Advice on starting a vinyl collection?

OllieNotts

OllieNotts

Well-Known Member
I have purchased some decks, just need an amp and a table to set it all up and then I need records to play with :)
Want to start off with house, moving onto tech house and some dark techno when I get better and have more monies. How do you start to build? I love loads of songs singularly but to actually build a collection wouldnt take too long so hoping for advice on buying new stuff that I would like listening to and mixing while I pretend I am in Amnesia :D
Also any advice on amps? My mate says I should get a cheap one from a pawn shop like cash generator to get started but the mrs wants to be able to plug her ipod into the set up as it will be in our living room and there will be no room for the stereo once I am set up and running.
 
If you are going to start collecting vinyl the first thing you will need is a bigger house or flat....
 
Too expensive, time and space consuming to collect vinyl when you look at the other options.

You should just get serato and use your decks via a laptop. You'll still actually be using your decks physically, but without the piles of records lying around gathering dust.

Even seeing DJs using cds now looks outdated. Technology is moving so fast...
 
I know what you are saying, but I want to learn and play vinyl. I dont care what everyone else is doing or the cost. Im a traditionalist at heart, and want to learn the vinyl now and then maybe I will progress onto laptop mixing. I have been taught the basics of beat matching by a professional and its a lot more enjoyment then I thought it would be, and I dont think I would get the same enjoyment in picking a track from a list of thousands on a menu.
Maybe in the future I will, so for now sensible answers please :)
 
u will still be using vinyl if you get serato or traktor, just control/timecode vinyl. Buy all your music via mp3 and manually beatmatch on your turntables but still do it thru your laptop, then your getting the best of both worlds.
 
Dj Paul Mac said:
u will still be using vinyl if you get serato or traktor, just control/timecode vinyl. Buy all your music via mp3 and manually beatmatch on your turntables but still do it thru your laptop, then your getting the best of both worlds.
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Thanks, and I know what you are saying, but I still want to learn the old fashioned way. Dont wanna download MP3 I wanna mix beats and choose where I go with each record. I am quite battered atm so may across way too enthusiastic but seriously, been taught on vinyl, and wanna stick to vinyl. Appreciate the input either way thanks :)
 
I started collecting vinyl a year and a half ago, when I got my turntables.
I don't use them as much as I thought, mostly due to Trance not really being released on vinyl anymore.
Having both CDJs and Vinyl, though, I do prefer mixing on Vinyl. Just feels better when you get a mix right. Sadly, it does feel like the sound quality of vinyl is less, and second hand ones aren't always in mint condition.
 
strange as I was under the impression most DJ's think the sound is better from vinyl? I am sure I will find out soon enough :) Was thinking of getting a CDJ in the future but the serato looks like I will go for that. At £370 initial lay out though plus cost of music downloads its not that cheap even at £5-8 a record by the time I hit £370 I will have enough to keep me amused for a bit.
You ever played out Ikoda? I am not sure if it is an ambition to do so yet, must be quite a buzz though. Providing that folk enjoy it obviously :D
 
OlskiNotts said:
strange as I was under the impression most DJ's think the sound is better from vinyl? I am sure I will find out soon enough :) Was thinking of getting a CDJ in the future but the serato looks like I will go for that. At £370 initial lay out though plus cost of music downloads its not that cheap even at £5-8 a record by the time I hit £370 I will have enough to keep me amused for a bit.
You ever played out Ikoda? I am not sure if it is an ambition to do so yet, must be quite a buzz though. Providing that folk enjoy it obviously :D
Click to expand...

If the vinyl is kept in mint condition, then it does sound better.
BUT if it's got scratches on, no amount of work will make it sound better. Which is very sad. Some people either scratch them to death, or just do not look after them.

I've played out a few times, but on CDs. I don't have the confidence to play out on Vinyl.
 
You'll find it very hard to keep vinyl in mint condition especially if you play out and cart it about, or get into the swing of a party :!: I probably ended up on about my 3rd copy of 'regular play' records by the time the choon dropped down the pile back in the day when the decks were used.

Between records getting nicked when you're away for a pee, thrown about the decks and dropped after too many vodkas ... not all will survive the punishment of a good party :lol: !
 
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My advice if your starting a vinyl collection is get a loan and start doing weights for lugging them about!
But seriosuly its commendable to choose to go down that path , I switched from vinyl to Traktor scratch around 2008 mainly for financial reasons. I have a cdj which i got purely so if playing out and that was the only option then id know how to use em. I dont like using it, u feel disconnected from the music but they are much easier to mix on.

Ive lost many records over the years at parties / gigs it normally comes from being too excited and not putting things away properly / rushing things. Take your time with your selections and put records back in their correct sleeves! Only managed to scratch / beer stain 1 or 2 which isnt bad going.

One thing I would say re: the traktor / serato thing. I see lots of people that just stare at their screen when they are beatmatching on these programmes as theres a sync bar that tells you if you are too slow or fast. USE YOUR EARS TO MIX! If you learn on pure vinyl you will def be better at beatmatching. Your ears are your best tool for it and you will know your tunes much better rather than relying on a visual display of them.

