hi guys ,what a friendly bunch you all seem to be!!im not so scared now!!
so,im rob from london,and music's been a passion for years,have over 7000 mp3's on the pc everything from 70's,loads of 80's,90's etc ,film scores,love songs etc etc SO ive been offered a part time job as dj in a small hotel in jersey and it would be dj-ing for weddings,xmas parties and social events,its not a huge hotel and i need help in starting out PLEASE SHOULD I BUY A COMPLETE PACKAGE? what do i need? can i use my pc?is this a good idea??what if it freezes?or crashes?? ...also do i need to convert and burn off the mp3's as cda files???for better mixing??on a twin cd deck?or can you mix using mp3's??aggghhh so many questions im sorry but im confused!!..i really want to do this well and all your input and comments would be welcome.. also how many speakers do i need?what kind and how many lights??..thankyou..thankyou thankyou....

Hi Robzter - nothing to be scared of on here , we all help each other, have a laugh, share experiences and try and learn from each other. It's also a great source of advice - some of the D.J's here have been in the business for over 30 years, so read, post and ask questions and provided you follow the basic rules then you won't have Paula after you with her large mallett!.

If the complete package is what you need then my Business can offer you a competive quote for your choice and budget. If you choose the CD based format then you will need to consider purchasing a Dual CD Player and Mixer (Both of which allow you to cross between tracks without gaps!) an Amplifier and a Pair of Loudspeakers. Some lighting is also a must, since you will need to create an atmosphere and turn off those bright fluorescent venue lights . What type of lighting you choose is very much personal choice and budget, some D.J's choose 3 or 4 basic lights, others go for a rig full of the very latest effects. My own advice is that the most effective and bright isn't always the best way to go, and that it is far better to go for a few moonflower effects rather than zapping, dazzling types . Again, these can be added to any package.

A lot of D.J's are now changing over to PC or Laptop for use. I must admit that I am currently also in the process of converting a CD collection to Laptop. I was also concerned about the crashing and glitches from a Hard Drive based system, but I followed the advice given by the other DJ's here and happily I haven't had a glitch or problem so far. I opted for a Laptop based system running OTS DJ, and you can gain some excellent information from our "PC and DJ" section of the forum on this subject. The main criteria on using a Laptop or PC for D.J'ing is that you dedicate the machine purely to playing music, and install a fresh copy of your operating system which will get rid of resource eating temporary files and all of the junk that accumalates on a PC which at some point has been used for other applications.

If you choose to use a PC, then you will still need a Mixer, Amplifier, Speakers and some form of lighting. However I do find that using a laptop is far easier - especially if you get to the point where you have 1000's of compilation CD's and you need to find 1 track in a hurry!.

You can learn a lot more just from spending some time on here , My advice is to start reading within the "Starting Out" section, particually the "Buying Equipment" area, and also the PC & D.J'ing section. I am sure that other D.J's will add their own advice to this topic, but feel free to ask any further questions.

Chris !! Your a star ThankYou sooooo much..well i think ill go for the 2 cd deck maybe as im still worried about pc crashes etc..ill convert the mp3's to cda format on disc ((it'll take ages i know!!)..and go for that option.will you please give me a quote for everything i need??moonflowers inc,the whole ker-boodle !! ...ill need a mounting rack for them wont i?..as for budget well im not loaded but i dont want to be ""cheap"...this will also be a part time hobby job kinda thing until i decide to get serious so please help me design a full package inc all leads etc EVERYTHING ...also will i need flower/rose effect lights??for weddings?also with the fact that some of the mp3 songs sounding ""louder"" than others apart from being recorded in 128 kps/320 kps etc how do i get round that?/i dont want one song to sound good and the next to blast everyones ears or be too quiet??is it just a case of listening for myself???or is their a auto volume levelling device inc??Thanks chris once again.......
How much would p&p be? and how long does delivery take?

I think that you mentioned that you are in Jersey?, so carriage will maybe be slightly more than to my Mainland Customers especially since several items will weigh quite a bit!, I'll get an accurate quote from the carrier.

I'll work on this quote for you, give me until tomorrow to turn it around for you, since I may need to contact several suppliers and carriers to get the best quote . I think you'll find that the result will be competitive. Off Shore Delivery can take between 2 - 5 days using the cheapest method and assuming that everything is in stock .

Can I ask what size of venue you will be covering?, as in audience capacity, since it all helps to work out the output power of the Amplifier and Speakers.

I think that it is possible to "normalise" MP3's using software to keep the level constant before burning, I'm not that familiar with MP3 Software, so maybe another member can advise here?. There are devices around called Compressor Limiters which are used to stop loud volumes from damaging speakers, although these only work to prevent a volume level from going over an upper limit, and don't really serve 100% to what you have indicated! - I think it would be more in your interest to find a software solution to this, rather than the expense of an electrical one, which may not do exactly what you need!.

I'll email you the various combinations over the next 24 hours.

Welcome here,good to see u are getting the help u need,just one little tip from me,i found it better with 2 single cds as on the double if one goes wrong then you have to deliver in both.Good luck to ya

Welcome Robzter...I see you're already in the swing of posting etc.

I may be able to offer some advice that could cut your workload down a bit.

There are several professional DJ CD-decks which will play MP3 files directly from a CD. I've got some CD's which have over 220 MP3 tracks on them.

For starters you've got the Gemini MP-3000x, a dual cd-deck with dreamy good looks and a nice selection of features...reviewed below on this forum.

Up from that, you've got several Denon CD-decks which will not only play MP3's but will also offer you some very useful Folder, Artist, and Title Searches...even when the CD is playing.

Also, if you're playing MP3's then you may want to aks Chris to include a certain Behringer device in the quote, which sits between your mixer, and the amp(s) and makes all MP3 material sound really nice.

Thanks so much chris,im still in london and will be till the first week in nov so i can take the equipment with me in the van,so please quote me with delivery to london....the maximum capacity would be approx 150...

GARY thanks very much but where can i get a review ,photos and info on those mp3 decks???thanks

welcome robzter.... see the guys are giving you all the techie advice... which is a good thing...im useless at the techie bit!

thank you all for your help !!gee your so nice!! im already getting all excited about getting my first dj kit!!..so chris can you quote me happy for the ""all in kit " but this time inc the mp3 capable 2 cd ??the gemini mp-3000x or the denon???(oh my god!!listen to me already!! hahahahahhaah)

Gary did an indepth review of the 3000 Here!

I can probably do you a Free carriage deal to an address in London. I'll quote for various CD Players including the Gemini...I'll just see if Uncle Rob at Gemini can do the same deal as before .