The Type of DJ Makes A Difference At Your Wedding

Most couples would never think to ask a DJ, “What type of DJ are you?” There are always some general assumptions being made based on your perception of what a DJ is or isn’t. The other week I was at an event and the DJ was a different style from myself. My idea of what qualifies as a DJ stems from a combination of my experience and education. My background besides DJing comes from being a cert electronics engineering tech, as well as having various certifications in acoustic engineering. That does shape some of my thoughts on DJing. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with different styles per se, but I did want to give a comparative analysis, because there is a significant contrast between the two. When it comes to DJs, there’s no one-size-fits-all, because what works for some couples might not be the best fit for another. Knowing the difference between a laptop DJ vs a DJ with a more traditional set up may influence your decision, as there are notable pros and cons for both.

It’s been years since I’ve seen a laptop DJ, which is more or less a streamlined version of a DJ setup. This type of DJ uses less equipment which usually consists of a laptop, small mixer, speakers and a mic. The DJ also had some good lighting equipment, but for audio they used a simple set up in comparison to a more traditional DJ. There’s a simplicity to this configuration, but that comes with limitations in regards to control and mixing, due to the absence of some equipment commonly found in a traditional DJ set up. This resulted in some rough transitions or gaps in-between songs. In this instance, the DJ was using about $5500 worth of equipment, with the lighting accounting for roughly half that cost.

A traditional DJ set up is going to differ with the addition of a controller. In my case, it involves 2 DJ media players and an independent DJ mixer, instead of a controller. The rest of the components are similar in function, with the quality being noticeably higher in my setup. The technical side of me leads me to avoid entry-level and even mid-level equipment due to their limitations and differences in build quality. Choosing to use high-tier equipment comes with a cost– 4x the cost, to be exact. This lands my set up at a price of about $23,500. Without any further frame of reference, those costs don’t seem to hold much significance, but the sound alone has a difference of over 10 dB. What that means is that, comparatively, due to the nonlinear relationship of sound, what my system is capable of producing is considered to be double.

Doubling the sound can be important depending on the situation, but as a general rule clarity supersedes it. In terms of clarity, the difference between the two systems would be somewhere between 50-70% with higher volumes edging the relevance closer to the higher end of that range. Without getting overly technical, you could compare this to applying makeup using a paper towel vs using various makeup brushes. The results are likely to be twice as good or maybe even better when using the ideal brush or brushes. Nonetheless, you still could use a paper towel, accepting that the result is unlikely to be the same. While it’s possible that a bride might consider this option, knowing the cost of purchasing paper towels vs high end makeup brushes, most would not entertain it.

If the expectation is that a laptop DJ will be equal to a DJ using a more traditional setup, the tools to enable that simply are not there. For this event the DJ was fine earlier in the evening, particularly at lower volumes. As the volume increased clarity was lost and the system lacked in overall power. The transitions and pauses did disrupt the overall flow on the dancefloor to some extent– though, to be perfectly fair, that was okay given the price point of this DJ which is literally half of what I charge. The expectations in terms of quality should not be the same, but there was at least some expectation of mixing which unfortunately wasn’t the case. In terms of experience and skill level, the DJ was relatively new which– again, beyond equipment, further explained their price. Overall, this DJ provided fair value for the cost. There’s going to be a noticeable difference between a laptop DJ and a DJ invested in high-tier, flagship DJ systems. At a wedding these differences are especially pronounced and can have a big impact on your day.