DJs Across the Country Are Falling Out of Love With Vinyl

By Meg Frazier

DJs who make music for a living are often quoted professing their love of and their allegiance to vinyl. Although some DJs feel they will never switch from vinyl to CD, many DJs are welcoming the trend.

Size Does Matter

“I use CDs and MP3s,” says Ron Croudy, a DJ who plays   in New York City at Lotus (on the Lower East Side) and Bouche Bar. “The main reason is because my record collection is not that big.”

Thanks to the compactness of CDs and MP3s, Croudy's song collection now numbers 4,000 in size. Croudy notes that most DJs receive promotional CDs from different music companies, which enables DJs to grow their CD collections at very little cost.

“When I first started using CDs, I got them all the time,” Croudy says. “I can play tracks not on a record. If I was doing that with vinyl, I would be carrying two suitcases.”

Now, with the convenience of using DJ software such as Traktor, which provides interfacing with a normal mixer, Croudy is able to bring in his laptop and hook it to any mixer in a club. Using his iPod also gives him immediate access to more than 4,000 songs.

“It's much more convenient,” Croudy says. “Traveling is easier.”

Ten to One

Mike McDonough, a DJ at Soho, Rhino, Aqua and Sanctuary in Boston, also works with Music Express –– a company that supplies bars with DJs. He's been spinning for 24 years and has turned to CDs when he plays.

“I gave up on vinyl,” McDonough says. “(But) I still have like 12,000 records.”

Now, McDonough has three computerized systems that keep all of his music organized and easy to access. He says that by using CDs and MP3s, he is able to carry a lot more music to gigs, as well.

“You can literally carry ten times the music with a fraction of the space,” McDonough says.

In his days of record playing, McDonough would often carry six to seven crates of records with him. “You can put 123 songs on one MP3,” he says. “Technology is advancing rapidly.”

Well-Equipped

With more and more DJs incorporating CD playing into their routines, sound companies have been racing to keep up with the trend. Equipment companies are constantly revamping and creating new systems that will better cater to the CD/MP3 playing DJ.

“A lot of DJs use vinyl, but they're so imbedded that vinyl is the best,” McDonough says. “In the heyday, vinyl was great. (But, sound companies) have made major advancements with CDs.”

Some of these advancements include scratching with CDs, finger queuing, voice correction, instant sampling and the inclusion of interfacing programs that allow the use of turntables while being connected to a laptop.

With a wide selection of equipment companies offering the latest attractions, choosing a system can be tricky. Knowing what you want out of a system before going to buy one can make the process a lot easier.

As far as CD players are concerned, Croudy is a huge fan of the Pioneer CDJ 1000. “It's like the best piece of hardware for mixing,” he says. “They're like turntables for CDs. You control the CDs using a touch pad based on a turntable.”

DJ Monk in Tampa, Fla., says these CD players have a similar feel to the turntable and are very flexible with looping and memory function.

“If you like the feel of spinning vinyl, but have lots of CDs, this would be my first suggestion,” DJ Monk says.

McDonough encourages other DJs to be open-minded about working with new equipment.

“I was so used to something, I wouldn't even try anything (new),” McDonough says.

Now, McDonough experiments with a lot of the new generation of dual CD players that are capable of playing MP3s and beat mixing.

A Manager's Touch

Bob Cleary, general manager at Club Rio in Scottsdale, Ariz., only uses the best equipment for his house DJs. At Club Rio, music is central to the success of the venue.

“We use state-of-the-art, top-of-the-line equipment,” Cleary says. “(Club Rio's DJs) use all Pioneer equipment –– two CDJ 1,000 and a Denon 2,000 as a backup.”

For Cleary, browsing and experimenting with different systems was not necessary.

“(We) didn't really shop around,” he says. “Pioneer is the best that's out there.”

He suggests that owners may want to research the different systems available and also ask their DJs for input. After all, the DJs are going to be the ones operating the equipment –– not you. Cleary also says that cost should not be a main concern.

“(Owners) should do research and bring their DJs with them (to shop for equipment),” Cleary says. “The equipment costs what it costs. We try to buy the best that's out there.”