From one of the previous posts in the last topic it was mentioned that "it was getting much easier for people to become DJ's"

I would like to hear your thoughts and comments about this as i personally disagree (in a friendly way of course),

Nearly all types of equipment have come down in price over the years - fair enough.

Anyone with a laptop can get hold of free dj software from the internet and start mixing - fair enough.

Kids are getting the oppurtunity to learn to mix and play DJ from an earlier age via their home laptop and Dad's Amplifier - Fair enough, that's a good thing.

but if you want to do it properly and make money, gain reputation and peform at Weddings etc then it is still a fairly big ladder to climb in terms of time, effort and finances!

What i have come to realise over the last few months (after having been out of the game for a few years)
is that using a laptop, midi controllers, firewire/usb soundcards etc is not as easy as it seems or looks -

Apart from the fact that dealing with laptops and Windows/Mac software is another thing on the list of things that can go wrong during a gig,
the total cost of this equipment (especially when you also need backup equipment) can be sky high!
and getting to grips with Traktor or Ableton Live is not the easiest task in the world.

My main point here is, if you want the big gigs you do need to invest a lot of time, effort and a fairly huge chunk of cash to ensure that you have quality, reliable kit and you have to have the knowledge of how to DJ for a 5 hour wedding (for example)!! and to ensure that at the end of the night you at least get a nod of approval.

My opinion is its easy to become a dj, its easy to become an average dj, hard to be great dj, and some people are happy with being average.

Some people are happy with low tech gear (or have to be because of financial constraints), at the end of the day does the customer actually really care that you have the latest hardware as long as it sounds good enough for them to dance or listen to and wont break down during their event.

Technology is just different to how it used to be, with its own problems, and having good technology doesnt make you a good dj, but it does make the job of selecting/playing/mixing tracks easier (once set up correctly).

I agree and disagree, on one hand starting up can be as easy or as complicated as you make it, it can also be very cheep I've seen websites advertising a complete disco for under £300. Obviously its not gonna be the best of systems but some people wouldn't know this, Also you don't need to use complicated mp3 equipment some people still using old fashioned cd's. On the other hand is experience and I think that is why some people can chanrge a lot more than others.

Totally agree regarding the cost and availabilty of equipment plus the net has opened up a whole new market and makes people much more accessible.

Technology has advanced but being a simpleton I only use windows media player with the cross fader and touch wood its always done me proud.

I think there are 2 things that can't be bought and thats musical knowledge and showmanship. I like to entertain, provide something slightly out of the ordinary. You can spend 3 grand on kit like the bloke at my local pub but when asked for anything by the Small Faces a blank look was the only reaction.

I think you have answered your own question.. Any one can call themselves a DJ there is no recognised standard or licence (Like a driving licence) you can just say im a DJ and hey you are....

"But if you want to do it properly and make money, gain reputation and peform at Weddings etc then it is still a fairly big ladder to climb in terms of time, effort and finances"!

See my point?

The problem is that as you state in the first part of your post everything is easier to get hold of and yes cheaper. Many DJs hide behind lights equipment etc... But IMHO a Pro DJ is much more.

Totally agree with Nik, I look at some of the discussions on here regarding, lighting and equipment and HD controllers and what programs people use etc etc and I'm bewildered lol

Personally I think a fair bit of it is toys for boys and not really necessary lol but each to their own. I have never had a complaint regarding the quality of my sound and I "only" have behringer speakers. I also wonder if this fixation with all things technical influences the price some DJ's charge namely I've just paid x amount for this Denon lah di dah best lump 50 quid onto my price. Each to their own and fair play if you can get it!

