When backup gear really isn't suitable

Proformance said:

This to me is a total crock. How is you operating from your cell phone any more impressive than the guy with a non-functional laptop? Both SCREAM unprofessional.

Everything after that is a fantasy. The transactional value of these events may be low, but that itself is not a measure of anyone providing them, and it's too transparent to be citing this as a way to elevate ourselves.

Even the best qualified IT and event people can get distracted by simple errors regarding a piece of gear. The only real fault this guy had was lack of another source device on site, and an unwillingness to accept help. Yes, he should have had a second device capable of doing whatever that PC was slated to do. (NOT just a cell phone.) Yes, he should have accepted the help that was offered.

The word "cheap" has no place in this context because we don't even know if there was any money involved at all. By analogy, are we going to call Rick "cheap" because he sings at a restaurant for a modest fee? He wants an audience and wants to be seen. If people who like to perform had to pay the venue for the performance space and time - many probably would! Example: Sawdust was perfectly willing to go home and get his own PC in order to make the performance happen despite no obvious monetary benefit to helping.

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I’ve done this in an emergency for a temporary situation, last week I ran the ceremony music through my iPhone, battery powered speaker battery powered mixer, and wireless mics running with the receiver powered by a portable power bank for a cel phone, I was paid well and they were very please I was able to accomplish this in a location nearly 2 miles from the nearest power

tunes4046 said:

I’ve done this in an emergency for a temporary situation, last week I ran the ceremony music through my iPhone, battery powered speaker battery powered mixer, and wireless mics running with the receiver powered by a portable power bank for a cel phone, I was paid well and they were very please I was able to accomplish this in a location nearly 2 miles from the nearest power

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My last wedding, they had the dinner in a permanent tent that has no power inside the tent. Very tight area with all the tables and chairs. They wanted me to introduce them into the tent, and then they were having their first dance in there.

I played music via my phone blue toothed to both Bose S1 Pros. I had my wireless mic. Played their intro song, introduction, and then played their first dance from my phone. Then dinner music off of my phone. It worked out great! My actual reception set up was under a large gazebo outside of the tent.

tunes4046 said:

I’ve done this in an emergency for a temporary situation, last week I ran the ceremony music through my iPhone, battery powered speaker battery powered mixer, and wireless mics running with the receiver powered by a portable power bank for a cel phone, I was paid well and they were very please I was able to accomplish this in a location nearly 2 miles from the nearest power

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DJ Ricky B said:

My last wedding, they had the dinner in a permanent tent that has no power inside the tent. Very tight area with all the tables and chairs. They wanted me to introduce them into the tent, and then they were having their first dance in there.

I played music via my phone blue toothed to both Bose S1 Pros. I had my wireless mic. Played their intro song, introduction, and then played their first dance from my phone. Then dinner music off of my phone. It worked out great! My actual reception set up was under a large gazebo outside of the tent.

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No offense intended, but I would not have taken either of these gigs.

Anyway this guy after 80 minutes not being able to get things working would have had me to leave. I can't sing a lick. My buddy does karaoke in a couple of places and he does a great job. No issues with his setups. He does other work as a DJ as well. He just did a gig on Saturday that his mentor couldn't do because he was in the hospital. What he did when it comes to doing karaoke, he found out how to do it. He set things up in his house to make sure he knew what to do to do karaoke. He even went to the bar that he does karaoke on Wednesday nights with his friend that showed him how to use their TV in the bar wirelessly to show the songs on the screen with the words.

Again I don't see this bar having that guy coming back to do anymore karaoke for that bar. Not every DJ is right for every job. Then there are those who never should have become a DJ. Just like some athletes who have been at their sport for years never to become a professional getting paid. Then there are those who were meant to be a DJ. Just like LeBron was meant to be a basketball player. Although he had natural abilities he still had to work hard at practice to become the super star he is today. I just found out he spends a million dollars a year on keeping his body in shape so he can still play at age 39 and still one of the best players in the game.

Proformance said:

No offense intended, but I would not have taken either of these gigs.

