Why DJs should play vinyl and not use computers
75Nothing beats technics, concord needles and vinyl
Over the past couple of years more and more DJs have converted to using computers to mix with. It's boring and should be outlawed from all serious clubs immediately.
Ok if you're a wedding DJ and have to play shlock and 80s tunes and requests and cannot possibly haul around kilos of records or CDs then I can understand why computer DJing is for you; otherwise, stop it now. And I'll give you 3 good reasons why.
Firstly, and most importantly, the sound quality is inferior. Using CDs is bad enough but using tiny MP3 etc files is terrible. There's a reason why MP3s are such small files, and that's because the alogrithm has 'taken out' alot of the sound. On headphones you don't notice. In a club you do. Nothing sounds better than concord needles on a vinyl. The sound is fresh, organic and full. Especially for the lower frequencies of bass found commonly in techno and drum and bass. And furthermore, sound is transmitted nearly instantaneously through needles whereas there's often a lag with computers, particularly old computers with small rams.
Secondly, it ruins the visual appeal. Nothing beats seeing a DJ cueing up the vinyl and dropping in the next tune in just the right place and really hearing it. Also watching a DJ show his or her mastery by scratching vinyl is mesmerizing. It makes the DJ a musician and an awesome spectacle. It's live and always original because no 2 mixes or scratches can ever be exactly the same. With a computer they can be and that is boring and not worth paying to watch. I hate DJs who use serano and so give the impression they are playing vinyl. Watch them carefully - they never change the vinyl. It's window dressing.
And thirdly, computer mixing is often cheating. The computer programs have beat counters, analytics and even beat matching to do all the hard work for the DJ. Anybody can quickly sound as good as Carl Cox with some of the computer programs on the market, which is an insult to Carl Cox who is a god on the decks.
Luckily British clubs are not falling for this second rate rubbish and the DJs lose respect for pulling out their apple computers. Unfortunately, in Tokyo it's becoming more and more common for DJs to bore the crowd with their heads stuck in their computer screens. Even Tokyo based DJs are using computers - I presume because they aren't competent with vinyl or are too lazy to bring their record bags. I saw DJ Marky in womb last year and he broke my heart when he played 99% of his set using serano. Holding a deck upside down and scratching is farcical and belongs in a circus and not on the dance floor. That same year and again in Womb in Tokyo, I saw Ed Rush and Optical use 2 CDs all night long. It was pretty much impossible to hear the mixes. We the consummers who fork out big money to see these 'stars' deserve alot better.
So if you want to be a DJ or take up mixing for a hobby then please buy decks and good needles and do it properly. Besides computers crash and then you'll look like a right twit while silence pervades the room while you re-boot.
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Comments
Great hub! Very cool and educational!!!
Thanks for the big up.
Couldn't agree more. Serano is killing live music because computer DJs often don't buy the music they play. Plus it's cheating.
there is so much human feeling in a vinyl. and what can we find in a audio file?, nothing
I am sure we can be a dj with cd or with vinyl but I am even sure that digital music do not exist, there is just some audio files more or less good, but it is a informatic language without human feeling
with a digital format we are dead. with a? vinyl we are alive.
so, what do you want ?. be alive or dead.
choose your way DJ or public
DJ GAOGAO the only panda DJ
No live, no DJ without VINYL
Yeah, I understand that DJ's hate DJ's who use computers to mix their music, but most of the general dancing and drinking public could care less what you're playing music with as long as they get to drink and dance... they have no ego or concern with how you're playing your music as long as you give them the same feeling they've wanted for decades on the dance floor.
New fancy tools, same thing, really. But it does suck the life out of the "art" of DJ'ing when people are mixing music with no conception of matching beats, stacking their mixes, or even really paying attention. I agree w/ that.
However it's also true vinyl has went the way of the dodo, outside of the vinyl purists & turntablists.
It's ridiculously heavy, expensive, and a lot of tracks don't come out on vinyl and/or are hard to acquire if you don't live in a town where dance music is popular. Who wants to lug all that stuff around, pay more money, and restrict themselves from playing everything they want the day it hits the Internet for purchase?????
Contrast this to CD Turntables, where you can download anything, pay only for tracks you want, easily store and move your music around.
