[AlphaTrion]

Buying equipment is hard and if you're not careful there's an extremely good chance that you'll end up blowing your money and get nothing out of it.

1. BE PATIENT!!! This is THE single most imporant tip. Be patient and READ everything you can. It's extremely important to be an informed consumer when buying dj equipment. Go to the manufacturer's websites (I'll post links at the end of this post), Read dj websites to learn the terms, and read reviews if you can find them (turntablelab has reviews for everything they sell). Every mixer, turntable, cartridge, headphone, and connection cable is different. It's important to know how they differ so that you can get the equipment that best suits you.

****************READ THIS BOOK!!!!!!!******************
"How to DJ Right: The Art and Science of Playing Records" by Frank Broughton and Bill Brewster

This book is essential reading for DJs old and new. It covers mixing, beatmatching, how to read a crowd, how to make it in the industry, basic scratching. The most valuble thing in this book are the elements of DJ'ing that are rarely discussed to newbies...things like mixing harmonically, song structure, basic musical understanding, and a lost art...reading a crowd. Most djs today take a very "fuck you crowd...I'm gonna do what I want" which is the wrong attitude to take. You need to work with the crowd...not against them. That way they trust you, you can play what you want after you've strung them along with what they want.

There's extremely valuble amounts of information and history in this book and is a VERY easy read. I read it less than a day and comprehended everything perfectly. It costs about $15.00 and i found it at Barnes and Noble.

************STRAIGHT FACTS TURNTABLE BUYING GUIDE************
(from turntablelab)
1) If you financially able, buy Technics 1200s or turntables with similar specifications.If you are serious about djing or plan to do it it for an extended hobby, the smart and recommended way to go is with the 1200 or similarly priced models like the Vestax PDX2000 or Numark TTX-1. Without getting too much into technical issues, it has to do with torque, pitch control, tonearm, sound quality, and most importantly durability. You will quickly outgrow cheaper turntables, and in that case, will eventually need an upgrade. In our experience, beginners will out grow their "beginner turntables" in less than a year. So why buy turntables twice? Trust us, we've seen it happen a lot.

2) If you can not afford to buy two, buy one, and save up for the other
Buy one 1200 and a cartridge to start off. If you can afford it, buy a mixer with it. You can always use a discman or cd player in place of a second turntable. Build a modest record collection (records are 50% of djing). If djing interests you, you will find a way to buy the other turntable (it happened to us). And in case you don't like djing, you can easily sell your used 1200 at approximately 75% of the cost (in vg+ condition).

3) If you choose not to follow the previous suggestions, do not spend over $200.00 on a turntable. Whatever you do, do not buy a turntable in the $300 range. There's is not much difference between these and turntables priced $200 and below. And the $300 turntable will not be as good as a 1200. If you are going cheap, go cheap, because if you go this route, you will eventually have to replace your turntables.
************************************************** ***
(My tips)
4. ONLY BUY DIRECT DRIVE!! Ok..there are two kinds of tables...belt-drive and direct drive. Belt drive tables use a rubber belt connected to a small motor in order to spin the platter. This leads to a slow start up time, poor torque, poor skip resistence, and is prone to breaking. Direct drive tables are connected directly to a motor giving almost immediate start up and high torque. It is a NECESSITY to buy direct drive. You WILL have to replace your belt-drives at some point. If you already have belt-drives...don't worry. It is possible to learn on them but it will take a long time and the quality of your scratching and mixing will not be that great until you get direct drive.
5. Avoid any brand that isn't one of the following STANTON, VESTAX, NUMARK, OR TECHNICS. Other brands simply don't have the quality as the brands listed above. Stanton and Numark due tend to have poorer quality among their lower priced tables but I trust them more than the other low-price brands. However, the newer models of Numark tables like the TTX-1 are beginning to surpass the quality of even the technics tables. But Numark has yet to prove their longevity in comparison to the 1200s, the same can be said for Stanton.

You're best bet is Technics, especially if you plan on mixing. I'd only recommend Vestax tables if you plan to focus on scratching.

A WORD ON CD TABLES:
If you're looking into getting cd tables expect to pay a lot of money, Just one good one can be anywhere from $500-1000. Even the lower end ones will be around $400. Any of the Pioneer tables, the Denon DN-S5000, and the Numark CDX are the best on the market right now and come the closest to recreating the feel of vinyl.

However, I certainly wouldn't reccomend CD decks over turntables. They should really only be used as a supplement to your standard tables. The reason I say this is that a majority of clubs, events, etc. don't have CD tables. And if they do, 80% of the time they suck balls. Most clubs and events still use tradional turntables so if you ever plan on playing out, you better know how to use vinyl, not to mention own some.

