Many of our brides and grooms are catching on to the trend of DJing own wedding with their IPods. The reasons for this shift are being attributed to a number of things, including the rising costs of having a wedding while for some music may not be as important to spend the huge budget and others find wedding a great day to play their own choice of music collection.

Now, to be fair, an iPod isn't going to do some of the normal job functions that a DJ might do for you at a wedding. DJ does much more than playing music. She or he helps a wedding flow smoothly, emcees the wedding reception, and makes sure that people are out on the dance floor having fun.

Before you decide to forego hiring a DJ for your wedding, beware-- Do-it-yourself DJing is more complicated and costly than you might think. Here’s why:

• You might think that you’re saving money by using your iPod, but unless you already own a great sound system, you’re going to have to rent one. Some of the equipment you will need to rent includes speakers, speaker stands, amplifiers, a subwoofer, cables, mixer, wireless microphones for toasts and speeches.
• Lighting equipment is another important part to any reception—without it you will have no ambience on the dance floor!
• You will be responsible for moving all the equipment, setting it up, taking it down, and it is a lot of work! Do you know how to set up and take down DJ equipment and a PA system?
• Do you own all of the music that you intend to play? You’ll have to pay to purchase the most-requested songs that the guests want to hear. Bottom line is that you will usually get a greater selection of music with a professional DJ.
• With an iPod, you don’t get the timing or beat-mixing and fading that a professional DJ does. This can lead to awkward moments on the dance floor as people have to stop dancing to wait for the next song.
• The DJ serves as a master of ceremonies of sorts—who are you going to get to fill this role? Without it, your wedding reception will be a disorganized mess.

If you’re worried that a DJ is going to do something you won’t like or play songs you don’t want to hear, tell them! You are paying them for your service. The wedding is one area of your life that you don’t want to skimp on. Don’t risk ruining it with an iPod.

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