What To Look For When Hiring A Karaoke System?

By DerekJay Entertainment, specialists in Wedding DJs, Jukebox Hire & Karaoke Hire

So you’ve taken the leap and decided that you’re going to hire a karaoke system for your upcoming party – good choice! You’re sure to have an evening of good fun and laughs, and of course, a few ear aching performances. Now you need to make a decision as to which karaoke hire company or service to go with – no easy task.

There are plenty of karaoke providers out there, and they’re all promising that their system is the best. Here are a few tips to keep in mind when making your karaoke hire decision…

The first thing to look for when hiring a karaoke machine or a karaoke DJ (often called a KJ) is song selection. You want to make sure that the service provider that you choose has a large song selection (some karaoke hire companies have over 5,000 songs in their collection). Keep in mind the kind of guests you will have at your party – young, old, black, white – all with different musical tastes. Therefore, you need to make sure that not only does the karaoke provider have a large collection, but that it is varied enough for everyone’s tastes.

The next thing you want to look at is the equipment itself. If you are hiring the equipment (the karaoke machine) and not the full karaoke and DJ setup, you want to be sure that it’s really simple and easy to use. Touch-screen is the best option, as it always uses a very basic interface. Remember, it’s no use having the karaoke facility at your party and not knowing how to use it. The best way to avoid this scenario is to request a demo of the unit. Try it out and make sure you’re comfortable with it. Another option is to look for video demonstrations on the karaoke hire company’s website. Professional karaoke hire companies even provide comprehensive instruction manuals with their machines.  On the topic of equipment, you also want to make sure that the sound system sounds good and that it is loud enough for your intended purpose.

An important question to ask your prospective karaoke hire company is whether or not there is a cut off time. Do they collect on the night (say, at midnight), or do they collect the next day? Obviously, the best option is next day collection, as you will be able to party until whatever time suits you, and not have to worry about when the karaoke hire company will be arriving to collect!

Some other questions that you might want to ask are:

Does the karaoke machine work on discs?
Often the machines work on discs, which means you need to constantly find the song, then find the right disc, and then insert it into the karaoke machine. This is quite honestly a pain, and usually the discs will be scratched and jumpy. Avoid karaoke machines which use discs.

Does the karaoke machine have normal music as well?
Quality karaoke machines offer a normal music selection as well. Remember, you still need background music for the early phase of the evening, and for in between karaoke performances, or perhaps even dancing. Try to get a karaoke machine that has normal music pre-loaded as well.

Does it have volume control?
Believe it or not, a lot of karaoke machines don’t have this basic feature. You may want to turn the music up or down, but won’t be able to if there is no control. Make sure this feature is available.

Is the karaoke machine upgradeable?
Are you able to hire an extra microphone, or speaker, or perhaps some disco lighting. These are great extras and go a long way in ensuring a “party” atmosphere. Check if the karaoke hire company offers these extras and at what rate.

Keeping these essentials in mind when choosing a karaoke hire company or KJ will ensure that you get the best-suited option for your party or event. Remember to ask the questions mentioned here and you’re sure to avoid the big pitfalls commonly encountered when shopping around for karaoke.

All the best!