*********************Mixer Buying Guide*************************
Things to look for:
1. 3-band eq.
2. headphone cue
3. Penny + Giles or PCV faders Or focus fader (if your looking for an extremly smooth fader)
4. Curve adjustment

Ok...there are a lot of mixers out there. This is the quick and dirty differences between some.

Scratch Mixers: Two channel mixers with a focus on scracthing. This means that they usually have reversable faders (hamster style). Occasionally includes other features good for scratching, i.e. fader eqs, flash switches, etc.
Examples: Rane TTm56i, Vestax 07 Pro, Stanton, Ecler Hak-360, Stanton SA-5
The Vestax 05 pro:

Club/dance mixers: Usually have more than two channels, can have more than a 3-band EQ. (basically a whole lot of knobs and a whole lot of faders). Usually have a wide range for eq and a wide range on the curve adjustment. This is mainly geared to DJ's who play electronic music and will be doing long fades and use the eqs and various FX to create a smooth mix. Occasionally can have all knobs and no faders, typically has EQ kill capabilities. Some also include built in FX (Pioneer DJM-600 is one example)
Examples: Rane MP-44, Pioneer DJM-600, Allen & Heath Xone:464.
Pioneer DJM-600:

Hybrid: This is a fairly new category for mixers to accomodate the numerous djs who now scratch and mix. Three channel mixers which mix qualities of both categories from above.
Examples: Rane Empath, Stanton SMX-501, Vestax PMC-37 Pro
Rane Empath:

********************Cartridges (needles) buying guide**********

There are mainly two different kinds of needles...scratch cartridges and club cartridges.

Scratch cartridges focus on an extremely high skip resistence, loud output, and low tracking force (For less record wear). Typically these are sold as cartridges only and require a headshell mount in order to attach to a turntable. The best example is the Shure M447 pictured here:

Club cartridges focus on a superior sound quality and output. The quality also equals a higher price. You can probably expect to pay upwards of $120 just for one cartridge. However some cartridges of this brand can cause some record wear. Ortofon needles are some of the highest quality in this category:

**********************Headphones buying guide******************
What you want:
1. Coiled cords--Why? So you can have the length to keep the headphones on but still check your record bags.
2. swiveling ear pieces--Some DJ's find the "on-the-shoulder" position more comfortable when beat matching.
3. foldable--certainly not a necessity but certainly helps in transport.
4. loud, clear output.-- For obvious reasons (I hope).
5. Noise canceling earpieces--In a club situation the crowds and echo from your music bouncing off the back walls can seriously distract you from concentrating on beatmatching. Noise canceling earpieces allow you to drown out the ambient sound of a club and concentrate on the mix.

You want all those things so you can have the maximum amount of comfort and the clearest sound. The Senheisers are THE headphone. They are pricy but they are really the best you can buy for DJ'ing.

Suggested: Pioneer HDJ-1000, Sennheiser HD-280, Sony, MDR V500, Sony MDR V700:

**********************Records********************* ***
Obviously the most important part of a DJ's arsenal. If you want to start DJ'ing and don't necessarily have the money to buy the equipment, that doesn't mean you shouldn't start buying vinyl. Get out there and dig. How to dig could be a sticky in and of itself but start with your local thrift stores/salvation army stores and then find a local record shop. Start listening to as many mixes as you can and as much music as you can. When it comes to DJ'ing knowledge is power. The more songs you know the better.

If you want to spin b-boy breaks a good place to start is the Ultimate Beats and Breaks series. Each one comes with two copies so you it definately helps you to learn how to juggle breaks and how to beatmatch since most of them hover around the same BPM range. However, It shouldn't be used as an excuse to stop digging, it's just a good starting place.

Click here to see the UBB series

**********************FX Processors************************

FX processors are what you use to get effects like filter, flange, echo, delay, etc.
Here are the prcessors I'd reccomend:
Korg Kaoss Pad: Simple to use, easy to understand, cheap, perfect for beginners.
Pioneer EFX-500: Very dope, used extensively by a large number of DJs including DJ Z-trip along with many many others.

*******************Final scratch & Serato***************

Stanton Final Scratch and Rane/Serato scratch Live do essentially the same thing, By using a special piece of hardware, a special vinyl record, software and a laptop you are able to manipulate mp3s using actual vinyl. I personally have never used it but have played with Faust & Shortee several times and evertime I did they were using it. It is an extremely effecient way to play a lot of different tracks without lugging around as many records but without losing the actual feel and control of vinyl.


