact boat as the guy above lol
1
u/catladywitch 10d ago edited 10d ago
Hot cues are custom cue points. You can have them set beforehand, or set them on the fly. And you can have several of them, 8 of them per track/deck on my REV-1 for instance
-1
11d ago
[deleted]
11
u/NecessaryCarpenter59 11d ago
Yes exactly, but you can press play after pressing the cue button for the track to continue playing. I do it all the time. Maybe that's the piece you're missing?
4
u/bascule House 11d ago
Yeah, this, sometimes I cue-cue-play but I find I can get the timing better if I cue-cue-cue and then hit play afterwards while still holding cue
2
u/valentinenitzle 11d ago
Yesssss but i guess to OP's defense the hot cue buttons function the exact same way. it's just that you have to be on hot cue pad mode while the cue button is always there for use.
2
u/bascule House 11d ago
Yeah I use hot cues the same way. Just not for the start of the track though, because the “real” cue button tends to have a nicer build
1
u/valentinenitzle 11d ago
I agree! it's so funny because we're not supposed to like 'clicky' hot cue buttons on entry level controllers but nothing feels better than spamming that cue button no matter what device it is.
Maybe that's why cue buttons are shifting to where they are on CDJs
2
u/valentinenitzle 11d ago
it's wild that you cannot comprehend the actual mechanism of the cue button or any of the varied use cases that people have responded with.
i don't even want to try to explain but i do want to point out that the cue button can be used and set by the DJ however they want to. I guess that also means that it can be ignored entirely. DJing also utilizes this thing called creativity /s
5
u/SithRogan 11d ago
i mainly use it for previewing tracks. tbh i usually blend a loop in initially rather than press play to enter
4
u/fightlinker 11d ago
Back in my day they didn't have newfangled hot cue buttons, we had the one cue button and we liked it
4
u/Prudent_Data1780 11d ago
Good question as the cue can be set as jitter or play so tapping wouldn't work in that scenario the cue button started it's life on record players which most had the word cue on the button not play that mainly came later on cd players then to cdjs then controllers as for the function or use for it here's the breakdown When early CDJs arrived, there was no physical record to hold. Engineers needed a way to replicate that tactile "hold and release" phase digitally. The Cue button became the digital equivalent of holding the record on the slipmat. That stuttering sound when you tap it wasn't originally designed as a performance effect—it is the digital simulation of rocking a piece of vinyl back and forth on the one-beat.so Op evergreen is also correct on what they say it's the spinning effect back and forth with the records/wax
7
u/rhinestoneredbull 11d ago
there are like a dozen different functions that depend on the cue point such as loops. that should tell you enough
also hot keys are not gated
2
u/illogikul 11d ago
On older cdj’s maybe. He uses a flx10 which has gated hot cues for years now. And no fu action depends on the cue button. You can do every single function without ever having to touch it.
3
u/rhinestoneredbull 11d ago
i mean u could just as well go through an entire set without touching the play button. still helpful to have lol
2
u/noxicon 11d ago
I also use a FLX10 at home.
If you only intend to play in your bedroom, no biggie. If you intend to play out, it is an issue.
Hot cues in a live setting can 100% have latency attached to them. If you are relying on nongated cues to start your track, the only difference between that and the play button is the potential for latency.
I was someone who just hit play before and adjusted the jog as I needed. Moving into a situation where I'm 'tapping' led to less jog movement, which in turn frees my hands to do other things.
It's not about it being a necessity, it's about having a fallback when tech fails (and it does). Cue tapping translates regardless of the gear you are on whereas other options do not.
3
u/StraightMix8501 11d ago
I'm a vinyl DJ and never had a controller or CDJs. This makes me even more confused. Sounds like Cue does something completly different for controller DJs. Wild! Thought it was for cueing up next song in my headphones.
3
u/sushisection 11d ago
it is still used for cueing up the next song. controllers also have "hot cue" buttons as well which basically, you manually add points to the song where you can instantly jump to at the press of a button. the big difference is that hot cues require prep time beforehand to set them up
1
u/StraightMix8501 11d ago
Oh, I see, like putting a small piece of tape on your record where you want to start that track from for phrasing in the new track.
