Burning CDs/DVD's

[Vandalus]

Hi guys, quick question / advice needed. I presently DJ solely via DVS (TSP). However, I am trying to get a gig here or there, and that means that at a minimum I am going to need CD's with my music on it in the case of emergency, or in the reasonably good chance that the venue only has older CDJ's that don't accept USB sticks, I will be forced to use CD's. My question is - how do you CD users prefer to burn your CD's? I am used to the vinyl concept of one song (or 2-3 I guess) per CD, but given the ability to hold numerous tracks on one CD, it's intriguing to put more than just a few on each in order to save time/space. However, I recognize that if you put too many on one CD, then you can't mix into any of the other songs on the CD.

So - how do you guys do it? Duplicate CD's to solve the problem? Only put a few songs on each CD, knowing that you will never be able to consecutively mix those together? Thanks for any advice/suggestions.

[Shishdisma]

You don't need a full CD case as an emergency kit, just a few duplicate comps or even a premix CD so you can get your laptop restarted.

[M.Beijer]

make duplicates and write/mark so you know whats on the cd and the bpm. perhaps buy a small cd holder, will be good for organizing!

[Mr_Moo]

When I used to burn cds, I used to make 1 folder for 1 CD, lets call it 'House 1'. Add X amount of songs (I used to put 10 on a cd). Add folder to Nero and then screen shot the tracks. Burn CD. Paste screen shot into Paint and cut the tracks out and paste to a Word document. Repeat. Print off Word document, cut out tracklist and stick it with your newly burnt cds.

If you only want a few (someone mentioned a laptop) then make a duplicate. Whatever works for you =) Thats how I did it when I had to burn bulk CDs when getting ready to DJ abroad.

[Luconia]

^^ just what i always do when burning CDs

[Vandalus]

When I used to burn cds, I used to make 1 folder for 1 CD, lets call it 'House 1'. Add X amount of songs (I used to put 10 on a cd). Add folder to Nero and then screen shot the tracks. Burn CD. Paste screen shot into Paint and cut the tracks out and paste to a Word document. Repeat. Print off Word document, cut out tracklist and stick it with your newly burnt cds.

If you only want a few (someone mentioned a laptop) then make a duplicate. Whatever works for you =) Thats how I did it when I had to burn bulk CDs when getting ready to DJ abroad.

Thanks for the tip - when you print the track-list, are you printing on one of those pre-produced CD label/stickers?

My issue is if you put 10 tracks on a CD, you are never going to be able to mix two tracks from the same CD together. That is partially the problem I am trying to resolve - and I guess the only logical solution is to burn duplicate CD's with multiple tracks on each disc. That way, I'm not burning (and having to carry) ~200 CD's, but I can still have full ability to mix any two songs since I have duplicates.

It's one thing to burn your entire collection from a static point, but also I am considering how to continue burning new CD's with newly purchased tracks. I have a tendency to play new tracks more than older ones, so if I am burning say 10 new tracks on a single CD, I am going to want to mix them together. I guess the only two options here is duplicates or one track per CD, which is a major pain in the ass. Anyway, thank you for the responses & ideas.

[Woah]

I just have playlists in my itunes called "CD HOUSE 1" etc. Plus I print the playlist and put it with the cd's etc, whenever I get a new track or something I always get rid of a very old one i never play anymore and replace it, and then for instance just reburn "house 2".
That way I have it organized, can add new stuff whichever way I want, and the songs stay up to date. I also have duplicates btw.

[djoverzero]

I do 8 tracks per CD, and burn two copies. I used to print out a track list manually, but I'm a nerd and thought "There's got to be a better way!"

I wrote a python script that takes an m3u playlist file, a short name (like HOUSE01), and a long name. It outputs a PDF with cover art and the meta data. https://dl.dropbox.com/u/1116399/SOLID01.pdf is an example of the output. Code is over at https://github.com/kevinreedy/cd-cover-generator/. If this is something other people find useful, I'll tidy it up an announce it in its own thread.

[Luconia]

^^ i'm interested...tell us about it

[Vandalus]

I do 8 tracks per CD, and burn two copies. I used to print out a track list manually, but I'm a nerd and thought "There's got to be a better way!"

I wrote a python script that takes an m3u playlist file, a short name (like HOUSE01), and a long name. It outputs a PDF with cover art and the meta data. https://dl.dropbox.com/u/1116399/SOLID01.pdf is an example of the output. Code is over at https://github.com/kevinreedy/cd-cover-generator/. If this is something other people find useful, I'll tidy it up an announce it in its own thread.

Yeah, that looks awesome. Do tell.