*******************Links**************************
Turntable Lab - In my opinion only order from here. The company is run entirely by DJs so they know what they're talking about. They are also extremely reliable and have the best prices around for the quality of service. I've used them numerous times and I'm always satisfied.
Supply - One of the owners PM'ed me to let me know about this site. Owned and operated by DJs and they seem to have a very wide selection.
Stanton Magnetics - the Website for Stanton
Pioneer Pro DJ - Pioneer DJ website
Numark - official website for Numark
Shure - Official website for Shure needles and other products.
Vextax - Official Vestax website
Rane - Official Rane Website
Allen & Heath - Official Allen & Heath Website
Sennheiser - Maker of Sennheiser headphones
Ortofon - Official Ortofon Website[HTML][*****]

[bboy_wiv_hair]

thanks alot i got some 1200 and theyre wicked

[PhillyBBoy88]

since you put links in above i thought i would merge the other dj links thread into here... here it is

--DJ LINKS--

Here is where yall can put links for everyone to see. if you have any....plz put them up. and try not to spam a lot on this plz

Shockwave DJ thing: Shockwave DJ

Backspin.org

DJ Equipment

DJ Superstore

DJ cafe

Gemini Equipment

Hollywood DJ

Pioneer

Numark Equipment

More DJ Equipment

Equipment

Tables



Added by Alphatron

For scratching info, turntable mods, etc. Go here:

Asisphonics

If you ask me, you could just take all those Equipment sites off and just go here:

Turntable Lab

Added by Phillybboy

For those who just wanna mess around with comp dj stuff this stuff is mostly free. But you might want a virus scan cause i havnt exactly tested the integerity of the entire site.

http://www.djspice.net/dj/dj-scratching-software.htm

Added by DELINQUENTE

heres another of dem dj shock wave things

http://www.phonatix.de/start.htm

Originally posted by Bboy Solo
http://www.hiphop-elements.com/


nuff vinyl lp's, ep's and singles(old and new)

very reliable

Edit P.S: I just moved this so there would be less stickies feel free to add more links i will move them in

[talib kweli]

yeah well iam new at Dj in the reason i got hooked was when i was at my mates house and his bro at set and let me a go and he said yeah you should buy some so i was wondering what is a REALY good buy i need em realy cheap but that are good if you hopefully know what i mean , anyway if u have any links that is in a decent cheap price range or recomandation of any please reply thanks P.s i couldnt be fucked reading the thread
peace_

[huzey]

cool topic dude. yeah me and talinb want to buy a set, maybe about $600 american, could you get a good cheap set for that amount? and do you advise buying 2nd hand?
this is really newbie. do you have to use records for all turntables? like, can you put 2 CD's in and mix them up?
forgive my newbishness

[5EvolElements]

Your on top of your game... much cheers

[AlphaTrion]

Originally posted by huzey cool topic dude. yeah me and talinb want to buy a set, maybe about $600 american, could you get a good cheap set for that amount? and do you advise buying 2nd hand? this is really newbie. do you have to use records for all turntables? like, can you put 2 CD's in and mix them up? forgive my newbishness

For 600...check out turntablelab.com and check the numarks that they sell. You can get two pair for a good price but that might leave you without a good mixer. I would suggest just getting one turntable for now and a good mixer, then continue to save money for your second table.

If you're going to buy second hand...make sure it's from a reputable dealer...someplace like guitar center or a store that sells ONLY dj gear. Don't buy second hand from a pawn shop. Pawn shops don't really check the quality before they buy it...they just buy it and sell it as if it was great condition when it's usually not. Also, when buying second hand...this is when you really get the good brands like vestax, technics, etc. Other brands like gemini and the early numarks just won't hold up over time.

And yes...for turntables, you have to use records. If you want to mix cds you'll have to get cd decks.

[talib kweli]

^thanks for helping me and huzey much help

[Holmes]

If you're in the 613 area, check out Fleet Pro Sound & Lighting

[FatMasterSlim]

hey, long time no see for the older members on the forums here...anyway I was thinking about getting into buying some turntable, but first I wanna make sure I get everythign straight..

So, I buy the turntable and the mixer...the table allows me to play the records and scratch, while the mixer allows me to add in the effects and delays and such correct??

Also I will be able to hook all of this up to my exsisting speakers correct??

thanks

[BbOi E.Z.]

is it better to match the brand of the mixer with the turntables? or does it madder at all if they're different brands?

[Bboy Solo]

Originally posted by BbOi E.Z. is it better to match the brand of the mixer with the turntables? or does it madder at all if they're different brands?

it doesn't matter, you can mix and match with different companies

[DJRemiasz]

Nice I got myself the Pioneer DJM-300S Mixer and sold my old decks now I dont know if I should buy Turntables or CD Decks. Cause Turntables r kinda goin out of style and its easy to get CDs.

[AlphaTrion]

Turntables will NEVER go out of style. I promise you that. All clubs will carry tables for DJs to play on...if they don't...they're not the type of club you want to play anyway.

[MC. SIK]

true. t-tables will never go out of style. there is too much history. plus its harder to scratch good on cd decks. and cd decks cost more& i heard somewhere that they are harder to cue