How to Speed Up Songs: The Complete Guide for DJs and Music Producers
Speeding up songs is an essential technique for DJs and producers, whether you’re performing live, remixing tracks, or just playing around with different BPMs for personal enjoyment. In live DJ sets, tempo adjustments allow you to seamlessly transition between tracks of different speeds, maintaining the energy of the dance floor.
For producers, speeding up a song can be useful for remixing, creating mashups, or fitting a track into a new musical context. Additionally, it’s a fun way to experiment with how a song feels, adding urgency and excitement to your mix.
In this guide, I’ll explore the reasons for speeding up songs and demonstrate how to do it using DJ software, DAWs, and advanced time-stretching algorithms to avoid compromising audio quality.
What You Will Learn#
Why speeding up songs is a key skill for DJs and music producers
Techniques for speeding up songs in various DAWs and DJ software
Tips for maintaining song quality while changing speed
How DJ.Studio simplifies the process of speeding up tracks for live sets and productions
Why Speed Up Songs?#
Speeding up songs can serve many purposes in both live performances and studio production:
In Live DJ Sets#
For DJs, speeding up songs is often necessary to maintain a smooth transition between tracks with different BPMs. For example, if you’re playing a set with House music at 128 BPM and want to transition into a Trap track at 140 BPM, speeding up the Trap song slightly helps bridge the tempo gap. This way, the energy on the dance floor remains consistent, and the transition feels natural rather than abrupt.
Genres That Commonly Require Tempo Adjustments#
Certain genres frequently involve tempo adjustments, making speed changes a necessary skill for DJs. Genres like EDM, House, and Techno typically stay within a consistent BPM range (120-130 BPM), but DJs often need to adjust tempos when blending in tracks from genres like Trap, which is generally slower (around 70-75 BPM, but effectively 140 BPM in double time), or Drum and Bass, which sits at a much faster BPM (around 160-180 BPM). Speeding up or slowing down tracks in these genres helps DJs maintain the flow and create exciting transitions during a live set.
In Music Production#
Producers may speed up songs for remixes or to fit a track into a specific project. For instance, remixing a slower track at a higher tempo can give it new energy, transforming its feel and making it more danceable. It’s also common to speed up individual samples or stems when creating mashups or producing for specific genres like House or Drum and Bass, which require faster BPMs.
Speeding Up Songs on TikTok, Shorts, and Reels#
Speeding up songs has become a viral trend on platforms like TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Instagram Reels. This technique not only alters the feel of a song but also helps it capture attention, aligning with fast-paced, short-form content consumption.
Catchy and Engaging: Faster tempos make songs sound more energetic and catchy, which increases their chances of going viral. Users are more likely to engage with content that has an upbeat and fun vibe, perfect for short videos.
Optimized for Short Attention Spans: Short-form video platforms are all about capturing attention quickly. Speeding up a song compresses the most memorable parts into a shorter time frame, making it ideal for 15-30 second clips.
Appealing to Trends: Many trending songs on these platforms are sped-up versions of existing hits. By incorporating this effect, creators can ride the wave of current trends, increasing visibility and engagement.
Fits the Fast-Paced Editing Style: Content creators often rely on fast cuts and quick transitions, and a faster tempo song pairs perfectly with this fast-paced editing style, creating a more cohesive and dynamic video.
How To Speed Up Songs with DJ.Studio#
DJ.Studio makes speeding up songs quick and intuitive, allowing you to maintain sound quality while seamlessly fitting the track into your mix. DJ.Studio’s powerful automation and time-stretching tools simplify the process, whether you’re performing live or producing a set.
Automatic Tempo Adjustment#
DJ.Studio allows you to easily adjust the tempo of a song without affecting the pitch, thanks to its built-in key-locking and time-stretching capabilities. Once a track is loaded into your mix, DJ.Studio automatically analyzes the BPM and allows you to speed it up using its intuitive interface. The software’s Vinyl Mode can be used if you want to increase the speed and pitch simultaneously for a more natural, vinyl-like effect, while Re-Pitch Mode keeps the pitch intact, preserving the original feel of the track.
