Working as a mobile disk jockey (DJ) presents a number of challenges that the resident club DJ doesn’t have.One of the biggest issues is the need to carry all of that essential DJ equipment wherever we go.

I’ve worked as a residential club DJ, radio DJ and these days I make my living as a mobile DJ and I love it. Each week I meet new people with diverse musical tastes in some fantastic locations. I’ve played in some fantastic locations including castles, stately homes, tents, gardens, onboard ships and yachts and even one night in a well known London museum. It’s the variety that I particularly like about this work, but lets get back to the challenges.

One of the biggest problems that us mobile DJs must overcome is the need to carry all of our equipment to every gig. The club DJ only has to turn up with his selection of records and CDs whereas I need a medium sized van to carry all of my DJ gear.

These days I can afford to take along an assistant who helps me to setup and break down my sound and lighting systems at each gig. Only a few years ago I needed to do all the setting up and breaking down myself. One key factor to consider when choosing DJ equipment for mobile use is how compact it is. It must be small and ideally lightweight.

The DJ speakers that I use are the powered variety. This means I avoid having to carry power amplifiers and it simplifies the system setup considerably. These mean fewer cables to worry about and less that can potentially go wrong. I’ve been using an excellent pair of JBL active PA speakers for the past two years and they have been fantastic.

Another important consideration for us mobile DJs is the lighting system. Club DJs rarely need to concern themselves with club lighting systems as these are generally already in place and often have their own dedicated operators. Working as a mobile DJ means we’ve got to do it all ourselves. But luckily these days there are some compact DJ lights that use LEDs making them relatively lightweight, low power and cool.

But probably the most essential piece of mobile DJ gear is the music. This isn’t equipment you say, and you’re right. But I’m really referring to the medium which can be vinyl records, CDs, DVDs and MP3 files. This varied media means that I need turntables, CD players, a DVD player and some form of MP3 player. I tend to stick to just one CD player, a pair of Technics decks and my laptop computer. I route all of these through my excellent DJ mixer and I’m just about ready for any requests, from Mantovani to the Wombles.

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Filed under: Acoustic Guitar • Bluegrass Lyrics • Bluegrass Music • Bluegrass Musicians • Bluegrass Tablature • Dobro • Fiddle • Mandolin

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