The Lowdown
I wish I had something like this years ago: It provides ample protection for my headphones and makes it easy to store and retrieve small DJ accessories. Overall, a great value for something that you’ll use time and time again. Once you get it, you’ll wonder how you managed without. Essential for busy DJs who want the smallest gig bag possible minus the big spend.
Video Review
First Impressions / Setting up
The Ultimate Digi Headphone Bag is made of padded water-resistant ballistic nylon, and while this isn’t a “hard shell”, the bag itself is thick enough to provide ample protection while still being pliable. There’s a carry handle on top, and it comes with an adjustable shoulder strap for hands-free use. A velcroed compartment in the back lets you stash items like drink tickets and flyers. In front is the UDG logo, as well as a small slot which you can pass a headphone or charging cable through. Two large zippers go around the bag for opening and closing.
Inside, the headphone compartment is lined with a felt-like material. If you play in a hot club or if you tend to sweat a lot while you DJ, you’ll appreciate how this little detail will help keep your phones dry after the show. The rest of the interior is lined with a shiny nylon material.
The front lid has slots for calling cards, business cards, and even a mobile phone or power bank. It has a neoprene section with four slots for thumb drives, two elastic bands that can hold cables and earbuds or LED torches, and a removable zipped mesh pocket with a hard backing that’s perfect for storing SD cards, sim cards, and other small items. Basically, this bag can carry everything you need to take with you to the gig (except your laptop / tablet), and then some.
In Use
First thing I put into the bag were the bulkiest headphones I had on hand, which is a Pioneer HDJ-1000. It fit snug in the headphone compartment’s mesh net: These cans aren’t going anywhere, even if the bag opened while I was carrying it (this happened at my gig over the weekend, whoops!)
It’s a nice touch, because I’ve come across some headphone bags that don’t have this, and I’m sure the first thing that’s going to fall out of an unzippered headphone bag will be your expensive cans! There’s enough space in the headphone compartment to store my Westone UM3x in-ear monitor vault, so I’ve stashed it there too.
On the front flap you can store business cards (both Digital DJ Tips and my personal DJ cards), as well as my iPhone 6 Plus which fits perfectly. I use a Corsair Survivor as a USB thumb drive, so it’s a little too big for any of the neoprene thumb drive slots, so i just put that in one of the elastic bands along with my Earpeace earplugs (absolute essentials before, during, and after a gig!). In the other elastic band I have a power bank for charging my mobile phone, with a Lightning lead attached to it and easily accessible via the cable slit.
I’ve got a copy of my Electronic Press Kit and several recent mixes stored in a thumb drive, and I’ve got that stashed in one of the neoprene thumb drive slots along with a pen. I’ve also got an extra 1/4″ adapter and an extra set of foam earplugs stashed in the pockets, just in case. The hardback mesh pocket contains SD cards for my GoPro gig cameras, and I could store some international sim cards in it for my phone in case I’m travelling for a bunch of shows.
Zipped up, this entire bag has everything I need to take to a club gig with CDJs in the booth. If I feel like taking my controller set-up along, this bag also has everything I need in it, except for the controller itself (a DDJ-SR, in case you were wondering) and my laptop, and it fits perfectly in my controller bag. Having an all-in-one digital DJ bag like this keeps you organised and guarantees that your essentials are stored in one place whether you’re rocking a pair of decks or your personal controller.
Conclusion
I wish I had something like this years ago: It provides ample protection for my headphones and makes it easy to store and retrieve small DJ accessories. Sure, you can make do with a generic bag or satchel that isn’t purpose-built for digital DJs, but I’d be more than willing to spend the extra dollars to get something that feels like it was built for my profession and passion.
If I’m travelling for a gig, I’d gladly take this as my hand carry over my bulky messenger bag, especially if I’m leaving my laptop at home since it’s still got enough space for some ID cards and other travel essentials. The only thing I would’ve wanted to see here were locking zips, and maybe a thicker, padded shoulder strap for travel comfort and security against the strap getting slashed and the bag nicked, but those are big asks for something that comes in at under US$50.
Overall, a great value for something that you’ll use time and time again. Once you get it, you’ll wonder how you managed without: I personally don’t miss scooping my headphones, external hard drive, and other DJ stuff right after a gig, stuffing them in my bag, and then scrambling to look for them the morning after wondering if I left anything because I had too much to drink! Essential for busy DJs who want the smallest gig bag possible.
