Over To You: Streamlining DJ Switchovers

Digital DJ Tips Reader DJ ANON writes: “My question is regarding DJ changeovers in busy DJ booth. As I’m sure your aware, one of the downsides of our craft now that there’s so many different set-ups is that we have to mess around behind a club mixer in a dark environment, and sooner or later, experienced or not, stuff’s gonna go down! I was wondering if you could provide any feedback on how to streamline this process – not necessarily dealing with the mixer as that’s pretty simple, but more tips on etiquette, the ‘fewer feet we tread on’ etc. “

Digital DJ Tips says

The first thing is to learn all about club mixers so you’re not caught out, and always have a torch (hint the torch apps on iPhones and other smartphones are great for this). Carry spare leads. Carry mains/AC adaptors. I find having your first tune prepared so you can hit “play” and be going gives you time while the previous DJ’s last tune is playing to set up. Don’t take his last two or three tunes fiddling around, which is bad form.

However, I am sure there are plenty of readers who handle digital gear switchovers week in, week out, and I’d love to get their opinions on this too.

So – over to you! How do you handle DJ switchovers, with all the varieties of modern DJ gear and the challenges that faces us with? Got any nightmare stories? I’d love you to share your tips and experiences in the comments.