Seamless Integration into Your Workflow#
DJ.Studio is designed with DJs and producers in mind, meaning that tempo adjustments can be made on the fly without interrupting the workflow. You can quickly preview how speeding up a song will affect its transition with the rest of your mix. The software automatically beatmatches and harmonically adjusts tracks for smooth transitions, ensuring that your set flows perfectly, even with varying BPMs.
Additionally, DJ.Studio’s visual mixing interface shows you how the tempo changes will affect the overall structure of your mix, allowing for fine-tuning of transitions and ensuring that the energy of your set remains consistent.
By leveraging DJ.Studio’s advanced algorithms and intelligent mixing tools, speeding up songs becomes effortless, saving you time and preserving the high-quality sound of your tracks, making it a perfect solution for live performances, remixes, or studio projects.
Step-by-Step: How to Speed Up Songs with DJ.Studio#
DJ.Studio makes the process of speeding up songs simple, while maintaining high audio quality. Below is a step-by-step guide to help you adjust the tempo of your tracks seamlessly within DJ.Studio using it's music speed changer tool.
You can even experiment with music on YouTube or in the Spotify app!
1. Load Your Tracks
Open DJ.Studio and import tracks.
Import or drag and drop your song's audio file into the timeline or playlist view. DJ.Studio will automatically analyze the track’s BPM and key.
2. Open the Effects Tab
In the Studio view, go to the bottom and select the Effects Tab.
Here, you can see
3. Adjust the Tempo
Find the BPM slider or tempo adjustment section.
You can either:
Use the Time-Stretching Mode to increase both the speed and pitch simultaneously (mimicking the effect of speeding up vinyl).
Or use the Re-Pitch Mode to speed up the song while keeping the audio pitch intact. This feature is especially useful when you want to speed up the song but maintain its original key and harmonic feel.
4. Set Automation Points
To make tempo changes gradually across the song (such as speeding up a track during a specific section), click on the orange BPM lane and select 'manual'. You will now be able to add points to the BPM lane to control the speed.
Drag these points up or down to increase or decrease the tempo at various moments within the song.
5. Preview and Refine
Use DJ.Studio’s real-time preview feature to listen to how the sped-up track sounds within the context of your mix.
If necessary, fine-tune the transitions and adjust the pitch or BPM slightly to ensure a smooth flow between tracks when using the audio speed changer.
6. Finalize the Mix
Once you’re happy with how the sped-up music track fits into your mix, save or export the project. DJ.Studio ensures that all adjustments - whether tempo or pitch - are made without sacrificing sound quality, allowing for professional-grade mixes. Your processed track(s) can be exported as high quality .wav audio files (or your desired format) and shared online or used in other software.
DJ.Studio makes the process of speeding up songs simple, while maintaining high audio quality. Below is a step-by-step guide to help you adjust the tempo of your tracks seamlessly within DJ.Studio using it's music speed changer tool.
You can even experiment with music on YouTube or in the Spotify app!
1. Load Your Tracks
Open DJ.Studio and import tracks.
Import or drag and drop your song's audio file into the timeline or playlist view. DJ.Studio will automatically analyze the track’s BPM and key.
2. Open the Effects Tab
In the Studio view, go to the bottom and select the Effects Tab.
Here, you can see
3. Adjust the Tempo
Find the BPM slider or tempo adjustment section.
You can either:
Use the Time-Stretching Mode to increase both the speed and pitch simultaneously (mimicking the effect of speeding up vinyl).
Or use the Re-Pitch Mode to speed up the song while keeping the audio pitch intact. This feature is especially useful when you want to speed up the song but maintain its original key and harmonic feel.
4. Set Automation Points
To make tempo changes gradually across the song (such as speeding up a track during a specific section), click on the orange BPM lane and select 'manual'. You will now be able to add points to the BPM lane to control the speed.
Drag these points up or down to increase or decrease the tempo at various moments within the song.
5. Preview and Refine
Use DJ.Studio’s real-time preview feature to listen to how the sped-up track sounds within the context of your mix.
If necessary, fine-tune the transitions and adjust the pitch or BPM slightly to ensure a smooth flow between tracks when using the audio speed changer.
6. Finalize the Mix
Once you’re happy with how the sped-up music track fits into your mix, save or export the project. DJ.Studio ensures that all adjustments - whether tempo or pitch - are made without sacrificing sound quality, allowing for professional-grade mixes. Your processed track(s) can be exported as high quality .wav audio files (or your desired format) and shared online or used in other software.