I've spent about £1300 on hardware, this includes a dedicated PC (I don't trust my laptop and opted for a self-built mini ITX system), 2xUSB HD's (mirrored for redundancy), USB mixer, lights, amp+speakers and stand. I've also splashed out on a few tools, cables etc- most are useful things for other projects.
I've not got any experience as yet, most gear is ready to go, but there are still small things I need to get in, (website should be live soon)

Most of my spare time is spent trying different sets out - from 60's, to RnB, and so on.
Where I fall flat right now, is knowing the music - the stuff I grew up with (late 70's/80's) is fine, as is most 90's house/pop. Growing up with parents playing 60's every sunday on the radio helps, however, for the last few years, I've been more into Rock/Guitar stuff- so need to quickly get up to speed with the chart stuff.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that whilst using a PC may help, it won't recommend tracks to play, or give me the experience needed to take on a wedding.


Jason

this is a bit like asking whether automated call centres and telephone button pushing has made customer service departments any better!. Most people would say that it hasn't, but it may make the method of getting through to the person / dept you need to speak to quicker. Basically, just like the above example, technology enhances and compliments our role but it doesn't replace us. Will a hardware based player or laptop speak to and deal with the audience?, can it visually see the dancefloor and adjust its playlist accordingly based on the differing reaction?, can it carry on banter with the audience?, can it use a microphone and make announcments?, can it break the ice and make everybody feel welcome?. I think not.

When this question is posed to me by a potential client, I point out that it is the 12 years of experience that they are paying me for, along with the ability to entertain their guests and that can never be replicated by an ipod, laptop or machine anymore than a row of vending machines can replace their caterers or bar!. if anything i personally find that the job is getting harder!, it seems that people are more reluctant to enjoy themselves compared to the 80's and 90's, maybe this is down to the fact that they seem to drag their entire families along to functions, which 15 or 20 years ago would have been wholly attended by adults, certainly I have had more than one occasion where the children have almost outnumbered the adults, and very few people can truely let their hair down and enjoy themselves when the dancefloor is dominated by 30 or 40 under 9's sliding around and running amok, and they can't really drink and enjoy themselves because they are still locked in 'parent' and example setting mode. At such functions, often I am assumed to be childrens entertainer, DJ & MC all in one, and on that basis i hope that i am worth every £!.

Anybody can be a DJ for the night, but how GOOD a dj will they be?. Most people start out just thinking that everybody shares the same music as they do, and sadly this is where the experience or lack of experience comes into play. You need to really enjoy the job to spend lots of time educating yourself to, and listening to music which you may not like yourself, to know what to play and when to play it, and also watch people's reaction to what you play and change it accordingly, and indeed know what to change it to.

How many of the Deejays starting this year, will still be doing it in 5, 10 or 20 years time?.



thats true but unfortunately if you regulate something it just drives the demand for those who are not regulated further underground, and in some cases enables it to flourish. If regulation was he be all and end all of problem solving then how come people are still willing to pay for unqualified gas fitters and how come consumer programs are never short of material to broadcast??. Most regulation just makes it more expensive for legit traders to operate, thus increasing costs to the customer pro-rata and so perhaps persuading more clients to seek the cheaper alternative, thus creating more of a problem rather than solving. Where there is demand to be filled and money to be made, then there is no shortage of people signing up to it with a view to making a fast buck.

I used to be a keen amateur photographer, before the digital era.
Now, camera clubs are a fiercely competitive environment.

On a typical club night you'd hear them all trying to outbrag one another talking about their latest telephoto whatnot, or their flashgun that can reverse the direction of the earth spin etc.

It always made me smile when the monthly competition came around and some crusty old sod would walk away with the silverware having presented the most stunning prints from often the oldest and most basic equipment.

Moral of the tale: its not what you've got, its the way that you use it . . . (just ask any girl )

I have one of those there FAB!!!!

Nik

It started off looking like a great question, then I thought about it...

...and then it became an even better question, with so many levels...as indeed do my thoughts on the answer(s).

To DJ at a group of people, you need a collection of music, a way of telling people that you're "out there" waiting to be booked, a way of getting there, and a way on pushing that music at that group of people at volume.

