Renting DJ equipment is a strategy I’ve used to save time and hassle, and to increase my DJ business. Let me give you some quick insight on how renting gear can help you.
Why rent gear?
There are a couple reasons I have turned to rental gear in my DJ career. The first is when I need it for an event and I just don’t have it. Maybe an extra set of speakers or adding a subwoofer. If I just need it for a limited time, there’s not much reason to own it and store it.
I also rent gear that I want to offer as a service, but I’m not sure that I want to offer permanently. This is a great way to add potential upsell services to your DJ business without investing up front. I had great success with uplighting. I found a company online that would ship a rental to my house for a good price. Now I offer uplighting on my website with a small markup per light for setup. Instant product, no upfront investment!
You can also rent gear for practicing or to try before you buy. If you are working an event in a club or somewhere else that already has DJ gear, you may want to rent a similar setup so you can get familiar with it in advance. This is a great method for DJs trying to break into the club scene. Many professional DJ settings have fairly standard DJ equipment, usually CDJs and a mixer. You can also find equipment that you want to buy and rent it first, either to test it out at home or maybe bring it to an event. That way you can see it in action and know if it will work for your company.
Finally, the biggest reason I rent gear is for out-of-town events. I’ve DJ’ed for friends and family at weddings and parties across the country. There’s no way I can get all of my gear on a plane. So I just pack up my laptop and headphones and have them rent the rest from a local company.
Where to rent gear
Many of your local music stores will rent out DJ equipment. I’ve found a lot of great stuff at Guitar Center. They typically rent good quality speakers, mixers and DJ controllers. These are usually your cheapest ways to rent gear. I’m usually quite pleased with their low prices. The only drawback is that this gear tends to see a lot of usage, so it can be pretty worn depending on where you are getting it from.
You would be wise to go check it out before you need it for an event. You may also have to pick it up from the store yourself, so make sure you’ve got a way to transport it and get it back on time. I found most of the Guitar Center staff didn’t know how to work the rental desk, so I had to call a few times to book my reservation and verify the gear I was getting. I needed plenty of extra time to pick up and return the gear as well. Each trip took about an hour, plus the time I spent playing with demo gear :).
You can also ask around other local DJs to see if anyone would rent you their setup. A web search for “[City Name] DJ Rentals” will find you lots of options. I got a great deal from a local DJ for my sister’s wedding. He was advertising gear rental on his website. He also offered no security deposit, because he would deliver and set up the gear himself. No deposit and free delivery? SOLD! If I ever rent my own equipment, I will use this exact same model. I’m happy to drive out and set up my gear, because I know it will be done right and taken care of in transit.
What to rent, what to bring
If you’re doing an out-of-town event, you’ll need to rent the big stuff. After that, it’s really a matter of what you can get there versus what you can get on the plane. I’m flying out to San Jose to DJ my other sister’s party in a few weeks. I’ve got speakers lined up through Guitar Center, but now I’m debating the rest of the gear. I’m considering renting a controller from them as well, but the prices are a bit steep. I may bring my laptop and controller on the plane in a padded case because they are within carry-on limits. Many airlines will let you have larger musical instruments as carry-on as well.
However, I am dreaming about just turning up with my headphones and USB drive, and plugging into a nice set of CDJs. It would be a great opportunity to practice on some club-level gear that I haven’t had a chance to learn on before. And, given the low risk of a family event, I won’t be too stressed about using strange gear.
Post Event Update
I ended up renting speakers and a DJ controller for the San Diego event, and just packed my laptop, headphones and small connecting cables. I am SOOOOO glad that I got a weekend rental and picked up the gear the night before the event.
Once I got the gear, I had two major issues to work out in advance. First, I could not get the crossfader to work on the controller. The slider cap was missing, so it’s possible that I couldn’t find the right setting, or it was just broken.
Second, I completely forgot that DJ software is licensed by the controller and not by the computer. I had a few options to connect to the Pioneer XDJ-R1 that I rented. I have both Virtual DJ and Traktor installed, but none of them worked very well. Luckily there was a 30 day free trial of rekordbox Performance mode that bailed me out. I could have also just played off the USB drive that I brought. Lesson learned here: have multiple backup options and get the gear early to completely test your setup.
Watch your costs
Some of these rentals can be very reasonable, and some can get out of hand very quickly. It’s wise to do your research in advance and know what all of your costs are going to be. Watch out for extra fees too, like late fees and deposits. Make sure you know exactly what you will need to do to get all of your deposit money back, like cleaning, return times, etc. You don’t want to be hit with a surprise bill that eats up all of your hard-earned income from an event.
Be sure to give yourself enough time after the event to return the gear, and be aware of store hours. You’re not going to be able to drop the equipment off at 3 AM when you finish, so make sure you can get it back once the store is open and before it’s late. Many times, I just end up doing a weekend rental if it’s not much more cost. That way, I can get the gear early and have plenty of time to return it. And, if it’s something fun like lighting or a new controller, I have some time to practice before the event to get comfortable and after the event to improve my skills.
In Summary…
Renting gear is a great way to expand your business or increase your skills without making a big investment. And, it’s the only way to perform far away without bringing everything you own. Take a look at some of your local rental options as well, so you can be prepared if you ever need something at the last minute.
