Help with Home Studio! Please!

[Lelio]

I have 5000 pounds to spend for a home set-up
which will enable me to produce decent quality CDs
for various projects.

I have the songs, synths, singer and the CD burner...its the recording,
microphone, effects (for vocals, guitar) and mastering (ie compression, exciters..etc) equipment I need.
The stuff I write is quite pop/goth, and I would need no more than 16 tracks.
I do *not* want to use my PC for anything other than burning CDs and synching songs to video.(Something else I need info on!)
Any advice greatly appreciated, as I'm needing to buy it pronto!
Lelio

 

[Track Rat]

Boy, that's a question that'll get a lot of different opinions. Based on your criteria, I'd say a decent mixer like an Allen & Heath or a Mackie or something like that, two ADATs (20 bits, Sounds VERY good), a good mic pre amp,6 or 8 SM-57's to get around a drum kit and mic up guitar amps, two small diaphram condensor mics like Shure SM-81s or Octava 012s for drum overheads and/or acoustic instruments and a good large diaphram mic like a Neumann TLM 103 for vocals. A couple of decent compressors of course would be essential for dynamics control and a Lexicon or two for reverb/delay. Just my humble opinion. By the way, I have this set up (my console is a StudioMaster)but I edit individual tracks on the computer and now I couldn't live with out that aspect.

 

[Brian Grey]

By the way, I have this set up (my console is a StudioMaster)but I edit individual tracks on the computer and now I couldn't live with out that aspect.

I'd have to agree with that last statement about editing on the computer. I recorded for about a year on a 4-track, piece of crap. When I had the money to spend on something worthwhile someone suggested computer recording. I was really scepticle at first because it's such a new thing, but now after recording with it for almost 2 years, I'd NEVER go back to the old style. Of course it's just my opinion, but if you say "all I'll need is 16 tracks", why even limit yourself? With computer recording I havn't even thought about the idea of tracks since I first started. If I want another track I just record more, and I can just keep adding more and more and more. I think one time I used 32 tracks on a song... yeah I didn't actually have 32 different instruments playing, a few of the tracks were just 5 seconds of sound to fill a small spot, but dont' you want the ability to do that?

That's just my opinion I'm just trying to preach the word of computer recording and all it's glory.