introduction
deck positioning
deck stand
speaker position
monitoring
stylus/needles
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introduction :

Deck Positioning

It is often forgotten or overlooked that the decks themselves can be altered depending on the type of DJ-ing you do and where your emphasis for your mixing style lies. 

If your mixing heavily favours beatmixing such as house, trnace, hardcore or most genres with four thumps in a bar, using the traditional setup allows easy access for all functions, the stop/start button and pitch controls for example. 
Turntablism and hip hop require a lot moer emphasis on scratching where the pitches are still used but not necessarily for every mix. The design of the deck can hinder the DJ if there is a great deal of hands-on work that is required. Deck setup can be altered to accomodate this and is something defnitiely worth considering.

Traditional Deck and Mixer Set-up

This is very much the standard setting in most DJs bedrooms and most clubs. The decks are positioned as you would expect them to be with all functions at the front all with easy access. The hinges for the lid sit at the back as you'd expect them to.
This will suit any DJ who will do, dare I say it "standard" mixing. Approx half of the record between 6 o'clock through 9 o'clock and up to 12 o'clock can be utilised by the DJ with his/her vinyl hand. You may find when scratching (especailly if you hold the vinyl near the centre of the record that as you pull the sample back, you clonk the needle and send it flying. Done that once or twice. In a club......)

Tournament and Battle Set-up

This is favoured by turntablists where both dexx are rotated through 90 degrees to move the arm of the turntable to the back. It makes the pitch sliders difficult to get at but allows much greater access to the vinyl itself. There is less chance of knocking the needle whilst beat juggling or scratching which reduces the likelihood of the record skipping. Turning the deck also lessens the width of your setup, especially useful if space you have is tight. This thought is particuarly applicable when designing your own deck stand. (See next section for more info)
The surface available to the DJ's has increased to approximately three-quarters with the only no-go area being now between 11 o'clock and 2 o'clock, approx a quarter of the record. This means both hands can be on the same bit of vinyl performing hand- trickery that would leave David Blaine looking rather green with envy. The needle is out of the way and is less likely to get knocked but those flailing flanges.

L-Shape Set-up

I'm not sure exactly what this would be called but is a mixture of both traditional and battle set ups. One deck is rotated through 90 degrees with the other left facing forward. This would be good if you scratch and perform the tricks in your arsenal on one deck only. I tend to scratch with my left hand on the vinyl and right on the fader so this would suit me. Obviously it would be reversed if I used my hands the other way round. It gives the best of both worlds without too much inconvenience of both pitches being at the back so you don't have to lean over the decks so much when doing "normal" mixing.

Siamese or Twin Deck Set-up

I've no idea what this is called but its been named like by me for it's obvious reasons! Both decks are positioned so they are touching (hinges to the left). It is the joint narrowest of setups so again worth considering if space is tight. It means both decks have maximum availability to both of the DJs hands but also has the added bonus that your vinyl hand stays on the same left side (or right should you prefer) no matter which deck you are using. The fader stays on your preferred right hand at all times which is marvellous.

So whats the benefit?
You don't have to be ambidextrous and make learn everything twice and be equally good at vinyl and fader accuracy on both hands. You only need to re-learn to work the fader from both sides, your vinyl hand will just work as normal, always on the left. You have cut the amount of learning by half already and at this stage as your vinyl hand should be pretty accurate anyway. All you need to do is retrain your fader hand to work in reverse and from both ends. It's almost like adopting mixing with a mixture of traditional fader and hamster-fader. A bizarre concept and a brain teaser I'm sure. See the mixer section for more details on the hamster setup and a better explanation.

I've only seen one DJ adopt this setup but he seems to have got it done pretty well sorted! Check DJ Crazy B (France) at the Technics DMC World Final DVD/videos, 1997/8 especially.

And Finally.........

You could also have traditional setup but bung the mixer on either end. This would make reaching the mixer to the furthest deck especially difficult (and could enhance pulling a muscle you didn't know you owned) but I can see no beneficial reason as to why anyone would do this. It therefore doesn't warrant a picture and was not really worth mentioning but it's a bit late for that now! You've read it. Look how keen you are!! I like you to know I've thought about the depth of content I put here!

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