Different Methods for Speeding Up Songs#
There are various ways to make music play faster, depending on whether you're working in DJ software or digital audio workstations (DAWs). Each method has its own approach to ensuring the tempo change is smooth without compromising audio quality.
In DJ Software#
Rekordbox
Rekordbox makes it easy to speed up songs using its built-in pitch and tempo controls.
Load your music file and adjust the tempo slider. Like Serato, moving the slider upwards increases the speed.
Key Lock: To prevent the pitch of the song from shifting as you speed it up, enable the Key Lock feature. This keeps the song’s key intact while you adjust the tempo.
Beat Sync: Use Rekordbox’s Beat Sync feature to match the tempo of two tracks for a seamless transition.
Traktor
In Traktor, tempo adjustments are similar to Serato and Rekordbox:
Load the track into a deck.
Use the pitch fader to increase the BPM, speeding up the song.
Enable Sync to automatically match the tempo of another track without changing its pitch.
In DAWs#
Ableton Live
Ableton Live is known for its flexibility when it comes to manipulating time and pitch.
Import your track into Ableton’s session view.
Use Warp Mode to adjust the tempo without affecting the pitch. Ableton has various warp algorithms like “Beats,” “Tones,” and “Complex Pro,” which preserve audio quality during tempo shifts.
Use the BPM slider in the top left to increase the project’s tempo, which speeds up the song.
Logic Pro
Logic Pro’s time and pitch manipulation tools are robust and easy to use:
Import the track into Logic’s timeline.
Use the Flex Time function to speed up the song by adjusting the tempo.
Enable Flex Pitch if you need to make any pitch adjustments while speeding up the track.
Maintaining Quality While Speeding Up Songs#
Speeding up a track can sometimes distort audio, especially if the increase in tempo is significant. Common distortions include unnatural pitch shifts, time-stretching artifacts, or a general loss of clarity, particularly with vocals and intricate instrumentation. This happens because altering the speed of a song without preserving the pitch can cause elements like voice and instruments to sound unnatural or strained.
However, there are several methods to maintain high audio quality while speeding up tracks:
Preserving Pitch#
One of the most important aspects of maintaining quality is ensuring that the pitch of the song doesn’t change when speeding up the tempo. Most modern DJ software and DAWs (Digital Audio Workstations) offer a key lock or time-stretching feature that allows you to adjust the tempo while preserving the original pitch. This ensures that while the song plays faster, the notes and vocals remain in their original key, preventing unwanted shifts in tonality.
Time-Stretching Algorithms#
Advanced time-stretching algorithms are designed to maintain sound quality even when the tempo is altered significantly. Tools like Ableton Live’s Complex Pro mode, Serato’s Pitch 'n Time, or Rekordbox’s Key Lock use these algorithms to stretch or compress the audio without introducing artifacts or distorting the track. These methods analyze the audio and stretch it in such a way that it maintains clarity and consistency. DJ.Studio has one of the cleanest algorithms in this regard.
Using Re-Pitch Mode#
Some software offers a Re-Pitch mode, which mimics the way traditional vinyl records speed up. When you increase the tempo in this mode, both the speed and the pitch of the track are adjusted together, giving a more natural, analog sound. However, this method will cause pitch changes, so it’s best used for smaller adjustments or creative effects, if you're happy with the pitch changer effect.
By combining these techniques, you can avoid the most common issues associated with speeding up a track, ensuring that your mix or production retains its original quality and feel while adapting to your desired tempo.
Final Thoughts#
In conclusion, mastering the art of speeding up songs is essential for both DJs and producers. Whether you’re performing live or producing music in the studio, having the ability to manipulate tempo allows you to create dynamic, high-energy sets and remixes.
Each tool - whether it’s DJ software or DAWs - offers its own methods for speeding up songs, and learning how to use these tools effectively will help you maintain audio quality while achieving the perfect tempo.
DJ.Studio is one of the highest-quality and easiest tools to use, and it comes with many more features for making mashups and DJ mixes. It features it's own pitch shifting tools for countering the unwanted pitch shifter effect when you change the speed of a song. It can even be run in your browser with the free web app!