If you are looking into learning how to DJ, you will need to know what equipment you need and how it all fits together. In this article we will discuss the basic equipment that will get you started.
Decks
You will need at least 2 decks to be able to mix songs together. Each deck will have a track playing on it. When deciding what type of decks you want, you have a few options:
Turntable - these play vinyl and are quite redundant nowadays.
CDJ -these plays CDs and the pioneer CDJ1000 MK3 is an industry standard.
DJ Controller - these are typically used with laptops so you can mix with MP3s.
Mixer
The decks are plugged into a mixer which allows you to control how loud each deck is. Mixers tend to have features that change the sound being played, for example reducing the bass frequencies.
Effects unit
Some mixers have built-in effects such as the popular Pioneer DJM-800. Other mixers have the option of attaching an effects unit to them. These give you the ability to add echo, delay, flanger, auto-panning and much more. A good effects unit will be able to sync the effect to the bpm of the song (in other words, the speed the song is playing at) so it sounds great.
Monitors
A good pair of studio monitors (i.e. speakers) will give you a good sound and help you create that perfect mix. The monitors are also connected to the back of the mixer. In fact, most mixers have outputs to connect to more than one set of speakers with a volume knob for each.
Headphones
Unless you want everybody to hear your mixing attempts, you should get a pair of headphones to connect to the mixer. This will allow you to prepare the mixing of the current song into the next song before it can be heard out loud. A good quality pair that does not leak sound is fine.
In this article we discussed the basic equipment that is required to learn how to DJ.
