Help me design a studio?

[Visirale]

My parents are basically giving me the building behind our house (has AC power and all that jazz, was supposed to be an office) to turn into a studio. It already has pretty good acoustics.. it's pretty dead in there. Half the room has a flat ceiling and the other half is V shaped and it's probably around 12 feet at the highest point. Where should I set up my console? Also where should I put the isolation booth?

As for gear this is what I have:
bass gear (see sig)
HP media laptop (core duo, but onboard sound blows... hopefully getting an apple tower before too long)
Rokit KRK5s
Reason 4.0
Novation remote compact 49

I'm working over the summer (a nice long 4 month college summer) to get some funds. I'm most likely going back to my old job which was owned by Guitar Center so I get employee discounts there (godly) but I will hopefully be buying some gear used.

This is what I want to have by the end of the summer:
MPC-2500 or higher (maybe roland MV, still not familiar with the pros/cons of each)
Nice hardware synth (korg radias or better... analog would be nice)
Sequencing software (I can intern in a local studio that's ran by a Cubase maniac)
MIDI/recording interface (I have no idea here... is it worth it to have more than 2 inputs?)

Is a turntable worth getting? I don't have any vinyl... but I can get that too if it's really worth it. What about a key workstation? Anything else I should get? I hate being limited by my gear...


I've paid for all my gear thus far (besides my first "nice" bass) and my dad is interested in helping me with some of it... but definitely not all of it. I am very grateful for them giving me the building to work with though.


I'm kind of new to all this so I'd really appreciate any help you can offer.

My interests are mainly hip hop and IDM, but I've played jazz and rock most of my life and don't want a set up that can't do everything... I don't know if that's limiting or not.

 

[JordanDelap]

:O I only have behringer USB podcast studio.
My bass is peavey zodiac BXP and a Crate amp.

Sorry i couldn't help.

 

[folklore2]

Hi
http://ozhiphop.com/forum/viewthread.php?tid=63863
I'm a big fan of hip-hop, this thread will provide you with some ideas, also this one with some eye candy
http://ozhiphop.com/forum/viewthread.php?tid=57349

If you want to start making beats, definately buy a turntable, Technics 1200 are pretty much the industry standard and can be bought for around 400-500 second hand on eBay. Start diggin' in your local record stores, thrift stores, secondhand stores, etc.
Learn Hip Hop history, listen to the classic producers, Premo, Pete Rock, RZA, Melle Mel, etc.

Do you have a group or plan on releasing stuff by yourself?
Have you started making some music already?

 

[Questor]

Designing a studio does not start with equipment. It starts with acoustics and the quality of your signal to the control room.

I would try to find a local studio manager to talk to about designing the layout, materials for the walls, lighting systems, etc. When I was looking at opening a professional studio - never happened due to real estate costs in Manhattan - I spent 6 months working very closely with the Pro Audio Manager at Sam Ash on designing the studio-to-be by starting with the room shape (no slap back echoes allowed!), materials for the walls and ceiling, the lighting system, HVAC, etc.

Only after this was done did we turn to the shopping list for equipment.

If you're being given a structure first, do yourself a favor and at least discuss it with someone who knows about studio creation. Even if you choose not to use anything you've learned, you have complete control over the choice to do so and you are aware of the implications of your decision.

 

[51m0n]

Designing a studio does not start with equipment. It starts with acoustics and the quality of your signal to the control room.

I would try to find a local studio manager to talk to about designing the layout, materials for the walls, lighting systems, etc. When I was looking at opening a professional studio - never happened due to real estate costs in Manhattan - I spent 6 months working very closely with the Pro Audio Manager at Sam Ash on designing the studio-to-be by starting with the room shape (no slap back echoes allowed!), materials for the walls and ceiling, the lighting system, HVAC, etc.

Only after this was done did we turn to the shopping list for equipment.

If you're being given a structure first, do yourself a favor and at least discuss it with someone who knows about studio creation. Even if you choose not to use anything you've learned, you have complete control over the choice to do so and you are aware of the implications of your decision.

+1

I'm afraid you cant expect us to really answer this question with so little to go on. You talk about a live area/console/turntable. What kind of stuff are you going to be recording?

Show us a highly detailed plan at the very least.

Dead isn't necessarily good!

In fact it can mean you have huge standing nodes in the bass which is killing the top end etc...

Honestly there is a great deal more to it than I think you have given it.

Sorry!

 

[Low_End_IIA_Vic]

get some analog guitar effects, protools, an avalon tube compressor. sound proofing, a bathroom, a phone, an imac and tower, a laptop for backups, some kind of M-Audio protools interface, cables galore,(balanced, unbalanced and xlr) something to make hip hop beats with, a drum set, drums mics, amp mics, comdenser mics, guitar stands, a nice mixing board.

 

[BigTreble]

I learned most of my stuff from the studio-central and john l sayers forums. make sure the room sounds good acoustically before stocking up on hardware, as the better u record something the less you gotta mess with it to sound good. if something sounds bad when its recorded, it dont matter wat program u are using, the source material sounds like hell. we treated a 500 sq ft room with 703 bass traps and broadband absorbers. even then, we had to knock down a room n take out a stove. not perfect, but the difference was night and day. we just use a firewire mixer into a PC running cubase. great live track and we only use 2 dynamics behind the drums, and you would be amazed at the quality of sound you get. we are a loud ass punk band btw. i dont know why everyone says protools and a mac. if youre just doing home studio work, i think protools is a big investment, unless u plan on mixing in bigger studios. im a lil new to the game myself, but i came to the realization that u dont need a whole swath of gear to make good recordings. in all, the treatment, pc and mixer set us back 1100 bucks, and its more than i could ever ask for.

