Studio…?
Soo…. I’ve had some requests from my tech buddies to know what my studio is going to be like, what my plans are for the future, where I am going to go with things etc. This post may be a bit boring for everyone else.
While I don’t expect my studio to be a primary source of income for me, and am building it largely as a personal venture, I do expect to be doing work out of it, more and more as I move it along, and hopefully eventually I will be able to work part time hours out of my home studio.
I have already started building things, I have a 2.16 GHz DuaoCore pentium iMac (is it outdated already??? It’s not even a yer old!!) And I am running Logic Studio, with comes with Logic Pro 8 digital audio workstation software. I have a Korg X50 as a keyboard/midi controller and numerous guitars, although I’m not sure if they should be considered part of the studio. Since the computer I picked up some KRK RP8 near field reference monitors and a Furman line conditioner (If any of you out there are building a serious home studio a line conditioner is a very important first step), You guys know I’m very active in live audio as well, so the first microphone I picked up was a Shure Beta 52. A weird choice for a first mic, but it is soo nice to have a go-to mick for kick that you know sounds good. Some may ask “Why not an AKG D112 for kick?” Pretty much every rock album ever done has used the D112. I’m someone who is always looking to be different, and the Beta 52 just has a different sound, which I love.
One of my most recent purchases was an Apogee Ensemble. This unit is just AMAZING. Basically it coverts regular analog audio signals into digital signals a computer can understand. Converters are very important, and not many people realize exactly how important until they do a side by side comparison with cheaper and more expensive models. The Ensemble borders on magic. I’ve put crappy guitars through it, crappy mics through it, and everything has turned to gold. It’s awesome, defintely my best investment to date. A good front end is essential when recording audio. The Ensemble is an 8 channel converter, but only has 4 preamps, this means I needed to find 4 extra preamps to get microphone level signals up to the level they need to be to be “heard” loud enough by the computer. Again, I considered quality a necessity, once audio is in you computer, there is no rerecording it, it’s that way forever, so I decided to make an investment into something nice. I have a friend who is an electronics genius, and he suggested 7th Circle Audio. They are a manufacturer of preamp “kits” that you build yourself. Needless to say, I can’t do that, but he can and he is doing so for me. I’m getting him to build me some Neve clone preamps, which are pretty expensive, but defintely worth it. The 7th circle chassis comes with 8 slots, but I am only getting four preamps for now. I’ll have the ability to slot in 4 more when my studio needs them. The preamps will hopefully be ready within a month or so. My buddies name is Alex Bell, and if you need electronics equipment fixed, odds are he can do it, so let me know if you need his contact info.
All of this stuff has gotten me to an 8 input one room studio. When I move back to Orillia I’ll be operating out of my, sigh, bedroom until I move into a house of my own (Hopefully less than 3 or four years). I’m going to operate as a mxing/postprodction suite for now, as large scale recording is hard if not impossible in one room. I am going to be able to record, but simply because of space it will likely only be one person, or instrument at a time. I’m going to throw up some simple acoustic treatment (it’s amazing how well you can soundproof a room using products from home depot), and turn an already good sounding room into a great sounding room.
When I get my own place, I plan to renovate the basement into a 2 room studio. Everything will float, and the walls will be acoustically built. By then I will probably need to be able to handle more than 8 inputs, so I will get another Apogee to boost me to 16, and perhaps a third to bost me to 24. I’ll also be getting some more preamps. before all that however, I’ll need to boost my microphone compliment. In addition to my 52, soon there will be an Audio Techica 4050 or two, a pair of AKG 451’s the obligatory 57’s and perhaps even a Neumann. The TLM 49 is an amzing mic, and I would probably get it ahead of the 4050 except it is only a cardioid mic. Because of it’s limited flexibility, it will be a luxury rather than a staple, at least while I am starting out. The U87 is a dream that is well out of my price range for a mic. Maybe someday. I may also look at the Beta 57 and a few other mics which I haven’t decided on yet. I’ll also eventually be upgrading to a Mac Pro. Mine is good but it is only an iMac and I’ll outgrow it eventually.
Once i get to that point I’ll be able to handle pretty much any audio project. Many engineers make the mistake of only doing music, but since I’ve been in school I find I enjoy many other avenues of audio. I’ll be set up for audio for video/film as I plan to purchase Final Cut. I’ll be set up for voice over, for commercial work, voice over, of course music, and also as a mixing and editing facility. And of course I’ll still record myself jamming away on bass:) There’s the long term plan…any questions about it or about your own gear/setup feel free to ask!!
I, for one, cannot wait for your studio to be finished!!!
Thank you