Basic DJ Equipment

Not all parts are always required - for example, obviously CD decks aren't needed if you only intend to play with records...

Vinyl Decks

Also known as a turntable these are often the most important part of your setup. "Older" style decks that play vinyl are still used, but CD DJ decks are becoming very popular.

Slipmat

A slipmat is a circular piece of slippery cloth or synthetic materials, designed to allow djs to turn or stop vinyl records on record players, or to scratch. This allows the DJ to manipulate the speed it is spinning at or to easily "spin" the record back etc

Styli (Stylus)

The Styli, or needle, on the decks is the part of the turntable that touches the vinyl record and converts its vibrations to the rest of the system.

Cartidge

Cartridges transfer the vibrations (From the stylus) in the record to sound. It holds the needle

Tonearm

This is the "arm" that holds the cartridge above the record

Lamps

Not always present, and in many shapes and sizes, but they normally plug in to a small socket on your deck and they provide a little bit of light when DJing in low light areas. They often aren't really powerful enough though.

Headphones

Needed so you can listen to another tune while the current one is playing to the crowd. Pick a nice pair (the ones above aren't particually good...)!

Cables and Connections

See our connections page