Regarding an inexpensive but effective Home Recording Studio, the first thing to do is to carefully go over your budget, because once you get going it will be the little bits and pieces that can nickel and dime you to death. Know how much you can safely spend without putting yourself into financial jeopardy. So many people talk about getting Financial Backers but that isn’t always the best answer since they will often want the lion’s share of any rewards plus interest until the debt is paid back in full. Backers are also very impatient about repayment and don’t want to hear excuses as to why you had to pay your Rent before you pay them! When it comes to Bank loans, the Banks usually look at the Music Business as if it were smoke, something that you can see but cannot touch or hold in your hands.

They are very practical and cautious when it comes to giving out money for the Music Industry despite the incredible amount of money that is generated every year from it. Unless you have a lot of collateral to back such a loan, wait until you can show regular income from your initial endeavors first. Thinking big is fine, but starting out small and wisely is the best policy in putting together your own studio. The terms “Starving Artists” and “Starving Producers” come from the usual way of supplying your musical interests by means of a Day Job until you can wisely transition from one to the other. Almost everyone does it and there is no shame in admitting it. Only the most obnoxious of Industry Professional will criticize you for it.

The next subject to ponder is what you will use your home studio for. Is it for your own solo material, a Band, or are you planning to take on clients? Each situation can vary greatly depending upon the quality and workload you are seeking from your studio. As an example, I have worked, Managed, Recorded and Produced in 7 Recording Studios ranging from simple but effective equipment in a basement, all the way up to a current multi-million dollar Recording Facility here in Connecticut. Please note that as you move up in the degree of Studio you work in, your abilities, ears, and skills also need to improve dramatically! But the good thing is that if you start out small and determined to succeed, and keep an open mind to learning from others, you can eventually develop into whatever level you wish to as long as you can handle it. Recording Schools are invaluable for learning the Recording Industry, but they are not inexpensive, so you may wish to invest in books and videos about recording first. They can be purchased from many local Musical Instrument stores and national chains, including mail order.

Another option is to try to develop a relationship with someone experienced that can act as a Mentor, it can be invaluable to you and that person can help to further advance your career with their knowledge and influential assistance. The rule of thumb is that everyone in the business knows somebody else in the business at higher levels of power and success. But as with any Professional in any field of business, be respectful, honest, humble, tactful, and become an “invited guest” as opposed to a character that they will regret knowing! So after figuring out what level of experience you are at now and what you wish to use your studio for, it is time to start making a shopping list. If you are a beginner or even an experienced veteran, the best choices would be either a good home computer with lots of memory since there are many great programs that you can purchase along with the proper interface equipment, or purchase an all-in-one Recorder/Mixer/CD Burner unit. My suggestion is that when it comes to efficiency and cost effectiveness, the all-in-one units are outstanding and can create some wonderful results if you take your time to study and learn the functions, and then practice with them. The better ones are advisable and can range from approximately $800 to around $4000 to purchase. These units usually include extremely useful options and functions such as built in effects and editing programs, processors, mixers, and CD burners that can be very expensive if purchased separately. Since technology has improved so much over the years, these types of units can sound as if you recorded in a full blown recording studio. While they won’t replace a Professional Recording Studio with all of the bells and whistles, not to mention seriously sound-proofed recording rooms, you can purchase and own the all-in-one units for much less than the cost of recording a full CD of songs in a major studio.

To give you an example of this, while I often work in a big studio, I have my own Roland all-in-one unit and record my own clients I Manage, Song write, and Produce music for on it. This way, I don’t have to worry about paying for recording time costs or high utility bills that go hand in hand with a big studio. I can take as much time as I wish or that my clients need without watching the clock and can still get the results I want without the added pressures. Since I do know what I am doing and have a lot of experience recording and Producing, I recorded my Country Artist “Miss Marie” Wuhrer’s first CD “Bad Reputation” on it and it received airplay in approximately 75% of the US and many Record Label inquiries to boot!!! So the all-in-one units can be quite cost effective while returning professional quality results, and they are also very portable if need be. Portability can be a major plus! The next issue on the list is to get some very good recording microphones and perhaps a few stage microphones for good measure. Consider a minimum of a vocal and an instrument microphone. The recording ones are Condenser microphones and they require phantom power to operate them, which is simply a low voltage power source from 9 to 18 volts. This can come from putting batteries in the microphone or is usually included in the all-in-one units as standard equipment power supplies. The stage microphones are called Dynamic microphones and just require connection to a preamp or mixer channel input. Never run phantom power on dynamic microphones or you could easily and quickly damage them or the power source itself. Remember, if you plug the microphone into the unit and it doesn’t work in any of the channels as is, then you probably have a condenser microphone and must press the “phantom power” button to turn on the phantom power unit so the microphone will operate. Most decent condenser microphones have a Led light that comes on to show when it is in operation.

