I have recently gone into partenership with a music producer and brought a recording studio, I have no clue of Studio stuff as i look after the management side of the business, i will list the equiptment we have brought on the advice of my business partener i just wondered if any of you guys would like to comment on what kind of a studio i will have, this is just as a second opinion,
Hardware.
2x Apple power mac G5 Quad 2.5 ghz 512mb 250gb
2x Apple 23" widescreen cinema dvi display monitors
2x Apple mac book pro intel
1x focusrite liquid channel
2x motu Audio interface
1x Mackie control
4x Mackie expanders for Mackie control
1x Mackie Big Knob
1x TC Power core fire wire
1xNeuman u87 mic
1x AKG c414BXL 2 Mic
1x Pair Genelec 8050a monitors + Sub
1x Pair Adams s3a Active monitors
1x Avlon VT747SP Compressor
1X Akai MPC 4000
2x Beyer dt150 Head phones
1x Korg Triton Extreme 76 key
1X Micro Korg
1x TC Voice pro
SoftWare
Logic Pro v 7.2 Cross Grade
Ableton live 5
Reason v 3
Stylus Rmx
Atmosphere
Trillogy
IK Miroslav Philharmonic
NI Komplete 3
NI guitar Rig 2
NI Electric Guitar
East west collosus
Absynth 3
Recycle 2.1
IK Sonik Synth 2
Ik Sample tank
Antres Auto tune 4
FX Pansion bfd drum and guru
Mini moogoo

Sample cd's
Funky House Producer
EZ roller drum and bass producer
Nu Jazz City
Neo Soul
Smokers delight
Ghetto Grooves vol2
Vocal planet
Zero G apple loops
SAGE
Liquid grooves
Retro Funk
Back Beat
Sample lab
Broken beats
Discography
Anolgue Archive
Lusious GROOVES

Your comments would be appricated

Regards

Paul E

Quote PaulE:

---

i just wondered if any of you guys would like to comment on what kind of a studio i will have

---

You'll have lots of gear.

... Edited do to crankiness and lack of coffee! ...
P-X

Edited by PrinceXizor (20/04/06 07:20 PM)

well the ram on the g5s seens a little low.I would recomend 4meg and maybe some external back up. i.e network or external hd

--------------------
Macbook 2.0ghz 1Gig Ram 80gig HD
Alesis 14io, Behringer ADA8000, Logic Express 8

Is this to be run as a commercial enterprise or just for yourselves?

--------------------
Samplecraze
Stretch That Note

I will now post something constructive...

1. It seems to be missing a desk unless I missed it.
2. Your mic cabinet is too small.

Just a couple off hand comments, just remember, I'm cranky...

P-X

--------------------
My Home Studio Build Thread

It's using Mackie Controls and expanders as the desk.

It's, er, lacking in most things that'd make me want to use it....

Quote Aural Reject:

---

It's using Mackie Controls and expanders as the desk.

It's, er, lacking in most things that'd make me want to use it....

---

such as? (interested tone not flippent!)

It's a (seemingly) sample, keyboard and computer based thing - I can do (most of) that here, should I wish to. There's nothing there that differentiates it from the majority of others.

I'd prefer real spaces with a large mic selection for real instruments.

What Zukan said ...

If this is a commercial facility then it will be inherently limited as to the services that it can provide. If that's ok, then fine - I suspect you'll be doing nothing more than just synths and the occasional overdub.

If it's for your own work and that's all you do then it's fine also.

But if you are setting yourself up as a commercial studio, then you are not going to be able to cater for a lot of work.

The other point to consider is that in a studio, it is the studio itself that is really important. We all get hung up on the nice flashy gear, but boring stuff like room sounds and acoustic treatment is arguably what makes a studio a studio! What do you have there ..?

--------------------
Veni, Vidi, Aesculi
(I came, I saw, I conkered)

Quote Aural Reject:

---

It's using Mackie Controls and expanders as the desk.

It's, er, lacking in most things that'd make me want to use it....

---

Ah...ok.

Where's the cool studio processors, EQ's, Verb's? A/D is a MOTU (nothing against MOTU). Where are the mics? I guess most everything is going to be digital, eh? Where are the other cool plug-ins besides powercore? Just some ramblings...

P-X

--------------------
My Home Studio Build Thread

We will be running as a business, From what i understand the Mackie control and expanders will be used as the desk? The G5's are the latest 1's they are the powerfull Quads, Thanks for the feed back so far

Yeah the whole idea is that it is a complete digital studio! As for plugins you tell me? what else would you recomend? And mics! Neuman u87 and AKG C414BXL2 is what we have

Quote PaulE:

---

Yeah the whole idea is that it is a complete digital studio! As for plugins you tell me? what else would you recomend? And mics! Neuman u87 and AKG C414BXL2 is what we have

---

As you're in charge of the Management aspect of the studio, how are you going to attract me to your facility rather than me do it at 'home'?

I'd be concerned that your 'man behind the desk' has chosen a TLII over, say, a ULS / XLS or something else that's a little less specialised. The U87 I can live with , but again a lot of the smaller facilities have them as they believe them to be the advert that they're serious about their gear.

Just curious about your business plan.

Thanks for the comments, As for The studio it is in a place called the trueman brewery Brick House lane London, It has been sound proofed etc It has been set up as a medium size studio for the main use of music production and making beats (funky house) But also so that we can have people come in and do vocals. This is not a big big time studio i know but so far it has cost me alot of money time and effort.

The terrible, terrible truth is that it reads like a wish list by someone who has little or no idea how to run a studio.

Almost no mic pres, no desk, two headphones!!! No foldback! Just one good mic! Tons and tons of useless sample CDs. No ProTools or any other professional recording medium (eg Sadie, Radar, Logic, Pyramix, Soundscape).

There is nothing wrong with what you have there in your list and indeed many members of this forum would be happy to have the same. It's all good stuff, but it is not a typical professional setup.

It reads like a toy chest and not a tool chest.

Edit note: Just spotted Logic in there, so that's a good start, but all those software CD sample things will not be as useful as you might imagine.

--------------------
www.the-byre.com No longer Forum Member

Edited by The Byre (20/04/06 08:02 PM)

To be honest with you the idea is not to attract people to come and use our studio it is to use the studio to produce quality music that can be marketed in the commercial world, our current project is funky house music, So we never really intended for the studio to be used by other people but if someone did want to use it then i guess that would be cool, We also wanted to go for a studio that was not over done and still true to who we are (to guys with big ideas!!)
I hope this makes sense

Well, best of luck to you all, is all I can say, but I am fairly well known for taking a very dim view of the chances of new start-ups in this business and very, very sadly, I am so far right.

It's OK if the stuff's all paid for and the bills get paid by other means and the studio is not in some rented building that just costs money.