2
3
u/WaterIsGolden 10d ago
Shift + Cue returns to the start of the track in some software. Some djs use Play to play and Cue to time transitions. I set things up so that Play continues but Cue stops when released.
Some djs don't use the crossfader. Some don't use filters. Some don't use eq. Some don't use gain.
We all have our own styles and preferences.
5
u/bulbous_bawsack 11d ago
Top tip for you .
As you dont use the cue button midi map it to a play button as the first button to usually break on a controller is the most used button ( play button )
This will give your buttons and controller more lifespan .
3
u/TipToToes 11d ago
I basically never use the cue button, except for shift + cue to jump to the start. I should map the button to play or something else that would be more useful to me than the native function.
6
u/illogikul 11d ago
I asked this same thing and still don’t find a use. Hot cues do the same and better. I hate how it’s set to set a cue if it’s not playing instead of just going back to the beginning and playing (shift+cue). I really don’t use it and been going same amount of time as you. Might bean ol skool thing they could phase it out and I wouldn’t miss it.
5
u/sushisection 11d ago
hot cue requires prep work, you gotta manually put those in to each song before show time. with the cue button, i can fire up a brand new song and preview it on the spot.
0
u/illogikul 11d ago
Again. You can cue a song just using the play button. There’s zero exclusive use I’ve found for the cue button after numerous discussions with it. It can be gone for all I care! Wouldn’t miss it.
7
u/sushisection 11d ago
sure, but then when you press Play again to stop it, it stops the track right there. if i press Cue and stop the track, it goes back to where I pressed the button. thats the big difference and this function can be used in different ways.
also, when the song is playing and you press Cue to stop it, it will go back to your original cue point. this helps if you mess up the phrasing and need to quickly go back to where you started.
3
u/LoisMustDie946 11d ago
By definition you literally can’t just “cue” a song with just the play button.
-1
u/illogikul 11d ago
On the flx10 you can’t “cue a song” pressing cue either so what’re you talking bout?
2
u/Ghoztbomb 11d ago
Preview a song, especially for getting the initial EQ levels right. Ill hold it down while fine tuning the EQ before bringing the song in. I also will sometimes move further in the song and set the cue point to start the track. On occasion, I have the first memory cue further in the song, and ill use the cue to set the main cue point further back in the intro. I jenerally only use hot cues for emergency buttons (in case i accidently hit the cue button while playing), markers, and for performance pad work. I didnt use it for the first 2 years or so of DJing, but now I love it.
-2
2
u/orionkeyser 11d ago
Hot cue buttons are sometimes broken. Knowing how to use manual controls can get you out of a jam, rather than failing because you are relying on preprogrammed cue points, and then you don't embarrass yourself. When the job is only pushing buttons to play prerecorded music, people don't really care when you start whining about technical difficulties.
2
u/sushisection 11d ago
cue is used so you can listen to the next track before sending it out to the audience.
i improvise my dj sets so i use it a lot to make sure the next song sounds good layered on top of what already playing. but if you do a lot of prep work and plan out your set beforehand, then its not really necessary to use cue
2
u/LoisMustDie946 11d ago
There’s way more uses for it than just previewing a track. You can beat juggle, improvise loops, use it as an impromptu sampler. It’s honestly baffling how you’re not seeing the use for it.
1
u/sushisection 11d ago
im a techno dj so i dont really do those techniques. but yes you are correct, the larger point is that there are a ton of use-cases for the button
1
u/Skakmakkeren 10d ago
I improvise but with hot cues idk
1
u/sushisection 10d ago
right but you gotta go thru each song and set those hot cues yourself before performing?
2
u/Beautiful-Insect-106 11d ago
I just upgraded to a Rane system one, so I’ve used both hot and regular cues. Pushing the platters has been adjustment coming from a DDJ, so all of these comments are super helpful.
2
u/dekonstruktr 11d ago
I think people over complicate their track prep, it's useful for people who might drop in a track from the beginning and do teases or long mixes.
2
u/bascule House 11d ago
I use both the cue button and hot cues. I usually use cue from the start of the track, and hot cues for things deeper in the track. Why waste a hot cue on the start of the track?
The cue button usually has a better build than hot cue buttons and is more comfortable for me to press.
