Music Studios in your own home?

Ray Montee · From: Portland, Oregon (deceased)

A couple of years back, I purchased all of the essentials I need to start making my own recordings.
Good mikes, BIAB, TasCam w/hard drive, guitars, amps, lots of strings (just in case) and yet, I've not once hooked up the TasCam nor have I figured out how to get BIAB going the way I want.

I made multiple recordings when just 14 years of age and had none of the above as personal property.

In spite of my many years of playing at a professional level, I seem either to be 1. SCARED to get started; or, 2. lacking the motivation at this advanced age to do anything about it. I don't know which it is but it is most frustrating.

Have any of YOU experienced this dilema?

chas smith R.I.P. · From: Encino, CA, USA

I built my own studio, from the ground up, over 20 years ago. It's my Sanctum Sanctorum. When I close the door, time stops, the world goes away and I get to be immersed in the magic of sound.

Austin Tripp · From: Nashville TN

I dont have a "studio" but I have my own music room. We have a spare bedroom in our house that I have completly destroyed and turned it into my own little musical sanctuary. I love it too, it saves me a LOT more space in my bedroom Smile

_________________
"Hotrod"
Steel guitarist for Cody Jinks
Member CMA

David L. Donald · From: Koh Samui Island, Thailand

Software is such a mental world,
it can get daunting to just jump in, and TRY
to figure all these new and non-physical concepts out.
I still get this sometimes too,

I just went and helped a guy in the same boat out this week.
Got ALL the tools and not the right attitude to
read his way into understanding the concepts.
I still get this sometimes too, I blanked on some things,
but had not time to read his manuals and find
the lost 'logic nugget' I was looking for.

ONCE you get to a certain point it all makes sense,
prior to that point it's all Greek and Sumarian,
and no rhyming dictionary available.

Best shot is find a local who understands this
and have them help you into a 'Working System State".

Once you have an example in your face,
and can be lead into repeting it's motus operandi,
you will then easily go on yourself.

No shame in paying a teacher to help you past
a bump in the logic road. Old dogs can learn
new tricks if the teacher repeats them enough.
It's just when we get older we ASSUME our age
makes us capable of all things, even if only
12 year olds can program out VCR clock for us....
_________________
DLD, Chili farmer. Plus bananas and papaya too.

Real happiness has no strings attached.
But pedal steels have many!

Ken Lang · From: Simi Valley, Ca

Ray, it's that old get er done that we seem to lose as we get older. I have all the things I need here, and have done several things-enough for 4-5 CDs. Now I need to jump in again and it's just hard. Hard to get the push to get started. Dang it.
_________________
heavily medicated for your safety

Danny Bates · From: Fresno, CA. USA

Ray, I know exactly what your talking about. It's very hard being the talent, producer and engineer.

Try separating these tasks. For example, producer... spend a week planning on what you want the recording to sound like and make sure you give yourself a reasonable period of time for completion... Basically, your planning your project from start to finish. Now be the engineer and set up the studio for recording. Last, (but not least), be the artist...Practice the tune until your ready to record. When you are ready, put on your best clothes, hit record and fire away!... The reason I say "Put on your best clothes" is because I want you to videotape the first take for YouTube. Smile

... and... the first take is always the best!

It would be great to hear (and see) you play. Best of luck!

Dave Boothroyd · From: Staffordshire Moorlands

Look, getting into all the technology, then adding the creative side, the music and the performance is very hard work.
If it was your job, and you depended on it to pay your bills, you would have to give it all you've got- all your time, all your energy.
And you'd have a deadline.

