Here is a big one

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boogle

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I just finished my first rough draft for my proposal for a studio I am building for a high school. Below is a list of equipment I have picked out. The only thing not on there is the snake which I am putting together. My budget was 20,000 and this comes out to exactly that. I just grabbed my prices off of sweetwater so I am sure I can find this stuff cheaper if I really try. I am to that point yet. I just want feedback on the choices and the way they will work together.

I also posted a picture of the patch bay config.

http://artsempoweryouth.org/youthculturecenter/images//final-setup-for-interface.jpg

Thanks so much for the help in advance.


**all prices are from sweetwater and include education discounts for the products that apply.**
Software
Cubase 4 - $400
Waves Gold Bundle - $975
Native Instruments Kontakt 2 - $225
Reason 3.0 - $200


Keyboard

M-Audio Keystation Pro 88 keys - $400

Interface
Mackie 1200F – $1,699


Microphones


(2) Shure SM-81 - $349/microphone

(2) Shure SM-57 - $100/microphone

(2) Sennheiser MD 421 - $349/microphone

(3) Sennheiser E 604 - $329 for all three

AKG D112 - $219

(2) Audio Technica 4033 - $399/microphone

Neumann M 147 - $2400/microphone


Pre-Amplifier

Avalon AD 2022 - $3000


Speakers

Adam P-22A - $1249
Mackie HR 824 - $629

Patch Bay

(2) Neutrik NYS-SPP-L - $114/unit



Desk

Studio RTA Producer's Station $500


Accessories

(2) Hosa MMK050 - $43
(10) Hosa MMK020 - $28
(4)Hosa MMK010 - $23
Pro Co DA88BQ10 - $80
(2) Pro Co MIDI20 - $16
CSS-830 (1 ft.) - $20
CSS-890 (3 ft.) - $20
(20) Hosa STX110M - $10
(18) Hosa STX110F - $10
(25) Hosa CSS110 - $5
Hosa CMP159 - $8
(8) full boom stands - $35
(4) adjustable height stands - $12
4 mini boom stands - $25
double braced keyboard stand - $35
Denon DN-T625 - $500



Computer

System total = $2,750 (with 2 19” lcd monitors)
System Core
Motherboard
Asus P5WDH Deluxe Wireless Edition

CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 (2.40 GHz, FSB1066, 4 MB L2)

Ram

2 x Kingston HyperX DDR2-800 1024MB

Video Card
Asus GeForce 7600GS 256MB Silent

Sound Card
Onboard Sound


Storage
Hard Drive
Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 80GB SATAII



Comments: Primary drive.



Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB SATAII



Comments: Secondary drive.



CD / DVD
Plextor 18x DVD-RW Dual Layer (black)


Case / Cooling
Case
Antec P180 Mid Tower Case (black)

Power Supply
Seasonic 550W High-Efficiency Power Supply

CPU Cooling
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro (775)

Additional Cooling
Case Fan Upgrade Kit

Case Mods
Smart Drive 2002C Enclosure


Accessories
Services
Warranty: Lifetime Labor, 1 Year Parts


Software
OS
Windows XP Pro OEM SP2
 
I see some things that are new, untested, unproven. Are you wanting to play with computers and stuff or are you actually wanting to record music?
 
I do not fully understand your question. The Mackie is untested but a reliable company. Cubase 4 is tested and although there are some problems it does not appear to be grossly more than what you would expect from a new release. What else on the list is untested or unproven?
 
Sorry, maybe one thing, but the central piece of it (i initially read Kontakt2 as Kore2 which just came out like yesterday). I own a ton of Mackie gear still, but frankly Id never use one of their interfaces. Even getting them for free or at dealer cost.
 
I understand where you are coming from. I have been a bit uneasy myself. I am very attracted to the 12 pre amps and the multi monitoring that seems to just be a perfect fit for the new console in cubase. If you have any other suggestions as to a good alternative please let me know.
 
Hard2Hear said:
Sorry, maybe one thing, but the central piece of it (i initially read Kontakt2 as Kore2 which just came out like yesterday). I own a ton of Mackie gear still, but frankly Id never use one of their interfaces. Even getting them for free or at dealer cost.
Click to expand...

OT, but i would like to hear what do you think, H2H about the Firepod... you seems to have experience with interfaces... Thanks.
 
I don't know what kind of mic stands you are getting for $35, but I would really suggest spending another $15 per stand and getting K&M. They are great and rugged, and will stand up to a lot of abuse, which they are surely going to get.
 
I'd get a Mac Pro, not a Windows system. I'd also purchase ProTools LE with Digidesign's 003 hardware instead of Cubase and that Mackie interface. Digidesign makes some of the most commonly used software and hardware in the recording world, so there would be considerable educational benefit by training students on it.

In addition, both speakers you chose are basically the same size, with 8" woofers. I'd get one big pair and one small pair instead. So for example, pair the Adams with something smaller like the KRK V4.

I also noticed that you don't seem to have a speaker switcher for actually switching between those speakers (I'm not a 100% sure of all those Hosa model numbers so maybe you have a switcher buried in there). A great unit for speaker switching/muting/dim/talkback/etc is the Presonus Central Station. I'd highly recommend you add one of those to your gear list.

Hope some of these suggestions provides food for thought!
 
