FH is not really into the idea of getting a DJ. (he thinks they're cheesey & annoying) so i think we may just create one hell of a playlist on the iPod (no band). but now i'm second guessing this.
our wedding is already quite non-traditional, so the DJ thing didn't really come into the scheme of things, until I pictured our guests, which is going to be quite small (60). it seems a DJ can add a lot to the 'flow' of the event.
free your thoughts.
mdawg
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
Posted by dewdrop
FH is not really into the idea of getting a DJ. (he thinks they're cheesey & annoying) so i think we may just create one hell of a playlist on the iPod (no band). but now i'm second guessing this.
our wedding is already quite non-traditional, so the DJ thing didn't really come into the scheme of things, until I pictured our guests, which is going to be quite small (60). it seems a DJ can add a lot to the 'flow' of the event.
free your thoughts.
i would definitely suggest a DJ. what happens if something goes wrong with the iPod? do you reallyw ant to spend your wedding day trying to fix it? If you hire a DJ and something goes wrong, its THEIR problem.
They can be pricey, but ive also seen girls on here that have gotten GREAT deals on DJs...
Wintersbride
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
I would get a DJ. It's just easier and there is no work on your part. Think about it...who is going to stop the music or cue the music for special dances and cake cutting, etc. Plus DJ's have a great list of music, so if no one is dancing, they will know what to play to get everyone on the floor. IMHO, I think you'd regret it if you didn't get it. Music and food make or break weddings.
My sister just got married and used FM Entertainment. He was reasonable and very good. There are many affordable DJ's out there. If you want to cut costs, don't get the give-aways and big light set ups.
chrispar
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
Posted by Wintersbride
I would get a DJ. It's just easier and there is no work on your part. Think about it...who is going to stop the music or cue the music for special dances and cake cutting, etc. Plus DJ's have a great list of music, so if no one is dancing, they will know what to play to get everyone on the floor. IMHO, I think you'd regret it if you didn't get it. Music and food make or break weddings.
My sister just got married and used FM Entertainment. He was reasonable and very good. There are many affordable DJ's out there. If you want to cut costs, don't get the give-aways and big light set ups.
I agree
Snickers76
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
I had a small wedding-65 guests in a restaurant and I did not have a DJ. I created 5 CDs of songs from my ipod and played them over the sound system. The good thing about it was that the music really reflected us as a couple and our tastes in music and people noticed that. It saved us a lot of money--the cheapest quote I got was for 600 bucks just to play the music and announce the cake cutting. The bad part was that we didn't have the announcements, but it was not bad enough that I regret not getting one. I would say that if you are having dancing (which i did not), you may want to consider a DJ. If you are having more of a lounge-y , mingling type of vibe you should just go with the i-pod. Just have a back up (like another i-pod with the same list or CDs) and ask your venue if they have a sound system.
davenjess
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
We were going to do this - but our location does not lend itself to it. If you are going to go with the Ipod idea, make sure you have at least 2-3 to protect the God Forbid factor..and that they all have the same playlist. Speak to your location - they may be willing to make the announcements for you (2 of the locations we were considering had people who were fine doing it).
Go with what works for you - if you will be happy with the Ipod - go with the Ipod...
dewdrop
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
perfect!
there more than likely will be a dance floor, but we are the more mingley-to-music-that-speaks-to-us type couple, which is why we're debating the whole DJ idea.
i dont know that we'll do the typical dances. i did, however ALWAYS imagine dancing with my dad at my wedding, but it doesn't have to be announced & i dont have to be the only one dancing.
and a lot of my friends dont even dance, so their might be like 5 people i can think of right now that would submit to rump-shakin' action on the dance floor.
and the annoucements - what do they announce? us coming in? wont they know when they see the chick with the white dress? i dont get it.
jtgarsik
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
my cousin's DJ did everything off his ipod!!!! she was like 'I just should've done this myself!!! As long as u have a big enough speaker system it'll work great....especially 'cause it'll be all ur favorite songs. You just have to realize that you won't have an MC to introduce songs or say that a slow song is coming, or do any of the anouncments for the cake/garter stuff. If that doesn't matter to u , than go for it.
Cpt2007
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
one of my best friends had a very small and VERY non-traditional beach wedding in CA last september. their reception was in an old State Parks building that was entirely decorated by her and her sister (simple fabric with small lanterns hanging in front of the windows). They did not have a DJ either, and hooked up their iPod to their own AIWA stereo that they drove over from their house. Her sister (her MOH and only BM) made sure to wrangle the iPod when needed, but the guests (I think there were maybe 50 of us tops) knew what was going on and when, toasts went off without a hitch, as did the cake cutting and first dance. We had a blast as did everyone else. It was one of the most simple, organic and beautiful weddings I have ever been to. The only bad thing was that my camera batteries died and so I had to finish out the evening using my camera phone!