Go for it and enjoy!
 
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Thanks marc, I have been taught at college by a professional(Nick Lawson deep house DJ) the basics of beat matching and moving the pitch fader to match etc so I am eager to get practising. Thing is I just loved actually mixing the records and there is nothing you can do to replicate that with new technology. Sometimes I genuinely cringe when hearing a mix of great tunes but its so obvious a computer mixed them together and thats not what I want to do. It may be an expensive hobby but we are only here once might as well make the most of it :)
 
how do u know when a cpu mixed em out of interest???

beatmatching is a naturally occuring thing , i think that if anyone listens to 2 tunes at different speeds for long enough they will work out how to sync em. took me and my mate ages to figure it out with no teachers , would have been great to have one! also learning mixing different genres. i didnt come from a house / techno background so approached it very diifferently and it def didnt always work at first!
 
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MiniMarc said:
how do u know when a cpu mixed em out of interest???

beatmatching is a naturally occuring thing , i think that if anyone listens to 2 tunes at different speeds for long enough they will work out how to sync em. took me and my mate ages to figure it out with no teachers , would have been great to have one! also learning mixing different genres. i didnt come from a house / techno background so approached it very diifferently and it def didnt always work at first!
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I've come from a Trance background, so I'm overly limited in layering tracks together and other such niceties like beat juggling and and scratching. But I don't really feel like I miss them.

I don't play out with my vinyl as I don't have the confidence on them, and I'm not that good. Always play out on CDs when I get a gig (which is rare :( )

I can find it difficult to tell the difference between CPU and Human mixed music, most of the time. Computers don't always get it right, but they are usually pretty good at working out where the Beats are.
 
Respect for starting out with records dude. Have been doing the same over the last year although only got a second deck a few months ago.

Re: speakers etc.

I managed to get a cheap Cambridge Audio amp and some Mordaunt speakers on Gumtree recently. Also picked up a cheap second-hand sub. Have a look on there / eBay for a good second-hand deal. Otherwise you can get a half decent setup for £250 - £350 from somewhere like Richer Sounds.

OR

You could just get some active monitor speakers (then you won't need a separate amp) which will be fine for home use. You can get some punchy ones for around £200 or less (Alesis or M-Audio). If you did that your Mrs could still plug in her iPod via the line of the mixer (not sure what mixer you have?). That said, if you're thinking for more 'general' use i.e. with your TV etc as well you'd probably be better with an amp / stereo speakers.

Unsure if you have some decent speakers already?

Re: using records

Definitely stick at it! If the sync button or a BPM counter is there, you will be tempted to use it. You need to train your ears to beat match and although it's just a small part of DJ'ing, it's worth taking the time to learn properly! A pair of second-hand Technics (got mine for £230!) and a few records is pretty cheap and you can always change later.

I started off a year ago buying records I'd heard and either loved to bits or couldn't get digitally, just to own them in a physical format. When you're getting going I'd say just buy stuff you really like and don't worry too much about things which will structure into the perfect set. You'll learn a lot quicker if you actually know and love the records you're mixing.

To learn I think you're better off with simpler, 4/4 tracks with a lot of kick-drum that are a similar speed/key. I started off with two really long techno tracks (10mins) which were so simple they did the same thing over and over all the way through. Basically practiced using just those two records for ages to get my ears used to it.

Suppose it just goes on from there really. Immersing yourself in the styles of music you like, checking out mixes from the artists you do know or other artists from the labels you do know. That way, you'll easily come across loads of tracks and think "YES".

Discovering a track in context i.e. in a mix is way better than just listening to clips on Juno or Chemical IMO. Although I do really enjoying trawling the catalogues of those stores online and listening to all sorts of random artists and labels. Inevitably you come up with some gems!

Online records shops also often have "more from this label / artists" and "people also bought" sections which helps too.

Go for it!
 
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Regarding the computer mixing, I cant claim to know every single track but sometimes its so false listening to two tracks come together without any fault whatsoever and I try to find out the equipment used and normally its a laptop with some kind of software. I just dont think it feels natural to mix songs on a laptop.
I have got some acustics 220 watt speakers just need an amp and I am ready to go although only got the one vinyl at the mo :lol:
Mixer is Numark FX5000 I think it is meant for CDJ's but as long as I can cross fade and play with the bass etc it'll do me for now.
 
use the 'up' faders you much more control rather than the crossfader

that mixer looks crazy!

when you say mixed on a laptop i assume you mean all synced perfectly in the programme as you can use turntables/cdj's to control laptop software and do awful mixes totally out of time! The laptop corrects it only if you want it to haha
 
What do you mean looks crazy good or bad? It just came as part of the set up don't even know if it works yet :D Was considering whether it will be able to plug into my laptop to mix or not? Maybe I will change my mind if I can set it up but I can't fathom out how it would be connected?
 
just in design with that big jog wheel in the corner , never seen a mixer with that before. With laptops it depends what software u are using. You can take a line out the laptop which splits into rca cables. Or you might have a soundcard which has rca connections coming direct out of it
 
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