Mobile Studio?

G

GendoPose

New member
Hey All,

Seeing as I'm about to take the plunge and totally revamp all my equipment, the only thing I'm truly lacking now is a space to actually record (minus the church we use for band practise, but it's hardly ideal seeing as its 3 towns away and I don't have keys...).

What are your guys thoughts on a mobile studio? What I have in m my head is essentially this;

- drive to whoever wants me to record them
- set up in garage, room, wherever they've designated as a recording space
- record them
- take tracks home and mix away

Does anyone think this is an interesting idea or even if it would work? I could keep my rates more than competitive, seeing as I'd have absolutely no overheads apart from petrol.

Let me know guys, just an idea I've had in my head!
 
I think there are people who do this but you have to be ready and able to record in less than ideal conditions. Maybe the room is horrible, maybe there is no AC. It brings in a lot of extra variables for you. Are you going to bring along portable gobos or other sound treatments to help?

I think this is do-able, but you have to be realistic with the clients about what is possible at each job. If they have you recording a full band at the same time in someone's garage it might not come out great.
 
Is your mixing room all set up - acoustic treatment, etc? A lot of bands practice in less-than-ideal places - untreated garages, basements, 'practice spaces' where sound comes through the walls from other bands playing. To be 'mobile', all you need is a laptop, interface, mics, stands, gobos, headphones ...
 
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I have a freind that does this on a regular basis professionally.
All his gear fits into a small SUV. If the recording space is less than ideal, they will rent a space. Sometimes a small theater, another studio, a church or whatever works. All the clients have the budget and enjoy the adventure.
Then he goes home to his mix room and mixes.
He's recorded everything from full string sections to bluegrass artists this way.

I think the key to this endeavor is getting good results to build up a good paying clientele.

Recording a so so local band in their garage may or may not get good results or more work.

If you get lousy results, you have cut your own throat for future business.
 
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thanks guys, really appreciate the answers here!

it's just an idea I had in my head, I like the sound of hiring a space if the band doesn't have an adequate one too, got to admit I didn't think of that (herpa derp).

My mixing space at home is all nicely set up, but because I live in apartment block, it's not ideal to record in!

Cheers guys, lots of things to keep in mind and some encouraging things too!
 
I've done this a lot before - it works but if you've trying to make money you have to be able to compete on quality with a 'proper studio' or compete on price, it's very hard to compete on both if you're working in garages/sheds/crap rooms.

That said, some of the work I'm most happy with is from working in an old outbuilding with wierd acoustics - happy accident perhaps but it's doable.
 
Jake_JW said:
I've done this a lot before - it works but if you've trying to make money you have to be able to compete on quality with a 'proper studio' or compete on price, it's very hard to compete on both if you're working in garages/sheds/crap rooms.

That said, some of the work I'm most happy with is from working in an old outbuilding with wierd acoustics - happy accident perhaps but it's doable.
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Oh trust me, I don't expect to make any serious money from it, I just think it's quite a cool idea, especially for bands/artists who can't afford proper studio rates! Plus I enjoy mixing, so I wouldn't charge any extra on top of the basic rate, but in all honesty I'd be doing for the love and fun of doing it!
 
GendoPose said:
Oh trust me, I don't expect to make any serious money from it, I just think it's quite a cool idea, especially for bands/artists who can't afford proper studio rates! Plus I enjoy mixing, so I wouldn't charge any extra on top of the basic rate, but in all honesty I'd be doing for the love and fun of doing it!
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Same - it works but quite a lot of studio's round where I am have dropped their rates, so I jumped onboard with a startup and stopped doing so much mobile work. It's good fun though, I'd highly reccomend it.

You can probably set up some agreeable terms with someone local who has a spare garage/large shed and see what can be done withsetup there, the space might be crap but if it's a known quantity you can sometimes mitigate the crapness somewhat. Local jam nights are a good source of musicians who think its cool to have someone recording in their garage.
 
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