If you’re fairly new to DJing, DJ controllers, or DJ mixers, you’ve more than likely asked yourself “what is a crossfader” and “why do I need to use one” at least once.
It’s a common and very well-known term in the music and DJ performing space. However, for casual fans or beginners, it may not be entirely clear “what” a crossfader on a mixer is or how exactly it is used.
Simply put, a crossfader is a parallel slider on a DJ controller or DJ Mixer that lets you tweak and control what channel the music is coming from. The crossfader slider can be moved from left to right and vice versa and can control multiple channels of a controller based on its settings.
In this guide, we’ll break down exactly what a crossfader does as well as when is the best time to use it. We’ll also get into how it works concerning a volume fader and how you can properly mix the two.
What is a Crossfader? (in short)
A crossfader is an important tool for DJs on a DJ mixer or a DJ controller. The crossfader allows DJs to quickly bring in, or assign a song, from another channel/deck. It also gives the DJ the ability to then return to that channel/deck in a split second.
All of this can be done at rapid speed as crossfaders offer low resistance and a fast-cut curve. Usage of the crossfader is prominent within the scratch DJ community as fast, clean-cutting is essential to that skill set.
RELATED ARTICLE: Crossfader vs Channel Fader (The Great Debate)
How Does A Crossfader Work?
As briefly mentioned earlier, a crossfader is a slider that runs horizontally across a DJ controller.
An easy analogy (as we’ll explain more later) is a volume fader knob or radio tuner knob. Just as you’d turn the knob on a radio or your volume in one direction to hear music from a different station or at a different volume level, so too does moving a crossfader in one direction alter the audio based on the respective channel.
By sliding the crossfade slider completely to your left side, you’ll hear the audio from the channel more clearly and directly coming from your channel 1.
Conversely, by sliding the crossfader to your right, you’ll more clearly hear audio coming from your channel 2.
For DJs that have two different tracks playing during a gig, this feature allows them to focus on one track over the other, making the listening experience incredibly unique.
Where Is The Crossfader Located?
Generally, for most controllers, the crossfader is found at the bottom center of a controller or a mixer.
This allows it its own space to be moved along the left and right sides of the controller without worrying about hitting any separate buttons or knobs.
DJ Controllers and Mixers With 4 Channels
If a DJ controller or mixer uses 4 channels, you’ll be able to switch them to either the left or right side of the crossfader.
This is generally asserted via the letters “A” and “B”.
There are three different crossfader options when using a 4-channel DJ controller:
Option A, Option B, and “Through”.
Setting your crossfader to “Option A” will have it play any music from all channels allocated to the left side of the crossfader.
Similarly, any channels set to “Option B” will go to the right side of the crossfader.
The “Through” setting for a crossfader acts largely the same as keeping the crossfader at its center. As such, it doesn’t have much use when you plan on actually using and mixing sounds.
Generally, it is more useful with EQ and volume fading options (more on that later).
When Should You Use The Crossfader?
While you can technically use a crossfader at any time, the times where you’ll generally see the most use and benefit are when you are transitioning between songs.
For example, if you plan to have a music style that has quicker cuts and fast transitions, you’ll often need a crossfader to jump between the two tracks.
A great example of this is from hip-hop DJs.
Because they often wish to execute quick cuts and seamlessly drop from one song to the other – both for standard transitioning as well as scratch DJs – they will generally find themselves using more specialized DJ scratch mixers, such as the Pioneer DJ DJM-S11 or the Rane Seventy-Two MK2.
On the other hand, House DJs will use the crossfader much more sparingly, instead of relying more on the EQ knobs and volume fader effects.
This offers a bit more control over the sound quality at the expense of losing out on transition speed.
The Two Factors To Consider When Crossfading
There are two important factors that you must take into consideration when deciding to use the crossfader.
Music style and your personal preference.
As with the hip-hop vs house DJ example above, the style of music you put out will largely determine the amount of time spent using the cross fader.
This is because some music styles can often rely much more strongly on transition jumps than other styles. Pop is another great example of this style, as – because of its fast-paced nature – you can use the crossfader for quick transition drops.
On the other hand, personal preference plays an even bigger role in your crossfading experience.
Even if you’re dealing with a fast-paced pop song, if it doesn’t feel right for you to cross between the two using the crossfader, instead try playing around with the EQ options.
Read Next: Best Speaker Wire
Crossfader vs. Volume Fader – The Difference?
Throughout this explanation of the crossfader, we’ve constantly mentioned the volume fader at least a few times.
This is because, while the crossfader option is entirely viable on its own for a DJ, there is just as much use going for the volume fader.
That leads to the big question of which is better of the two: the crossfader or the volume fader.
Well, the reality does come down to what type of transition drop you prefer. If you’re someone that likes the idea of a transition quickly dropping between two songs, rapidly cutting from one track to the other, that means you’re someone that is probably going to be a fan of the crossfader.
If, on the other hand, you find yourself more invested in the slower and cleaner transitions, you may instead consider using the volume fader.
Both methods have their value and both can be used either entirely separately or interspersed with one another. Neither is inherently better than the other and can often be used in place of the other.
Some DJs, as an example, use a crossfader for slower track transitions rather than the volume fader, while other DJs will use the volume fader over the crossfader when shooting for fast transitions.
Take the time and play with either method to see which works best for you and which you’ll find to be more enjoyable.
Using The EQ Knobs
Now that we’ve had a chance to go over the crossfader and the volume fader, it’s important to talk about the third part of this mixing and track-jumping DJ tool.
These are the EQ knobs.
Like crossfading and volume fading, using the EQ knobs is strongly meant for setting up quality transitions. However, rather than being used for fast cuts and quick jumps between tracks, the EQ knob is more for slowly and methodically introducing a new song into the mix.
A great way to think about it is, that crossfaders are for jumping between tracks, volume faders are for hitting the high points of either track, and EQ knobs are for introducing a new track altogether.
How EQ Knobs Work
EQ knobs are made up of three separate knob options, each affecting its frequency range.
One knob controls the lows, one deals with the mids, and the other manages the highs. This is also known as the “3 band EQ”.
By using the EQ knobs to transition, you’re creating something that isn’t too dissimilar to the volume fader. The only real difference is that the 3 knobs handle the sound frequencies themselves as opposed to just the volume.
For example, a track can start at the high-end frequencies only to have that section reduced in favor of strengthening the mid or low-end frequencies.
While you are mixing, you can then further use the knobs to slowly introduce an entirely new track, creating one seamless and continual listening experience.
RELATED ARTICLE: Using EQs on a DJ Mixer (Nailing This Vital DJ Skill)
What is a Crossfader: Takeaway
It is important to know which transition feature does what, and how best to employ its effects. What a volume fader does isn’t necessarily what a crossfader can do, which further still is different than how the EQ knobs interact with a song.
By playing around with the different features, you can gather a more complete understanding of the three as well as best determine which works best for you. You’ll also want to play around with the different genres so you have a more accurate understanding of how they play and interact with the transition process.
