Need help with a first budget set up

DJ Life & Community General Discussion
1

Need help with a first budget set up

Alright, so if this thread needs to be moved or there is already a recent one with this information please take action accordingly.

So I am interested in being a DJ in college. I would start out by doing some house parties for free or very low charge just to get out there and actually do something. I have a few things I need help with…

I need to know how much I can get a good budget set up for and what it would include. I was thinking the following:

  1. Laptop (already own, MacBook Pro)
  2. 2 PA speakers (12" or 15"?)
  3. Sub (active or passive with amp?)
  4. DJ controller
  5. Some cables
  6. Headphones (already own, Pioneer HDJ-1500)

I’m brand new to DJing and I’ve just been messing around with Mixxxer on my laptop. I am really into car audio and some home audio, so it’s not like I am brand new to the whole music/speakers thing haha. I just have a love for music and want to play some good tunes for other people.

Thanks for any help!

2

I wouldn’t worry about a sub just yet, not all controllers have outputs for subs. couple of second hand M-audio or KRK monitors will do you fine. And those can be plugged straight into most controllers with an onboard soundcard.
For a good cheap mixer i’d look at the Reloop digital jockey 2 or a hercules RMX (or a similar controller) to start out with, both of which are decent, have all the functions on board you need to start out with and can be picked up on second hand sites for a very good price. make sure you buy one with an onboard soundcard, saves you the hassle of buying a seperate one and it’s cheaper that way

good luck!

3

If you don’t even have a controller yet, it’s a little soon to be investing in a whole setup.

4

So you think it would be better to start out with a pair of monitor speakers rather than a pair of PA speakers? Why is that?

I’ll take a look at those mixers right now.

5

Monitors are for personal use, not for house parties.

6

NI S2 is bargain price at mo. http://www.native-instruments.com/en/products/traktor/dj-controller/traktor-kontrol-s2/

Decent kit, just need a laptop then and some PA speakers.

Search for best budget PA speakers on here and elsewhere :slight_smile:

7

That’s what I was thinking, so I was a little confused as to why you recommended I should get a pair. What PA speakers should I look at getting for when I’m doing some house parties?

8

Without disrespect, you might be running before you can walk.. I know you’ll be able to DJ/mix just fine after some practice, but you are going to need some practice before spending a ton of money on a live setup.

my advice would be to get a controller - such as the S4 and get a pair of monitors (I use the Yamaha HS5s) and get some practice in at home.

Please however avoid using the monitors to play live or for other people, the monitors are more for personal use, with flat frequencies helping you monitor EQ and practice mixing clearly at home. Then in the future; if you still want to buy a live setup, get a pair of cheap 12" PAs and forget a sub for quite a while :slight_smile:

9

I would recomend the CMD studio 4a, pretty low price but extreme functionallity:slight_smile:

10

Actually, there’s no guarantee of that at all. I know several people who’ve been “DJing” for a couple of years and they can’t even drop a track on a 4 count with sync. Literally, they’ll drop it on 2, 5, 3, etc; everything EXCEPT 4.

Some people just completely lack rhythm unfortunately; and they don’t KNOW they lack rhythm until someone else points it out to them. So yeah, for that very reason, buying a complete setup from day #1 is a potential recipe for disaster.

11

Get a controller and some lower end monitors and work from there