Hello everyone!
I'm new here, and to DJing in general, but am looking for a new hobby.
Okay... I know what you're thinking and might as well address it right now. I have no desire to be the next "David Guetta" or whatever, I want to do this as a *hobby*. Drunk people, traveling and live performances just aren't for me; that is not an aspiration of mine in any sense... if fate demands it, it would be a terribly awkward life transition for me to become a live DJ. I'll go out on a bit of a limb here just to be clear: I don't dislike David Guetta, I think he is talented and has made some good music; but that's not what I want to be.
I enjoy good music and think the concept of mixing music is intriguing. For probably 15 years I've listened to a wide variety of electronic music back to maybe the mid 90's with Orbital, Faithless, Bomfunk MC's, ATB and tons of other artists. MP3 wasn't a household term back then, and people hated electronic music. You listened to it with headphones on so you didn't have to hear to people complain and make mocking beeping noises at you.
Back then I was distracted with computers, and pretty much have been since that time. About 5 years ago one DJ in particular, DJ Kewlaid, released a series of mixes that really sparked my interest in mixing electronic music. His music selection was great and transitions were super smooth, really a pleasure to listen to. I'm not looking to mimic him (or vinyl probably would not be part of the equation) and what I am after is quite different from his style.
There are a lot of songs I'd like to mash up or mix together, where I like the intro from one but the vocals ruin the music they're so bad, or vice versa. With the accessibility to music on the Internet it would really be a wonderful thing to be able to manipulate it however I want.
So now that you understand my background, I was wondering if you guys can guide me a bit while I am thinking about this so I don't end up eyeball deep with a bunch of components and a realization that certain things cannot work together, are bad quality, or any of the other various negative outcomes.
After a bit of poking around, I understand most of what I might want but am not confident enough that things would work out. Most people making remarks about their turntables (here and plenty of other places) talk about SL1200s, which has sort of left me with the impression that they're the de facto standard. I understand some professionals or high-end enthusiasts might have really nice gear, but can you scratch with a pair of ATLP120s or something in the $200~$250 range? Extreme audiophile considerations aside, what are the practical differences between them? Also, how much would a straight/bent arm matter (probably with Serato, relative mode)?
Currently, I have no gear so I am looking at everything; I have an old mixer but it has a noisy crossfader. Can a solid setup with minimal issues be setup for the ballpark of $1300?
2x turntables, $250 ea <- ATLP120s? Your recommendation?
2x Time coded vinyl, $25 ea <- Recommendations?
1x mixer, ~$150[?] <- Any recommendations for a reasonable mixer in this price range?
1x Rane SL2, ~$500 <- I couldn't deal with hunting down vinyl or the constant expense, limited personal selection
Pair of dicers? ~$100 <- Something cheap/fun like this would be cool. If you don't like dicers, tell me what you do like
Are there any ongoing/hidden/missing costs? I've never touched a vinyl record, but have researched and seen that time coded vinyls can last years. Do needles need to be replaced? Does the direct drive system ever need to be serviced, or anything else I might not know?
I have a computer with a HT|OMEGA Claro card in it, much more than is required by Serato.
What am I missing, overlooking, or not understanding? What kinds of problems did you run into when you started? What problems have you seen other people have? The commitment is substantial, so it is important to me to tighten the plan up and be 100% sure it is a hobby I will enjoy for a long time. I'd love to hear everything you guys have to say, including constructive criticism of the setup or best practices for down the road, if I decide to do it.
This has been a long post and I thank you for reading!
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