Money and Djing……

Does money bring you happiness? Not necessarily but it can help. Don’t worry all had to start somewhere. at least you re trying. i gave up on the idea when i was young because i had to use vinyl and could not afford any of the gear or the music. now because controllers and software progressed i gave it another shot, at first as a hobby, now as a part time job that i do mainly out of pleasure. not that laptops are cheap, but most people online at least seem to have access to one. Best thing you can do if you havent already done so is map your keyboard to the program and learn it by heart. there are even a few good mixes on youtube with people using virtual dj or traktor and you can see their screen and everything they re doing because they only use a mouse. yes having better gear will certainly help you progress faster but you can have all the gear in the world….if you havent got the passion for music and persistence, you won’t go anywhere.

ask yourself this….if there is somewhere you really want to go, would you not walk there just because you can’t afford a car?

Just stick at jick, sure the equipment can make things easier but easy isn’t always good when your learning!

Picking your tracks is what it’s all about and you are obviously young and I’m sure your parents love you and will support you as best as they can,

Not everybody is lucky to have rich parents, mine certainly weren’t, just tick at it, get your bits of equipment when and where you can, pick up second hand bits from eBay and just keep building your kit,

Phil has written a piece of sync select DJ’s which digital DJ’ing does in it’s most basic sense promote, these kids will just be hitting there sync buttons, you can concentrate on music selection and building your music library

Just to add to the points posted above….

No matter how much money you can spend, there will ALWAYS be that “item” that you cant afford. So dont let this step in the way….Do what you want-dream, with any means you are able to have.

😉

Something you also might want to check into is something gently used. I was shocked at the the store prices of some and decided to go online shopping, and now I stay on eBay

Just to quote

Traktor Audio 2 + Traktor Pro 2 = $85 (brand new, factory sealed)
Novation Launchpad = $80 (used twice)
Stanton SCS.3 (Personally not the greatest controller, but it will definitely get you started) = $80 (used a few times)

Sometimes you might only save 10%-15%, and sometimes you can get a really good deal on stuff, so don’t be afraid to buy used. The only person who would know is you, and it definitely can save money as opposed to buying straight out of the store. And like Terry said, the people who have the latest and greatest could have no idea about what you’re doing, as opposed to the guy who bought what he could afford, and learned it inside and out, backwards and sideways. Personally, having to pay my own way through college, working at a restaurant trying to become a chef, and learning how to DJ, and having to save and scrimp for any equipment makes me appreciate my small kit, and drives me to make it do the things that the best stuff can. Do I drool over the newest Pioneer CDJ, or Traktor Kontrol hardware? You bet. Then I take the equipment I have and tweak and program and MIDI map to make it do the things that more expensive stuff can

Just keep at it man; learn the skills that are independent of controllers/tables, and go from there.

I had my first kit stolen at the end of the summer last year and I ran out of cash. I was homeless with no computer, decks, or money for that matter. I got work asap, then found a 2nd job through that one, and saved as much as I possibly could (was working 16 hour days for a good bit). I rebuilt my kit from nothing (in addition to finding a place to live) and now have a few of the bells-and-whistles (a maschine, 4trak, f1). However, I had experience djing before and studied music theory in school.

Had I started my djing with my setup, there would have been a lot I missed out on due to the conveniences of pre-mapped hardware.

Look at all of the celebrities who have no skills but ridiculous setups. Now look at this picture of Girl Talk:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Girl_Talk_and_dancing_girls.jpg

There’s nothing but a laptop and wires, and in my opinion Girl Talk is one of (if not the) best mashup artist to-date. Everything (save for scratching) can be done with a computer, a controller is just a luxury (though knobs do feel nice)

Looking back, I wish my first big purchase would have been a decent PA setup honestly.