--------------------
www.the-byre.com No longer Forum Member

Just to confirm we DO have pro tools and logic pro 7.2 maybe you missed them on my list! we only have 2 headphones as thats all that will be needed we are not a massive studio by any means! Orginally this was going to be a home studio but i found a buget for premisses!
Thanks!

Pro Tools isn't on your list? Only the Logic crossgrade?

I did miss pro tools from the list oops!

Well, I for one like funk and I cut my teeth professionally on hip-hop and funk, so my best wishes go with you.

--------------------
www.the-byre.com No longer Forum Member

Thanks man! we are doing ok so far i also run an independent record label that we use to put our music out so it's all hard work but i'm enjoying the challenge! I just looked at you're website, i take it you like big dogs 2? Neo's are top!!
Paul E

I'm by no means a professional studio owner... but just my 2 cents (take it for what it's worth)

It seems to me you could have spend the budget a bit more diverse. There seem to be 2 work stations and on top of that 2 laptops that are capable of being a workstation on themselves. Maybe half of that would be sufficient as a start.

Those 2 cinema displays (although very sexy and desirable screens) could easely be replaced with a far cheaper alternitive. At the same price you could have 2 times a dual screen setup. You don't need the (very good) quallity of those screens for audio work (alhough impressing clients does count for something..)

I would also add a few mics. Some simple stuff so you can mic up guitares, some percussion, etc.. when the need arises (sure SM57, SM58, Seinheisser MD421, for example..) .. maybe some alternitive mics for the nuemann...

On the same grounds I'd look into some kit with more 'caracter' then what's listed there. It's all great gear (I'd love to have such a setup), but it's all pretty clean and high quallity. In such an enviorment a piece of well chosen lofi/vintage kit can do wonders. Being it some synth/drumcomputer/EQ/compressor/FX/tape/tubes etc.. it can add life to the sound.

Guitare rig is great, but it's (IMHO) not a capable replacement for a miced up guitare. You should be able to mic up some real guitarist rig (so some mics to that respect would be great)

I don't see the MPC4000 fitting in this.. a great piece of gear, but given all the software samplers listed... neither do I see the micro korg fit in. A nice synth, but the plugins cover that ground. I'd go for a Nord/Virus or rather Moog/evolver/Analogie sollutions thing.. or maybe some modular of some kind..

I'd also ditch Reason. Would stick out as a sore thumb against all the hifi stuff (IMHO)

And I would add some more 'production' plugins. I miss some EQ's, reverbs, compressor type of stuff..

Ohw well.. out a here..


--------------------
Didn't your mother ever tell you not to eat nuclear warheads?

From what Paul says, it seems like this is, infact, a personal project studio. When he says 'commercial', he seems to mean it's for producing music which he hopes will have have commercial success, rather than hiring out the studio to paying customers.

If this is the case Paul, your colleague will know better than us what equipment he needs to produce stuff. It will be his personal choice. As Byre suggested, as long as you don't need to cover expensive overheads and set this up as a keen (and well funded...) hobby, it sounds like lots of fun and good luck!

For an authoring studio there are a few things I'd be uncomfortable with, although the Byre as a full time studio engineer and Zuk as a full time studio owner and sound designer seem to have already chipped in here.

Cans

The DT150s are fine for tracking if you are an instrumentalist but I would struggle to find them adequate for referencing. If you like Beyers budget for 770s or 990s, they're not modular like DT1x0s but they will let you listen properly.

Pres

If you are going into commercial music production, I would be concerned that "faking it" with a Liquid channel. As The Byre has already hinted at, you might be better off seeking a few classic sounds from a few classic pres. There are plenty of good Nevealikes out there on the market or your Liquid channel could easily be swapped out for a couple of API 512Cs and a lunchbox to bet you started. There are plenty of other API slot pre manufacturers to then check out.

EQ

There simply ain't no quality EQ on your list - not even as a plug. You WILL need this. At a bare minimum look at URS N and A plugs but a good, solid stereo/twin EQ will allow you to add finish to your tracks.

Monitor Controller

The Mackie Big Knob is not for me sorry. Try SPL or Coleman Audio or at a pinch Presonus.

ADA converters

MOTU are fine but you could do better. What about Metric for an Apple user or the latest Symphony card from Apogee? Check out Lynx. Your investing heavily in monitors but sticking with high-end prosumer for conversion.

Mikes

Without knowing the sources you plan to record and how often it's hard to comment, but in some lights the 414 and the U87 do very similar jobs. Perhaps it might be worth considering the jobs you want to do and what mikes might help.

Mixing ITB

Down to you of course, but even for music authoring, I'd recommend having some options. If you decide to punt for a couple of nice pres, what about using all those out channels on your converters even if you stick with the MOTUs to go into an RMS Folcrom and mixdown through those pres for a bit of character?

The basics

All that kit. What's the room and acoustic treatment? Are you gonna need headphone amps for the instrumentalists you work with? What you gonna mike them with? etc...

Don't mean to do a downer on your plans, but I think there's alot to consider here.

--------------------
Google less; read more!

Thanks for the comments, Ok just to say this studio was not made for musicans to come in and record it is setup for producers to make beats and produce music tracks, so i understand what you're saying about not having any mics for musicians but that really dosent aply to us right now! I do think i will invest in some more mics for the sake of choice but the intention is to get singers in and out just to do vocals on the particular track, The project is very much what has been said already: music production instead of hiring out too other people! I dont feel confident enough to argue points on studio stuff but i will say that everyone i have spoke to says Reason v3 is cool so i think we will be keeping it, Also the lap tops (mac book pro's) are for office use as well as studio, and they have the advantage of being portable the micro Korgo was brought for the same reason so that work can be taken home and not just be limmted to the studio!
cheers Paul

You're def lacking on the mic front...Dont mid yourself that the U87 suits all voices it doesn't... Bono used a SM58 with a live band floormonitoring set up. Paul Rodgers uses an SM57. My own voice sounds unbelievably *dull* through an AKG414 for some reason. So you get the drift, gvien recording vocals is going to be of paramount importance.

The there is no UAD plugins or offboard.. Bass and many voices are tailor made for the 1176 either soft or hardware version. There are any number of top engineers who use the *press all the buttons* trick on Bass with an 1176 as a standard setup.

The focusrite and the Avalon wouldn't even make it into a top ten on my list for either of its given apps.. Ok, thats purely personal, but im willnig to bet there are a number of others on here would say the same given what's available nowadays.

The Apple screens are an expensive frippery.. There are far better displays for less money these days. You're paying a couple of hundred each for the apple logo on out of date technology depsite what the blurb might say.

--------------------
nibbled to death by an Okapi http://www.soundclick.com/tubilahdog

Ummm ok first off the apple screens are top end and yes they are expensive but frippery?? I disagree with you i wanted top end stuff thats why we got them! I really like the screens they look good and do an excellent job so i wont change my mind in them just yet!
The Avlon and Focusrite now thats interesting! Out of the many people i speak too i am told constantly that they are the top end at there job! i would like to hear other peoples opinions on the Avlon and Focusrite please, opinions Vary

Paul

Perhaps before getting into a long kit debate it might be better to start with the business and its environment.

