From the old school

 



The world has changed quite a bit since I first considered DJing. Back when Utah Valley DJs 1.0 was formed in Ogden Utah most DJs used compact disks and there was a fair debate about the sound quality between a CD and the new and much easier to move around format of MP3.

I’ve read that MP3 was successful in condensing music files because it removed all the sound that humans could not hear and just kept the 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz range of sound that most people could hear. Of course, that prompted a debate that is older than MP3 files because audiophiles said they could tell the difference between CDs and MP3 which was just a continuation of an older debate about the difference between tapes and records or whatever the audiophile’s preferred method of listening was. Today this is why online lossless services like Tidal exist.

It was the wild west when UVDJs 1.0 was rocking MP3 files for Weber State Parties in the early 2000s. Digital Rights Management was in its infancy and anyone could just rip a CD and turn it into MP3s. Because everyone was listening to music in their cars on CD players this was fantastic because you could fit 100 MP3 songs on a CD that could only fit 20 or less wav files. Along with ripping music files came Napster, Lime Wire, Kazaa and a host of other peer-to-peer file sharing services that allowed people to share MP3 files. These services drew the ire of the record industry and Metallica famously sued Napster and won. The case became a cornerstone of how the Digital Millennium Copyright Act would be interpreted for online platforms.

It all went by so fast, in just 10 years we all went from CD cases in our cars, DJs carrying around huge CD collections and P2P file sharing to Apple releasing the first iPod and digital music becoming legit when Apple sold its first song on iTunes in 2003. Now DJs all have access to the same catalog of online music and we don’t have to carry around 100s of CDs to be able to take requests. Online music has made it easier to keep clean music and explicit music separate and ensure the vibe is right for the venue. It’s also made it easier for music creators to share their music without having to get a big record deal.

Today, Utah Valley DJs 2.0, is based out of Lehi Utah. We use a variety of music sources to keep our music fresh. In order to ensure it sounds great we invest in quality speakers from trusted manufacturers like JBL and Cerwin-Vega. Of course, this phase of music won’t last forever and we keep an ear to the ground to stay up to date on the current trends and offerings and ensure what we play along the Wasatch Front stays in line with our musical legacy.

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