I'm becoming a DJ and before I start, I need to make a decision: should I use a Small Form Factor PC or a Laptop? I've been considering this, and I can't decide. Please give your input.

I'm becoming a DJ and before I start, I need to make a decision: should I use a Small Form Factor PC or a Laptop? I've been considering this, and I can't decide. Please give your input.

 

What do you need it to do, and more importantly, how small and lightweight do you need it to be? I assume, as a DJ you have other pieces of equipment, so the fact that you have to carry something and set it up anyway isn't much of an inconvenience?

The laptop have a huge advantage: it will not stop in case of power failure. If you have no main supply for let's say 1 second, with a laptop the music will come back after 2 to 3 seconds (time for the amplifiers to restart), while with a SFF you'll need to reboot... That's at least 30 seconds of silence

 

You never expect a power failure, but it happens quite often.

Depends what you want to do with it. I use computers on stage a lot. for a static installations I have a custom built tower PC, on site all the time. When I'm working on the road, i try to keep everything as light-weight and simple as possible, and so use a lap-top computer. As ndx mentioned; it can still run without power (for a while) i.e. i can set up the rig, off-stage, then un-plug it, wheel it all on-stage and plug it in again.

 

I did once use a huge tower pc with keyboard, mouse and CRT monitor, for touring work. setting that lot up on-stage with a 15 min act turn-around was a freekin nightmare!

 

If it were me, I'd build a custom flight-case - on wheels - with all the internal wiring pre-rigged.

e.g. A wheeled flight case in which I have my computer, microphones, mixer, EQ and amplifiers ready to go right out of the box.

You just wheel it on-stage, plug your speakers in (Or have a stereo DI XLR box for the venues sound engineer) and then "rock the joint!"

 

Three things I've leant from 20 years of touring; keep it simple, put it in a flight-case, have wheels!