You want ot get involved in commercial music authoring, right? Okay, you're gonna have to produce polished results unless you are relying on being the next bedroom "Streets".

Sorry, just editing, I missed your earlier comment re: venue.... How are your premises set up?

--------------------
Google less; read more!

You need 2 screens per computer for Logic work.

You have too many computers. Unless you ar ebuying multiple copies of Logic Pro you only get one XS Key and can only use one of them at a time.

Part of your kit list almost looks like you are setting up 2 studios - e.g. Logic on one G5 and PT on another. This is not necessary. You can't really listen to both at once (I assume you don't have two rooms?).

Your (limited) mic range overlaps and does basically the same job. You need a decent dynamic and a pair of SDCs to track "real" guitar/percussion etc.

You have not commented on room/acoustic treatment. Not for recording, but for your own monitoring purposes in your control room. Allow at least £5,000 to do a half decent job if you are looking to do "pro" releases.

You have no means of doing "pro" mastering. Which I accept costs a lot of money for serious hardware and is a different skill set. I assume you will outsource this (I do!).

I think I know your site - is it the "village" at 93 Feet East? If so, watch out for isolation between adjoining units (and some of the live gigs there can get a bit loud too). Unless you spend really serious money (or it has already been spent for you) you may have to live with the fact that sometimes you just won't be able to function, and build that into your plans.

--------------------
Dynamite with a laser beam...

The apple screens are not top quality if you intend to do vieo and photographic work. There are 2-3 from the Dell line up that leave them trailing in their dust on purely pic quality and bang per buck. Then there are the serious pro quality displays from the likes of La Cie and Sony. If you dont need top noitch graphics just a damn good screen you are paying extra for less, and that's a simple fact.

There is a new Dell 20 inch widescreen ,you could use three, that comes in around the £350 a screen and their pic quality is above that of the apple displays

--------------------
nibbled to death by an Okapi http://www.soundclick.com/tubilahdog

IF you're doing 'real' vocals you need a proper pre, a proper compressor and a proper mic. The Avalon is a really good pre for female pop vocals...it's very pristine and hifi...the U87 is underwhelming...I would start looking at deals on a second hand VM1 for example.

Acoustic treatment is FAR more important than all these things really. Get a room that translates properly. That is what a lot of your competition dont have.

You're the business guy. How is your studio going to compete with the kabillion others in N London doing the same thing as you. Get yourself in a position where you're cool and the kings of good results. A U87 and 2 silver effect screens will not do that I'm afraid.

Very best of luck in your new business though!

J

--------------------
www.jackruston.com

Quote The Producer Formally Known As Jack:

---

IF you're doing 'real' vocals you need a proper pre, a proper compressor and a proper mic. The Avalon is a really good pre for female pop vocals...it's very pristine and hifi...the U87 is underwhelming...I would start looking at deals on a second hand VM1 for example.

Acoustic treatment is FAR more important than all these things really. Get a room that translates properly. That is what a lot of your competition dont have.

You're the business guy. How is your studio going to compete with the kabillion others in N London doing the same thing as you. Get yourself in a position where you're cool and the kings of good results. A U87 and 2 silver effect screens will not do that I'm afraid.

Very best of luck in your new business though!

J

---

...and you'll need a decent 'verb.

--------------------
Google less; read more!

Hi PrinceXizor, I thought that as well, no desk, and not enough mic's call me old fashioned but.......
Also, no really interesting synths or effects, you need a bit of analogoue too, surely, just my oppinion.

Take care !

Tony.

You have mentioned Acoustic treatment n a number of ocassions, We have only just moved into our space so at the moment there is nothing in the way of acoustic treatment however i have left £7.000 aside for this to be done and i am i the process of getting quotes, So until it is done i cant tell you what we have.
I do take the point that we will need a selection of mics and will be looking to see what is the best thing for us to get to improve our range. It does not matter how many other killion studios there are in London (we are East Brick Lane Hoxton Square) beacuse we are not compeating for clients to come to the studio and pay for time, that is NOT the intention of this project, the intention is to create quality music that can me marketed in the commercial world. As for mastering that will be done of site by someone who is skilled in that area of work.
Some possitive comments would be cool!
Oh and for the person who does not understand why we dont have a desk!!!! This studio is designed to be Compleatley DIGITAL hence the mackie control etc...

Cheers

No disrespect Andy, but you don't need 'professional' gear to run a studio. You need good gear which you understand.
It's a fairly meaningless phrase anyway.
In the digital age, the sonic quality doesn't come from the recorder anymore (it's the preamps, convertors, etc..) - as you know.
I don't know if I would say that anything is useless. Anything can be used for making and recording music.

Read Paul Whites editorial in the new SOS, then SOunding Off, then recording Dire Straits and tell me what you need to make good tracks.

Maybe some 'professional' studios produce cr*p music, not only because they have cr*p clients, but because they conform to some sort of 'professional' set up which makes them all the same - no character, sheep etc....



The Dire Straits article remined me of somethig someone said here about setting up a mic by "pointing and hitting record" and that this was NOT the way to record.
Sometimes it is actually....

--------------------
Jack of all trades, master of some.

I think I get where you're coming from... my thoughts:

If you're only going to be doing the occasinal vocal session, then you might want to consider doing them somewhere else. Scratch the Focusrite, Mics, and the voice pro, and stick the money in an ISA. That'll keep you going in occasional vocal sessions in someone else's studio for years, and they'll probably have a better mic selection.

As for the sample CDs *shudder* isn't this the work you're meant to be doing? Buy a couple of character analogues, some guitar pedals and some random machines that go 'ping' and do it yourself. Far more viable in the long term, and your tracks won't sound the same as 1000 bedroom producers.

The Powercore is a good call. Add a UAD and maybe a lexicon or a convolution verb, though. Do you really need 4 mackie expanders? Really? Good grief...

Quote PaulE:

---

You have mentioned Acoustic treatment n a number of ocassions, We have only just moved into our space so at the moment there is nothing in the way of acoustic treatment however i have left £7.000 aside for this to be done and i am i the process of getting quotes, So until it is done i cant tell you what we have.
I do take the point that we will need a selection of mics and will be looking to see what is the best thing for us to get to improve our range. It does not matter how many other killion studios there are in London (we are East Brick Lane Hoxton Square) beacuse we are not compeating for clients to come to the studio and pay for time, that is NOT the intention of this project, the intention is to create quality music that can me marketed in the commercial world. As for mastering that will be done of site by someone who is skilled in that area of work.
Some possitive comments would be cool!
Oh and for the person who does not understand why we dont have a desk!!!! This studio is designed to be Compleatley DIGITAL hence the mackie control etc...