I've mentioned music first, as I think that it's the most important part of it all. Today, if someone thinks "I wanna be a dee jay" and they don't have any suitable music collection, there are, sadly, all sorts of ways that they can illegally "inherit" a collection in just a matter of hours.

But, 20 years ago, say, back when music was vinyl or cassette (the latter being a real trial to work with), a would-be/wanna-be DJ could eye up an established DJs 20 boxes of records at a gig, and realise that if they wanted to copy that collection for their own use, they'd have to do it in "real time" - 2000 albums would take 2000 (osh) hours to dub, and then (remember we've gone back 20 years), the final medium would be C60 or C90 cassette tapes - thinking about it, some DJU members reading this may never have owned or used cassette tapes - the real problem was all the fast forwarding or rewinding to get to the part of the tape that you'd recorded say..."Suzi Quattro: Devil Gate Drive" on... depending on the make/model of tape deck, you could be there for 5 or 6 minutes to rewind from one end of the cassettte, to the other, and you'd have to keep stopping, and cueing/listening to the tape to find out how far thru the tape you'd got...painful.

10-15+ years ago, things got a bit easier. CDs came out, and unlike vinyl, could be ripped at multi-speeds - even if the PC and CD-readers could only offer 2x speeds, this still meant that you could rip a CD in 40 minutes and burn it in another 40 minutes...Hmmm pretty much still "real time" really... but then 4x and 8x and 16x readers and burners (and media) etc etc came out and now the music-less wanna-be could ogle up their DJ mates CD collection with eager eyes, and should (both) their guilty consciences desert them, they could copy a CD collection in a few days.

Now that hard drives are cheap and huge, the "I want your music collection...do you wanna beer?" is sadly a very easy work-around for some music-less rascals to tick the first box of "what you need, in order to be a DJ". A sad situation, and, in my opinion a huge slice of a DJs overall persona and reputation - "what music have they got?"

As for a way of telling people that you're "out there" (if word of mouth hasn't done the job for you), well...it used to require a certain amount of commitment. Either financial commitment, of getting a couple of hundred pounds worth of business cards and stationairy printed up, or time and petrol commitment of the DJ touring their local venues in the harsh light of day, and telling various busy, and possibly dis-interested venue managers about what they (the DJ) offers over and above all the others. How can almost anyone get their "DJ" name and service availability "out there" to the masses nowadays? Well, you're viewing DJU via it...yes, The Internet. Knock a website up, (or find a mate who can, who's thirsty...) and hey, you're "in business", so to speak...

Above, I also mentioned getting there, and back. As music collections no longer need to be a dozen or so record boxes (at £25 each), or half a dozen CD cases (at £50 each eh?), it stands to reason that todays DJs dont need to allow for quite so much room in their transport for their (or perhaps their mates) music. With many discos steering away from bulky light screens, the transportation space of alot of "adequate" shows is indeed getting smaller too. Less space needed for music, less space needed for gear... many DJs dont really need that VW Transporter, or off-white Transit van nowadays.

Playing music in an amplified way?....well, this has definately gotten easier. Pre-Internet, you had to be pretty dedicated even to find out about where your nearest disco shop was, and it was generally so far away, that it almost became a pilgramage for several local DJs to squeeze themselves into one of their Ford Cortinas and head off to "Far away Town Name Sound & Light Ltd"

Sadly, all but the best of the disco shops have long since become hairdressing salons, mobile phone shops, or some medium sized retail venture. The internet has opened up the way for knowledgeless "box-shifters" to advertise on-line (normally by spamming a forum, such as DJU) with undercut prices and under-hand grey-imports. By the way...speaking of this, if you're about to buy ANY DJ HARDWARE from auction sites, or "too good to be true" sites - especially *SOME* of those offering collection from Milton Keynes, or with Rally, or Atlantic or Universal in any of their multiple email address/usernames...just ask them if the unit you're thinking of buying has a genuine serail number on it and its box... you'll generally get no warranty, and no firmware updates without a serial number - so be careful please).