So what you need is to set yourself an unescapable deadline.
Say you have a major gig in May, and you want to have an EP of four "knock your socks off" tracks to sell at the gig.
Say you want to play a record at your birthday party, or your grandson's, or for your anniversary.
Once you know when you have to be finished by, you attitude to starting will be very different.
Cheers
Dave

Ernie Pollock · From: Mt Savage, Md USA

I have had two 4 track tape machines over the years which I have really gotten a lot of use out of, heck I still don't know everything about the Tascam that I have now. I use it all the time to make rhythm tracks for my little 'Nursing Home Group' 'the Seekers'. I just hook the old keyboard into it & sometimes use the rhythm out of it [the keyboard], add rhythm guitar, or rhythm piano, then bass guitar & just build up a little track for me & the girls to sing & play the steel guitar with. Not that we are all that good, but we have a lot of fun & the old folks like us!! Just start messing around with your 4 track & download that Audacity program & plug into the input in the back of your computer, directly from your 4 track headphone output & record them on the computer then you can make CD tracks out of em!! Being able to play a little guitar & bass guitar really helps & even if you just use a drum machine instead of a keyboard, you can make some decent tracks. I don't have BIAB, cause I think I won't live long enough to figure that out, & what I have heard of most of them they sound pretty 'fake' to me, but thats just my opinion & I am sure I will get some flack from that statement!!

Ernie Whoa!

Bill Hatcher · From: Atlanta Ga. USA

The tech part of a home studio set up can be an "energy vampire". You get so caught up in trying to make it all work that your musical thought goes to crap.

I still use my ADAT set up. Plug in, play, watch lights, play back, get a check. I made over $5K doing a simple folk songwriter CD a few months ago.
I have no use for a computer set up....yet. It will come sometimes down the road.

I watched some guys doing vocal overdubs the other day in the corner of the church chapel before we started rehearsal for a service. The "engineer" had a Mac laptop and one mic and some phones for the singer. People were walking around the room and doing whatever and these two folks were doing a vocal overdub session! I heard the playback over the room PA when they finished....good sound!

Recording is changing everyday. The "standards" are changing everyday. There is no more quality control. Anything goes. Anyone can be an engineer. Anyone can make a CD.

This is good.....and this is also not good. This is just the way it is. Nod to Walter Cronkite.

Tony Prior · From: Charlotte NC

Ray fear not, you are not alone. I read a few excellent comments above;

separate the tasks,(but not just the producer part)
energy vampire

if you can unlock those keys you are in.

years back we just plugged into the Sony or Wollansack and off we went and somehow ended up with something we couldn't wait to share . Today, we have techno overload, but thats not necessarily a bad thing, in fact, I think it can be quite good.

If you look at a dedicated workstation or software package and are looking at the big picture, you are fried. Think simple, think about which tasks you need to accomplish, if you need to, make a list of what you really need to learn.

Input, level knob , red button, play back.

Learn the individual tasks and then add to them as necessary. Make your own manual so to speak.

The bottom line is that the stuff we have now serves the exact same purpose as the Sony or Wollansack, we just have way too many options and features available, all at the same time. Way back we would have died for a reverb unit in line with the mic.

If you do not separate the tasks into small subsets, you will end up like a huge percentage of folks who purchase workstations, software and outboard gear and never get past step one, turning it on.

The energy vampire arrives by not separating the tasks and going to "College" every time you try to sit and search for the red button.

the producer format is the same, thought, song, how many tracks, what instruments, where do I play, where do I not play, all that is exactly the same but I think what happens is some of us never actually get to that part, which is the fun part, we are still locked up in, " ok, I found the ON switch, now what "

I doesn't help that the retailers are pushing these things out the door saying " Make your own music, record it, master it, burn it and sell it "

that is not the case .

think simple, bring forward what you did years back into a workable format with today's gear.

And I certainly agree that the "getting over the initial hump" can be exhausting to the point where you don't even want to play music anymore.

t

ps, sad but true,
A local friend purchased a top of the line Roland system, 24 tracks, PC monitor, software,external stuff, blah blah blah, well over $3000. He was going to produce and record his own CD to sell. He had never done any recording previously. Well, today, no CD, no system, no nuthin', no clue what ever happened to that system.