 

[nemo]

Hi, we are just in a process of equipping our rehearsal room project studio.

I am not a newbie in a recording and producing, but I have put together a set of equipment and let the guys in other forums to check it.
You could probably find it inspirational too.

Both these forums have a loads of good info.

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Some info on acoustic treatment:
http://www.ethanwiner.com/acoustics.html

Anyway, first you have to figure out for yourself, what you want to do there - just record yourself with MIDI loops and VSTi instruments or record your band or record the other bands too.

There is a long way to go, I heartily recommend find locally some engineer or sound guy you can discuss all these things.

I can intern in a local studio that's ran by a Cubase maniac

Yep, thats your guy, turn to him for advice.

Good luck and enjoy it!!

 

[bkbirge]

I learned most of my stuff from the studio-central and john l sayers forums.

Listen to the wise man. Go lurk on those forums before you spend any money on construction, let alone gear. Gear is the LAST thing you worry about when building a studio. If you want to bomb-proof the building so that you can record metal drums at midnight in a residential area you'll have a lot more work to do than if you want to record electronica on the weekends. Even if you are just doing hip hop where everything is sampled except the voice, then acoustics are very important. Do a search on the Golden Ratio.

 

[LarryO]

the size of this building is going to determine a lot of your limitations. So will your budget. I think no matter what, you should have a realistic plan that allows your capabilities to grow as your budget grows.....unless this is just a hobby.

 

[Questor]

I found that a great alternative (read: cheap) to bass traps is a bookshelf with lots of surface area and completely filled with old books. Not only that, but it gives everyone else the impression that you are well-read.

 

[Visirale]

Thanks for the replies thus far.

Perhaps me calling this a studio is a misnomer. I want a production center. I won't primarily be recording other people. Mostly I am using this for my own work and productions. For the most part, all my instruments will be digital or MIDI and very little will ever need to be miked. At the most for right now, all I need is to be able to record are vocals and maybe drums. That's just the direction I'm going right now.

Mostly I will be doing hiphop beats and electronic stuff (ala Daft Punk and Justice, if that tells you anything). This workplace will just be until I (hopefully) "break through" and get the money for something really legit.

I appreciate the input, but right now I'm less concerned about acoustics (I can always go record at a real studio if need be) and more concerned about my own production capabilities.

I need to be able to capture and trigger samples easily (MPC). I also want a huge variety of synth sounds (looking into Access Virus synths for my "main" synth). Besides sampling and synthesis, what other modes of sound synthesis should a producer have on hand for musical creation?

 

[hbarcat]

I appreciate the input, but right now I'm less concerned about acoustics (I can always go record at a real studio if need be) and more concerned about my own production capabilities.

You ABSOLUTELY MUST be concerned with room acoustics before you even think about production. Even if all you're doing is quietly playing your bass, guitar, keys or synth into a recording unit, the acoustics of the room have the potential to **** up everything you want to accomplish if you don't understand them. Take the advice of those on this thread and hang out at some technical/recording forums before you do anything else.

What you need to be able to do is:

1) Evaluate your room for its acoustic properties
2) Evaluate your musical needs for your room and
3) Take steps to adjust the acoustic properties of your room to your needs

Trust us.

 

[Infernal Affair]

Is a turntable worth getting? I don't have any vinyl... but I can get that too if it's really worth it. What about a key workstation? Anything else I should get? I hate being limited by my gear...

A turntable is only necessary if you want to record scratch samples and use it for bouncing and a lot of the DJ tricks. A lot of the stuff a turntablist does can be simulated on a computer, but it's not nearly as easy (provided you have the skills to use a turntable).

If you did get a turntable you wouldn't need very much vinyl anyway unless you really want to build up that collection. A lot of DJs I know have setups where they use a computer and turntables with the "records" actually being simulated by the computer. Neat stuff. But obviously a lot of them aren't using the highest quality files for playback.

Other than that if you have an MPC and a synth you pretty much have a lot of stuff covered. A drum kit would be nice to have if you don't want to just use sampled beats. I think that actual drums on hip hop recordings are a lot cooler sounding than most of the sampled beats that are used. Since you want a large array of sounds to work with then I would suggest a solid recording device or even a field recorder. Timbaland uses anything and everything he can find as far as sound samples. Remember to not limit yourself by what you can and cannot do. Just because everyone uses MPCs doesn't mean that it's all they use.

 

[folklore2]

You ABSOLUTELY MUST be concerned with room acoustics before you even think about production. Even if all you're doing is quietly playing your bass, guitar, keys or synth into a recording unit, the acoustics of the room have the potential to **** up everything you want to accomplish if you don't understand them. Take the advice of those on this thread and hang out at some technical/recording forums before you do anything else.

What you need to be able to do is:

1) Evaluate your room for its acoustic properties
2) Evaluate your musical needs for your room and
3) Take steps to adjust the acoustic properties of your room to your needs

Trust us.

When recording hip hop, everything (besides vocals and in some rare cases, live instruments) is directly connected to the mixing desk, or directly into a computer or other recording devices. The turntable is connected to the MPC, which is in turn connected into the recording device, nothing is recorded "live" as in open mics, etc. So acoustics are not required.

 

[projectMalamute]

When recording hip hop, everything (besides vocals and in some rare cases, live instruments) is directly connected to the mixing desk, or directly into a computer or other recording devices. The turntable is connected to the MPC, which is in turn connected into the recording device, nothing is recorded "live" as in open mics, etc. So acoustics are not required.

You are going to want to be able to hear what's going on.

 

[Questor]

You are going to want to be able to hear what's going on.

A good pair of headphones will suffice.

 

[nemo]

check here:
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