A variety of domestic, rather than professional methods of playing music are around today, which weren't options say, 10 years ago. Professional DJs can use pretty much any music source, be it a dedicated professional piece of DJ equipment, or a pair of Ferguson music centres or a Argos "Mix-@-Home" system, but that doesnt make the domestic equipment any more professional, but for some, its a stop-gap. If they start off, wondering "maybe I'll like this DJing thing, maybe I wont", and decide to go forward with it, they can always upgrade later. Some functions, and styles of DJ'ing don't need all the hands-on functionality that a 19inch whatever can offer, nor the it'll-work-outta-the-box, buy-it-friday-use-it-that-night-for-sure certainty of dedicated kit.

Focusing on professional kit for just one or two more pararaph, it has come down in price for a feature-by-feature, like-for-like basis. With a whole multitude of makes and models out there now...for example, dual CD-decks - 15 years ago? only a handful of models to choose from, all with virtually identical features, just with the buttons in a different place....record decks, just half a dozen "proper" DJ models to choose from etc. Now...dual cd-decks range from (and to) almost any price - in most cases, you'll get what you pay for.

Mixers are another area where domestic shortcuts can be taken, as Windows will give you a small, on-screen mixer, which for some, might seem to offer all the level control that they need. But again, a proper, physical hardware mixer will usually prove more suitable for many types of "do" and usually offers faster interaction and more features and output options.

Amps and speakers, or indeed powered speakers...these are certainly easier to buy now, and again easier to transport due to some truely amazing developements in quality sound output no longer needing cabs the size of washing machines, wood-only construction, and their own 7-ton truck just for the speakers. What has certainly become far less easy now however, is auditioning any "short-list" of potential speaker systems that a DJ may compile. Plenty of WWW.shops with pictures, and specifications, and sizes, and clickable links etc, but you're back to the distant drive out to actually find a pair of xyz-123's to listen to.

So...is it easier to be a DJ?

Yes and No.

being as i have only been going for nearly 3 years now, i dont think im in the position to say if if is getting easier or harder to be a DJ.
i purchased all my kit off ebay off some one for £1200, was quite a good set up but dated (very 80`s lights)
i have since spent £100`s or maybe £1000`s on updating the kit,
recently i have purchased the impossibled , 4 x scanners, new dj stand, crossover, new mixer, front light box, sound chaser, new leads ,
on top of that a laptop specifcally for djing, but only run media player on it as the software i brought for it is a pain,
loads of cd`s and carry cases, the list is endless, so for me its been hard and i havent seen it get any easier, seem to be always splashing out, hopefully now that is it, i think the set is A1
so hopefully this year i shall see a profit in my books,
none of my kit is anything special, class-d speaker, 4 x 500watt, scanners are vango dimonds which are excellent for the price,

maybe one day ill be a good dj
Haydn

which pub is that? ill invite kenny Jones down for a beer and get him to make the request












(for those who dont know , Kenny is the Drumer from Small faces)

The Rose and Crown, Wordsley lol

Get him to do that solo at the end of Tin Soldier lol

You ever done the Nags Head over that way ??? in the back room I used to do there in the mid 90's
Nik

Nags head? Cant say Ive heard of it lol

I know most of the pubs around stourbridge, wordsley, kingswinford lol

Up until a year ago I did a residency at the Corn Exchange at Merry Hill if you know it

Sorry to have hi jacked the thread...

Yes have heard of it... The Nags was if you go on the 449 in towards stourbridge you turned left at some lights sign posted Brierley Hill then it was up a big hill and a left turn queen or swan street or road rings a bell???

