What’s going on in the DJ booth?

September 11, 2008 3:50 PM
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[Article Written By Michael Maryanoff]

Twenty years ago, the DJ booth was an aspect of a club that was widely ignored. It was tucked away in a dark corner and consisted of a pair of turntables, a milk crate full of 45 RPM singles and a mixer that amounted to little more than a drab box with a few metallic knobs.

The DJ booth of today is a much different animal. Instead of being tucked away in the corner, it has become the center of the clubbing experience. In place of a pair of turntables and a mixer is a jungle of volume faders, CD players, time coded vinyl, laptops, and effects processors.

For the average clubgoer, the DJ booth can be a very confusing sight to behold and we here at CoolJunkie, wouldn’t want you to be confused. So in the name of clarification, we’re here to answer the question: What’s going on in the DJ booth?

Turntables

Any club worth it’s weight in overpriced vodka will have a pair of Technics SL-1200 turntables (pronounced “techniques”) in their booth. Even though technology in the booth has changed a lot over the years, Technics turntables have long remained the standard. They’re a fine piece of machinery, but are being seen less and less over time. You might think that it has to do with sound quality, but this isn’t necessarily true. Believe it or not, while common knowledge dictates that CDs boast better sound quality than vinyl, many DJs favor the sound of vinyl over CDs. The main reason turntables are getting phased out is because while the cost of a pair of brand new 1200s will only set you back $1000, (which is less than one high-end CD player) The price of music will burn a hole in your pocket. While an mp3 purchased online (at sites such as Beatport.com) will cost you around $2, one piece of vinyl is about 5 times as much. Another big advantage is the ability for DJs to quickly make a song go from the studio to the booth. “I really want to finish bootlegs and remixes just before the weekend so I can play them out,” Laidback Luke recently told CoolJunkie.

CDs

In the begging stages of CD DJing, there was no set standard for what would be in the booth. But as of late, the Pioneer CDJ-1000 has emerged as the standard CD player for club installations. For any club booking a big-name DJ, they’re required. Even though many DJs of the current generation were raised on CDs, big-name DJs of the older generation wanted the familiar feel of vinyl. The circle you see in the middle has a touch-sensitive pad on top of it that can be used to manipulate a CD as though it were a piece of vinyl, allowing for the DJ to rock the CD back and forth as they would a record. The side of the platter can be used to slow down and speed up the record as you would a turntable. On top of that, it also has looping capabilities (governed by the blinking orange buttons at the top left corner). “I love mixing and looping with CDs … I love the challenge of mixing,” said Martijn Ten Velden in a recent interview with CoolJunkie.

Mixers

There really isn’t a standard for mixers, but there are a few that you’ll see in most clubs such as the DJM – 800. Even though sound quality and features will vary, all mixers have the same basic functions. A DJ will generally use the volume sliders (or “faders”) to raise and lower the volume of each track being played. They are usually configured to correspond with the physical location of a CD player or turntable, so if the left volume fader is up, the left disc will be playing through the speakers (and if the right one is turned up the right disc will be playing). Above the volume faders you will see three knobs. Each one is marked “low” “mid” and “high” (the “low” adjusts the low pitches, the “high” adjusting the high pitches, etc.) They can be used to fine-tune the track, but they can also be used to cut out the bass from a song and raise the high frequencies in order to achieve a dramatic effect (which is usually followed by fist-pumping).

Effects Processors: If you ever hear a cool effect that you had not previously heard in a song, there is a good chance that the DJ is adding them with an effects processor. The effects can be added from an external effects processor, such as the Pioneer EFX-1000, or can come from the mixer itself. “I will use effects sparingly if they are built into the mixer, but I prefer to just mix smoothly and not get in the way of the songs too much,” said Dirtybird records’ Christian Martin.

Laptops

Something that is becoming more and more commonplace in the DJ booth is the laptop. If you look into the booth and see a glowing Apple logo, the DJ is most likely running one of two programs.

Serato Scratch Live: This is the most popular out of all the laptop programs. A special vinyl record or CD can turn a turntable or CD player into a “controller. ” What this means for the DJ is that they can use their turntable or CD player to manipulate an MP3 as if it were a record or CD. Using this program, a DJ can carry their entire library in a laptop (as opposed to organizing a heavy crate of vinyl every time they go out). This program is especially useful for hip-hop DJs. Some scratching techniques require using duplicate copies of a record, and at $6 - $10 a record, the costs can really add up. “Serato really helps,” says Vagabond resident Mike Duce.

Ableton: If you ever see a DJ with no headphones and a laptop, chances are they are using Ableton. Ableton is a bit of a touchy subject for many, seeing as how some DJs will pre-program a set beforehand (which will almost cripple their ability to respond to the crowd). On the other hand, some DJs are using Ableton to push the limits of what is possible in dance music. While some may pre-program their sets on Ableton, Deadmau5 does the opposite, using it to sync music on the fly.