First time studio building suggestions?

  • Thread starter Thread starter RockinRollin
  • Start date Start date
R

RockinRollin

New member
Hi everyone, this is my first post here of I hope many to come! I have been a musician for almost my whole life, however when it comes to recording I would consider myself a complete novice at best. I am headed back home soon and would like to build a home studio in a spare garage we have. It wouldn't have to be state of the art, but that said, I would rather work extra hours and save for gear that is actually going to give me a nice sound than buy cheap quick fixes that really won't offer me what I'm looking for. What I'd like is my own space where I can track Vocals, Acoustic/Electric guitars, Bass and eventually drums.

Here is an example of the kind of sound quality I'd like to be able to get at home:
It's a youtube vid "/watch?v=s6NDY8FSr9M" or search "Daft Punk - Get Lucky // George Barnett cover" (*says I can't post a link, so I've had to do this, sorry!!*)

My question is, assuming I invest in a Mac for the studio and Pro Tools, what would be the main gear I would need to be able to get some nice sounds from my home? Vocals and guitars would be my first priorities, but I am interested in installing drums as soon as possible, not sure to go with electric or acoustic though, as I don't want to drive the neighbors nuts!! :)

Thanks for reading through all this, I'm really keen to hear any suggestions!

Daniel
 
First - think twice about paying big $$ for Pro Tools, unless you are already intimately familiar with it already and want to share project files with a pro studio. Reaper is $60 to register (free to try out) and has all the pro features you are likely to need. If you need to share files with anyone else, converting to WAV is the typical method.

Second - sound treatment. Read the thread(s) here about building bass traps.

Third - you'll need monitors, headphones
 
Daniel,

How big is the 'extra' garage? please post dimensions.

I agree that there are many good audio programs that will get you professional results, though I am not familiar with Reaper. You will 'usually' get what you pay for & if you DO plan to go 'pro'.. ProTools is the weapon of choice. Logic, Cubase, Nuendo, and Sonar will also get you professional results. - Which completely depends on YOUR talent, skills, and abilities.

There is information available for free download from my site - publications page - that can help you with your studio. Keep us posted.

Cheers,
John
 
Reaper is a pro as anything else. Save money and spend it on hardware.

I use it on both Mac and Windows, btw.
 
TimOBrien said:
Reaper is a pro as anything else. Save money and spend it on hardware.

I use it on both Mac and Windows, btw.
Click to expand...
+1 Spend it on hardware - AND YOUR ROOM! (One of the most important pieces of equipment that you will use) ;)
Cheers,
John
 
RiverCity Studioz

First Thing First..... YOU WANT SOMETHING PROFESSIONAL... i currently use Cubase and will be running logic. You can DownLoad CUBASE from a torrent. save 500 buck.
 
caskrew said:
First Thing First..... YOU WANT SOMETHING PROFESSIONAL... i currently use Cubase and will be running logic. You can DownLoad CUBASE from a torrent. save 500 buck.
Click to expand...

The worst advice ever! Downloading from Torrents is stealing......and frowned upon around here.
 
Do NOT listen to this guy. There are plenty of "pro" DAWs that won't break the bank. Reaper, Studio One. You also have the option to buy an interface that comes with software and upgrade it as needed. The Mbox stuff usually comes with a scaled down version of Pro Tools, you can then use their upgrade path to get as much as you need. Same with Studio One and Cubase I think.

Cask: you might want to read up on forum rules, that type of talk will get you banned around here.

caskrew said:
First Thing First..... YOU WANT SOMETHING PROFESSIONAL... i currently use Cubase and will be running logic. You can DownLoad CUBASE from a torrent. save 500 buck.
Click to expand...
 
polarity said:
Do NOT listen to this guy. There are plenty of "pro" DAWs that won't break the bank. Reaper, Studio One. You also have the option to buy an interface that comes with software and upgrade it as needed. The Mbox stuff usually comes with a scaled down version of Pro Tools, you can then use their upgrade path to get as much as you need. Same with Studio One and Cubase I think.

Cask: you might want to read up on forum rules, that type of talk will get you banned around here.
Click to expand...

+1

note my signature line.

Here in Indonesia, the music business is horrible because EVERYTHING is stolen. They rip CDs and DVDs (often before market release) and sell them on the street for an average 50 cents a copy. No one has a chance to make a living at music so the quality is extremely poor. No money in it.

Everyone in Indonesia uses cracked software, (I buy mine!!) - it has warranty and support! Zero effort IN = Zero value OUT. It is a universal principle.

Back to subject; Find a DAW that works for YOU and your budget. Start small and grow it. It all comes to 'paying your dues', study, effort, discipline, hard work, etc., etc., etc. Do what you love and love what you do. Good luck guys! - And remember also that a nice kit, bunch of mics, comp, software, speakers, etc., does not make a recording studio --- It makes a MUSIC STORE. ;) - THe RoOm is an all-important part of your recording system. Don't neglect it.

Cheers,
John
 
caskrew said:
First Thing First..... YOU WANT SOMETHING PROFESSIONAL... i currently use Cubase and will be running logic. You can DownLoad CUBASE from a torrent. save 500 buck.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's not a great thing to post on a public message board.
 
caskrew said:
First Thing First..... YOU WANT SOMETHING PROFESSIONAL... i currently use Cubase and will be running logic. You can DownLoad CUBASE from a torrent. save 500 buck.
Click to expand...


I already hate you for your attitude. Problem is, you have not yet broken the rules of the sites TOS. I'm sure you will soon though.

In my opinion, you are a piece of s**t and should not be allowed to be a member of this site.

Welcome to your short stay at HR.

Jimmy
 
caskrew said:
First Thing First..... YOU WANT SOMETHING PROFESSIONAL... i currently use Cubase and will be running logic. You can DownLoad CUBASE from a torrent. save 500 buck.
Click to expand...