Sorry again about being off topic guys

Nik

back on topic.... lol

i can go out buy lots of gardening tools but still the plants will die under my care..
i can go out buy lots of car maintenance tools still the car will break down or kill the driver
i can go out buy lots of medical equipment and still somebody or something will die

so i'm not a gardener or a mechanic or a surgeon but i worked with a dj for ten years learnt
the trade bought my own stuff and now i am a dj

a dj is not just about the fancy equipment you have its a SKILL that is learnt
for too long now the trade of a dj has been unrecognized and put down

I am a Professional DJ i have done my apprenticship and i am skilled
so a message to anyone who thinks they can go out and buy all the latest
dj equipment and fancy lights and then have the ordacity to call themself a dj
off and let the guys who have earned their striped do the job

sorry guys feel better now ...............

Agree with some of your points jukebox, as far as having to do long apprenticeships I disagree.

I went to work in Gran Canaria and the karaoke DJ was coming home and had no one to cover him. I had never song on karaoke before but have an okay voice so he show me how to use the kit one night and I did it on my own the next.

The bar was full, loads of people sang and it was a good night. I put this down to my personality and the ability to look at a room and think I bet they would like xxx type of music.

Did I have any sort of apprenticeship? No

I came home bought some equipment, lights etc, went out and got some gigs and 3 years later am still doing so.

Does this mean I can't call myself a DJ even though I do 50 odd gigs a year?

Plus I have never used vinyl, dont and never will mix and use media player for 95% of the songs I play.

I know people who have been DJ'ing for 30 years and are absolute rubbish, just because you do something for a long time doesnt mean you are any good lol

not the point i was trying to make .......

everyone starts somewhere and i think its great that you have fell into it and made a successful bossiness
out of it

but i don't think anyone can go buy gear and then have the right to call themselves a dj

when you started in gran canaria would you have said you where a dj then or now that you have 3 years of experiance under your belt don't you feel you can say it with the knowledge that you have learnt the trade and can do it with confidence now

the ten years i was working with the other dj i was not a roadie so i probably could have went out myself a lot earlier

I did call myself a DJ pretty much straight away but do agree that some people will just buy equipment and call themselves a DJ. Like the bloke in my local lol. Got a great setup but no knowledge and personality.

Altho I had no experience of the equipment I did have a wide and varied knowledge of various music genres which was a big help. I was fairly confident from the start as Im fairly outgoing as you have to be to get regular work. I think the thing I have learnt most is to say no to people i.e. when someone asks you for rnb when theres 15 mins to go and the floors packed and what songs work and what songs dont

Radio DJ
Nite Club DJ
Superstar DJ (fat boy slim, sasha etc)
garage/hip hop MC beat box style DJ
Resident Pub/bar lounge DJ
Mobile DJ
karaoke DJ
and of course the bedroom DJ

Vernon Kaye is now classified as a DJ, because he banters on radio 1 while a engineer plays the tracks!!

I know some people who play at clubs - they are fantastic at mixing house tunes via vinyl (and have been doing it for years in their bedroom) however they wouldn''t have a clue about mixing party tracks at a mobile Disco!!

i don't know where i am going with this one... just thought i would add it to the mix

thanks stardusta lol

So now you think that qualifies you as a mixing dj?


EDIT:
And BTW I could work alongside a gardener for 10 years and plants would still die in my care

I agree.



Yep.



Yep.

Hmm.....still not that easy I reckon.

The day somebody invents a disco rig that sets its self up automatically the better, wheel it off your van, into the venue......push the start button and as if by magic your disco rig appears while your chilling out at the bar.....now that would be kewl.

But then Im a tad lazy :)

now thats an idea!

when you invent it ill buy one, i hate the lumping about, now off to lump it about.

For me it isn't how much gear or how expensive it is but how good your music is and your personality.

I rememeber a few years back amd one guy just had a really basic cd setup, basic speakers but it all looked clean and tidy. Lighting was just a set of par cans. The floor was packed all night. The sound was quite good, you could hear what he was saying and he played some great tracks.

For me the best thing to change recently is the smoking ban. For a non smoker I used to get sick and tired of my kit smelling of stale cigarettes the day after.

Finally with all this new technology its getting easier to purchase new tracks on mp3. You can easily set up a search facility for requests, but at the end of the day when you get to the venue and you realise its upstairs you still have to physically hump all that gear up there. Thats the one thing that will not get any easier. Add to the mix the late nights, drunken guests and dodgy electrics, some things will just never change.

