How to Become a DJ – What Equipment You Need
So you want to learn how to become a DJ but don’t know what DJ equipment you need.
This is a common problem for all DJs starting out; it’s no wonder, as the variety and choice available these days is unbelievable and at the very least confusing.
When looking for your first DJ set up the trick is to keep it simple, perhaps most importantly you need to make sure you only end up buying once. By this I mean get it right the first time so you don’t have to prematurely upgrade. The last thing you want is to get talked into buying some wiz bang DJ setup that when it’s all said and done is crap.
Your first DJ setup should stand the test of both time and your DJ career.
Avoid “DJ in a box” packages as they are often very basic and are insufficient for what you want, as a serious budding DJ.
Get advice from someone you trust, do your research and shop around. If you have the option, play around with a friend’s DJ equipment first for a genuine feel of what you will be getting.
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Second hand is always an option, particularly with quality DJ equipment like Pioneer and Technics, brands that are built tough to last in the club environment. They are also designed so problems can be fixed.
If you don’t have money for the higher-end equipment to begin with, do not let that hold you back. Buy what you can afford and upgrade further along the track, when you can.
– Depending on whether you decide to use vinyl, CD, or a combination of both, you’ll require at least 2 input devices, which are generally either turntables or CD decks. You are only limited as to how many input devices you can use by the amount of input channels on your mixer. In order to put two tunes together you require at least two devices. Anything after that is a personal preference.
– Used to control and mix the music from your first input device to your second input device. It is the control centre for your mix. Initially, any standard two-channel DJ mixer will suffice, but as you get better and begin to understand the different levels of sound quality and response you can get from its functions, you will demand more from your mixer. At that point you can upgrade as you require.
– Using headphones, you can listen, cue and mix the next tune without anyone else hearing what you are doing. Headphones are probably your most important piece of equipment, determining not only the comfort in which you will be mixing but also the quality of sound you will be hearing to conduct your mixes. The equipment you use is based totally on personal preference, but I suggest experimenting with friends equipment, or at least trying before you buy if possible.
– Either a home hi-fi system or an amplifier and speaker setup, although these days (depending on your budget) powered (amplified) speakers are definitely an attractive option not only for sound quality but for their ergonomic and sleek designs. I find them perfect for my home set-up.
My last tip! If you are serious about learning how to become a dj never stop learning good djs practice until they get it right quality djs practice until they can’t get it wrong!
Learn how to become a dj online with dj master course the #1 online how to dj course. Learning how to become a dj has never been easier!

How to DJ with a Laptop PC Part 1: Hardware and Wiring How to DJ perfectly with Virtual DJ – Beginners Tutorial How to DJ with a Denon Controler Part2: www.youtube.com
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Tagged with: Become • Cd Decks • Club Environment • Dj Career • Dj Equipment • Dj Mixer • Dj Packages • Dj Set • Dj Setup • Djs • Equipment • How To Become A Dj • Input Channels • Input Device • Input Devices • Need • Option Play • Personal Preference • Quality Dj • Turntables • Two Tunes • Vinyl Cd • Wiz Bang
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BABY MIXER
can i just get a controller, instead of a mixer and turntables?
@mike71flores what’s that?
@CCKILLERKREW you would need to have something like serato scratch live
How do you connect your turntables on this?
@1LLosAngeles You are incorrect
@vine139 Just match the connections from one end to the other , then locate that cable …..so if you need 1/4 inch on one end and RCA on another …you can bet that there is a cable for that. A turntable must have time coded vinyl to work properly, however look around you tube and you can find people that have figured out how to do it cheaply, your decision to do properly or the hack version.
@1LLosAngeles NOT true…..Open up a Hard Drive and you will find the biggest magnet you have ever seen.
@mike71flores well you can with serato and traktor…
advice!! can someone tell me what lead i need to buy to connect my laptop to my amplifier for my turn tables?? and also what software i need> i just wanna make some mix cds> ive been out the game for a while…
@GNRule123 pioneer cdj 2000′s
Never! Ever! place your laptop/computer on top of any speaker! It will damage your computer due to magnetism. Good advice on sound only from this Dj.
Never ever place your laptop/compute on top of any speaker! It will damage your computer due to magnetism. Good advice on sound only from this Dj.
if you dont want to go through all of this you can simply buy a pioneer product such as the CDJ 900 and CD 2000 where theres already a built in soundcard and you can plug it straight into the computer. of course you have to hook the CDJ’s to the mixer but its simple as that. but then again, its all about your budget
@mike71flores I wasn’t saying about the Numark Digital i/o, I was just saying in general! Wasn’t trying to point out anyone or such, cheers for the upload by the way.
@TheWhiteLycan Sorry mate, Virtual DJ is not free. You can get a highly limited trial version for free. I use Traktor myself but the truth is that the full version of Virtual DJ is as much a capable platform for digital DJing as Traktor or Serato. It has a bit of a bad name from the trial version and buggy cracks but the reality is that it is as much of a contender, along with Torq, deckadance and some other underdogs. Not attacking you or anything but Virtual DJ is very much “real” DJ Software.
@djpanik3d If you purchase your music, dj wav files, use a good quality sound card [such as native instruments audio4dj] then you can get better sound quality then vinyl. Vinyl missing out on a lot of higher frequencies due to the mastering process for mixing vinyl to avoid the needle jumping, so technically there is better sound quality of wav. The TONE of vinyl is different and that is a preference, is a fender better then a gibson? That’s a preference. A good DJ cares about music, not medium.
@joseklunker That would work fine, just download some audio recording software such as Audacity [it's free]. It’s simple!
@mazdarx23 Yes, it’s called latency. No matter what happens you will have a certain amount of latency. You need to set up your software well so that your latency is under 15ms or so, once below that range it’s extremely hard to notice the latency. Once under 10ms it’s impossible to notice. Even plugging a guitar into an amp will have some latency from hitting the note and it running through the amp of being reproduced, it’s just the latency is so low it’s unnoticeable. Same principle.
@ElectronicIntervals it works…
@mike71flores That’s not true for hardware, it’s up to the company to release compatible drivers. You may be lucky by installing vista drivers under compatibility mode with windows 7 but more often then not this doesn’t work and if it does it’s extremely buggy.
@GNRule123 What you may be referring to is time encoded vinyl. A time coded vinyl can be used to control any compatible software, such as traktor. I’ll not go into detail here as if you just google it you’ll find all the information you need.
Uhh.. Everyone knows what a USB is… Really no need for the confusing ‘pipes’ description :/
@ImDJVA Agreed.. Denon? wtf looolll
@GNRule123 WE use Pioneer CDJs or 1200′s. They are industry Standard. (That means if you’re flying in a guest dj or major artist to perform they will request that you have one of these systems set up)