Beatmatch Songs by Ear Without Tools

MusicIntermediateHome

90 minutes

5 steps

·Intermediate

After 90 min: You can manually adjust the tempo of a song to match another by listening for beat alignment.

What you need

Two songs at similar temposDJ software or app with tempo control

The 90-Minute Plan

Train your ear for tempo differences0–15 min

Play two songs at slightly different speeds (one at 120 BPM, one at 122). Listen for the drift—the slower one pulls behind. This 'drift' is what you'll fix by speeding up the slower song.

Practice single-speed matching15–38 min

Choose two songs at nearly identical tempos (within 1-2 BPM). Fade one out, fade the other in. Adjust the incoming song's tempo by ±2% until the beats line up. Record yourself.

Match faster tempo differences38–62 min

Find songs that are 4-5 BPM apart. Use the tempo slider to bring the slower song up. Make micro-adjustments (0.5% at a time) by listening. Patience and precision matter more than speed.

Beatmatch on the fly in a mix62–78 min

Start song A. Cue up song B on headphones. Adjust B's tempo while listening through headphones to sync with A in the speakers. This is real-time DJing—it's hard at first.

Mix 3 songs by ear78–90 min

Play song A, mix in song B (beatmatched), mix out B into song C (beatmatched). Do it twice. By the second round, you'll see your ear improving. This skill takes weeks to master but is essential.

Pro Tip

Great DJs beatmatch by listening, not looking at waveforms. Develop your ear early or you'll depend on tools forever.