This is a very good thread fellas
A lot people have tried and failed simply because the fact that the equipment is cheaper and more accessible, you see complete systems for sale on the likes of fleebay on a weakly basis.
I don't think you have to be fantastic on a mic although the more confident you are does make it a bit more professional.
BUT in other areas such as music choice and the ability to keep things going then that is an art and to a degree you either have it or you don't, a genuine strong interest in music is a huge bonus.

Like I have mentioned many have tried and many have failed miserably as they think its easy money, but in reality its hard graft humping the gear in, setting up for another hour, then entertaining for the next 3-4 hours then packing up again.
That's before you look at can I actually entertain with the music I choose etc. etc.

Yes in simple the equipment may be easier and better for finding track to play faster but that doesn't necessarily make the actual job any easier, if you don't have it then you don't have it simple as

The Public were calling me a DJ before I was.

I had a really big interest in music from my Skool days.I had this TRANNY with a little square battery in it and used to press it hard against my ear to listen to the Radio Luxemborg Chart Show (on Tuesday Nights I think) with Peter Powell and Kid Jensen.I use to write all the positions down and check the progress of my fave acts.....Bowie,Stewart,Bolan,Mercury and I'M AFRAID Glitter(before we all hated him).


Now I couple that with the personality that I picked up from my Butlins days and you can count the amount of complaints I have had in 5 years on one hand(except that its too loud....cos i'm going mutton).


But its on a wing and a prayer because equipment wise I am still a novice....I wouldn't know a stereo jack from a mono one or a USB cable from a Scart Lead (exaggeration).


Have seen some of your rigs and its Accrington Stanley versus Chelsea......doesn't bother me.I pride myself that I go very well with the minimum of outlay.So there!!

I have been DJing for 30 years ish.

I started with a vinyl disco and I liked vinyl as we could keep singles in alpabetical order.
The turntables were in a large case and were quite heavy.

I then sold my disco and a few years later bought a CD based system.
I found that I had very few singles so it was hard to keep things in alphabetical order.
I had to try and remember where every single was on my compilation albums, not easy.

I then bought a mp3/4 player and put a full set on that.
This has to be the height of laziness, I just stand back and let the mp3 player do its job.
I do still take the CD player in case of requests that arent on the mp3 playlist.

I think there is much better choice of equipment now than there used to be.
With local shops, online shops and then ebay the choice is vast.




I have seen many DJ's in my time.

In my opinion a good DJ doesnt talk too much but lets people hear the music instead.
I would expect people to know 99% of what I play so it doesnt need any introduction.

I do introduce myself and the disco at the start of the night and offer to play requests.

I saw one DJ who just never shut up even while the music was playing and he just got right up my nose.

I saw another DJ who insisted on singing along to every track !
But he couldnt sing !!!!!

I suppose the classic is the DJ who talks but you cant understand a word coz the sound is so distorted !


I always ask myself "what I would want if I was hiring a disco" and work from there.

[quote name='nigelwright7557' date='Mar 27 2008, 09:36 PM' post='206044']


In my opinion a good DJ doesnt talk too much but lets people hear the music instead.
I would expect people to know 99% of what I play so it doesnt need any introduction.



I saw one DJ who just never shut up even while the music was playing and he just got right up my nose.

I saw another DJ who insisted on singing along to every track !
But he couldnt sing !!!!!

I
BRAVO BRAVO

First thing I ever learnt at Butlins....Never try and sing over a track.Your customers will perceive that you think you are better than the singer!!