So, long story short, you can totally do it, and if you don't want a DJ, think through the other stuff, like announcements, dances, etc. You can totally time your dances with your toasts, which are very easy to do without having a mic'd announcer, you just tap the glasses and everyone looks!
Good luck!
dazies1011
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
I would do the dj and just tell him exactly what you want.
MissingTheBGene
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
Posted by Wintersbride
I would get a DJ. It's just easier and there is no work on your part. Think about it...who is going to stop the music or cue the music for special dances and cake cutting, etc. Plus DJ's have a great list of music, so if no one is dancing, they will know what to play to get everyone on the floor. IMHO, I think you'd regret it if you didn't get it. Music and food make or break weddings.
My sister just got married and used FM Entertainment. He was reasonable and very good. There are many affordable DJ's out there. If you want to cut costs, don't get the give-aways and big light set ups.
I totally agree. There are some great DJs out there for reasonable prices, I would at least look into it.
Snickers76
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
Posted by dewdrop
and the annoucements - what do they announce? us coming in? wont they know when they see the chick with the white dress? i dont get it.
For me, it would have just been the cake cutting--no one knew we were cutting the cake, but looking back on it I don't really care because our wedding was so non-traditional that announcing the cake of all things doesn't really matter. Though some people did say 'when did you cut the cake? You didn't announce cutting the cake?' But they were mostly the old folk who are used to that. As far as dancing with your Dad, you can do just like you said--just dance--it doesn't have to be announced.
A week after my wedding I went to a lavish, traditional wedding and the one thing I noticed was the cheesiness of the DJ. I made me love my homemade playlist even more.
Snickers76
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
By the way--where are you having your reception?
alymikewedding08
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
I vote NO to the ipod.. the DJ and MC can help motivate people to get up and dance.. they will do the announcements for u.. it's MUCH easier
emcheung
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
i think 60 people is a small and manageable group that you can skip the dj if you wanted. i think an ipod would be find for an informal affair. depending on where you're planning on having the reception you can choose accordingly. if you're having it in a restaurant, you can totally do the ipod thing. if you're doing it at a reception hall, you may want to splurge a little and go for a dj. i'm using fm entertainment and wanted the least amount of cheese at my wedding. we got the most basic package and was pretty darn affordable at that. you should check them out. frank is really good at his job.
luna bride x
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
if you have the money to spend on a dj.. i would do it. it's just one less thing to worry about.
CMaria81
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
I would go with a DJ. FH and I didn't want a cheesy DJ and we certainly didn't want one who was all in your face. The DJ we picked specializes in elegant understated affairs. No leis or maracas giveaways (no offense to anyone who likes that stuff, just not our thing) and no annoying MC making corny jokes or anything of the sort. I would look for a DJ like that if you are trying to avoid the cheese factor.
SOTHISISLOVE53109
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
Posted by chrispar
Posted by Wintersbride
I would get a DJ. It's just easier and there is no work on your part. Think about it...who is going to stop the music or cue the music for special dances and cake cutting, etc. Plus DJ's have a great list of music, so if no one is dancing, they will know what to play to get everyone on the floor. IMHO, I think you'd regret it if you didn't get it. Music and food make or break weddings.
My sister just got married and used FM Entertainment. He was reasonable and very good. There are many affordable DJ's out there. If you want to cut costs, don't get the give-aways and big light set ups.
I agree
I second this!!! Go with the DJ less work for you
BoxOfRocks
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
My brother and his wife used an iPod for their wedding a few weeks ago. They had about 80 people at their daytime, garden wedding in Charlottesville, VA. It was more of a mingling-type receiption rather than a typical reception and the only dancing was their first dance. They had a pretty good speaker system and a friend checking in with the iPod every now and then to make sure it was running OK as well as another friend who acted as emcee. It's doable, but as the pps suggested, price it out with some DJs to see if it's within your budget. GL.
KiTTeN0819
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Re: iPod in lieu of DJ?
I would do a DJ. I went to a friends wedding a couple of weeks ago and since their families werent big into dancing they just told the DJ to make the standard announcements and they gave him a strict lists of songs to play. So there was no cheese, just your basic guy playing music. I know this all could have been accomplished with an iPod, minus the announcements, however after everyone had a few drinks in them, we decided it was time to dance and we asked the DJ to crank it up and play some 80 dance hits. We had a ball and it was very nice they had the option to do that instead of relying on the iPod.
