When starting out as a DJ, it can be difficult to decide whether to purchase CD decks or vinyl turntables. Ideally if you can afford both, then great, but affording both isn’t always a viable option, so in this post I will try and explain my thoughts on where you should start!
Deciding between CD decks and vinyl turntables is a bit of a personal preference, most DJ’s have their own opinions and all no doubt with very valid points such as the feel, ease of use and sound quality etc.
My opinion expressed in this post is solely for beginner DJs that are starting out!
Although I have a soft spot for vinyl turntables I have to say when starting out on your journey as a DJ particularly in the beginning when you are learning it is very difficult to go past CD decks for a number of reasons.
The main reason for me is the availability and cost of music – I know when I started out keeping up to date with the latest vinyl releases was difficult and at times frustrating. The cost of a track on vinyl is at least five times more expensive than a digital download of the same track that you can put on CD.
So when you are at the beginning of your DJing journey and you are practicing relentlessly, having a variety of music to select from can become critical to your motivation.
Vinyl – If you are practicing a couple of hours every night, which you should be, and you purchase say five vinyls a week, then it won’t take long for you to become sick of those tracks no matter how much you like them. It quickly becomes a catch twenty two where you continually feel like you are chasing your tail. By the time your new vinyls arrive you are sick of the older ones, and as a direct result you stop playing them.
I can assure you from experience if you don’t have fresh music to sink your teeth into when practicing, your motivation levels will begin to slide, guaranteed! After all its the music that made you fall in love with DJing from the beginning right?
CD’s – If you decide to go down the CD route then motivation should never become a problem as your collection of CD’s that you have accumulated over the years can come into play, you can purchase five times the amount of tunes via digital downloads on a weekly basis and you can freely share music with your friends and fellow DJ’s.
Result: Worlds of music that will keep your lips watering and should have you motivated to get on the decks and practicing as much as possible. When you have worlds of music at your disposal then it shouldn’t be too difficult to find the motivation you need.
No matter which way you decide to go the fundamentals stay the same, once you learn on one type of device you should have no problems transferring the skills to another. The most important thing that is way above deciding on CD decks or vinyl turntables is making a commitment to do whatever it takes to live your dream!
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LOVE your work nice blog dude.
Its difficult to let go of vinyl but its impossible to justify buying it especially when you can get the same track for a fraction of the cost.
I love vinyl but stopped buying it 18 months ago, I now have that many tracks I don’t know what to do with them all. Digital downloads, yeah baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Awesome site
Digital all the way so CD for me!
My friend and I were recently discussing about the prevalence of technology in our day to day lives. Reading this post makes me think back to that discussion we had, and just how inseparable from electronics we have all become.
I don’t mean this in a bad way, of course! Societal concerns aside… I just hope that as technology further advances, the possibility of transferring our brains onto a digital medium becomes a true reality. It’s a fantasy that I daydream about almost every day.
I appreciate you sharing your points of view. For me digital is the only way forward 100%.
But nothing will ever feel as good as dropping a record in.
You have really done a great job with your articles, I love to read them all. I can feel your passion towards teaching us all how to dj. Great stuff!
Excellent subject, luckily for me, starting the hobby of DJing later in life, I was able to afford two vinyl turntables, plus two CDJs. I tend to spend most of my time practising on the vinyl turntables and get around the problem of having to buy vinyls by using time code vinyls and software. This means I can play any digital track on my turntables and not get bored due to running out of new tracks. Food for thought for those wishing to use vinyl, however not wanting to have to buy expensive new vinyls all the time. I bought about 50 house vinyls (managed to get them for $2 to $5 each in DJ shop clearance sale), just for the purpose of not being able to use any sort of bpm counter, so I HAVE to use my ears for beatmatching
It gets really interesting trying to mix four tracks/ loops just using ears only! Have a lot of respect for the likes of Carl Cox, that man is a mixing machine 
I think the best comment I have heard by a DJ regarding equipment, is that its more about how you choose and mix your tracks than what or how much equipment you have. p.s I am just a newbie to DJing, however, thought it worthy sharing my thoughts and experiences here.
Great article! What equipment would be most compatible with the clubs, would learning on CD limit a DJ’s possible venues? What about equipment like Traktor S4, seems so versatile.
Hi Pete, learning how to dj on CDJ’s wouldn’t limit you in any way, they would be the most compatible with the clubs these days. Traktor would also be fine, most venues are set up to accommodate the latest DJing technology so you wouldn’t have any problems!
vinyl compared to any form of digital music is always a conundrum, But at the end of the day any audio student or DJ should be able to pick up the difference between the fidelity of digital and analogue sound, any DJ playing vinyl’s in a club will notice how much better the sound and feel will have being pure analogue , plus mixing with vinyl will never compare with any digital medium the close as it gets for feel not sound is rane scratch live … peace out…
Hey…
It does come down to preference and also club specific setup (when you get into playing at clubs)
Ive seen some Djs use the new Traktor S4 unit and did it very well…and in some clubs, this setup wouldnt work logistically…but most industry setup clubs use CDJ’s so why not start with what the majority of industry users use. The beauty of cd’s vs vinyl in the obvious is the material needed to be transported…If you play in a club using the lastest CDJ’s then its almost as simple as taking your own USB in to play from.
Serrato is another good format to play from…a bit of a mixture between the CDJs and Traktor.
Personally I started with CDJ’s- did ‘my time’ with them and then purchased Traktor and Serrato some months later…all have their pro’s and cons…
In the end it is preference but make sure you evolve with the industry or all of a sudden you might be left behind having to play catchup…
Remember… “Play it LOUD”
DJ De Cruz
Hey iam from south africa….I just want to know how do you get recongnised and get someone to give you a slot at a club ect
@mpugza if you. practice hard and become the best you can be the right people will begin to notice… Practice, practice, practice!