Ellis Miller · From: Cortez, Colorado, USA

I have a PC based system, using Sonar 7. I program some of the tracks from scratch in MIDI (no BIAB) and do some of the tracks live.

I am able to get a real decent sound - some of the tracks are on my Myspace page.

That said, I find it more difficult to motivate myself to go in and work alone, doing it all, so to speak. I worked in a "real" recording studio for a number of years and there is nothing like doing it live.
_________________
Ellis Miller
Don't believe everything you think.
http://www.ellismillermusic.com

Tony Prior · From: Charlotte NC

David L. Donald · From: Koh Samui Island, Thailand

chris ivey · From: california (deceased)

i like best the concept of the multitrack digital workstation like the roland vs series. self contained, affordable, high enough quality for anything i'd want to do, and affordable.

makes more sense to buy one of these and learn the basics than spend three times as much in a one project studio deal.

Sam Lewis · From: Conway, Arkansas, USA

Very interesting. About 4 years ago I retired (at 75) and my dream was to have a recording studio in my home where I could just get lost in music. Well, I started with a TASCAM 2488, a 24 track machine (eight simultaneous recoeding channels),added a Dell computer with BIAB, midied to a PSR-740 keyboard and I was off and running. The PSR 740 (with floppy drive) produces the most realistic sounds of any machine I have heard. It has a 16 channel sequencer and some great sounding rythm tracks which can me changed, muted, or volume changed. From my SteelKing I use an XLR hook-up to channel one of the 2488. Now, I'm certainly not a great steel player but I have just as much fun as the big boys. It's great way to spend your retirement days. Go for it.

God Bless
_________________
SL D-10, SL U-12,SL SD-10, Custom Tele w/B bender, Steel King, TC300 Effects, Goodrich H-10K pedal, Fender V/T Pedal, Hilton Pedal Elite seat.

Mike Harris · From: Texas, USA

It really is a lot of fun once you figure out the machinery. My wife and I have a Tascam 8-track digital recorder and we've made recordings of some of her tunes. We're about to upgrade to a system that allows more tracks. If you've got good ears you can do a lot without spending a lot of money, just a lot of time--it beats sitting in front of the tube or the computer screen. Get a few good mics and a system you can hope to understand and go for it.

Jack Stoner · From: Kansas City, MO

I have home recording equipment, a Fostex VF160 multi-track recorder and last year I migrated to computer with Sonar 8 Producer and an Alesis io26 8 channel interface.

I've done a lot of recording with the Fostex, everything from my own Steel CD's, to CD projects for singers to recording live shows.

I don't have a lot of fancy "studio" equipment but I've had a lot of complements on my mixdowns and final work.

Right now, I'm recording (and playing steel) on some demo songs for Nashville songwriter Jimmy Peppers. We have 5 recorded, yesterday, that I need to add lead guitar to (and mix down) and he will be coming back with 5 more, later. Jimmy Peppers produced one of Mel Street's albums and considering he's happy with what I'm doing, I'm flattered.

Jimmy wrote "Forever Yours" that was recorded by Tammy Wynette, "Love Takes Good Care of Me" that Jack Greene had a top 10 hit, "Playing Possum" for George Jones (he said Jones has recorded about 20 of his songs over the years). Jimmy is going to co-write with Dallas Frazier (he wrote "There Goes My Everything" and many more). The finished Demo project CD will be sent to Dallas in Nashville.

