8 Items Every DJ Will Be Thankful They Have

by Chris Brower
Last Updated: November 24, 2021

In a separate article, I discussed every piece of equipment wedding DJs typically need. Much of that is going to be obvious: speakers, microphones, cords, etc. But here are some of the more unusual, or at least less expected, items that every DJ will be thankful they have.

Hand Truck/Dolly

You can carry in every piece of equipment from your car to the wedding reception room or ceremony spot, but it’ll kill your back. It’ll also take tons of time, as you’ll have to make several trips. That’s what I did my first year in business.

Then I wised up and got myself a good hand truck/dolly from a hardware store, a converter one that lets it go from a two-wheel dolly to a four-wheel cart. (The two-wheel configuration makes it easier to fit it in a car.) The Harper Trucks hand truck and dolly* could work well for you.

I can place my two plastic tubs of cords/mixers/microphones on the cart and stack the two speakers on top (and the speaker stands on top of those) and easily push the cart into the reception venue (assuming it’s handicap accessible and doesn’t have steps). (However, be careful when stacking things on the cart, as bumpy sidewalks/streets can make things get bumped off the top.)

Here’s a photo from a recent job, where I put a plastic tub (full of cords, a mixer, etc.), a speaker, two speaker stands, and my light stand on the cart.

Wow, this has made things so much easier! Much less back pain and much quicker in/out of weddings.

Plus, it’s easy to forget how many times in everyday, non-DJ life a cart can really help you: moving boxes and other items into a new apartment or home, moving heavy purchases from your car to your home (groceries, furniture you just bought, etc.), packing quickly for a camping/road trip, etc.

Note: If your cart’s tires will ever need air, be sure to get a pump as well to carry with your equipment.

Cable Ties

You’re going to have a lot of cords, with many of them snaking across the floor or your DJ table. Cable ties are a great way to clean up your cords’ appearance and keep things organized. Plus, if you’re running cords down a stand, such as down a speaker stand or light stand, cable ties can be used to secure the cable to the stand and keep things neat and tidy. You don’t want the bad look of cables hanging all over the place, messy, big tangles on the floor, etc. Clean it up! Cable ties will help.

Ready for the complete guide to becoming a wedding DJ? Here you go.

Gaffer Tape

In a similar vein, gaffer tape can help clean up your cords’ appearance when cords are on the floor. It’s also essential for safety.

For any cords that are potentially in an area where someone might walk—including you—tape them down using gaffer tape. This makes it less likely that someone will trip and fall and get injured—and sue you!—and it looks a lot better.

Duct tape will leave a sticky residue on the cord (and your hands). That’s why gaffer tape is the better choice, as it usually doesn’t leave behind any kind of stickiness. (Note: On a blisteringly hot day outside, I have had it leave some residue but generally no.)

Liability Insurance

This is not a piece of equipment but something you’ll want to buy in time for your first event: general liability insurance. This essentially covers you if someone sues you because of an injury or accident.

Say someone trips on one of your cords, gets injured, and sues you. (Of course, do everything possible to make this not happen, such as taping down your cords with gaffer tape, as mentioned earlier!) Liability insurance will help cover you and avoid financial ruin.

I currently use the DJ liability insurance from Insurance Canopy.

It’s similar to car insurance, home insurance, etc. It’s there just in case. While you could skip this, it’s risky. Additionally, many venues require their vendors to have liability insurance. Thus, if you don’t have it, you can’t do the event, potentially missing out on $1,000 or more. Luckily, it’s often not that expensive, say $199/year. Get it and be safe.

USB Hub

Your laptop might only have one or two USB ports, so having a USB hub is typically necessary.

It’s a bit like a power strip but for USB cords (though it doesn’t give power). It’s a way to plug several USB cords into just one USB port.

At least in my case, my audio interface connects to the computer by USB and so does the DJ controller.

If for any reason, I need to plug in my phone to my laptop or connect an external hard drive or anything else, then I definitely need more USB inputs. Luckily, a USB hub with four or more slots makes this possible, and then the other end of the port takes up just one USB slot on my laptop.

Here’s that in action: the gray piece with “Belkin” on it is my USB hub. You can also see how I used cable ties to tidy up some cords on my table (the long cord from the controller to the USB hub, plus the long cord from the audio interface to the laptop).

Note: Since first writing this article, I upgraded laptops to the 2020 Macbook Pro. One challenge was this laptop no longer has the typical USB ports but instead Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) ports. So I then needed an adapter to connect my normal USB cords to the laptop.

Two options I’ve used to solve this problem:

Apple MJ1M2AM/A USB-C to USB Adapter – This helps you connect just one typical USB cord to a Thunderbolt port. You can then connect another USB hub to that, like the Anker 4-Port USB 3.0 Hub.
Selore&S-Global 7 in 1 Macbook Pro Adapter – This is a USB hub, plus other connections, that can plug into two Thunderbolt ports. There are many hubs like this that offer the possibility to plug a variety of things into the Thunderbolt ports.

Tablecloth

Every now and then I’ll do a wedding or other event where they don’t have a tablecloth for my DJ table. (Generally, this should be provided for you.) Maybe they didn’t use them on the other tables, or they simply forgot about the DJ table and have run out.

That’s why it’s not a bad idea to carry a tablecloth with you. Not only do tablecloths look nice, they also can help hide what’s below your table, usually a bunch of cords and power strips.

I use a black KAITATSU SEN tablecloth, and it’s worked nicely.

Glow Sticks

Here's a simple way to make people ecstatic: Give them glow sticks.

Once the dancing portion of the night starts, I pass them out to the couple and their guests. I also leave a pile near the front of my DJ table for people to grab more. People seriously get super excited! I’ve even gotten compliments specifically about the glow sticks in the reviews people leave me online.

It’s a nice touch that people get particularly excited about, and they’re relatively inexpensive, so I’m happy to keep providing them.

They also look good in photos, such as these wedding reception photos, and are another way to stand out from other DJs.

Speaker and Stand Cases

I didn't have cases for my original speakers and stands. And you know what happened to those? They got really scratched up! Moving equipment in and out of venues, your car, and your home makes it likely they're going to get scratched at some time. It didn't take long for them to look embarrassing and unprofessional.

So when I upgraded my DJ speakers, I got cases for them too. I also got new speaker stands that came with cases. And guess what? Now my equipment has continued to look much nicer!

No matter how awesome of a DJ you are, if your equipment looks crummy, it's going to make you look a little crummy too.

Conclusion

As you DJ more and more weddings, you'll realize little things (and sometimes big things) that can make your life as a DJ much easier and better. It's not always the fancy new piece of technology or the hottest new speakers on the market. Sometimes it's a small thing or something not totally obvious that can greatly improve things for you and your wedding DJ business.

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