DJ Equipment for the Entry level

[nicanakin]

Hi, I'm a lad in my early 20s looking to make the jump from playing my soul/RnB 45s casually from a home setup to doing sets in local clubs, pubs, parties etc. Aiming for a simple, reliable setup that can carry out all the basics. No scratching. Just letting the tunes speak for themselves. Any recommendations equipment-wise would be greatly appreciated!
I've been doing my own research and getting mixed reviews on setups. Looking at a pair of Stanton T62 turntables with people praising them and others saying that they're terrible and I'm still unsure of any suitable mixers as of yet!
Any tips and recommendations will be greatly appreciated!
Thanks.
Nic

 

[para11ax]

Nic, as you are new to the forum, please introduce yourself.

What kind of music are you into?

List some faves/wants

How long have you been collecting?

Coke or Pepsi?

Etc.

 

[kicks79]

Just get a couple of 2nd hand technics 1200s.
They are the industry standard and you can flip them for almost the same price you paid for them.
Mixers are more down to personel preference and depend on what kind of music you want to play ?
Do you want a rotary, two channels or more ?, mutilple inputs ? two band eq, built in effects ect....

 

[Duderonomy]

I'd say that if you're not planning on beat-matching or doing anything fancy, then the turntables are unimportant, but the advice for technics is good - no depreciation.
Something you might want to consider is sound quality in case you plan to record any mixes at home. This would require a decent mixer. I've heard that belt drives make less hum than direct drives... but I'd still go for technics

 

[Jimster]

Deffo:

 

[dj_cityboy]

yeah man get a used set of 1200 and as far as mixers go, there so many option to choose from now a days you almost have to know what you want to do or what you expect to be doing before buying one... like kicks79 said its all down to personal choice for the most part.. the mixer will probably be the most difficult part of the purchase unless you can find something "nice" for hella cheap... 05pro? or an old DJM300? I have gone through a few mixers since the 89, I think I am on my 10th (which is pretty good I think) each time I upgraded as the technology became more affordable - I am not one of those dudes running out to drop $3000 on a mixer any time soon.. I have an 08pro which I thought was the dopest mixer when I got it - but again over time I see myself wanting things like effects and other options available on a lot of mixers today.... so I might upgrade again early next year.

If you buy a mixer and find yourself wanting to upgrade in a year or so, I think that's pretty normal, unless you are dropping $3000 on a mixer

 

[ketan]

dj_cityboy said:

the mixer will probably be the most difficult part of the purchase unless you can find something "nice" for hella cheap...




Ha! I was actually going to say, that should be the easiest part given the basic needs at hand. I would just go to a second hand audio store and get any affordable, clean mixer. You just need something well-built with a fader and some capacity to tweak levels (i.e., basically any mixer). But go to an audio store and not a pawn shop so you're sure the condition is good.

 

[deezlee]

Since you are obviously fairly committed to playing records / djing (you collect records as opposed to ripping songs from YouTube) you should go ahead and find some 1200s.