Cheers

---

I think we all think it's great you are trying to break into a difficult market and I personally wish you the best of luck and stellar commercial success.

I guess the point some people are trying to make is that, if you are working commercially then your results will be judged against other commercial mixes. Hence, whilst there are certain things you can probably avoid like a large live room, there are certain other things you will probably need.

For me that's a broader selection of mikes, probably at least twin channels of quality pres, decent referencing cans, a good stereo/twin EQ, a high quality verb for vox and general duties, (so many mixes can be let down by this), I mentioned some other stuff earlier too...

Equally there's stuff that I find a little confusing as to why you have it... Two sets of Motu converters, that's a helluva lot of channels even for two separate rigs of layered and sample based music. If you truly are going to mix ITB, less channels and more quality might be more appropriate.

I know you like the screens but they are very expensive and the money could be spent of better audio signal path or better audio FX or general sound sources.

The goal of any business is to sqeeze the maximum profit out of the minimum investment. This is done by creatively marketing the best product. It'll all look very nice and please both visitors and Steve Jobs, but one laptop would be adequate for office duties and a second hand one at that or even, (sorry for swearing), a beaten up old PC will be fine for word processing and internet duties. If music on the move is your goal, then I would suggest that you stick to the studio, you'll probably only be scratchpadding at best and there are far cheaper ways to do that than on an ibook.

Without knowing much about your genre, it's hard to commment on the samples, but your competing commercial composers will be working with best in class.

Anyway back on topic. This is great that you are setting up! Really, truly, best of luck, I'm already jealous of the opportunities that await you. Take advantage of the various studio closures of late to try and pick up gear second hand. (Also take note of those closures and the risky nature of the business). Come here often during your studio build with pics. (So we all no doubt can carp from the sidelines... )

On the grounds that nobody likes a critic, except slow roasted with an apple for a gobstopper, I'll shut up now.

--------------------
Google less; read more!

As somebody said, the RAM on the G5s at 512Mb is not really usable for a lot of sample based work. Indeed it's not usable for basic Logic work beyond a minimal track count. At least 4Gb, possibly even 8 (but as I said you only really need one G5). I think you are light on hard disk space as well. Will 2 x 250Gb disks even hold all the samples you have bought? (BFD alone fills about 75Gb).

You need to think about backup. I can't see a backup system. Personally I'd bung in a 1 - 2 terabyte raid array for pro work, which will give you a couple of backups automatically of everything you do (in real time). But you'd still want e.g. a portable firewire drive to maintain offsite backups.

The suggestion of going offsite for what looks to be very occasional vocal work etc is a good one... I recently bought a Neumann tube mic from a studio like yours who had it for about 10 years and claimed to have used it for about 6 hours in that period. It certainly looks and sounds as good as new.

Also if you are doing vocals in-house, will this be in the control room? Ideally you'd want to think about a dedicated vocal booth, which again, combined with the cost of money tied up in mics etc, points towards outsourcing.

Have you factored in iso-boxes for your computers etc to keep noise levels down in your mixing room?

You definitely need a heavy duty reverb - there really is nothing in the digital domain which currently matches a high-end Lexicon or equivalent.

--------------------
Dynamite with a laser beam...

Ok I'll try to add some constructive criticism to this thread

The apple displays are good and look nice, they're a good choice but I'd have two of them connected to each computer.

A good alternative for PT/ Logic would've been Digital Performer/ Logic. Nothing wrong with PT if money is not an issue.

Reason is a must to have around, you can do so much composing and experimenting with it and it so fast and easy.

I wouldn't worry about getting the vocals right for your purposes with that setup. Some mic or pre might be good later but you'll know why and what you want after you've had the time to find out what your current gear is capable of.

With all that gear I'd do a lot of sampling myself, from live guitar setup and vinyls. The sample cd's rarely offer those exact nyances that make all the difference.

A Virus TI would be my choise of weapon to the synth arsenal. It offers so much and would be a pleasant surprise for any visiting artist.

With that gear you don't have a toy box but a tool box for electronic music. You can probably tell yourself that most of the comments above are not the ones from your average dance producer who's in tune with the season. In the right hands your studio is capable of delivering some fine tracks no doubt.

Hi Paul

I take your point about not needing to attract clients.

Sounds like you have a good budget for your acoustic treatment.

If you're not going to do a lot of vocal recording maybe it'd be better to get yourself a medium budget mic for putting vocal ideas together and then just go somewhere local with a gucci chain to get your main vocals down...It saves you a lot to not have to worry about expensive mics and pres.

Choose whatever application you like the most and stick with it. Dont get logic and pt or logic and dp etc because you wont need both. I accept that you might need extra production software like reason.

Get the room and monitoring right.

Best of luck!

Jack

--------------------
www.jackruston.com

Today we brought a synth pack called Atures vintage collection with all the Moog stuff have you guys used it?

April 1 was 20 days ago

Wha is the meaning of you're post? 1st of April???????

April fool's dude

Not a fan then I take it...

--------------------
Google less; read more!

Anyway, all this gear talk! Whats the layout and the decor going to be like?

Hope it works out btw.

Hey, Ok well the lay out is gonna be like this the gear will all be put in an argous v series consol it's really kool consol wiv platinum end panels, there wont be a vocal booth as such but we didnt feel that 1 was nececery, although it all looks really good we wanted to keep it real and true 2 who we are and where we are at right now so the posh vocal booth and leather sofas will come when we made some paper! Some people reckon that not to have a vocal booth is crazy but Lamar layed his vocals to his first hit in my business parteners front room studio without a vocal booth it was just really basic but it worked!

Don't knock the Arturia stuff, I think CS80v sounds fantastic. Wish I had the power to run it!

Is this for real?

You mention ProTools but no digi interface?

Sorry, but this sounds like the odd dream post you see on here from time to time.

Dream post? what do you mean by that? Sometimes when people post stuff like you have such as "Dream Post" i ask myself why did you bother to post in this thread if that is you're opinion?? i am not clued up on studio stuff myself as explained in my previous posts but i can assure you we have wat we need to start making music?
Please try not 2 be jellous and be happy that someone out there is doing well and having fun with a music project!
If you wanna be an ass with a BA do it on annother post

Cheers

Sorry to upset you.

Basically, I just couldn't believe this was for real. You say you "have no idea about studio stuff" yet have just spent a shedload of money on gear and then ask "what sort of studio will I have?"

I don't have a long history in this industry but have quickly found that there are a large number of people with no musical, engineering or business skills talking a load of bollocks. This makes it tougher for skilled, hardworking people to get established in a oversubscribed workplace. For me audio is a hobby I do on the sidelines outside normal paid work so this isn't an issue for me but I know talented people who are struggling.

I am not refering specifically to you, or anyone else on this forum, as I don't know anything about you but I just wanted to establish where the attitude came from in my previous post.