I don't even let the Public sing over.They frequently try and grab the mic at the end when Angels is on....Better than Robbie.....youre having a larf??

the answer here is simple - yes and no. interesting question with many fors and againsts

funny how things have changed in the DJ game over the years lol

I totally agree with the Rev.There's far too much emphasis placed on having the latest and best gear when really it's all down to how you use the gear you've got to a great extent. Ok, a home hi-fi sytem type setup isn't going to cut it but even a fairly basic system can sound decent if you know how to set it up and EQ it.
90 % of the public wouldn't know ( or care in many cases ) if you were using a top of the range Bose system or a cheapie system (won't name any for fear of upsetting the makers!) and as long as the sound is clear, not tinny and the music is danceable then that is surely half the battle.

As stated in previous posts, anyone can stand there and play CD's - some clients will accept this as all a DJ does but many clients want to be entertained and this is the difficult part - actually creating an atmosphere,reading and entertaining the crowd which can only come with experience.

It's easy to be human juke box but being an entertaining DJ is a different ball game altogether IMHO.

Ihope this wasnt directed at me greg

But yes i totally agree with you all the best equipment is good if you want to look good but doesnt mean you can dj. An ability to read the crownd and play what is needed when it is needed is a skill and thats what makes a dj either the guy that played music or the dj who made the party and yes it will come with experience but there are djs out there who just have the knack and the ear naturally

P.S. i dont mean me ive been djing for blah de blah years and still learn with every gig

I agree that entertainment should be 'entertaining', but do all mobile DJs define themselves as 'entertainers'?
I'm sure makes and models of equipment are invested in solely because of the quality and reliability, not because of aesthetics!

I wasn't meant to be taken quite so literally
it was just a way of explaining what i meant about the skills of a good dj and a person who plays music
and djing is a form of entertainment so yes djs should define themselves as entertainers
if they are not entertainers then what are they????????????????????????????

Kids are more tech savvy these days. My dad can't even use a video recorder never mind set up and run a mobile disco whereas kids these days can hack into the Pentagon before they reach puberty so from that angle it's easier. Being a good DJ is and always will be as hard as it ever was. Absolutely anyone can buy equipment from a shop and get some gigs, doesn't make them any good. The age of the internet has made it easier and harder to become a DJ too. Easier in that more people have access to you but harder as they have more access to every other DJ too.

Swings and roundabouts, I'd say it's all pretty much the same.

Why don't you make this a new thread subject?

I have been DJing for around 32 years.

I enjoyed using vinyl as it was easy to set up to play as most of what we had was singles in alpabetical order.

When I went on to CD's I found it much harder as most of the CD's were compilations and I had to try and remember where every track was.

When I got into MP3 players I found I could create a playlist of what I expected the audince to like and could just sit back and relax but play the occasional request from CD in between.

As for becoming a DJ there are a lot of companies now selling gear and the choice is immense.

Nay lad - merely an unfortuate choice of words on my part I was referring to some of the cardboard cut-outs that I've seen over the years - not a seasoned and respected professional like wot you is!!!

Of course,a DJ can be too enthusiastic and too chatty....It's finding the right balance depending on the crowd and what is expected of you and we ain't gonna get it right every time.......

To become a DJ all you need is a wad of cash.

To become a good DJ you need experience or reading an audience and interfacing with the client.

About the best point you have ever made on this forum Nigel

Nik

It is interesting how some people spend a fortune on equipment and carry on doing so, and others make do with what they have.

The first disco I worked for was a home build with a few bits and pieces bought in
I dont recall them ever buying new equipment, just patching up the old gear.

Dont get me wrong, the lights looked great and the disco sounded good too.
They certainly got loads of gigs and in the end expanded to having upto 5 discos out on the same night.

i dont think it matters how you get your music across anymore. If you're still using records, its fair to presume you're quite good at the skill known as mixing, and if you're using a midi controller with a bit of software its fair to presume you know how to use that. either way, the music can be heard...you're an operative if you like...


however, i think you graduate from operative to DJ when....


you can read the audience

you can play the right track and get a positive reaction

you can be entertaining without being obtrusive

you have a knowledge of various environments (weddings, 18ths etc) and know how to handle them

you have product knowledge - you dont have to spend 3k to put on a good show. the right gear isnt the most expensive....(all the gear, no idea and all that)

just out of curiosity, doesnt anyone think knowledge of your kit is important? what if something goes wrong?

