DJing at Pirate Studios

Why DJs love Pirate Studios

We often get asked questions about how to practice DJing, and in particular how to get ready to play in a club environment. The obvious answer is to practice at home, but most people don’t own club standard equipment. So we have been recommending Pirate Studios for years. Find out why below.

Claim your Pirate Studios voucher

Disclaimer – We genuinely use Pirate a lot, (despite having the DJWORX studio), and have done so for many years, all around the country. This article isn’t an advert, or paid post , we do have a referral code which you can use – enfield5057 – to receive a £20 ($25) credit on your first booking.

What is Pirate Studio?

Pirate Studios are 24-hour accessible professional rehearsal and recording spaces for DJs, bands and music production.

They are located across the UK, Europe and US (see full location list below)

Each studio is completely self-service. Be aware of this if you are turning up at an unusual hour, you might be on your own in a large warehouse like building.

The DJ rooms come with industry standard AlphaTheta (Pioneer) CDJs and mixers all set up. Pro rooms usually have 3x CDJ3000s, with standard having a pair of CDJ-2000 NSX2’s and a Pionner DJM-900 mixer.

You pay by the session, with no contract or subscription. Blocks are booked by the hour.

You book online, receive an access code and the room is yours for the session.

Just turn up on time (Some Pirate Studios have free parking), use the entry code to access the building, and then another code to access your studio.

Room lighting and temperature can be controlled, as well as volume. Most of the studios are loud. We suggest using hearing protection.

If you want all of your mix can be recorded and played back at your leisure.

See inside a Pirate Studio DJ room

Reasons for DJs to use Pirate Studios

• You can turn it up as loud as you like – No more waking the family up, or annoying the neighbours
• Their DJ gear is industry standard Pioneer AlphaTheta CDJs and mixers
• Automated recording capture of your mix, so you can listen back instantly
• It’s a cool experience, think graffiti on the walls and ambient lighting
• Great for photos/videos of your DJing – for socials, press kits etc
• You can do an internet radio station show easily from a Pirate Studio
• Nothing to set up – All the equipment is ready to go. (You may have to turn it on)
• If you are in a band, or need a quiet space to produce music you should consider Pirate as well
• They are open 24/7/365, with cheaper pricing off peak
• If you are travelling to a gig then it’s a great opportunity for a quick practice before the gig.

Cons – There aren’t many, but it is worth considering:

• If you do a regular Peak time booking ie a weekly radio show, costs might add up
• Occasionally equipment doesn’t work, although this is easily fixed by a WhatsApp message to Pirate’s friendly support. (They will likely just switch you to a different DJ room)

What you get inside a Pirate Studios DJ room (Pro room)

Why Pirate Studio is great for DJs

For DJs, Pirate Studios solves problems that home setups often can’t. Mixing at low volume through bedroom monitors or headphones will only get you so far. At Pirate, you can practise on club-standard Pioneer setups at full volume, hearing the detail in your mixes exactly as you would in a booth. That makes it easier to practice transitions, fine‑tune EQs and prepare for live gigs. Or it is just an excuse to blast out your favourite tunes in the mix. Taylor Swift into Baddadan? Why not.

If you are just starting out as a DJ, or want to give it a try, you get access to pro-level gear without the huge investment, so you can learn on the same equipment you’ll encounter at clubs and other gigs where you don’t take your own equipment.

Pirate Studios booking process

We can’t stress this enough – Getting set up with Pirate Studios is easy and straightforward. Everything is online and self-service.

Pirate Studios voucher Claim £20 ($25) free booking voucher

1. Go to the Pirate website and create a free account
2. Search for your nearest studio (full list below)
3. Choose the studio type that fits your needs (Standard or Pro – Pro has 3xCDJs)
4. Select a time that suits you (Off peak is cheaper)
5. When you book your first session, use the sign-up code enfield5057.
6. After you complete that first session, you’ll receive free £20 ($25) studio credit (which enough to pay for another 2 hour off peak session)

Pirate Studios locations

England

• London: Camden, Croydon, Dalston, Earlsfield, Greenwich, Hackney Wick, Notting Hill, Tottenham, Wembley.
• Other UK: Birmingham, Bradford, Brighton & Hove, Bristol (Lawrence Hill), Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Manchester (Cheetham, Salford), Norwich, Nottingham, Plymouth, Reading, Sheffield. 

United States

• New York: Brooklyn (Bushwick, Gowanus), Queens (Ridgewood).
• Los Angeles: West Adams, Silver Lake.
• Chicago

Germany

• Berlin: Prenzlauer Berg, Tempelhof.
• Hamburg

Ireland

• Dublin

DJWORX verdict on Pirate Studios

Pirate Studios takes the pressure off home setups and puts professional spaces within reach of every DJ, producer and musician. From 24‑hour access and club‑standard gear to artist opportunities and festival connections, it’s more than a studio – it’s a creative network designed to help you grow. But it’s also just a great place to unwind by cranking the volume up on your mix, and if you want you can practice your DJ poses with no one looking.

If you’re serious about levelling up your practice, testing your skills on pro gear or need to find a space where you can make some noise then Pirate is the likely answer. At DJWORX we don’t lightly recommned things, we only recommend genuinely useful solutions for DJs, and Pirate fits that bill.

Reminder – use code enfield5057 to claim a £20 ($25) Pirate voucher.

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