Question:
I want to start a recording studio in my brick shed. What do i need?
Sam
2009-01-03 09:33:10 UTC
Ive asked this question before but not many responces.
It is mainly just for fun, recording with my band and maybe making a little bit of pocket money. I know ill probably end up not making much money out of it, but id like to try.
The things ive been recommended to buy are:
Microphone: Shure SM57
Mic cables: At least 10 metres
Mic Stand: Heavy duty boom stand
Preamp: Behringer Tube Ultragin Mic200
Mixer: Behringer Xenyx 802 Studio Mixing desk or 1024 mixing desk
Software: Cubase 4
Pop Filter
Studio Headphones: Behringer Hps 3000
Acoustic foam to soundproof the room

Is there anything else i need or do you recommend different types of equipment. I have a powerful computer so that isnt a problem. Also any tips are cool!
Six answers:
SMP
2009-01-03 10:59:15 UTC
As mentioned before it really depends on how far you would like to take this.



A sound board is probably your first line of business. Again depending on how much you want to record will depend on how many channels you will need. Basically 1 channel per microphone and instrument. I use a Mackie 20 channel and it pretty much serves all of the needs I have ever had plus it comes with on board sound effects which can be fun to play with (reverb, phaser, etc). (4 vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, key board, saxaphone, sound effects loops (ipod), and 6 channels for drums (kick, snare, tombs, floor tomb, R & L symbols - of coarse all of this requires more mics and more stands.)



Microphones: SM57 is a good mic for instruments but for recording vocals you will want to use the SM58 it has a fuller richer sound.

Guitars: 2 routes you can take here. The idea is to get the sound into the sound board so that you can control the levels of all of your instruments on the recording. Using a guitar amp is a great way to go. A good tube amp (I would stick with a tube amp - great sound in some of the older higher quality amps) is going to be very expensive (also you will want to make sure the amp has a line out jack so that you can plug it into the sound board if it doesn't then you have to mic the amp and that can be tricky with feedback and noise bleed through from other instruments. A cheaper and easier way you can go to get started is using a Direct Input box (DI box). For this all you need is the box a 1/4" instrument cable and an XLR cable (mic cable).



Keyboards: You will need DI boxes to plug into the sound board all of these require XLR cables and 1/4" instrument cables.



Drums: Mic-ing drums can be a bit tricky. You will need at least 3 mics. You will definitely want to mic the kick and set the other 2 up as right and left side. (somewhere in the center of the sound - so you can catch the symbols, tombs, snare, etc on each side). The best way to mic a drum set is with a drum mic set and clamps. This allows you to mic each tomb and symbol that gives you the greatest control over what you are end product sounds like on the recording, but more mics more cables, more channels on the board. Also, drums can be one of the biggest challenges as far as volume and bleed through into your mics such as vocals. You will want to come up with a way to dampen or isolate them. Plexiglass drum shields work ok, but far better if you can completely encapsulate the drums and control the sound through your drum mics.



I am assuming that you are going to use the computer for recording so your main output from your sound board will go to the computer. If your musicians need to hear each other you will need some sort of monitor system. (Which will require more cabling.) For recording I would recommend an in ear monitor (headphones) rather than a traditional wedge (basically a speaker on the floor pointed at the musician.) due to the level of sound that can build very quickly leading to feedback problems in small recording spaces. The name of the game here is to keep the volume down as much as possible. The louder it gets the harder it is to control mic volume levels, sound bleed through, and echos. That being said, you will want to do something about controlling echos in the room. Brick is a very hard surface that sound is going to jump off of so like someone said earlier in this post foam is a good route for dampening this down. I would even use heavy thick curtains around all of the walls.



If you have any questions along the way feel free to hit me on my email, but I recommend becoming good friends with your local music store. (Not like Circuit City or Radio Shack, somewhere that specializes in concert and recording audio.)



Hope all of this helps.
anonymous
2009-01-04 06:04:51 UTC
There is a site called: www.borntosingmusic.com. The book called ‘An essential guide for serious singers and musicians’ will help you not only understand the music industry and why it functions the way it does but also answer all your questions. My friend got a record deal when he bought the book as he understood how the industry worked. If you want to start your own cd production or studio it is fantastic information on that too. The book goes into detail on how to be at the right place at the right time and that is why it is so popular amongst musician’s ad singers. It also packed with information like how to write your own songs etc… you could go to amazon.co.uk and get the book from there also. I hope I have been helpful
beaubmx
2009-01-03 09:40:14 UTC
it depends on the budget you have. behringer is definitely a product for those on a budget. it is ok, but simply nothing close to the best.



Also i would recommend ableton live as a production program, as well as propellerhead reason if you are making beats. logic pro and pro tools are excellent programs as well for editing.



i would also look into a MIDI keyboard such as the M-Audio Axiom series, because you can program ANY sound to the keys, and it is simple to use with software.
GeeCee
2009-01-03 09:36:58 UTC
Understanding neighbours.
anonymous
2009-01-03 09:40:20 UTC
Content insurance for your shed would be a good investment !
George
2009-01-03 09:37:05 UTC
Money would be very usefull


This content was originally posted on Y! Answers, a Q&A website that shut down in 2021.
Loading...