| The barriers to becoming a DJ are very low. Anyone | | | | being more realistic, you should lace up your Nike's and |
| can go and buy some second hand equipment some | | | | start running. |
| MP3's or CD's and set them self-up as a DJ. So what | | | | At the £150 to £250 range you should be asking |
| tell-tale signs can you look for to separate the wheat | | | | yourself what type of quality will the sound equipment |
| from the chaff? | | | | be? Quite possibly muffled and rough. What about the |
| Price | | | | light show? It may be low end and uncoordinated. |
| A good DJ values his skills and time and will price | | | | What about the look and feel of your DJ rig? It may |
| himself accordingly. Let me put it to you this way: Let's | | | | look dated and be several years old. You should also |
| say you have been looking at wedding caterers and | | | | consider the music - at this end of the market you |
| most have quoted you around £25 per head, then | | | | may only get a very narrow track selection. |
| you come across someone willing to provide your | | | | Put another way, if you were going to hire professional |
| wedding breakfast at £4.99 per person; alarm bells | | | | DJ equipment from a store you would roughly pay |
| should be ringing very loudly in your head, and you | | | | 10% of its value, therefore as a guideline, a professional |
| should run a mile! It's the same with your wedding DJ. In | | | | DJ will price himself at at least 10% of the value of his |
| my experience if you want a good quality, | | | | equipment plus a fee for his time and performance |
| experienced DJ with industry standard sound and light | | | | and any assistant he may have to help setup and |
| equipment the minimum you should pay is around | | | | break down his rig. This is a good guide to the overall |
| £400; anything less is either a genuine bargain or | | | | worth of your DJ. |