DJ Vintage

Looks pretty complete.

One thing I have found, is that compilation of chart music have WAY less usable material on them than more specific dance-oriented compilations.

And remember … one grandma at a wedding can ask for a request that 10 DJ’s don’t have …

SSD = Solid State Disk. As opposed to a regular hard disk this has no moving parts and any part of the disk can be accessed immediately. Thus much faster than a hard disk.

Dual Boot. You can install two instances of your Windows on your hard disk (you will have to divide the disk into two so-called partitions). At startup you then get the choice of what instance to start. You could have a general and a DJ instance. They are totally unconnected, so messing up your general instance won’t hurt your DJ one. And you can keep your DJ instance as clean as possible (several guides online on how to optimize certain windows versions for DJ-ing).

If you are not computer-savvy, I’d try to find a friend or someone in the community that can help you with that.

Hi Mathew, welcome to the forums. Enjoy your time here.

Best place for mixes is in the (duh) Mixes, Music & Shows forum, for maximum exposure.

I have a core collection in iTunes (and this is the software, not the shop!), currently rebuilding (as mine was way too big too as I had fallen into the “got plenty of GB’s, so who cares” trap) and hope to end up with a max of 1.200 tracks.

This core collection will be FULLY decked out, i.e. all tags, artwork, keys, energy levels, genres, beatgrids, drop- and cue points set correctly. Everything run through Mixed in Key and Platinum notes. All in highest quality MP3, ripped myself from lossless originals that I am 100% sure of.

As I am a mobile DJ too, the rest of my collection sits on an external HD. Those tracks are request-only. The search functionality in my DJ software when I just use the file browser in it is plenty to find a specific track I am looking for.

As knowing tracks intimately is important (for me) to be able to fit them in correctly in a set, keeping the core collection somewhat limited is best practice for me. Also a core collection of that size fits on every device I have, including an older iPad 3 with 32GB and my USB sticks, so I have the same core collection everywhere.

I will agree that iTunes is the worst (software) to ever come out of Cupertino, but if you use it ONLY for DJ-ing purposes, it will do it’s job properly and the integration with all major DJ software is priceless in that case.

And be very very certain of the material you need to use for gobo’s. Most gobo’s I have come across are metal. Also the come in varying sizes (there are a few standards but I’d expect those only on pro-lighting gear), so make sure you have the right size as well.

As has been suggested if you need a back catalogue, buying used CD’s (compilations like Now That’s Music and or – in Holland – 538 Dance Smash Hits) will get you loads of tracks relatively cheap. And they are usually pre-qualified, so you know you are getting stuff that was popular at the time.

Hi there Lee,

I started when I was 14 and have been DJ-ing for almost 40 years now. At the time there were no competitions to get into, but also very few DJ’s, so not too much laughing at. Although some folks thought it was an odd hobby.

Like Tord said, if you listen to others, you will never reach your goal. Set your goal, determine your path and follow it. Along the way only listen to those with wisdom and positivism to share with you. Keep your ears and eyes open for the opportunities that arise and be ready to grab those chances as the present themselves.

Good luck and keep us posted.