:facepalm::facepalm::facepalm: Don't let the door hit you on the way out

jhbrandt said:
Here in Indonesia, the music business is horrible because EVERYTHING is stolen. They rip CDs and DVDs (often before market release) and sell them on the street for an average 50 cents a copy. No one has a chance to make a living at music so the quality is extremely poor. No money in it.
Click to expand...

I remember going to Russia with school and the hotel we were staying in had a CD store in the basement.... 50c per CD, 25 CD's for $10, everything was copied and there were a lot of albums not available in the stores yet. I remember seeing Korn's "Untouchables" which didn't hit the UK stores for another 6 months! And that was 10 years ago!

Back to the topic at hand;

1) Room treatment - as has been said there's plenty of info here and some awesome DIY approaches

2) Audio interface - how many inputs/outputs do you need? Firewire or USB? Do you need any extra features such as MIDI in/out, Digital in/out, multiple headphone mixes?

3) DAW - as others have said Pro Tools isn't a necessity. Reaper is very cool and if you go with the Mac route Logic is awesome IMO. Heck, even Garageband is very usable, versatile, and a very nice intro to recording software

4) Mic's - think how many and what type you need. However, you could go very far with only five mics; a pair of small diaphragm condensers (SDC's) for drum overheads, acoustic guitar, any stereo applications. A large diaphragm condenser (LDC) mainly for vocals but can be very good on acoustic guitars, bass amps, room mics for drums. A Shure SM57 or similar for electric guitar, snares, bass amps, pretty much anything really. Something like an D112 or similar for kick drums, bass amps. What mic's you chose are really dependent on what you want to record and how they sound naturally. A mic that suits my voice may not suit yours, or a pair of SDC's that work well on my acoustic guitar may not work for your acoustic guitar in your space.

5) Monitors - one of things it's really worth saving up for as you really do get what you pay for. However, if the room you're working in isn't treated than no matter how much you spend on monitors it will still be a challenge to produce mixes that sound good on a range of different systems.

6) all the extra bits that are easily forgotten but are essential - XLR cables, mic stands, pop filter, headphones for tracking, cables to connect your audio interface to your monitors. I'm sure there's more but it's the little things that are so easy to forget and so frustrating when you get a cool new toy and can't use it because you can't plug it in :(
 
reg DAW

Hi,
You mentioned that project files could be used interchangeable between DAW's in the form of WAV files. I had some trouble in this, i recorded via reaper and sent wav files to my friend to pimp it up a bit. He uses Ableton, and said that it would be better i use the same to. Is it necessary for artists working on a single project to use the same DAW?

Thanks!
 
Prabhu said:
You mentioned that project files could be used interchangeable between DAW's in the form of WAV files. I had some trouble in this, i recorded via reaper and sent wav files to my friend to pimp it up a bit. He uses Ableton, and said that it would be better i use the same to.
Click to expand...

Did you export/render to stems to send him? If you just sent the recorded files in the folder, that could prove tricky for the recipient if you did a lot of punching in etc.

Prabhu said:
Is it necessary for artists working on a single project to use the same DAW?
Click to expand...

Not really, audio files are audio files. It is easier sharing audio files and project files if you both use the same DAW but if you export all your tracks to stems it's as easy as drag and drop, regardless of what DAW is used.

:thumbs up:
 
I actually am not a fan of the word 'stems'. It infers to me that group channels are being exported (mixed down sections of the tune). With any DAW, it is simple to export/import wav files into another project, regardless of DAW used. If you are wishing to send the effects created within your DAW, then you have to export them with the FX you have within your DAW. If you wish for another to add their own effects, then export it without them.

Obviously this is easier done by using the same DAW, as you can send the whole project folder that includes automation/routing/effects. BUT, you both must have the exact same plugins. If one of you has purchased a VST that the other does not have, it can become redundant and confusing.
 
Jimmy,

Stem Mastering is excellent. And for 'overdub' purposes, Stems are Great to send to Drum of back-ground vocal studios.. all you get back are the 'overdubs'. But for continuing the production to another studio, I agree that one should send everything they have - Ideally in the destination format. - That's why the Pros use Pro-Tools. But there are many 'export' formats that work for many programs. Find out what program the destination studio uses and save your entire production to that export format.

I used to MIX using 'stems'. I'd submix/sum my drums to one stereo mix, Bass to another, Guitars, key boards, back-ground vocals, and finally main vocal... Each and every one of them will have their own 2-mix comp so that a Snare hit won't compress the vocal track, etc. You can make a great creative/dynamic mix with the loudness/compression that is required - but no more. Eddie Kramer does it that way too. ;)
Cheers,
John
 
Hey,

Thanks for the response. I'm new to recording so forgive my questions. Whats a stem?
When i record in reaper and save, i just see a wav file and a corresponding reaper file. So what's the stem here?
Also it was mentioned i should export the tracks to stems, then it becomes DAW independent. What does this mean?

thanks.
 
Stem mastering is is sometimes called separation mastering and some people call the stems sub-mixes. -- Most audio recordings are in stereo, where there are left and right stems that play together to create the listening experience. Usually to submit mixes to a mastering studio, mixing engineers and producers will provide their mastering studio with stereo mix-downs (only two stems). This is the industry standard and the traditional way of mastering, but there are situations where you may want to provide more stems than just 2-channel stereo mix-downs.

Preparing for stem mastering means separating a mix into stems (sometimes called sub-mixes). It’s very simple to do, you simply mute all the tracks that will not be contained in the stem, then mix-down/export the entire song. You will want to make sure that you are mixing down to stereo and not mono. When you combine all the stems together, you should have the full mix.

Cheers,
John
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top