HOW TO USE
THE CAMELOT WHEEL.

Start with the key playing now

Two tracks can share a tempo and still feel uncomfortable together. A sustained vocal, bass note or lead from one record may pull against the harmony of the other. Matching keys helps narrow the search before you audition a blend.

We built jdmeet camelot with North Growth Lab as a small, free reference for that moment. Select a cell on the wheel or choose its full musical name from the list. The display shows the current key and four labelled options; tap an option when that track becomes the new starting point.

The tool does not listen to a song or detect its key. Start with the analysis in your DJ library, and check any result that sounds wrong. You do not upload audio or create an account to use the wheel.

One code, four basic options

Camelot assigns a number and a letter to each major or minor key. A means minor; B means major. The inner and outer rings join relative minor/major pairs, while adjacent numbers on the same ring follow the circle of fifths. The basic rules follow Mixed In Key’s harmonic mixing guide.

The numbering wraps: 12A connects to 1A, and 1B connects to 12B. A diagonal move such as 9A → 10B changes both coordinates, so it is outside this basic four-option rule. These codes describe key relationships, not a ranking of how exciting each track will sound.

A practical transition from 9A

Imagine the current track is labelled 9A / E minor. Your first shortlist is 9A / E minor, 8A / A minor, 10A / B minor and 9B / G major. The wheel supplies this shortlist; the next decisions come from the records.

1. Choose a musical job. Decide whether the next track should maintain intensity, open space for a vocal or introduce a new lead. A matching key cannot make that choice for you.
2. Check a usable tempo. Bring the candidate close to the playing track’s tempo and listen at that actual speed. With pitch lock disabled, changing playback speed also changes pitch; the original library key may no longer describe what is coming out.
3. Choose the overlap. Audition the exact outgoing and incoming phrases. A short drum-led handover and a long overlap of two full melodies are different tests.
4. Listen to the bass and vocals. If both arrangements feel crowded, change the mix point or reduce the overlap. Do not force a long blend just because the codes match.
5. Advance the wheel. If you commit to 10A, tap its result card. The next shortlist becomes 10A, 9A, 11A and 10B.

In hard techno and hardcore, distortion can make a pitched kick tail a dominant part of the harmony. Listen beyond the lead: our note on hardcore kick tails explains why pitch movement and sustained low end matter.

Key Lock, Key Sync and the pitch you actually hear

A Camelot label describes a key, not what every playback setting will do to it. Serato’s Keylock documentation describes retaining the track’s key while changing its tempo. Roland’s Serato deck reference makes the other case explicit: with Key Lock off, a tempo adjustment changes both playback speed and pitch.

Key Lock is not Key Sync. Holding a track’s pitch during beatmatching does not transpose it into the other track’s key. Serato’s separate Key Shift and Key Sync controls can change the musical key; those controls require its Pitch ’n Time DJ expansion. If you use transposition, check the resulting playing key before selecting it in our wheel. Our wheel neither changes audio nor reads your deck settings.

For ordinary speed change, pitch shift in cents is 1200 × log₂(playback BPM ÷ source BPM); 100 cents is one equal-tempered semitone. These tempos are starting points for the listening exercise below, not a recommended range. The 175 BPM example lands roughly between semitones: rounding the sound to another Camelot code hides the detuning. Even the 180 BPM example is only approximately a semitone up. There is no rule that “one percent faster” means “one Camelot step.”

Try the same hard-techno phrase both ways

1. Isolate the variable. Choose a short passage with a sustained vocal or lead and a pitched kick tail. Start at its original tempo, with any separate Key Shift or Key Sync reset. Keep the cue point, EQ and effects unchanged.
2. Move the tempo with Key Lock off. Use a modest change suitable for your record, or the calculated example if your source is 170 BPM. Listen for the vocal and kick tail moving together in pitch. This is not evidence that the original key detector made a mistake.
3. Compare at the same new tempo with Key Lock on. Audition each version separately at similar perceived loudness. Check whether the sustained note stays near its original pitch, and listen to the kick attack, vocal texture and tail stability. Do not assume either setting must sound better. If the result is unsuitable, try a smaller tempo change or a different track.
4. Test the actual two-track overlap. Bring back the outgoing track at your chosen phrase. A stable pitch does not remove chord clashes or competing bass lines. Shorten the overlap or choose another phrase if the blend still fights.

JDMEET’s takeaway: choose the records and transition point first, then verify the playing key at the intended tempo. Use the free Camelot wheel to organise candidates, not to overrule the audition. For a mix whose problem is overlapping low end rather than key selection, return to the kick-and-bass balance guide.

The complete Camelot key chart

Read across a row for a relative minor/major pair. Enharmonic spellings refer to the same pitches in the usual equal-tempered tuning: for example, A♭ minor may be displayed as G♯ minor, and D♭ major as C♯ major in your library.

What the wheel cannot decide

Compatible does not mean guaranteed. Key detection may be wrong, a track may change key, and a sampled vocal may not fit the main key label. Even two tracks in the same key can compete through their chord progressions, timing or arrangements.

Moving clockwise is not an energy meter. A one-step move describes a harmonic relationship. Loudness, groove, percussion, density and where you enter the track decide whether the transition actually lifts or relaxes the room.

A and B are not parallel keys. 9A / E minor connects to 9B / G major because they are relatives. E major is 12B. Confusing “relative” with “same tonic” leads to a different move.

For drum-heavy passages you may deliberately choose a transition outside the highlighted options. Use the wheel as a preparation aid, then trust an audition of the actual material. For low-end collisions, also see kick and bass in hard techno.

A reference that stays close to your set

The native iPhone and iPad app is now available. Download jdmeet camelot free from the App Store to use the wheel offline. It requires iOS or iPadOS 17.0 or later. Read the App Store release story for the native app’s features.

The updated web wheel has larger labels, a full-name key selector and touch-friendly result buttons with the reason for each match. It remembers the last selected code in this browser, so reopening the page brings you back to it. Clearing the site’s local data clears that preference.

Open the wheel directly on your phone. If your browser offers an Add to Home Screen action, use it for quicker access. The website needs a connection to load; do not assume the browser shortcut is an offline iPhone app.

On a keyboard, focus the wheel and use left/right to move around the current ring or up/down to switch A/B. The select menu provides another way to choose any of the 24 keys without aiming at a small segment.