There have been similar posts to this from trolls just to wind people up so sorry if I am sceptical. Maybe I just needed a caffeine fix before I posted to mellow out a bit

If this is for real then I wish you all the best and would love to see pics when you get set up.

I've spotted a gaping flaw in the gear list, no clueless coked-up shoreditch trustifarian should be without a Native Instruments KORE!! What does it do you ask? Who cares!

I do understand where you're coming from man, but look you need to read my first few posts, I said i dont know too much about Studio stuff but my business partener is a music producer who does know exactly what he is doing, the reason behined me posting in the first place is as you correctly said i have spent a shed load of money on this project and have only had a few people barr my business partener to ask what they think of what we are doing and the stuff we brought so i thought i would come here and post to get opinions from guys who know about this kinda thing!
No offence taken heebee but a few people have posted pointless negative rubbish, All i'm saying is if someone wants to make a critical comment thats cool, but lets makesure that somthing possitve can be taken from it.

Cheers

So mr Gelled Fringe u obviously have a point to make so if you want to make it feel free lets not be childish and hide behined silly comments. I would like to know to whom you are talking about when you say Cokehead? On second thoughts, forget it you are not gonna be making any worth while comments so rather than getting into a war of words on the web i think it would be wiser for you not too post on this thread again, that way we can both live in peace!

Cheers

The way i see it paul...and maybe a few others do also....is..
With the greatet respect.....You have just spent a serious shed load of money and don't know what you have bought!
I'm not totaly in to gear and some of what you have ..I don't know what you have bought but I aint bought it so sleep a bit better!
You say you are the business side of the partnership..... and the plan is...? And if it's a good plan..... you don't know if you have the correct equipment to fulfill your objectives.
Yo have reently gone in to partnership with a partner... Ok.. So what was he bringing to the deal.? and what were you bringing? (sounds to me like the dosh!) So you have trusted this guy to make up a wish list and then you have bank rolled it. Nothing wrong with that... but you now seem a little unsure. Since the feedback from some of the rather experienced memebers you must now surly be thinking ..Ok maybe i should have checked this out beforehand. No? Then remarks like... how come you need all the sample / loop CD's when that's the market you are trying to get into must ring a few bells.

I'm in business with a partner (non music) Although I'm the Business/Admin/accounts/less of an ops guy of the two.... Prior to setting up i used that business acumen to suss out the market/speak to others....consult with consultants... speak to industry insiders.... I knew th eopps side fairly well prior to setting up.
You have said this is like a hobby / business venture..... Hmmm for your partner as well? Who's paying his salary?

Sorry Paul... I may be off themark here but it sounds like you just aked.... " i went into patnership with a guy coz we had a good idea and he said we needed this if he was going to be able to do it"...and you got it for him. Hi wish list became a reality... your business aspirations may not.
Unfair comment?... maybe.... I hope not and wish you all the best... but equipment buying was the easy bit.

I remember one of my first bands.... played pubs but we bought a PA to gig Wembley and a coach to get to the gigs and then drop us all off.....home. We convinced ourselves we will need it all if we were to get the breaks! Now that was the easy bit.
Best regards

--------------------
My Songs are at http://songramp.com/RonnieG

The way i see it paul...and maybe a few others do also....is..
With the greatet respect.....You have just spent a serious shed load of money and don't know what you have bought!
I'm not totaly into gear and some of what you have ..I don't know what you have bought but I aint bought it so sleep a bit better!
You say you are the business side of the partnership..... and the plan is...? And if it's a good plan..... you don't know if you have the correct equipment to fulfill your objectives.
Yo have recently gone in to partnership with a partner... Ok.. So what was he bringing to the deal.? and what were you bringing? (sounds to me like the dosh!) So you have trusted this guy to make up a wish list and then you have bank rolled it. Nothing wrong with that... but you now seem a little unsure. Since the feedback from some of our more experienced members you must now surley be thinking .."Ok maybe i should have checked this out beforehand." No? Then remarks like... how come you need all the sample / loop CD's when that's the market you are trying to get into must ring a few bells.

I'm in business with a partner (non music) Although I'm the Business/Admin/accounts/less of an ops guy of the two.... Prior to setting up i used that business acumen to suss out the market/speak to others....consult with consultants... speak to industry insiders.... I knew th opps side fairly well prior to setting up.
You have said this is like a hobby / business venture..... Hmmm for your partner as well? Who's paying his salary?

Sorry Paul... I may be off the mark here but it sounds like you just asked.... " I went into patnership with a guy coz we had a good idea and he said we needed this if he was going to be able to do it"...and you got it for him. His wish list became a reality... your business aspirations may not.
Unfair comment?... maybe.... I hope not and wish you all the best... but equipment buying was the easy bit.

I remember one of my first bands.... played pubs but we bought a PA to gig Wembley and a coach to get to the gigs and then drop us all off.....home. We convinced ourselves we will need it all if we were to get the breaks! Now that was the easy bit.
Best regards

--------------------
My Songs are at http://songramp.com/RonnieG

Hey Ronnie,
Thanks for the post, Ok a short history for you, I worked as a tour manager for about 4 years, Mainly working with Bands and Artists that were signed to major record labels (Hence the fact they could afford a tour manager) In my time working as a tour manager i made many friends in the music industry, I met up with my current business partener Whilest he was working for a record company at hte same time as me, We decided to do this project together. Our currrent aim is to produce music (Funky house @ this time) and get it onto the commercial track, So he makes the music i get it played in clubs and on Radio etc and when enough interest is created we release the track and put in independent record shops etc (Shortly we hope to be able to sell out tunes on our website too but getting merchant banking is a slow process for us. That is a small part of what we do, We run several club nights in London and we are always approached with offers and deals, it's just a case of sorting the wheat from the chaff in that respect! We are also working with a couple of artists with a final aim of getting the signed to a major record label i guess it's artist development!
As far as studio equiptment and my posting on here goes i did spend alot of money on this project and i wanted a un biase opinion on what we have so far. As i said before it's just nice to get other people's opinions on what we have, I certainly wouldnt have spent the ammount that i did on a whim and a promiss from a hot shot!
My business partener is the creative force and he deals with all things "Studio" so it's just nice for me to post here and get other people's ideas and opinions on our setup.
I hope this made some sense 2 u m8,
Cheers for the comments

PaulE

Hi Paul.
Yep sounds good to me. That bit of background puts into perspective where you are coming from. (As i said)That gear list doesn't mean too much to me. I own some good gear that suits my purpose of writing songs and getting them to a V good demo stage.... but won't pretend i'm any tech head and I bow to most of these guys here for their knowledge. (So i was just coming in from the business angle)
Your role is crucial to the success of it. You sound like a handy bloke to know