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In my case that’s $2500 you wouldn't have had, $500 of that was for the ceremony, and I’ve booked two more because I was able to provide this service to this couple, but then again you are a sound reinforcement company that occasionally DJs not a full service DJ company so it is understandable that you would not take a gig that requires a unique solution, I simply used gear I had and a little ingenuity for powering the mics

tunes4046 said:

In my case that’s $2500 you wouldn't have had, $500 of that was for the ceremony, and I’ve booked two more because I was able to provide this service to this couple, but then again you are a sound reinforcement company that occasionally DJs not a full service DJ company so it is understandable that you would not take a gig that requires a unique solution, I simply used gear I had and a little ingenuity for powering the mics

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As I said, no offense. (You know nothing about my DJ experience so, lets not try to steer that boat blindly.)

A cell phone and battery operated sound is just never going to be my way to approach a wedding ceremony.
Not as a DJ, or any other "company." There is plenty of money and opportunity so, no one is missing out on anything.
It's also the cell phone that I think is the greatest detractor, not the batteries.

I think the battery powered systems with mix inputs are great for musicians and solo acts. (Hence the retail category: Personal Monitor.)
DJs? not so much. We have no acoustic alternative. Risk is inversely proportional to the level of all-in-one functionality.

This thread began with an example of what can happen when all of our eggs are in one basket. 80 minutes or more to start karaoke - I think everyone will survive to sing another night. Events like weddings on the other hand, typically have high overhead site costs and limited use times. When we move batteries from backup to main supply - we are selling unstated risks. It works most of the time, but it's always just a matter of time.

Proformance said:

As I said, no offense. (You know nothing about my DJ experience so, lets not try to steer that boat blindly.)

A cell phone and battery operated sound is just never going to be my way to approach a wedding ceremony.
Not as a DJ, or any other "company." There is plenty of money and opportunity so, no one is missing out on anything.
It's also the cell phone that I think is the greatest detractor, not the batteries.

I think the battery powered systems with mix inputs are great for musicians and solo acts. (Hence the retail category: Personal Monitor.)
DJs? not so much. We have no acoustic alternative. Risk is inversely proportional to the level of all-in-one functionality.

This thread began with an example of what can happen when all of our eggs are in one basket. 80 minutes or more to start karaoke - I think everyone will survive to sing another night. Events like weddings on the other hand, typically have high overhead site costs and limited use times. When we move batteries from backup to main supply - we are selling unstated risks. It works most of the time, but it's always just a matter of time.

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Please do remember this. Bob has an ego larger than the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ. So if you're not doing things his way you're not doing it right and can't be good as me because I'm DJ God. LOL. I don't have an issue with how Tunes4046 handled that wedding. He saw what was needed and he got the job done. Way to go. Now Bob I Doubt you wouldn't do that wedding because there was no power source near by. I believe you wouldn't do it because it's beneath you and not paying the 10k you insist to be paid.

rickryan.com said:

Well, that sucks (for him). Troubleshooting is a fine art (sometimes) and gets magnitudes harder when you find yourself under the gun.

Speaking of problems (and Karafun), I had what I consider my first legit complaint last night. I'm using Karafun with a pro subscription. The singers get on a list, then come up to the stage when their name is called. I ask them what song, search it, then hit play. It's reasonably efficient and I've had very, very few songs I couldn't find a track for. Last night, several of the regulars got blasted on shots, including one of the more popular singers. She came up to sing and could barely stand up, much less sing. She tried to do a song and failed, she was just too drunk. She then went back to gripe to her boyfriend that I had "the wrong version". He in turn went to one of the officers and complained, who then (politely) came to me to ask me to find an alternative that would give them multiple choices per song. I'm kinda at a loss for words and don't see how it's possible for me, a the K-jock to know which particular version of every song I'm supposed to play. I was kinda hoping this little sit-down gig might roll for a while but maybe not. Any suggestions appreciated.

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Back when we did weekly karaoke events , we’d often have multiple versions of songs. But not always. Every once in a while we’d have someone who was asking for a certain version.

“Sorry, no, you’ll have to pick from the thousands we have. Guess you aren’t getting discovered tonight “

Love to help people when I can. But sometimes, it’s just impossible and need to move on.

tunes4046 said:

In my case that’s $2500 you wouldn't have had, $500 of that was for the ceremony, and I’ve booked two more because I was able to provide this service to this couple, but then again you are a sound reinforcement company that occasionally DJs not a full service DJ company so it is understandable that you would not take a gig that requires a unique solution, I simply used gear I had and a little ingenuity for powering the mics

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I’ll use whatever tool I need to get the job done. I’ve heard “professionals” years ago say they’d never use a computer…..then…they’d never use a laptop. That’s not professional Djing, they said.

iPads or iPhones aren’t my first choice for a variety of reasons. But would I use them? Absolutely.

