So You Want To Be A DJ (insider guide!)

The first thing you'll want to consider in joining the DJ ranks is the format of your music. This is important because it becomes the foundation of your skills. Do you master the turntables? Or do you master the CD decks? Perhaps you want to master your laptop, or a midi controller? More on all of this later. First, let's start with basic pros and cons of each format.

Vinyl is a dying format all over the world. However, in parts like Germany, UK, and France vinyl purists keep the demand high, so you'll see many music releases on CD AND Vinyl. Here in the U.S. this is a different story. We don't appreciate Vinyl records like they do over seas. There are a couple of reasons for that, but I won't go into it here - it's based on our culture - more on that later.

PROS:
- Better & 'Warmer' sound
- Easy to control & manipulate, especially if your into turntablism.
- Easiest format to learn how to DJ with. It's just so easy to learn how to dj with 2 records, instead of 2 CDs or 2 MP3 files.
- Better selection of QUALITY music. Most pop artists wont put out a vinyl release, unless it's a super limited special remix by DJ whatever. And you better believe only a few people will have this remix. If your in the loop, you'll get a copy. And this is one of the secret weapons in any DJ arsenal - the RARE remixes and releases. But you'll also find that there is a better quality of music released on vinyl. Which is good from a musical standpoint. However, if your after that 'POP' sound, you can forget about vinyl.
- SHOPPING IS FUN! Crate digging, or Vinyl diving is soooo much fun. Especially if your looking for that ULTRA rare James Brown or some obscure 80s house track. Digging through crates of records is an interesting task, and well worth your efforts.

CONS:
- Harder to find a RECORD STORE - All of the main dance/electronic record shops here in NYC have shut down. These places were open for more than 20 years, and with 1 swoop they all shut down within months of each other. There are maybe 1 or 2 left on the outskirts of NYC, and that's it. I can't imagine what it's like in a smaller town.
- Heavy and Inconvenient to transport. Try lugging around 200 records to a gig! It gets tiring. But this is what we had to do when the DJing world began. Back then it was no problem because there were no alternatives. Today, it's a different story. If you can take the same collection in 3 CD books. Wouldn't you?
- Expensive. Yes, it's expensive to buy vinyl. Back then, no. A single domestic 12" back in the 80s and early 90s costs around $3-4, and imports ran around $6-8. Today, a single domestic 12" will put you back $8-10, and imports $12-15 - and that adds up!
- Bulky Gear - Turntables are not small. Especially if you get the Technics 1200s - which are the standard in the DJ world. These bad boys are big and bulky (30lbs). But they are built like tanks!

SUMMARY:
It all boils down to what you can afford and how you are going to get the most for your dollar. Unfortunately with the industry not support vinyl like they use to, it's hard to get releases on vinyl any more, and this is not good for the working DJ. Hell, it's not even good for the bedroom DJ. If you don't have music to play, or are limited by what is on vinyl, you wont have much to choose from. The only genre which STILL supports vinyl is HIP HOP. Techno labels (I'm mean REAL techno) also still support vinyl, but not like they use to, and even they are jumping ship and going to digital formats. With the advent of products like Serato

I am still working on putting this together. So please stay tuned, as it will be up shortly. Thanks for your patience.