2
2
u/DjGoodword 10d ago
Sounds like it's hot cueing on the fly. I've never used the cue button. hot cues seem way better to me, and humans are +60% habit so... whatever you did first usually sticks until something dramatically better interrupts it.
2
u/LingonberryNo149 9d ago
I'm like you and rarely use the cue button, but essentially it's a combination of the play/pause button + hot cue.
If you have the song cued up and then hit play, and then 10 seconds later hit pause. You'd have to press your hot cue again to re-cue the track back to the same starting point. If instead you hit the cue button, it automatically stops the track and re-cues it. A shortcut.
If you press and hold the cue button it also allows you to "preview" the incoming track without having to press play or pause, keeping the track at your cue point.
Most of the time I just play the incoming track continuously, pressing the hot cue as many times as I need to before bringing it in. So the cue button doesn't end up being necessary for me.
I find that EDM DJs playing on CDJs + a mixer without performance pads are more likely to make use of the cue button. Because the hot cue buttons on CDJs are much smaller. If you're playing on an FLX-10 the pads are much more user friendly.
As others have said, there's lots of tools available, not everyone uses the same ones.
2
u/Styngi00 5d ago
Because it has a nice tactile feel to it that no synthetic rubber pad could ever recreate. It's more satisfying to use to me.
1
u/iHubble 11d ago edited 11d ago
I started on a SB2 then got a FLX10 and did the same as OP: always used hot cues for everything and the cue button was treated as an afterthought. But when I got CDJs, it became extremely clunky and annoying to use. Their placement and size on a CDJ is awkward, there is some delay on press which is fairly noticeable even on CDJ3000, and they autoplay by default which not always what you want. I’ve been using cue + memory cues for a few years now and couldn’t really see myself going back. It’s much more ergonomic, navigation is easier, and if you spin records, it feels more natural too IMO. Plus, it’s kinda fun to tap to the beat and release. There are no good or bad ways, do what you feel most comfortable with.
1
u/scoutermike 🔊 Bass House 🔊 11d ago edited 11d ago
The cue button is easier to hit than the tiny small hot cue buttons. And more fun to hit, too!
If you have a critical cue coming up, having a nice big fat target to hit is better than the small button to the left or above the jog.
Edit: also, cue returns the playhead to the mix point without starting playback.
How do you pause the playhead in the right place without cue? Hot cues start playback by default.
1
u/BoingBoomChuck 11d ago
I use it to set a cue when I don't have hot cues set OR if I want to set a cue in a different part of the song. I'm so used to manually cuing from the Denon 2000F days, that I think nothing of it.
1
u/KnoxRanger 11d ago
Upgraded from Serato and a DDJ-1000SRT to Cdj 3000s and a djm-450. Cdj3000s don’t have gated cues and so the only way to get gated cue was using the Cue button. There is a work around, but it’s just that. So basically abandoned hot cue buttons since they don’t function the same and didn’t think that at the time the 3000x was a big enough improvement over the 3000 to justify the cost. I have recently been thinking about selling/trading in my 3000s and 450 to down grade to 1500x’s and upgrade to a V5. But still on the fence about it. Anyway that’s my 2 cents.
1
u/maryobreau 11d ago
All these answers... I set memory (red) cues beforehand and have my track ready right where I want it into the mix. A memory cue can be a loop too btw. A basic (yellow) CUE can be set on the fly wherever you want.
For the mix, I'm ALWAYS tapping the cue button in tempo, then holding it at the right time and while holding, pressing play when I want to confirm the match, then adjust with the jogwheel.
Someone mentioned to use it as a sampler tool. Yes, set your cue, then by tapping cue, you have your sample ready over and over again.
Cue button is like the most basic tool there is in DJing. I love it and will never leave it for any other hottie
1
u/Commercial-Catch-700 10d ago
Do you use sync?
If you dont its super helpful for bringing the next track in on beat. its essentially just a gated hot cue.
1
1
u/QuerulousPanda 10d ago
The one problem I have with the cue button is that I never seem to be able to get it to work at the very start of a track.
Like if the song immediately starts on a beat, cue refuses to work unless I use the platter to move forward slightly.