I have already made up my mind on the Pro Tools Cubase deal. As far a speaker switches and talkback, cubases mixer already implements the ability to switch quickly between monitors and has talkback features, you just route them appropriately when you set the studio up and all switching, monitor mixes, talkback, and cue sends are run inside the box.
 
boogle said:
I have already made up my mind on the Pro Tools Cubase deal. As far a speaker switches and talkback, cubases mixer already implements the ability to switch quickly between monitors and has talkback features, you just route them appropriately when you set the studio up and all switching, monitor mixes, talkback, and cue sends are run inside the box.
Click to expand...

I see that the Mackie 1200f has those connections on the rear panel. So you could indeed set that up from software. I personally would still want a hardware control for those features. When you've got a feedback loop going and your speakers are about to blow, it's much faster to punch a mute button or snap a knob down to zero than to go into menus or open a window and mouse around to adjust a control.

The Mackie isn't even out yet, which I agree is a reason to look at other options. In my experience, it's better to let other people beta test new gear than do it yourself. It's often wise to leave at least 6 months from the time a unit is released to when you would actually purchase it.

My other issue is this: does a high school really need a $3,000 Avalon 2022 preamp and a $2,400 Neumann mic? That's over a quarter of your budget on a couple of units that are a lot more high end than is required by the situation. You could spend much less and get a preamp and mic that is at least 90% of the quality, and that you and the faculty won't be kept up sleepless at nights worrying about every nick and scratch and possibility of theft. Those two units seem way out of proportion to the rest of the studio, and besides, the Mackie has 12 preamps built in.

With the money you save on those two units you could do some other things for the studio you will probably need to, like some acoustic treatment and other infrastructure things that you might not forsee now. I would definitely not commit the whole budget in the first shot, I'd leave at least a couple thousand in a temporary slush fund until you've got the place put together.
 
I agree, I have since ditched the avalon 2022 and am going with the 747sp, still really nice pre but also comp and eq for less money. I have also replaced the 4033's and the neumann with 2 c414's We have a very active choir that we will be recording a lot so I do really want a really nice stereo signal flow. Although I plan on teaching on cubase primarily I have very recently found out that we have to buy in a month and I do not think the mackie will be out by then. Since I have to switch interfaces the cheapest way to go is actually 003 and a motu 8 pre unit connected via adat. I still get 12 pre's and mine as well through in pro tools.

By the way I really appreciate the help.
 
And I forgot to mention

The acoustic treatment and infrastructure cost are on a different budget so I do not have to worry about that. :)
 
It sounds like you are on the right track. Good choice on the C414's, I have a couple of those and they make excellent all purpose mics. I'm sure the choir will sound very fine through them.

I'm not sure the 003 is out yet either, actually. I use an 002R and really the 003 isn't that much different. If it comes out soon enough then I'd suggest waiting for the 003, but if not, you are really okay with an 002. The nice thing about the Digi hardware is that it comes with ProTools software. So you can teach on Cubase and also get ProTools at basically no extra cost other than the interface you have to buy anyway.

To go back to an earlier suggestion, the Presonus Central Station works really well with my Digi 002R. I take the SPDIF output of the 002R into the SPDIF input of the Central Station. It's so clean and simple, and you'll find all the speaker switching, muting, etc. is right at your fingertips. I'm mentioning it again only because I have found it to be so essential and necessary in my studio, I can't do without it anymore.

This may also be covered on another budget, but one thing I see missing from your list is test equipment and audio textbooks. If you were able to set aside even $1,000-1,500 you could put together a *great* library for the students and also get a few essential tools like cable testers, multimeter, maybe some soldering equipment, etc. Behind the rack stuff, it would be great for teaching the fundamentals.
 
I believe sweetwater said they had the 003's in stock and ready to ship. It is a private school so all text books are bought by the kids and the teachers copies are for free (I also have a big collection just for libraries sake I could bring in). The library is also really cool about buying any books teachers want to go in the catalog. I do really agree I need a cable tester, spl meter, multimeter etc. With the money I will save on cutting a few things back I will still have about 2,000 left over just in case a few things slip by, which I am sure they will.
 
What is the recording environment like? ASnd I also questioned the Neumann and the Avalon....way too much $$$$ for students.
 
The building is an old pottery room, very cool probably the length of a basket ball court and a little wider than one. They are building a control room and a vocal booth and the rest will be tracking space. Obviously doing a decent amount of acoustic treatment as well. The floors are concrete and the walls are filled cinder blocks. The acoustics in the tracking room will not be great but the ceilings are 2 stories high so with some bass traps, foam, diffusers, etc. there at least will not be to many reflections bouncing around.

I am modifying the list right now and will repost it later tonight or tomorrow.
 
The concrete floor and cinder block walls could be an issue. Are you going to float a wood floor above the concrete? That gets expensive, but I don't think I've ever heard a good sounding room that had a concrete floor.

Sounds like you have a good raw space to work with though. The high ceilings are great. Sounds like an exciting project, I'll look forward to your new adjusted list.
 
Yes, the 003 is shipping. Ive already set up a new system with an 003 last week. The computer happened to be a dual quad Xeon with 4 Gig of Ram, WAY overkill for PTLE. With the absolute max of tracks and plugins it wouldn't break 20% CPU usage. The 003 worked perfectly.
 
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