An iPod should work, but for me it won't. Why? Because I don't do set lists. I'm not clairvoyant enough to know exactly what will be best for the audience more than 2 songs in advance.

I use a laptop because I can decide what song to play next in the last 10 seconds of the song I'm currently playing, hit two or 3 letters on the keyboard to call it up, and have it start immediately after the song I'm currently playing. That way the dancers won't leave the floor.

So I look at the crowd, are they getting tired? Are they really getting into it? And then I decide what to play next.

The iPod just doesn't work for me as it takes too much time to get to the next song. I suppose an iPad would work the same way, but I like having the laptop keyboard up all the time. I can usually find time enough near the end of the song to type a couple of letters so the next song is queued up.

But I do bring a spare laptop. Using a laptop as an mp3 or wav player, does not require much. If you're tight on money, a refurbished one should work as a spare. Just make sure to boot it up regularly.

I have the spare booted up and ready to go on each job. It's a ThinkPad that I bought in 2002 and it has had only one failure since then. The CMOS battery died - a $5.00 replacement from Radio Shack. The CMOS battery runs the clock and the computer won't boot without it.

I use the "spare" to display words and/or music charts. I don't really need the cheat sheets for most songs, but it's nice to have them for the new not-yet memorized songs, and for those times when a major distraction occurs in the song (like someone coming up to the stage wanting to talk to you while you are singing/playing).

I also keep all my backing tracks on a USB flash drive. I've never needed that, but it's nice knowing it's there.

One thing that I think is very important. When using a laptop, don't rely on the headphone jack. Use a USB-AUDIO interface. They are inexpensive, have better bandwidth than the headphone jack (higher fidelity), and don't make that crackling noise when accidentally touched.

Insights and incites by Notes

Bob "Notes" Norton smile Norton Music
https://www.nortonmusic.com

100% MIDI Super-Styles recorded by live, pro, studio musicians for a live groove
& Fake Disks for MIDI and/or RealTracks