Keith Murrow · From: Wichita, KS

Don Sulesky · From: Citrus County, FL, Orig. from MA & NH

My 1st recording experience was with a Sears and Roebuck R2R tape recorder in 1958 and used it to record many songs I wrote back then.
I moved up to a Grundig Sound on Sound in the mid 60's then to a Teac 4 track R2R in the mid 70's and did some recordings of some local friends, our band demos and my own songs.
I now have two machines a Tascam 4 track Cassette recorder I used to record our band and also now use only my Digital Fostex multi-track machine to record my CDs, but keep the 4 track machines to retrieve data when needed.
I did this with a few songs I recorded in the 70's and downloaded them to my digital machine and overdubbed steel and other instruments to the basic tracks. I still have my 1976 Teac 4 track as I have over 50 original songs on tape I may want to use in the future.
Don

Ben Jones · From: Seattle, Washington, USA

I had a roland vs840. It was so complicated it sucked all the joy out of recording. Break out the 100 page manual, scroll thru tiny lcd drop down menus...all just to EQ one channel, etc Consequently I never recorded much on it. I switched to Tracktion 3 software and it was like night and day. Suddenly it was super easy and super fun and consequently I record often now.

I have BIAB ...all i know how to do is press play and stop on it.

David L. Donald · From: Koh Samui Island, Thailand

Well I started at the top, on an Ampex 350.
But only under dad's supervision.
Same thing Les Paul used to invent 8 track recording.

I did start editing back then too.
I stretched the Beatle's 'I Want To Hold Your Hand',
and had to take a razor blader and cut out the 2nd verse.

Though my first personal recorder was a
Lafayette 3" reel to reel and a lapel mic.

I DID get my neighbor Kevin a gig at a birthday party
with his demo that I recorded at age 7 on the little unit.
We played it for the mother, and Kevin got paid
for 5 songs for the kids. He even paid me.

By '67 we had a 1" 8 Channel Scully in the house.
Eventually I more or less inherited that unit.
But STILL have the old Ampex in storage somewhere.
-------------------------------
For me part of the trick is to:
Plan the production on paper. Number of headphones and players.
instruments, panning, tone controls if needed, etc.
Lay out the song or songs as they should likely be finished.

THEN get the recording system set up for 1st track
or two's recording, levels set and mic in place,
click track and your instrument level good in headphones
and then walk away.

~Go play, get the song 2nd nature, relax.
When it feels good come up and put the recording rig in gear with 1 button.
Maybe adjust the click tempo or the mic volume,
but really just the minimum, to get instrument 1 down
Voila the 1st basic track is done.

Separate the work needed and don't overlap them if you can.

So say you have the acoustic guitar down,
After than just change to another track
and add a scratch lead vocal. Finish it for form.
Is it right with the acoustic guitar, if not NOW redo that guitar.
Once you have basic form and basic tracks down,
just click through the tracks you have PRE-set-up
and fill in the production blanks.

When you have a clean 'filled track sheet' / production,
do a reasonable mix, so you have the real feel,
and then sing a final vocal to that.
If you are doing call and responce steel for instance,
do that after or again later so your responses
fit the final vocal/lead track well.

Just some thoughts.

Remember the $/clock isn't ticking at home,
only the wife/time clock, so you CAN get it right.
If you have thought out your production
and created the computer tracks in advance for it,
then you need not change 'mental mode' to do it during tracking.
Compartmnentalize the work and it doesn't look so daunting.

DD
_________________
DLD, Chili farmer. Plus bananas and papaya too.

Real happiness has no strings attached.
But pedal steels have many!

Alan Brookes · From: Brummy living in Southern California

Robert Harper · From: Alabama, USA

Ray, I have worked on computer equipment or electronics since I was 15 or 16. When I come home. I don't want to install,learn to operate arcane, sturbon software programs. My dad was a TV repairman. When he came home he wanted nothing to do with reparing a TV. Really, he did not want to do it for a living either and was adamdant I was not going to be a TV repairmen. Now, in fact, I do my best to avoid social events with my co-workers. A few social hours with them makes me feel like I have been at work allday, shop talk. Any way, I seldom see people who have the motivation or desire to continue their day job at home. So maybe what you are experienceing is normal fatigue at the job you have done all your life. Gee, maybe you and I and a lot of others are not work a holics. Hey, Charlie Davidson and some of you other full time muscians, do you come home looking forward to playing more music?
_________________
"Oh what a tangled web we weave when we first begin to deceive" Someone Famous

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