Record at home, then send to a pro?

[Glenn Cimera]

I would like to record a cd of tunes, (solo acoustic fingerstyle), for my Mom. I have a VF80 w/ CD and MXL 603s mics that I am learning to use. I've made several pretty decent recordings...these things are loads of fun! I wonder if I could record some tunes and burn to cd at home, then send to a recording studio to have them basically "clean up'" the sound, add some reverb or chorus, etc and burn all of them on a cd. I realize the VF80 will do all these things, but it will take me some time to learn, and I suspect a pro could do this in minutes. Would a local studio do something like this???? Could they adjust the sound levels so they are all the same, take out unwanted background noise, and just make the thing sound a bit more professional? I don't really want to go and record at a studio, for one thing I'm not that good! Just wondered if what I described above is something a local mom and pop studio could/would do.
Thanks for the input everyone!!!

 

[Rokket]

I would like to record a cd of tunes, (solo acoustic fingerstyle), for my Mom. I have a VF80 w/ CD and MXL 603s mics that I am learning to use. I've made several pretty decent recordings...these things are loads of fun! I wonder if I could record some tunes and burn to cd at home, then send to a recording studio to have them basically "clean up'" the sound, add some reverb or chorus, etc and burn all of them on a cd. I realize the VF80 will do all these things, but it will take me some time to learn, and I suspect a pro could do this in minutes. Would a local studio do something like this???? Could they adjust the sound levels so they are all the same, take out unwanted background noise, and just make the thing sound a bit more professional? I don't really want to go and record at a studio, for one thing I'm not that good! Just wondered if what I described above is something a local mom and pop studio could/would do.
Thanks for the input everyone!!!

The only way I could see a pro studio doing that is if you burned all the tracks to cd as individual wave files, not as a stereo wave file. There isn't much they can do if you have already mixed them down and burned the song to cd. Keep in mind that you may be paying quite a bit of money for this, but the end result will be better. You may want to tackle it yourself first and see what you can come up with. You will have to learn how to do it eventually.
There are some studio owners on the board who can give you more information about how to do it.

 

[Cloneboy Studio]

You can go that route, but honestly the mixing may end up taking so long cleaning up stuff (unwanted background noise? ::shudder:: ) that the end price will be the same as if you tracked the whole thing in a studio.

If you have your material down pat recording can go FAST with an experienced engineer. Most of the reason tracking can take so long is because people aren't well rehearsed.

 

[gordone]

I don't know if you ever listened to Dave Carter (and Tracy Grammer), but their first CD (When I Go) was recorded in their kitchen with some cheap equipment (not sure what, but I think it might have been some 4-track Reel-To-Reel) The songs are pretty much 2 vocals, a guitar and either a mandolin or violin. Supposedly the raw tracks were pretty bad (alot of background noise, stuff like that) but they had someone clean it up (kind of like what you would want) and it turned into a great sounding record. Good luck!

 

[ryanlikestorock]

Obviously do what you can to reduce the noise in the first place. Also, an afternoon learning how to use a compressor (is their one built in?) would help out a lot with the level problems... or just mixing the instruments properly. For the time it'll take to learn how to do this stuff, you'll save a ton of money in a studio.

PS: Your mom doesn't know the difference.

 

[chris-from-ky]

Glenn, Mind if I ask where you're from?

 

[d(-_-)b-Phones]

I have heard of people sending stuff out to be mastered, whats wrong with that idea?

 

[Rokket]

I have heard of people sending stuff out to be mastered, whats wrong with that idea?

I don't think there is anything wrong with it. I just wanted to make sure that he's not trying to take a finished cd down there and expect miracles. He will have to take his individual unmixed tracks to the studio. And echoing Cloneboy, it may take a lot of time and cost just as much as recording in the studio if there is a lot of work to be done to get the mix right.
With the fact that major studios are closing down left and right, I would be the last one to steer business away from them.
The point I wanted to make with him is that if he intends to keep doing home recording, he's going to have to learn to mix and master eventually, or his hobby will bankrupt him...

 

[Cloneboy Studio]

My opinion is YES you can record something at home that ends up sounding great, using only home recording tools. I've done it many times.

But, if there's any shred of doubt in your mind about your recording ABILITIES you probably can't pull it off.

Great sounding home recording requires *more* knowledge than in a studio. If you lack that experience/knowledge it is more cost effective to go to a studio.

Plus, home recording requires *passion* to get it to come across good. Passion, knowledge, experience and time to get it right.

 

[LRosario]

All the ideas are good in concept, yet there's a reason why studios are studios and home recording is home recording.

You could get away with a home tracked session, but you'd have a song at half potential. I always advise this to clients that I work with.

If it's a decently equipped studio, the gear involved makes a huge difference in sound clarity. You don't have fans, cellphones, TVs, dogs or otherwise unwanted noise getting in your sound.

Studios invest in the equipment most people can't afford. So there's that added "special service" feel.

Probably not something most people would care about, but it helps to go that extra mile. For your mom of course. Plus it saves you money in the long run.

 

[spariam]

I'm heading into a studio next week to have some of my home recorded tracks mixed. I find that recording at home is a great way to be creative without having to watch the clock. I just don't have the equipment (speakers, for one) do to good mixes at home. There may be a few things I need to re-record, but that shoudn't take much time, esp. compared to the time it took to write the parts down in the basement.

 

[Atterion]

I was speaking to a studio owner in town recently who told me he does almost no tracking for people anymore (other than drums), and his business is basically surving on mixing multitrack, home recordings. Shameful waste of a good ProTools system but, he is still making it for now.

My recommendation for everyone just getting started and has the passion Cloneboy spoke of, is to try and find a local studio (preferable one that is still using lots of analog if you can find one), and bug them into they let you come and work for them. Most likely you'll be working for free, and you'll probably clean more cables than you'll ever want too, but you have to start somewhere, and if you have the passion, it won't be so bad. By all means read every book/article available in regards too your craft. If you can afford a good school all the better.

My point is, you can have the most high-spec gear/software around, but it means nothing if you don't understand the core elements of the job. Knowledge of how each piece of gear works, and how it can be used to interact with other parts of the signal chain both traditionally, and creatively. I know the "Analog Hounds" amongst us would agree. You learn much more when you're faced with limitations, too find solutions to problems that seem insurmountable. I've seen some seriously deranged ideas come to life this way. So Glenn I think that you should at the least put your absolute best effort into learning your equipment, dealing with your limitations, and to overcome them, and record your mother the best album you can. She'll probably appreciate it even more if she knows it was done entirely by you and that you put that much effort into it. If you do send it off to a studio, I would sit on the sessions, and pick the engineers brain. Even if you don't entirely grasp all of what he is doing, you'll probably recieve some valuable insight into things you can do better to minimize future problems that he finds.

 

[Glenn Cimera]

Thanks for the input!

Thanks, everyone, for the input! I really enjoy the VF80 I recently got...not so hard to do the basic stuff and burn tunes to a CD. I will likely work out what I need to at home. Maybe someday go to a studio and record something for friends and family....I'm by no means a pro guitarist, just someone who love to play. BTW, what does it cost per hour to record at a local studio??? I'm in Houston if anyone has a recommendation.
Have a great evening!

 

[Glenn Cimera]

Glenn, Mind if I ask where you're from?

I'm from Houston

 

[Sloan]

I'd just keep it the way it is.