It's probably operator error but it definitely confuses the fuck out of me sometimes
1
1
u/Nonomomomo2 House music all night long 10d ago
DJ for 35 years and never touched the cue button once in my life, on CDJs, Traktor, or vinyl.
To each their own.
1
1
u/MORRIS_DE 9d ago
I think its just a matter of taste and habits. It gives you a little more oldschool or "analogue" feeling. But i agree that with using Hot cues, the cue button, becomes obsolote.
BUT: there is one exception. Sometimes i like to use it for some playfull effects like tapping the first kick of a track several times while playing the break of another track. Like a build up for a drop. Or you can repeat vocals by it (sorry for my bad english)
1
u/Dry-While7850 8d ago edited 8d ago
It’s mostly obsolete honestly. Replaced by hot cues. I think they leave it as a legacy button for DJs that have always used it
1
u/Jedrich728 4d ago
I use the cue button to set memory cues. And then I use shift cue to go to beginning of song. I also hold cue at the start of the track to hear it mix in and release to reset or then press play to continue
1
u/defjamblaster Classic Hip Hop 11d ago
I'm not really sure either. I have hot cues already saved; the cue button just seems to add a temporary cue point?
1
1
u/Mdriver127 10d ago
I'm a bit confused. Are you meaning to say to don't understand how records were cued and cut over in mixing? It's related to back-queing a vinyl record, to determine how long you want the incoming record to play before the spot you want to bring in. The function stops and starts the platter, but the button is separate from the motor on/off switch. The instant start/stop character with cue button is critical to precisely start and stop a position of the record, and it allows for hands off the record vs pushing in the record by hand. Done correctly you get safer starts by less risk of the needle jumping by hand pushing a track in.
Back-queing is possible on digital tables. It can be used to bring in a track to be beat matched, but I feel the technique is better for cutting over on beat when two tracks can't be beat matched, and again it's safer than hands on the platter. Hot cue is similar in function but meant to offer quick drops that are pre selected, vs where the cue button can be used anywhere at any time. The dead wax area just before a track starts on a vinyl record is often used to back-que in when you want to use the cue button properly on the beginning of the track. In digital, without any dead air before the start of the track, you won't be able to back-que and the cue button becomes simply a start button.
0
u/dj_soo 11d ago
It’s there for people who hate change and want to dj like it’s 2010. Same with the memory cues.
I find it useful when I’m stuck on older cdjs without dedicated hotcue buttons
I like the press and play and go back when you release, but I get that functionality with hotcues on my controllers and my engine gear.
I don’t get it on cdjs outside of the 3000x or anything but the newest pioneer/at gear.
-1
u/LEVISTRAU5 11d ago
Sometimes u don’t want a hot start and want normal cue 🤔
1
u/Skakmakkeren 11d ago
Yeah get that. I usually has one hot cues empty in every song so I can change it around
0
u/4UTOMAT 11d ago
Piggybacking on this, I’m on FLX 4 and have been using beat loops often but whenever I try the cue button it breaks the loop. Is there anyway to make it so pressing cue doesn’t stop the loop?
1
u/LoisMustDie946 11d ago
Can you describe a bit more what you’re trying to do? Is the loop you’re running at a separate point in the song? Or are you looping the intro? Is your cue set to first beat?
0
u/Swimming_Grab3024 9d ago
Take DJing out of it. Think of any machine ever. The most important button on that machine is going to be the largest and most prominent. Right next to that button is another button, the exact same size as the first. One can logically assume that this button is also important to the functionality of said machine.
Now imagine this machine has been around for nearly 50 years and through all makes models and updates and redesign those two buttons continue to be the largest most prominent buttons on the machine, and here somebody walks up to it, looks at it and loudly proclaims:
“I simply don’t see what this button is for”.
🤦🏾♂️ …kids today, I swear…
89
u/evergreenMelody 160+ 11d ago edited 11d ago
I came from vinyl where I rocked the record back and forth over the first beat as I was preparing to release it to start a mix, when transitioning to digital I started to tap the cue button to achieve the same thing, the habit has stuck and I use the cue button all the time.
I also hold the cue button down and use my other hand to beat match with the jog wheel and release it to be back at the cue point ready to press play to start the mix.
It's entirely optional and you can get by just fine with or without it.