couple of teasers for you all to think about...

its 11.30, the party is in full swing, you have 4 dmx controlled scanners, one of the middle two stops working, suddenly you have a dance floor only getting half the light it should be, its looking a little dark, what do you?

your speaker set up, you're using a basic set up, 1 AMP, 2 speakers. Chan 1 on your amp suddenly stops working, what do you do?

during sound check your amp has clipped, but its done this before, so it'll be alright in 10 mins or so...after 10 mins its not alright,you have no power, you're a 30 mile round trip from the spare thats in your garage at home and your gig starts in 30mins. what do you do?

your cross fader on your 5 chan mixer has suddenly stopped working 2 hours into a gig...oh no, you've got 2 turntables, 2 cd decks and a laptop that you need to fade between...what do you do? (and by the way, youve just looked at your track playing and it has less than 90 seconds to run, if yo dont sort it, everythings going to go quiet)

little things that you dont expect to happen, but if they do, they can easily get you struck off someones hire list for a long time.

the ability to think on your feet counts for something. the number of people ive come across who cannot operate their gear correctly is vast! and its worrying considering what they are charging!

As I'm a newbie to this, I thought I'd add my two pence worth. As a complete novice, attempting to make a start in this field is pretty intimidating. I decided to have a go because I've been to a few parties lately where the dj's were appalling - speakers so loud that the sound distorted and you felt as though your ear drums were about to burst, a severe lack of variety of tunes and about as much atmosphere as outer space. Instead of just whining about it I decided to put my money where my mouth is and have a go.
I certainly don't think it's easy, especially when you see the exceptional standard of experience and expertise of you chaps on here. Yes the equipment maybe more affordable and more readily available, but knowing how to read a crowd and keep them happy is something that only a good knowledge of human nature and experience can bring.
As was discussed on another thread, a dj really does entertain the crowd and a dj can make or break a night, especially if it is a function rather than a regular pub night. I was lucky enough to see Armin van Buuren last week at a club in Birmingham, and while it may be argued that these "super-star dj's" bear little relevance to a wedding dj, he still used the same skills of reading a crowd and watching how they responded to each track, and he took over 3000 people and had them in the palm of his hand - an awesome performance to watch.
I think it may be easy to call yourself a dj, but to be a performer who can lift the atmosphere to a high, and have people up and dancing and going home saying that you made their night is just as hard as it ever was, and I have a huge amount of respect for you guys that do it week in and week out and give people a night to remember.

Depending on the DMX controller (eg: Could it have dropped into a ""Blackout Scanner 3" mode?) absolutely nothing. Losing 1 scanner out of 4 is only a 25% drop of light output. Without going 'round with a clipboard and questionaire, I'd wager that the only person in the room to notice the fault would be me. The other option, would be t stand tettering on a chair for 2 minutes, wiggling DMX plugs, swapping DMX leads, poking at DIP switches, or trying to replace red hot bulbs, all in-front of an audience who, given the chair prop, might just start to notive that something actually is wrong with scanner 3...why draw their attention to it? I'd fix the scanner either at the end of the night, if the caretaker wasn't a wristwatch tapper, or at home, prior to the next gig.







Assuming that the amp was 4 ohms rated, and that the speakers were 8 ohms each, I'd daisy-chain speaker 1, to speaker 2, then plug EITHER speaker 1 OR speaker 2 into the working amp channel - (All controls down to zero first if poss).







Briefly check leads, fuses etc - if nothing obvious...Go for the amp - a late start, only missing the first few minutes of the "coming in, taking off coats, getting a drink, and nattering to old firends etc" is better than no start whatsoever,.just standing there all night.







I don't know of any mixers which totally rely on the crossfader. It's there, but its supplimentary to the channel/up faders. I'd just use those.