Best rgds

--------------------
My Songs are at http://songramp.com/RonnieG

An interesting thread. still haven't read all the long posts but thought i'd ask a simple q: have you scoured past SoS issues for the studio discussions/profiles of artists similar to where you see yourself going? there have been really good rightups of massive attack, william orbit, etc. with extensive gear lists and discussion of how they work.

as i said, only you know what you're shooting for, you must have some 'heroes' (maybe bowie?) that you like. look over their stuff.

btw, i agree on the apple cinema screens. don't go for the name! steve jobs is rich enough, he doesn't need more dosh ;-)

cheers,

d

--------------------
"Patsy had the drug tolerance of Keith Richards and the moral rectitude of Brian Jones." - Dr. Walter Bishop, "Fringe"

Quote PaulE:

---

I have recently gone into partenership with a music producer and brought a recording studio, I have no clue of Studio stuff as i look after the management side of the business, i will list the equiptment we have brought on the advice of my business partener i just wondered if any of you guys would like to comment on what kind of a studio i will have, this is just as a second opinion,
Hardware.
2x Apple power mac G5 Quad 2.5 ghz 512mb 250gb

---

You only need one G5. This G5 needs (much) more RAM and much more disk space. As others have advised, get a RAID system.

Quote:

---

2x Apple 23" widescreen cinema dvi display monitors

---

These are a waste of money. There are better screens for less money.

Quote:

---

2x Apple mac book pro intel

---

I would have commented but you allready explained the use of these.

Quote:

---

1x focusrite liquid channel
1x Neuman u87 mic
1x AKG c414BXL 2 Mic
1x Avlon VT747SP Compressor
1x TC Voice pro

---

Do the final vocals elsewhere. Maybe get a simple mic+preamp for the rough takes.

Quote:

---

2x motu Audio interface

---

You only need one G5 so you don't need two MOTUs. Anyway, get a Lynx or something like that instead. Less channels but better quality.

Quote:

---

1x Mackie control
4x Mackie expanders for Mackie control

---

Four expanders? Why???

Quote:

---

1x Mackie Big Knob

---

This isn't very good soundwise. Get a proper monitor controler or go straight out from your sound card.

Quote:

---

1x TC Power core fire wire
1x Pair Genelec 8050a monitors + Sub
1x Pair Adams s3a Active monitors

---

Why two pairs of nearfield monitors? Loose one pair. (Probably the Adams as you have 8050s with sub but I havn't checked which model the S3A is).

Quote:

---

1X Akai MPC 4000

---

You have Logic, no need for an MPC.

Quote:

---

2x Beyer dt150 Head phones
1x Korg Triton Extreme 76 key
1X Micro Korg

---

Get a Korg Radias, Virus TI or Nord Lead instead.

Quote:

---

SoftWare
Logic Pro v 7.2 Cross Grade
Ableton live 5
Reason v 3
Stylus Rmx
Atmosphere
Trillogy
IK Miroslav Philharmonic
NI Komplete 3
NI guitar Rig 2
NI Electric Guitar
East west collosus
Absynth 3
Recycle 2.1
IK Sonik Synth 2
Ik Sample tank
Antres Auto tune 4
FX Pansion bfd drum and guru
Mini moogoo

Quote:

---

I would also suggest some good EQ, dynamics and Reverb plugins besides the PowerCore stuff. (Does your partner really know what he is doing? I doubt it.)

Some EQ suggestions: PSP MasterQ, URS EQ, Sonalksis ... Dynamics suggestions: Actually I don't really know what is available for Mac.
Reverbs beside the TC stuff: Altiverb and Wizoo W2.

Quote:

---

Sample cd's
Funky House Producer
EZ roller drum and bass producer
Nu Jazz City
Neo Soul
Smokers delight
Ghetto Grooves vol2
Vocal planet
Zero G apple loops
SAGE
Liquid grooves
Retro Funk
Back Beat
Sample lab
Broken beats
Discography
Anolgue Archive
Lusious GROOVES

---

Ah yes ... Sample CDs ... I would get sample CDs with individual sounds for percussion and such. All these loop CDs are not a good sign IMO.

I don't want to be negative but what has your creative partner allready produced? If his stuff isn't pretty much close to release quality allready, he won't get their just by getting all this new shiny gear. Are you sure he can do it?

UnderTow

Thanks for you're comments, I just want to answer a couple of you're questions.
First off yes my business partener does know exactly what he is doing and has infact produced a number of sucessful tracks in the past!
On to the Apple Screens, They may not be the very best quality thats available but please keep it real! They are expensive but come on they are a decent screen to have!
The 2x G5's the idea between 2x g5's was so Logic is used on 1 something else can be used on the other! A few guys here have said there needs to be more ram and disk space so i will look into that soon,
Ok the motu travelers well we need 2x beacuse we have the 2x G5's so that explains that, There is nothing wrong with motu infact from what i am told they are very good and many other studios use them, As regards to vocals all we need to be able to do is create a really good quality demo and then if needs be we can do a perfect final @ a big boy studio (Sarm west or Strong rooms is where we have gone b4) But my point is what we have we allow us to do a really good demo at the least! The numan U87 is an excellent mic and is used in almost every studio i have been to so i am happy that we have one and i'm confident that they will do the job we need them too, however our mic range is limmeted so again if we need somthing else we will either get a mic to suit our paticular needs at the time or go to another studio!
The Korg Triton Extreme is a really cool and again it's perfect for what we are doing right now!!
The sample CD's and loops are there beacuse thats exactly what we ae doing right now!!! Funky House Dance Music!!! So they are Exactly what we need to produce this kind of music!!!
I wonder if you would care to make a positive comment about our stuff now perhaps tell me what we have if anything that you think is quality and that will be of use to us as so far you have kinda ripped it to bits! (there 's a challenge for you)

Cheers for the comment

Peace

Hey Ronnie,
Glad you got my last post i was starting to worry that nobody understood what we are about!!!
Some of the guys are still taking my list apart but that is the price i pay for posing on here in the first place!
If you're ever in London Look me up and i'll show the studio and what we are doing i'll pm u my contact details

Peace

PaulE

Quote PaulE:

---

Some of the guys are still taking my list apart but that is the price i pay for posing on here in the first place!

---

Its not a very heavy price, is it? You asked for comments, you got 'em. I think most people would agree that your list includes some very solid choices but also some frippery, so they let you know. You now seem pretty convinced that you've got all the right stuff, which begs the question ...why ask?

I have, myself, once been in the position where I got to give someone a shopping list. Because I wasn't spending my own money I wasn't as meticulous as if I'd struggled for every pound. It would have been useful if someone had critiqued my list the way peeps have here, because I did make some glaring mistakes.

If I were you, I'd read this whole thread again. There's some excellent food for thought...

