do you lug all the equipment to the club?

DJ Life & Community General Discussion
1

do you lug all the equipment to the club?

it seems like every place in houston requires the dj to bring in his own mixer/turntables/cdjs. the places i have played do not have a house setup and one place didnt even have monitors for us (we also had to rent that).

is this the norm everywhere?

2

No, If I were you I would be looking else where for gigs. I know I dont want to hang out at a club til 2am waiting for all the “other” djs to play their sets on my stuff when Im ready to go.

3

its not the norm but its not unusual either, as a gigging DJ you should be able to provide you’re own gear, its only the superstars that can send a list of what they expect upon arrival, us small fish gotta lug the gear ourselves. the plus side is that you can set up a full
club experience pretty much anywhere once you can get a power source.

4

I never once had to bring my own gear when I was getting started… You should only need to show up with records and cartridges, or CDs, or laptop and controller depending on what you use to DJ, plus headphones. And now I am fortunate enough to send my rider of what specific gear I want. But the club should have its own mixer, turntable and/or CDJs, and monitors. When I tour I ask for specific gear.

Also think about it, are they renting the gear from you? Doubtful, so I doubt they are gonna pay for it if something gets broken… ugh, the problems with this business, and the club owners. I am just glad you came on here to ask the question so you can stop being taken advantage of…

5

i’ve asked around to some other djs around houston, turns out only huge clubs have mixers (most of which are hip hop/Pop music clubs). texas is such an EDM-unfriendly place. gonna see if the promoter can talk the club owner into getting us a house setup (we’re the club’s biggest event, i think we should be able to ask lol).

6

you guys have it lucky. i was in a band for over 10 years and lugging a 8x10 bass cab, head, two 4x12 guitar cabs, two heads, four guitars, a bass, a full drumset, microphones, a PA for the full band. lugging gear is part of the gig. get used to it. isnt it more comfortable to play on your own shit anyway?

7

I work in a suburb outside of Dallas, so a lot of the gigs I do want a club vibe outside of a club… Sometimes they have a system, sometimes they have lights (I have friends I pay for those two separately), but they almost never have equipment… So I always have to lug all my equipment around.

8

Where?

9

Its seems that texas is caught in like the 1960’s… I am amazed that you guys have to bring your own gear. For one I can’t imagine that the club would allow you to just come in and hook up your own mixer, i mean you could f_ck up their system if something isn’t hooked up right…

I have a rider for when i go into a club to play…

  1. Equipment
    PURCHASER agrees to provide a fully functional DJ booth with:
    a. one Allen & Heath Xone 92 mixer or better
    b. two high powered Monitors/Speakers for the dj booth area with separate volume control from the main house speakers. Must be in good working order with no distortion or feedback.
    In the event that a monitor is not available, or not in fully working order, the artist cannot perform and purchaser will still be liable to pay all booking fees.
    c. two(2) standard electrical outlets.
    d. small area (about 2’x2’) near mixer for placement of artist’s laptop and midi controller.
    e. two(2) clean small towels (may be small hand towels).

Promoter must provide adequate security in and around the performance area in order to protect the artist and their equipment. Artist may request minimal amount of people or no people in booth during performance other than promoter or staff. Bottled water must be supplied to artist throughout their set.

  1. VIP Area:
    Promoter should provide artist with a secure VIP area for before and after performance, for relaxation, to store personal belongings, music, and equipment.

  2. FOOD and DRINK:

• 1 bottle of Grey Goose Vodka
• Mixers for alcohol including: orange juice, cranberry juice, and red bull (5 cans minimum)
• 5 bottles of water (still / non-sparkling)
• Ice
• Cups

  1. Marketing Support
    Where applicable, the PURCHASER if they have a website or other social networking site (Facebook, Twitter, Myspace) shall agree to provide a link directly to the Artist’s website and other pages.

Artist shall have the right to distribute their promo materials, cds, etc. throughout the event.

Purchaser shall provide ARTIST a table for vending if requested.

Pretty simple cut and dry. So to have to actually lug your own equipment to these places is rediculous. I know i am in a different position than you, but I think you should atleast have basic sh!t in the club be available to use (cdjs & a pioneer 600 djm). I at least hope you are being compensated well…

10

I have to say your wrong there. I play in the Dallas area and every club Ive been too has the equipment already. I think its Houston that isnt friendly with their equipment.

What clubs and what suburb???

11

nominated!