Only one turntable - Sound Systems - why?

[Dadi Digi (at home)]

Good topic. Only reason I have 2 decks is to mix in the modern one riddim 45's. Outside of that I would happily (and have) played with 1 deck only. I love to hear the crackly run in on a chune followed by the drum intro. Old style is the best for me, maybe it's a age thing.

Its all good still.

[munky lee]

each record has more importance when played by only one deck during a dance. each record has its own silence before to start.

[ital steppah]

Good to hear people still using the old pre direct drive decks.
Belt drives give you much more fine turning on the pitch control, you have to have at least pitch control playing reggae.My old goldring lenco spring to the turning of the deck went and sorted it out with a bit of string and the good old sticky tape,As my deck has set speeds of 16 rpm for dubpltes before any one asks.33 rpm 45 rpm and 78rpm, now ive got my string and sticky tape i can get from 4rpm to 120rpm which no direct drive can never do.Also the decks not fixed into the outer case so you can put a weight such as a stone now earthed the deck for extra bass and when the tune ends you get the bass there as a frequencey which is a whole other area such as bass how low can you go 20hz or less can be damergin for your health and insides so it has to be used wisely.some says guidance from jah.Two decks are mainly for mixing and was from the hip hop times.Every hour you have to wind up my old goldring how longs a piece of string 3 dubplates long 12 dubplates long.I think the new djs dont know how to use one deck but think their experts on two run before you can walk.
peace and guidances

[Chocolate Soldier]

Good to hear people still using the old pre direct drive decks.
Belt drives give you much more fine turning on the pitch control, you have to have at least pitch control playing reggae.My old goldring lenco spring to the turning of the deck went and sorted it out with a bit of string and the good old sticky tape,

The Lenco - Do you use it to play out on? How does it perform?

[steve rice]

i've used one years ago and it was okay albeit a bit delicate with that weight hanging from a bit of thread...not the easiest thing to move about..for "flick of my wrist" style you can't beat the 4hf at shoulder height...looks good too

[Chocolate Soldier]

I got a Lenco Goldring a while ago as a cheap beater deck but was surprised at how good it sounds,
I've also read they don't like getting transported - its apparently easy to damage some rubber 'cones' or something to that effect which part of the tonearm sits on ..

[ital steppah]

Like all the old decks trainsporting them is easy as i am a carpenter you just build boxes for them and put foam in them.I think the thorens mk1 mk11 and others are more sterdy than the lence but it comes down to how careful you are.Since my lenco needle arms missing i put a small bit of wood for a needle arm.Its the same with lee perrys stuff done on a four track cassette format and they say hes one of the best produces on very basic stuff.Its what you have and how you use it and get the best out of what youve got.Reggae was always poor mans music.
Peace and guidance

[Chocolate Soldier]

Foam-lined box,
Good idea!

FWIW LSP wasn't using cassette 4trk format it was reel to reel,
I forget exactly but think something like TEAC 2340,
Not a 'professional' recorder by any means but still a big step up in quality from cassette 4 trk...

Also note - he had a very nice recording space, ok mics, very nice desk (Soundcraft Series II) and some of the greatest reggae musicians in history to work on the sessions...especially the last element helped a lot in the equation I think ..

TEAC 2340

[ital steppah]

My point is that new recording stuff does not come close to the old properly made mixing desks or reel to reels echos and turntables.
When peery wasnt in other studios he first started with a 4 track cassette then transfered it onto to reel to reel.You cant recreate the old equipment sound with digital stuff, just like the roland tr-808.
Peace & guidance

[FATMAN SOUND]

hmmmmm When using one deck inna dance, the selector has to have confidence in his selection, he has to know his playing order inna sort of start, middle, end type of fashion, when using one deck as a selector you dont have to work as hard because 9 times out of 10, because your using one deck, your sure to make the track play longer hence less work for the selector, but at the same time not any easier.. . the time he takes to change from one tune to the other is very important. he can pause after a track, to clear the air . Then comes the big tune, not just the tune but the selectors timing has made this particular tune effective. To be able to play on one turntable is just as important to able to play with two. Listening to an experienced selector with two turntables is a great experience, having the skill to blend in one track to another without dropping a beat, having the music just flowing almost effortlessly is something that would impress me. It also depends on what type of session you are working on, but i believe you should be able to adapt.. nuff respects flip.....

[ital steppah]

I agree, it depends what sort of dance for that night,like you may have some dubplates on cd, so you change for decks to cds.Also if you have more than one selector its easier to use direct drives decks.I know the old belt drives are more differcult to record from inna dance and youd be lucky to get a clean recording not put through the rig.That helps when you dont want the crowd to record it.minidiscs and mp3 recorders are used but it dosent have the same effect or quality as cassette waslkmans with compressors built in.The digital compressors dont work in the same way at all.
BARE FOOT PUNS PON D ITAL STEPPAH 83 STRUGGLE FARI & I & I & I
Peace & guidance

[Axis]

Twin decks have been around since the 40s, ive seen twin 78rpm only decks built into oak coffin boxes.
I usually use one deck for a number of reasons. Firstly, its less to carry, takes up less space in small venues, especially if the rest of your gear is stacked under that one deck, It puts me in the situation where I have to talk to the punters, even if im not really in the mood for it, but makes all the difference to the crowd by connecting properly. Playing one deck breaks up pounding bass lines and relaxes your ears and gives your brain time to reflect and anticipate. I also love traditional values. More focus on each individual 45 rather than stringing together, almost making each record sacred in its own right.
Saying all this, I still use two somtimes, when I have a guest DJ who likes to use two, or I feel like playing out some LP tracks for a change.
There is no right or wrong way, just your preffered way.

[ital steppah]

When using two decks there is still gaps between records its how you use them.Its like a boxing match where you have however many seconds at the end of a round, and if you are a dancer hard shanking you like a little breather before the next tune.But since dances dont go on till 6am going way back 10-11am the next morning the djs dont have to rush to cram it all in like a showcase for themsleves.In the early 80s the hip hop djs where using 5 6 7 turntables for one dj to mix on.It was a big thing then.I think the record got up to 10 turntables by one dj mixing champion.The good old days.
Peace & Guidance

[garymcghie]

Neville King Sound System and all Sound Systems From Brixton used to only play with one deck even if it was a twin deck console the Left Deck was always covered up with a shallow box, That was because if you used both you would be called a Disco and people would not take the sound System seriously, Also back then we used to play the B-Side Instrumental Version first and the with the Flick-Of-The-Wrist the A-Side Vocal, It was done so fast and smooth you had to listen very carefully to hear the join, Neville King Sound was the first Sound System to give Jah Shaka his first outing in a blues dance in Arlingford Road Brixton, He only had Two speakers at the time, And Blacker Dread along with (Keith Graham aka Levi Roots, Reggae Reggae Sauce) was in our Sound System at the time.

Also it might have been very expensive to run two decks at the same time because the stylus (Sure MD3 Very Robust Needle) was very expensive to buy, The most popular turntable was (Garrard SP25) All metal construction was great because you could have a speaker next to it and it would not Vibrate, Skip or Feedback no matter what the vinyl condition

[dan i dubdub]

When I first started DJing reggae music it was the 90s, but still it had to be one deck business as usually only one of them worked at the club! There were also quite a few MCs. Glad I had that exposure to the craft as it has stood me in good stead over the years. I still prefer just one