Thanks for you're post, The whole reason for me posting on here was to get a second opinion, But i feel some of the posts where just negative for the sake of being negative! Thats what i am getting at, I dont mind and infact welcome constructive critisism but CONSTRUCTIVE is the key word!
When posting and saying what you think could be better and what you would change why not also say what you think is a good choice???
It just seems to me that some people post just to bring somone down a peg or too????
Any how i do appriciate all comments that are worth while and constructive.
And yeah after many conversations recently i am confident that our studio is gonna do exactly what we want it to.
Cheers.

Quote PaulE:

---

Thanks for you're comments, I just want to answer a couple of you're questions.
First off yes my business partener does know exactly what he is doing and has infact produced a number of sucessful tracks in the past!

---

Good to hear that. It wasn't entirely clear from your previous posts.

Quote:

---

On to the Apple Screens, They may not be the very best quality thats available but please keep it real! They are expensive but come on they are a decent screen to have!

---

Sure but why not spend the same money (or less) on better screens? Or maybe add a beamer and a projection screen so that other people in the studio can follow what is going on or you can use it to project video on the screen. With kind of stuff you seem to be aiming at, I can easily imagine doing some music to film/video projects as well. (That pays alot ).

Quote:

---

The 2x G5's the idea between 2x g5's was so Logic is used on 1 something else can be used on the other! A few guys here have said there needs to be more ram and disk space so i will look into that soon,

---

Ok, that makes sense.

Quote:

---

Ok the motu travelers well we need 2x beacuse we have the 2x G5's so that explains that, There is nothing wrong with motu infact from what i am told they are very good and many other studios use them,

---

Sure but with your budget you could go up to the next level in quality.

Quote:

---

As regards to vocals all we need to be able to do is create a really good quality demo and then if needs be we can do a perfect final @ a big boy studio (Sarm west or Strong rooms is where we have gone b4) But my point is what we have we allow us to do a really good demo at the least! The numan U87 is an excellent mic and is used in almost every studio i have been to so i am happy that we have one and i'm confident that they will do the job we need them too, however our mic range is limmeted so again if we need somthing else we will either get a mic to suit our paticular needs at the time or go to another studio!

---

Ok fair enough but to get the best quality out of the mics, I seriously think you should consider a vocal booth. As you describe things, right now with this setup, you seem to be right between demo quality and release quality.

Of course I understand that you might be getting stuff so that you can add the vocal booth later without having to replace anything else.

Quote:

---

The Korg Triton Extreme is a really cool and again it's perfect for what we are doing right now!!

---

Sorry for not being clear. I was refering to the Micro Korg.

Quote:

---

The sample CD's and loops are there beacuse thats exactly what we ae doing right now!!! Funky House Dance Music!!! So they are Exactly what we need to produce this kind of music!!!

---

Ermm ... I find this a strange way of thinking. Either you produce the music or you use sample loops. Get my drift?

Quote:

---

I wonder if you would care to make a positive comment about our stuff now perhaps tell me what we have if anything that you think is quality and that will be of use to us as so far you have kinda ripped it to bits! (there 's a challenge for you)

---

Oh sorry, I just assumed you would understand that the stuff I didn't comment on was just fine. It was late when I wrote the post yesterday. Anyway, I think you guys are going to have alot of fun with this setup.

Quote:

---

Cheers for the comment

Peace

---

You're welcome!

UnderTow

Hi Thanks for you're post,
Ok i get where you are coming from now, Just to say about the sample loops basically they are there as a tool really so we can produce our own stuff but have the samples to use as and when we need them, I dont produce or do anything in the studio but what i do know is that dance music producers find the sample loops and stuff really helpfull @ times we wont just be using the samples but they are there as a part of the setup so we can use them when we need 2. I find it really interesing that you say we are half way between demo and release quality, What would you do to bring it up ot release quality? Forgive me if you answered that in you're previous post! Try and break it down for me so when u name a piece of gear let me know what it does and how it will improve our current set up! Sorry if thats a pain but i really wanna try and understand all the advice you are giving me without having to go back 2 my partener constantly asking questions! As for the vocal booth maybe we do need to re think it?? Have you seen these shield type things that go around a mic stand (Not pop shields) they are being marketed as a vocal booth of sorts?? Do you know what i mean? i'll google it and find the proper name if you dont, Let me know you're thoughts on them, 1 last thing if i may? What would be the next step up from the motu travelers in you're mind?

Thanks for you're time

PaulE

Hi Paul

First of all 'release quality' is a difficult thing to quantify. We all know that a very 'cool' recording of dubious sonic quality is more valuable that something perfect in sound, but boring. It's the old 50% of something is worth infinitely more than 100% of nothing scenario. What I getting at is that we can pick technical holes in things until we're blue in the face and it wont really matter as long as you guys are delivering the goods musically.

Having said that, I would love to see some nicer converters. Can you afford some Apogee's? They're sonically great and they also have a sort of warm bass end to them. You would expect things to sound clearer, tighter, better imaging etc etc vs the motu.

I'm thinking about what you've said regarding the U87. You should be aware that when people talk about U87's in the context of it being an industry standard mic that every great studio has etc, they're usually talking about old ones. Which are very different animals than the new U87ai which is not terrible or anything but it lacks some of the magic of the old ones. If I can use another example to illustrate...old Gibson J45's are wonderful chrachterful guitars which are generally well made whereas new ones tend to suffer from a sort of bland mass produced vibe. If you're going to do master vocals I would consider something better even if it's used. If you're going to do 'good' demo vocals and do the masters elsewhere I would get something cheaper. Examples: Master vocals: Brauner VM1 used. Demo Vocals: Groove Tubes GT67

Again with the Avalon...its an excellent pre for pop vocals but dont buy it unless you intend to do master vocals. There are considerably cheaper options out there that still sound excellent. If you ARE doing master vocals, then definitely buy one. Its a fine choice.

I've not used the screen thingy that you mentioned but I think if you're getting singers in you'll need a little treated area or booth.

The other question is of course if you're going to record other instruments there...acoustic guitars for example?

You could always get up and running without the expensive vocal chain and decide whether you want it further down the line. Getting it in is only a phone call away after all.

Good luck with it all. At the end of the day Paul, at least no-one can accuse you of not doing some research!!

J

--------------------
www.jackruston.com

Quote PaulE:

---

!
If you're ever in London Look me up and i'll show the studio and what we are doing i'll pm u my contact details

---

Cool ... do that.
Rgds ronnie

--------------------
My Songs are at http://songramp.com/RonnieG

that is an incredible kit list. The only problem is that if you don't come up with some cracking material with those tools at your fingertips, you won't be able to blame the tools!

good luck with it.

I'd also add some crap speakers eg ns10s / auratones and / or a ghetto blaster

all the best

You are talking about the SE Electronics Reflexion Filter - £199 at Digital Village. It's had a (very) good review in the latest Audio Media. But I don't think Air or Sarm West are going to cheerfully admit it makes vocal booths redundant!