I often use an iPad for a ceremony.

Proformance said:

As I said, no offense. (You know nothing about my DJ experience so, lets not try to steer that boat blindly.)

A cell phone and battery operated sound is just never going to be my way to approach a wedding ceremony.
Not as a DJ, or any other "company." There is plenty of money and opportunity so, no one is missing out on anything.
It's also the cell phone that I think is the greatest detractor, not the batteries.

I think the battery powered systems with mix inputs are great for musicians and solo acts. (Hence the retail category: Personal Monitor.)
DJs? not so much. We have no acoustic alternative. Risk is inversely proportional to the level of all-in-one functionality.

This thread began with an example of what can happen when all of our eggs are in one basket. 80 minutes or more to start karaoke - I think everyone will survive to sing another night. Events like weddings on the other hand, typically have high overhead site costs and limited use times. When we move batteries from backup to main supply - we are selling unstated risks. It works most of the time, but it's always just a matter of time.

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I don’t understand your issue with cell, the current generation of high end cell phones are as powerful as laptops from just a few years ago than many Still DJ with today, I turn of both cellular and wifi services to avoid interruptions, I’m basically using a mini computer playing songs of the internal hard drive a total of 4 in this case, it was actually a pretty minor component of this particular ceremony. More important was proper microphones for the officiant and various readers, I tested repeatedly and was 100% confident in the ability of this set up to perform far more than adequately

tunes4046 said:

I don’t understand your issue with cell, the current generation of high end cell phones are as powerful as laptops from just a few years ago than many Still DJ with today, I turn of both cellular and wifi services to avoid interruptions, I’m basically using a mini computer playing songs of the internal hard drive a total of 4 in this case, it was actually a pretty minor component of this particular ceremony. More important was proper microphones for the officiant and various readers, I tested repeatedly and was 100% confident in the ability of this set up to perform far more than adequately

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Check this out. The gloves are off. When is the last time Bob you've known Bob to give a compliment to someone on here? I can't remember it's been so long that I can't remember. What I see is he loves to put others down regularly so he can make himself look like he's a guarantee shoe in for the DJ Hall Of Fame.

Let there be love not hate.

tunes4046 said:

I don’t understand your issue with cell . . .

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I know you don't. Like the good witch said to Dorothy: "You had to learn it for yourself."

It's a blind spot to believe the issue is about technology.

Proformance said:

I know you don't. Like the good witch said to Dorothy: "You had to learn it for yourself."

It's a blind spot to believe the issue is about technology.

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Eventually you always turn into an ass, you have great knowledge but very poor delivery or extreme resistance to sharing that knowledge

tunes4046 said:

Eventually you always turn into an ass, you have great knowledge but very poor delivery or extreme resistance to sharing that knowledge

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Sounds like a juvenile hissy fit.
Other people don't owe you ANY knowledge posted on the internet. So let's add: Entitlement
I gave you an opinion, it's mine and I'm keeping it. You're free to argue about it with others.

Proformance said:

I know you don't. Like the good witch said to Dorothy: "You had to learn it for yourself."

It's a blind spot to believe the issue is about technology.

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Why is it a blind spot if someone thinks the issue is about technology?

Proformance said:

Sounds like a juvenile hissy fit.
Other people don't owe you ANY knowledge posted on the internet. So let's add: Entitlement
I gave you an opinion, it's mine and I'm keeping it. You're free to argue about it with others.

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No one owes anyone anything. Most people just choose to be not be rude more often than not when expressing their opinions because it’s a better way to live.

Let me say this because this is what I learned. When it comes to being a computer DJ there are things that you need for things to work and work the way they are supposed to. I use VDJ which requires me to use a laptop that has enough ram speed to properly run the program. I learned that of you don't have enough ram speed on your controller the program might work but you will get the program buffering. So what that means you will be playing a song and will skip while playing the song and that's not good.

So it is about technology meaning having the right tools for the job and knowing how to use the tools. Because you can have the right tools but if you don't know how to use it, it won't matter that you have the right tool.