Also see: How to mix records.
To begin with I feel I must give all
wannabe DJs a bit of a warning.
DJing is not
cheap.
DJing should not be used as device to look
cool or
pick-up chicks. If you want to DJ you need to be prepared to invest some serious money in it and,
please, do it for the
love of the
music!
- Two turntables: Turntables come in two forms; belt drive and direct drive. Belt drive mechanisms are only used in cheap (sub £200) turntables and unless you're really strapped for cash I suggest you choose direct drive. If you've got the money then a pair of Technics SL 1200/1210 are well worth it, not because they're the best but because they're the industry standard. You can pick up a pair for around £700 at places like http://www.sapphires.co.uk. Any direct drive will do though; you can always buy better equipment as you get more addicted to DJing.
- A mixer: Mixers come in many forms are range in price from around £80 to over £1000 for those with a silly number of channels. For basic DJing as long as it's solid, has two channels and a fader it'll do just fine. More advanced mixers include hamster switches, kill buttons and 3+ channels.
- A pair of headphones: Easy enough to come by. Prices range from around £10 to over £100. The only real thing to watch out for is how powerful they are. When you've got music coming out of the speakers and other noises to distract you, you'll need a pair of headphones that can play really loud.
- An amp and speakers: If you're just playing in your bedroom then any half decent hi-fi will do. If you're looking to play parties and medium-sized venues then you'll need a proper amp and speakers. Basic amp and speaker packages start at around £400.
- A fan: Sounds silly but DJing is sweaty work. You'll need a fan. Trust me on this one.
- A record collection: This is the most important thing at what really sets you apart from all the other DJs. Your record collection is unique to you and only you. I first got started in DJing through my love of vinyl and to play even a 2-hour set you could be looking at playing 50+ records. The other equipment sounds expensive but it's all easily replaced, a record collection can never be fully replaced. I find to keep up with the latest music I need to buy at least 10 records a week and sometimes a lot more.
- Flight casing for all of the above: If you intend to play anywhere other than your own house it's advisable you get your stuff flight cased. This can easily add 25-50% to the amount you've got to pay for a basic set-up but it's well worth it.
.-----------.
.-----------.
| Turntable | |
Turntable |
'-----------' '-----------'
|
|
| .---------.
|
'------| Mixer |-----'
.------------.
'---------'-------------|
Headphones |
|
'------------'
.---------.
.------| Amp |-----.
| '---------'
|
|
|
.---------.
.---------.
| Speaker |
| Speaker |
'---------'
'---------'
Figure 1: Basic set-up
Of course, this is only the very bare
basics. You might want to eventually buy
CD and
MiniDisc decks, a
microphone, a mixer with more channels or features, etc. It all adds up.
Another thing to consider is the size of your
set-up. Don't forget that if you want to play outside your own home then you'll have to transport all your gear there. 2 people, flight-cased turntables, CD decks, mixer and amp, fan, huge speakers and 3 boxes of records in a
Renault 5 is a tight squeeze. Trust me, I've tried it.
These days you can DJ with practically any
music format. Companies like
Pioneer make superb CD decks that have all the usability of vinyl and far more features. There are also programs such as
Virtual Turntables by
Carrot Innovations for the
PC that allow you to DJ without any physical DJing
equipment. Fantastic.
However, I would suggest you stick with
vinyl at first. Vinyl is
easy to use, the
sound quality is unparalleled and all
house music is released on vinyl way before it's released on other formats. In fact, a lot of stuff
only comes out on vinyl. In addition to this, if you get good and get the chance to DJ at a club you're guaranteed to have a pair of SLs in house but you can never be
garenteed of a decent pair of CD decks. Vinyl is the industry standard and learning to use it well is the most important DJing skill, apart from knowing a good record. I could write a whole
essay here about the way vinyl seems to have a certain
soul and
character to it, which
digital formats seem to lack. But I won't.
Mixing is an art all of it's own and needs a lot of
practice to get good at. The best advice I can give is to
have a go and don't worry about messing things up every now and again. You'll have it
mastered in no time.
Now that you know how to DJ, you'll no doubt want to play publicly. The best way to start is to play, for free, at your friends' houses. Everyone likes to have a live DJ at his or her birthday/house party and this is where you come in. If you're good the word will soon get around that you're for hire and placing ads in the local paper might help too. You could even try approaching pubs and small local clubs as they sometimes hire. If you're at school or at university then you're in a superb position. Schools are always organising events for their students and a free DJ is always welcomed. Universities and their unions/bars always need DJs to play and they'll usually give anyone with a bag full of records a go if you ask nicely. If you're good they might even hire you full time. Just remember to be friendly to everyone you meet and have fun!
This is only a very basic guide and really the best way to learn is to ask anyone you already know who DJs. They'll know the best place to pick up equipment in your area and if they're nice (and most amateur DJs are) they'll no doubt let you have a go with their equipment before you splash out hundreds of pounds/dollars/francs/turnips on something you might find you have no real interest in after all.