Again I think it's an example of the difference between a good demo and "pro" quality. Last time I did a proper vocal booth (2m x 1m) I spent £8k on acoustic treatment, wiring and ventilation. For your sort of projects (as I understand it) you'd be better off investing the £8k in a deposit account (plus the sale proceeds of your mics) and hiring a voice-over studio when you need it.

This is intended to be constructive. You've asked a bunch of people, some of them pretty serious experts, what they would do AFTER you've spent the money. It might have been a good question to ask earlier! But in any event, any one of us would come up with a number of variations to your list - we're all different and we all have soft spots for certain bits of kit and certain dislikes for others. You do have the means to make good music, but throwing more money at it now would be the worst thing to do (other than getting one of the computers into a usable state). You need to take stock and learn from experience what the limits of your set-up really are.

--------------------
Dynamite with a laser beam...

Hi again Paul,

Quote PaulE:

---

Hi Thanks for you're post,
Ok i get where you are coming from now, Just to say about the sample loops basically they are there as a tool really so we can produce our own stuff but have the samples to use as and when we need them, I dont produce or do anything in the studio but what i do know is that dance music producers find the sample loops and stuff really helpfull @ times we wont just be using the samples but they are there as a part of the setup so we can use them when we need 2.

---

Ok fair enough. I prefer doing my own programming but I understand the choice of spicing things up with some sampled loops.

Quote:

---

I find it really interesing that you say we are half way between demo and release quality, What would you do to bring it up ot release quality? Forgive me if you answered that in you're previous post! Try and break it down for me so when u name a piece of gear let me know what it does and how it will improve our current set up! Sorry if thats a pain but i really wanna try and understand all the advice you are giving me without having to go back 2 my partener constantly asking questions!

---

I was talking specificaly about the vocals aspect. The rest of the equipment is more than enough to achieve release quality for dance music. (I don't mean that in a derogatory way. I produce dance music myself. Just a bit faster and harder ).

Quote:

---

As for the vocal booth maybe we do need to re think it?? Have you seen these shield type things that go around a mic stand (Not pop shields) they are being marketed as a vocal booth of sorts?? Do you know what i mean? i'll google it and find the proper name if you dont, Let me know you're thoughts on them,

---

I know exactly what you mean but I have never used anything like that so I can't comment. Actually I will comment: I sincerely doubt it will be good enough.

Quote:

---

1 last thing if i may? What would be the next step up from the motu travelers in you're mind?

Thanks for you're time

PaulE

---

The first thing that comes to mind are the Lynx cards. Another possibility would be the Benchmark Audio DAC-1 to feed your monitors. (You could actually use this with the digital outputs on the MOTU.)

I havn't heard the new Appogee Ensemble (I think that is what they are called) so I can't comment on that but certainly worth some investigation.

UnderTow

Thanks for posting Steve,
The thing is i was more than confident in my business parteners choices with equiptment so i didnt really feel the need to come here and ask for approval if you see what i mean, At the risk of repeating myself over ans again, I posted to get a second opinion on what we had and not to get approval, So thats why i didnt ask before i went shopping! I think you really hit the nail on the head in you're post when you say everyone has diffrent likes and dislikes with regard to studio gear so each persons list would ofcourse be slightly diffrent if not massivley diffrent!
I'm nt convined enough to sell the mics we already have, even though we wont be doing perfect final vocals we still will be some vocal work. I'm not sure that we can install a permenant vocal booth in our rented premisses, or wether i'd want to end so much money on somthing that will have to stay if we and when we leave so it's a bit of a catch 22! I think we will start of with the SE electronics reflector and see what gives.
I think you are also right in saying it's time to stop spending and take stock of what we have and see how we go with it. I did my last bit of shopping to day. I got A pair of Technics SL 1210M5G Decks An Allen and Heath Xone 6 DJ's mixer and Stanton final scratch software, So with that i am not going to spend anymore till we have made some money unless we have forgoten something major but i dont see that we have,
Thanks for you're advice it is all taken on board!

Peace

PaulE

Just a note the landlord agreed to us having the room sound proofing done and some acoustic treatment but i dont think he would allow a vocal booth to be intalled permenantly

Quote PaulE:

---

Just a note the landlord agreed to us having the room sound proofing done and some acoustic treatment but i dont think he would allow a vocal booth to be intalled permenantly

---

If you have the physical space, you can get room-within-a-room type booths which just bolt together and can be disassembled and taken with you when you leave. This is a fairly typical example (although I would quibble with the idea of comfortably sticking three people in a 1.2m x 1.2m space for any serious amount of takes!) - http://www.studiospares.com/pd_411660_ESMONO%2012x12x2mH%20ROOM.htm

--------------------
Dynamite with a laser beam...

To get the most out of the travelers, you might want to look at this

You can listen to some audio examples on the site too.

Take it easy

Well, everybody is playing at having a go at Paul's wish list and Paul in the mean time is left wondering which bits of advice to listen to and which bits to ignore.

I'm mot going to tell him to do anything (except make some funky sounds, there just are not enough funky sounds on Planet earth). And Brick Lane is a funky place to make those sounds and funk is all about feeling and very little about what gear you use.

The only advice worth listening to is from one of the hip-hop big boys, only I don't suppose that nipping over to NY or LA to spend time with Mashal Mathers or Andre Young is really an option, but you can always see how they do things. Young is probably the most successful producer right now and he does it all with a Studer 2", an SSL G+ and shed loads of analogue gear (Rhodes, Wurley, Hammond, ARP, Moogs) as well as more modern stuff like the Triton, NordLead, Andromeda, MS2000.

And he should know. He is Dr. Dre and the man behind Snoop, M&M and whole lot more.

But whatever works for you will work for you and that's that. Just remember to never fall in love with kit (she a devil of a woman!) and if some software or hardware is feeling like it is developing into a pain in the butt, dump it immediately. You're supposed to be making music, not farting about with computers!

--------------------
www.the-byre.com No longer Forum Member

As commented on here several times here, you asked for advice, but then didn't like what was given, so you get mad and ask for positive stuff.

Did you really want advice or did you want to be stroked for buying all this really expensive gear and told what a smart man you are?

The advice given was good...all around actually, but that is all it is at the end of the day really..."advice". Everybody has their own way of working and looking at things. Any advice you get is going to be on how to change things...that is the nature of advice in most cases...how we would do it differently.

In any case, I wish you success and a lot of luck! You are going to need it my friend, it is a tough world out there right now. It sounds like you are well setup however, and a postive attitude will go a long way to making you a success.

OH, and dump the Motu's...pro-sumer gear at best.

--------------------
James
"Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake" ~Napoleon Bonaparte~

You have your facts mixed up my friend if you read my posts i thank everyone for the advice given! I just get pissed off when guys are totally negative towards my post and wonder why they even bothered to post if they think the whole thing is a joke and a waste of time, but those kind of posts have been very few and far between so im not complaining!
I do appriciate everyones opinion! and have taken on board loads of advice!
Peace
PaulE