Hey there. I am new to DJ'in and i was wondering what is a good way to start off. i have had a good search around the internet and i am fimiliar with the terms and what everything means and does but that still doesnt solve my problem of which way i should go. what i mean is wether to buy Vinyl decks, CDJ, or the USB Vinyl decks. Now im looking to become quite good at DJ'in and was hoping to do it at a few house partys when i get good at it and then see how i do afer that.
My problem with Vinyl is even though that have heard that u get the best scratch quality from them and all that, my only problem is that to get a good collection of vinyls it is gonna cost me quite a bit.
Secondly the problem with the CDJ is that.. well.. they are not really proper decks which i am reli interested in as u see in the clubs and that people use proper vinyl decks (most of the time. although i have seen a few use CDJ).
Thridly my problem with the USB Vinyl decks is that i would have to buy a laptop to go with the decks as my portable music libary
(oh and another quiestion.. do the USB decks use a peice of replica vinyl, and if they do can i get a good scratch sound out of them???)
so my main question is reli (looking at the factors which i have stated mainly to do with money) what should i go with.. CDJ, Vinyl decks, or USB Vinyl decks???
Any help would be appreicated very much :D ty everi1DJ Kit For a Beginner :D?
Okay, it really depends on how much money you want to invest, and who you want to make happy with that amount of money. If you're mainly looking to have fun with scratch etc, then i'd say get turntables. Vinyl is costly, but it's the most rewarding. Turntables, you can get moderately cheap at a guitar center or online. You can get a decent turntable for $150-$200 each. But, you'll still need a mixer, which will be around $100 for the basic model.
My Equipment:
2 turntables, mixer, microphone, CDJ deck, laptop and external hard drive.
I started out dj'ing because i wanted to learn how to match beats, and learn how to make a trance set list.
For me, I had to buy turntables because my musical heroes were all using vinyl.
What equipment you want to buy is dependent upon what kind of dj you want to be. Party, Professional, Hip-hop, Electronica....
Laptop DJ:
Good for doing free-lance djing (basically parties that you wouldn't want to be a part of). This includes 40th birthday parties, high school parties, wedding receptions... Any situation where people will be requesting songs from you. In this scenario, it doesn't matter what kind of equipment you have, or what skills you have, they just wanna hear their song and dance. Now that the internet offers alot of file sharing programs for finding virtually any song you want, you can amass a huge collection of digital files for low/no cost. Being a laptop dj is probably the most practical, but the least glamorous.
Average Nightclub DJ:
CDJ decks, and will have a huge cd case that they will be using. Vinyl is a really costly medium, as are the needles and cartridges that will eventually go out on the turn tables.
Style:
What kind of music you want to spin will determine what equipment you want.
1. If you're going to be professionally dj'ing parties, people are going to request alot of songs. For this, it's best just to use your laptop, and get most of your music from the internet. Plus, a laptop is multi-function; you can use it for practical things other than making music.
2. If you're into electronica, trance, breaks, etc... chances are you won't be taking requests; you want to take the crowd on a journey. That being said, you can go to a record store (a real record store that sells the latest singles), and drop $80 to get 8 records. You use those records to develop a set list, and spend your time practicing on transitions/beatmatching/mash-ups.
Records come about $10 a pop. If you're gonna go vinyl, try to find a dj who's looking to get out of it. I bought 400 records for $400 from 1 guy.
Credibility:
Most people think of a party dj as having ';2 turn tables and a microphone';. And whenever you hear that someone is djing a party, half of the coolness comes from seeing what the dj is working with. To get the most credibility, use turntables and vinyl.
A common phrase used in the hardcore dj scene is: Real DJ's do it with 12';.
Getting your music:
When i started dj'ing, napster was brand-new. Now, you can get virtually any song you want for free from the internet. Cost-wise, if you wanna get out of this as cheaply as possible, it'd be best to go digital. But again, you might lose credibility with the crowd.
That was a cluster of information, and i'm sorry it's not more organized, but if you're looking to play alot of informal parties, with lots of people, and you're goal is to play the music that everybody wants, i'd go with a laptop and cdj's at most, forget turntables.
If you're looking to develop a skill and you've got alot of respect for the art form of turntablism, then i'd get the tables, and buy a few records that you like, and spend some time having fun, seeing how the records fit together, mixing, scratching, etc.
Community:
1. Online
Depending on where you live, there might be an online resource for dj's in your area. I live around Dallas, www.dallasdancemusic.com
and I used to live in Portland, OR
www.pdxdnb.com
Here you can read about what equipment the local dj's are using in your area, and where they're playing.
There's also normally forums on these websites where people offer lots of suggestions about all of your questions that you listed above.
2. DJ Friends
You'll find that there are a few people around you have been or are currently dj's. They've offered me lots of advice ranging from what music to play all the way to what equipment to buy and how much to charge for certain gigs.
hope this helps.
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