Hardware necessary for professional sounding acoustic guitar and vocals

A

armansrsa

New member
Hi forum

I am a singer songwriter with intermediate sound engineering knowledge and have about $3000 saved for a recording project. I want to record an acoustic album comprising of 14 songs (only acoustic guitar and vocals). Studio recording is expensive but I want professional results so am considering spending the money. Because I am only recording guitar and vocals however, a friend suggested that I invest that money into some extra outboard gear like a tube pre-amp and compressor and record it in my home studio and that I will be able to get good enough results and that a fancy studio will suck up my money in no time whereas I can always have the gear for future projects, get good at using it and even sell it down the line and get most my money back. I am tempted to do this but wanted to know if the results can ever really compare to that of a professional recording studio

Thanks
 
People can indeed get Pro results from a home recording studio but the question is, can you? Having good gear doesn't make good recordings. Performance/talent and knowledge/experience of the tools at hand will help you achieve good recordings. So the skills you have now will determine what you can achieve.

Some people perform better in a studio environment when time is money. Others are more natural in full control of their music at home, more relaxed. Some like to spend months on a song while others want 14 songs done in a day. Which are you?

There's only one way to find out. Better gear may help but without knowledge they're all pretty boxes with lights and buttons.
 
I knew that this would be a first reply...

Probably should have added this in previous post but lets just assume that I had the knowledge and that was not a factor.... then would you buy the gear or go to a studio with the $3000?

Thanks for input!
 
Personally I would go to a studio because I perform better under pressure. No pressure kicking back at home with all the distractions.

If I or anyone else assumed you had all the knowledge necessary to record a professional quality sounding album then the simple answer would be just.....yes. Go buy a load of gear and get recording.

But that would be foolish to assume that you know everything you need to know regarding everything from room acoustics to mic placement to compression and beyond. Seeing as you asked this question in the first place, I assumed that you are unconfident in your ability and desire to spend money on gear to record an album. Hence my answer above.

There is no definite answer. You give no example of what you can achieve already without this additional hardware. Do you need hardware? Would a cheaper software option suffice? Do you need a preamp? What do you have already? What doesn't it do and what do you want one to do?
 
thanks and you are 100% right, if I could record the songs professionally I should already have such gear at my disposal and would have to have fine tuned my engineering skills.

To answer your question, yes I would definitely get hardware... studios that cost $100 000 and up do cost that for a reason. I doubt that any software can beat a good hardware compressor else lets face it, there would not be an industry for hardware compressors. Neve and other world-class compressors/pre amps would not be in business if they did not play their part in the final overall result in terms of quality right? I have a home studio but it is very amateur. Even if I get the best engineer in the world in my studio they will not be able to produce the quality that a professional studio can. What I would like to know basically, at which point could I get the worlds best engineer in my studio and know that he has all he needs to record industry standard guitar and vocal recordings. What budget would we be talking about considering that only guitar and vocals are being recorded (Only talking about gear here. Lets assume the room is as good as any).
 
armansrsa said:
thanks and you are 100% right, if I could record the songs professionally I should already have such gear at my disposal and would have to have fine tuned my engineering skills.

To answer your question, yes I would definitely get hardware... studios that cost $100 000 and up do cost that for a reason. I doubt that any software can beat a good hardware compressor else lets face it, there would not be an industry for hardware compressors. Neve and other world-class compressors/pre amps would not be in business if they did not play their part in the final overall result in terms of quality right? I have a home studio but it is very amateur. Even if I get the best engineer in the world in my studio they will not be able to produce the quality that a professional studio can. What I would like to know basically, at which point could I get the worlds best engineer in my studio and know that he has all he needs to record industry standard guitar and vocal recordings. What budget would we be talking about considering that only guitar and vocals are being recorded (Only talking about gear here. Lets assume the room is as good as any).
Click to expand...

I think this is backwards. I'd forget about outboard hardware and make no assumptions about the room.
The outboard hardware might give you that 1% edge over someone else, but the environment will sink the whole ship if it's not ideal.

If you offered me a presonus firepod, ten decent mics and a perfect room, I'd take it over £100,000 of hardware in a bad room.
Every day of the week.

Same goes for monitoring. Budget gear in a perfect environment is better than great gear in a bad place, in my opinion.
 
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Find a studio. Pay the engineer to demo the equipment. Then make a decision on what you can afford. I went to lake street studios in Chicago. The guy explained everything and couldn't have been happier doing it.

Lake street is now DAM! recording. They had everything. You will be able to hear the hardware in its intended controlled atmosphere. Nobody will be trying to sell you or talk you into anything.

Yeah learn how to clap out a room for decay. Something big with higher than 8ft ceiling, carpet , acoustic tile ceiling, wood paneling all a plus.

After hearing an actual drum smash room, I gave up trying. Only usig alesis synthetic and they sound the same anywhere. Not really pro though.
 
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I don't doubt for a minute that a world class hardware compressor would hands down beat a software compressor in every way but the question is, will you hear the difference to justify the price tag?

Steen makes a very good point about the room.

Still, regarding the question at hand, only you can know or decide whether you need outboard gear depending on your requirements and sound you wish to achieve. The is no golden answer. No quick, yes THAT compressor will make your recording sound more professional. Nothing in the recording game is that easy. IMHO
 
armansrsa said:
a friend suggested that I invest that money into some extra outboard gear like a tube pre-amp and compressor and record it in my home studio and that I will be able to get good enough results and that a fancy studio will suck up my money in no time whereas I can always have the gear for future projects
Click to expand...

I agree with Steen about the room, and I also agree with recording yourself to save money over the long haul. It's always better to not have the pressure of needing to get all your tunes done before your $3,000 runs out. And I'm sure this isn't the only recording you plan to make. If for some reason you do perform better under pressure (hard to imagine, but maybe for some people), invite a few friends over to watch you record. Ask them to stare critically as you perform. :D

I also question the advice to spend money on outboard hardware. A modern DAW setup using only plug-ins can give absolutely first rate results. Of course, you have to know what you're doing! But hardware doesn't change that. So plan to spend time learning the craft of recording, buy a good book or three that explains the gear, and consider this a lifelong project. And whatever you do, don't ignore Steen's advice to deal with your room's acoustics. If you put half your budget into that alone you'll be way ahead compared to getting $1,000 converters and preamps and "toob" gear.

--Ethan
 
Arman,
There are better guides out there, but go here and click 'DIY acoustic panels' near the bottom.
These are some that I made a while back. They weren't dear at all.

VERY very useful, whether you strategically wall mount them, or just pull them out to set in the room for tracking.
 
Cheer down , nice job Steen !!!!!

3 grand is a lot of money, make sure you can listen to the gear without distraction in background . Have it explained by somebody who uses it as living can help too. So you get the right pieces. A pro demo really helps find the potential of the product, in a efficient manor.
 
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