Backups: Are They Necessary?
The past few days I have been combing the various online DJ communities looking for ideas of what to write about, when I came upon one thread discussing the need for backups. The same sort of question has been raised at one time or another on every online DJ community I can think of, so the question itself did not catch my eye as much as the high number of views and less than a handful of replies. Curious, I clicked on the link to take a peek at the conversation.
One gentleman – presumably rather new to the Industry – asked if backups were really necessary to drag along. He also stated that he was going to simply shut down in the middle of his show because of the problems he was having with his laptop. His comments were followed up by a trio of other fairly new DJs asking what would be a good backup, etc. What I found to be truly dissapointing was the fact that there was no response from any of the folks that have been around for a while and/or knew better.
Anyway, to answer the question just in case anyone was wondering – it is a most definite yes. Yes you will need backups for all sorts of equipment, especially a CPS or a laptop. Not only will you need to have backup equipment, but you will also need to have a practiced plan in place for when you need to go to that backup too. Seriously folks, it’s really not rocket science and an emergency backup plan is just as important as a business plan.
So what do you do or use when your laptop sucks or your CPS keeps locking up?
The answer depends on what you have as a backup and how much planning you have put into it all. Ideally, if you are using a laptop, you should at the bare minimum have another laptop ready to go incase of emergency. Also for you laptop nuts out there, if your music library is on an external drive, it’s a VERY good idea to have a backup copy also plugged in – just in case. The same principal applies to anyone using a rack mounted, desktop/tower or even a lunch box CPS – have a second one ready to go for “it” hits the fan.
For those of you who do not have a second laptop or CPS, you can still use a CD Deck as a backup. Some controllers can act as a temporary back too – such as the Denon HD2500/4500 for example. Heck for that matter you could even use a tape deck or turntables as a backup, providing that you drag sufficient vynil or tapes along with you as well. But whatever it may be, the whole idea here is to definitely have a backup!
As far as a backup plan goes – have one! Know what you are going to do when you encounter a certain scenario and PRACTICE using it. Knowing that you are going to switch to using a CD deck when your laptop starts to suck is one thing, but being able to switch smoothly from one to the other only comes with practice. It also should go without saying that your backup should already be hooked up and ready to roll at the flip of a switch or throwing a fader to another channel on your mixer. Make it as easy and fool-proof as you can and your DJ business will be that much less stressful.
Have backup equipment. Have a plan to utilize that backup equipment when something goes afoul. Practice that backup plan so that you become familair with the procedure(s). Practice builds confidence and competence – and that helps to improve the public perception of the DJ Industry!
Tags: computer dj, digital dj, laptop dj