Oh yeah, one more thing,
The first time I'm out and a DJ's PC crashes, I'm going to laugh all the way out of the club!!!!! That would arguably be the most humiliating thing that could happen. :)
Oh yeah, one more thing,
The first time I'm out and a DJ's PC crashes, I'm going to laugh all the way out of the club!!!!! That would arguably be the most humiliating thing that could happen. :)
I have mixed feelings on this hub.
First of all, big ups for using Technics. They are, hands down, the best turntables in the world. I definitely considered getting them when I started deejaying six years ago. But there was a little problem: I didn't own a single piece of vinyl. That meant I had to buy turntables AND build a collection of wax.
On the other hand, I had like a hundred CDs sitting in my house. So I decided to get two Numark Axis 9 CD Players. Once I knew what I was doing, I upgraded to Pioneer CDJ-800s, which still get used to this day. The CD-J 1000s are on my wish list! I also download songs from iTunes for $1 a piece, and burn those to blank CD-R discs.
I never use Limewire, KaZaa, or any other illegal file-sharing software.
So I don't consider my sets to be "second rate rubbish". That would be using nothing but a laptop, or nothing but an MP3 player. Now THAT'S rubbish!
Far as I can see, everybody is happy when I'm doing my thing. Most people don't know I'm not using vinyl until they walk up to my booth. As a musician, I know vinyl sounds better, but the average joe can't tell or doesn't give a crap.
As for Serato (not Serano), I've seen it in action, and it takes some skill to use it properly. You can't put on a blindfold and handcuffs and still keep the party going. You still have to cue up songs, tweak EQ, use the crossfader, etc.
So I think that there are good ways out there to capture the best of both worlds. (BTW, The guy I saw had a Rane SL1 controller and two Technics SL1200s)
I enjoyed this article. I used to have the exact same feelings towards "computer DJs" But for me, as long as the DJ is on his beats and keeps them tight I will be on the dance floor all night long.
I feel your pain, I still have my Technics 1210 that I purchased almost 20 yrs ago. I will always prefer vinyl over computer. However, I must confess that I am good with using the new technology as well. My current living quarters is quite small, so I decided to use my computer to assist with my mixing because I don't enough space to set all my equipment up.
Hit it on the head housemonk- there are times and places for CD's and even mp3's without a serato mixer. I had to use virtual dj in Iraq for everything from karaoke to hip hop nites you gotta use the right tool for the right place. Vinyl is great when you got the space and the conditions but give me what works and will fit in my ruck...
I agree that laptop-only DJs (as in DJs who don't use tables and only laptops and controllers) aren't as exciting to see because they tend to stay in the same spot, and dont move around with the same energy as other DJs.
With that being said, not all computer DJs are cheaters. Serato DOES NOT have an auto-mixing feature. Traktor and Virtual Vinyl do but not Serato. Most people use Serato because they want the best of both worlds- the feel of and control of vinyl while playing music that may not be accessible in vinyl. I do think that DJs need to experience at least a few times playing with records. If they can rock the house with records, they can do the same with mp3s, CDs, anything.
Interesting hub
I agree with the whole vinyl thing. But I have to admit, I started out using vinyl, but then i converted to CDJs for many reasons. The main one being for me it was exactly the same as vinyl except cds are smaller lol
CDJs have cool features, more things to play with, and make a DJ set alot more interesting. And you can also stuff up just as easily on cdjs as you can on turntables. so anyways, i like both! just thing cdjs are more fun cos theres more you can do! peaz :-)
You're so on point.
Although you get a lot of great control and features on CDJ's or an mp3 controller, nothing really beats that vinyl feel.
Plus the bonus of having to dig through crates to find em.
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- Chemical Records
A great online vinyl shop - Juno Records
Pick up white labels and hot dance records. Especially good for drum and bass and breaks.
The debate continues
- CD’s or Vinyl? | Veerle\'s blog
As someone points out. The top DJs still use vinyl. Mr Van Dyke is in a minority. - Another great "vinylist" hub.
The Vinyl preservation society. Save music, stay analogue.
technojunky69 says:
15 months ago
Too right, bro. Serano sucks.
The ebay bids below are real bargains!!