Was this a bad DJ or am I being too critical?

[prof_fate]

I've been to a lot of weddings (100+) and some DJs are always good, some not, some crowds are tougher than others.

As I've decided to get into wedding DJ/mobile DJ i've taken a very keen interest in observing what/how DJs do their thing.

Last night I went with my wife to her 25th HS reunion. Since this wasn't a wedding and not in my state I figured it would be interesting to observe the DJ.

He played via a laptop and self powered EV speakers. He had 2 lights, both sitting on the table (with no skirt on it) - one pointed at the dance floor ceiling and one at the wall behind him.
He had a mixer but still adjusted the speakers often.
He had a wired mic for announcements..not as bad as the adults on charley brown but close.
Almost everyone we talked to complained he was too loud - being a HS reunion folks wanted to talk.
Over a 4 hour period I think people danced to 5 songs. He played only one slow set (near the end). Of the slow set - when the floor was the most full all evening, he played 2 songs and then changed tempo, which cleared the floor.
When folks were on the floor they were as far away from him/his speakers as possible (reinforcing my thoughts he was too loud)

MANY times he let a song nearly play out - the volume was dropping - and he started the new song the same way...this ALWAYS cleared the floor. "the song is over" and everyone sat down.
I saw to rhyme or reason to what he played - I'm used to 'similar' songs being played together - all 70s, or all 80s or the like. Playing a disco song followed by a club song just seems wrong to me.

He looked bored...he never sat down at least, but leaned often with both arms on the table and looked annoyed at time that nobody was dancing.
I don't know what they paid him and overall it was the worst managed reunion I've been to so that may be just how it is there.

So is there a time you don't want to be 'loud', or turn down the music?

[sdrthedj]

I don't usually chime in on these topics. Every DJ has their own style they sell to their clients. I try not to judge any of them, just like I hope they don't judge me! But, may be being a bit critical for a reunion

We don't know how much he charges, or if they paid him much at all? Could have been a relative or child of one of the atendees?

HIs setup sounds like it could have been borrowed or rented?
If he was adjusting the speakers a lot, even with a mixer, maybe he isn't really a DJ, or was using equipment he had no understanding of?
No need for wireless if other people are speaking....my 2 cents (I use my wired mic all the time during the night and keep the wireless on standby)
Too loud...can't say much about that, we have all been guilty of it at one time or another

If the song volume was starting to drop, it almost sounds like using an iTunes playlist on 'shuffle' and not having the fade in and out setting correct

If the reunion was poorly managed, that probably says a lot about the budget they had available

[allensmusic]

it depends.
was he given a list of songs to play?
was he playing requests?
was he paid top dollar, or was he the cheapest available?

If the event coordinator talked to him and said "I have a $150 budget, just play some songs" I would say they got more than there moneys worth.
If he was paid $1200 to please the crowd, they should probably sue him

[Galager]

If you are paid $150 or $1500 you should always give it 110%.

[allensmusic]

If you are paid $150 or $1500 you should always give it 110%.

and this might have been 110 percent of a $150 DJ

[RodneyL]

and this might have been 110 percent of a $150 DJ

Perfect reply.

[prof_fate]

I understand 'you get what you pay for' but when you hire a pro - be that a DJ or a furnace repair guy - you expect your 'problem' to be solved.

As in, isn't there a level of 'professionalism' and 'ability' that goes with offering your services professionally?

You may expect more from a $1200 Dj than a $150 one but isn't there an expectation of some kind at any price point?

I guess my question is, what IS that point? How 'bad' can you be and still 'get away with' charging? Or perhaps that could be rephrased to 'when are you ready to charge money?'

[JPelli73]

One observation I've made when attending events that I'm not working at:

You need a pretty good speaker system to have it sound good at low to moderate volume everywhere in the room.

Everyone assumes that the real test of a speaker system is whether it can crank at loud volume- but more than once I have had people compliment me on the quality of my cocktail/dinner/ceremony music, all of which require nice even room coverage and the ability to evenly broadcast both low and high frequencies even at levels that allow people to talk over the music. Self-powered Eons, for example, do not always excel at this.

Pelli

[MusicMix]

I have rarely been to an event in the last 20 years when I was not the DJ. The few I have been to I did find I was critical of the DJ. It is in us to find a problem with how others DJ as to make ourselves feel good about how we do it, human nature. Now, this person does not sound like he was presenting himself professionally nor did he have a clue how to work a crowd. Some people who DJ have it others do not. That said though, we can all confess to having one of those nights where the connection with the crowd has eluded us. Maybe this was such a night for him?

[Evil Steve]

Not really enough info to judge.
Doesn't sound like the way a reputable deejay would work an event.
If I find the budget isn't big enough to do the job the way it should be done, I don't do it.
Fact is, there's always some douchebag willing to take money to do a sub-standard job. The d-bag then turns it back on the client and wines that the budget wasn't big enough.
Eventually you realize that the budget is never big enough for the d-bag to do the job properly.
Nevertheless, potential clients don't seem to learn quick enough. Many just look at the price, not the value.
Those are the customers I don't want.