Condenser microphones are extremely sensitive and can pick up stray noises in the room so be careful when they are on during recording as to not have a very noisy environment you are working in. While it is crucial to “clean” your recorded tracks one-by-one of any stray sounds such as breathing noises BEFORE you mix them into the final result, there are times when you can’t remove excessive noise and must accept it or do the track over. Keep it quiet around you and you will save yourself a lot of time and trouble. All microphones have sensitivity specs, and to avoid a lengthy explanation here and distortion when you are recording, look for a microphone that has a 40 decibel or higher rating for sensitivity. This way, if you have a loud singer you won’t overdrive the microphone easily and get distortion in the vocal tracks. Next, you have to determine where you are going to record, especially if it is in your home. Most studios are in the basement areas and require deadening of the room to make it quiet for recording. When using an all-in-one unit, you can do most of your recording directly into the mixer/recorder without worrying about the noise you or others are making, it is all very quiet. This is especially true when using a drum machine instead of an actual Drummer and live drums! Except for vocals and live drums, you can record a full song in a bedroom while your family members or roommates are in other rooms and they won’t even hear you doing it! If you do designate a specific area, your recording room should not get too hot or too cold, and dampness is not good for any electronic equipment so be careful. When going for the cheap but effective recording studio, you can put up heavy rugs on the walls or use other deadening material to quiet down the room accordingly. Whether you are making a formal recording studio or a simple one, always remember to use Non-flammable materials to deaden the room to avoid a potential disaster.

To continue with our list, I recommend getting good headphones for yourself and some spares for others to use, as well as a headphone amplifier that will run multiple sets of headphones. For the best results, you should use the same brand and model closed back headphones which are essential for recording with live microphones. Semi-open or open-backed headphones allow the sounds coming through to be picked up and fed back into the microphone and recorder. The more isolation the headphones offer the better. Last in the chain would be a pair of powered studio monitors for playback and mixing. The best ones have the Bass ports in the front so they can be used in any location if necessary. The ones with Bass ports in the rear require a reflex action off of a wall for sound quality and this may not be practical for a home studio. As with all of the equipment I mentioned, there are many good brands and models out there and the costs vary greatly. Be ringer, Samson, and Event make some great units for home studios, and the bigger the Bass speaker i.e.: 6 or 8 inches, the better the quality of the sound you’ll get in final mixing and playback. I don’t recommend getting subwoofers until you really know what you are doing and can get a great mix on regular speakers. If you cannot mix on regular speakers, then adding subwoofers won’t help the final product and usually makes it sound horrible. And if while you are mixing your final product the dogs in your neighborhood are howling and running for cover, then Turn down the volume and back off on the Bass and high treble frequencies. If you blow out your hearing, it is gone forever. For optional equipment in your arsenal, a fairly inexpensive boom box is a great tool to have after making a mix. When I finish a mix of a song, I usually make both a CD and a cassette copy of it and play it on a good stereo, a cheap boom box, and a car radio just to see if it sounds good and fairly consistent for quality. If it sounds good on all of them, then I know that I have a good mix for the final product. I also have a separate stand alone CD burner that I can use to make copies while I am using the all-in-one unit for other songs and projects, rather than tying up the unit’s built in CD Burner for making multiple copies other than a Master copy. They cost from $200 to $500 or more, but I find it invaluable for my needs.

Other than some patch cords, spare microphone cables, telescoping microphone stands, music stands, a good comfortable rolling chair, decorating your recording room to taste, and some blank CDs to put product on, you should be able to get some very good results with your projects at a reasonable cost with these recommendations. As your skills improve, you can always upgrade your equipment and studio to fit your needs and dreams. Think toward the future career you are seeking and not just for showing off! I’ve seen some very basic equipment outdo some much more expensive setups. The main goal is to concentrate on getting good results.

Besides, as you begin to make your fortune, you can hire professional studio designers and builders to create your dream Palace. And please don’t forget to cover yourself legally if you are a Studio for hire. Write down ALL recording dates and notes about what transpired during them rather than relying on memory or hear-say, keep track of expenses compared to profits, and write down on the receipt you give the client that the final product is what he or she asked for and accepted as complete and both you and the client need to initial it. This is extremely important for every situation, but especially when a client wants to keep bad musicianship or singing on a project that you would never have kept yourself even if you were tone deaf! Once that client takes the product from you and lets friends and family criticize it accordingly, You will be blamed for letting it get out of your door like that and not the client for wanting it that way and refusing your subtle hints to change it during the recording session such as uncontrollable laughter or vomiting. If that client later chooses to sue you to get his or her money back and it goes before a Judge or Jury with NO Music Industry experience or taste, your note on the signed, dated and initialed may be all that saves you from getting ripped off and having to pay back what you legitimately earned. Good luck to all of you and God Bless. Wayne I. Johnson-Wildcard Music Productions and Artist/Model Management-Waterbury, Connecticut

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• M-Audio Pro Tools M-Powered 8 Audio Recording Software
• M-Audio Fast Track Pro Audio Interface
• M-Audio BX5a Deluxe Studio Reference Monitors
• Blue Bluebird Large-Diaphragm Cardioid Condenser Microphone
• Sennheiser HD 280 Pro Headphones

Product Description
REC3 is a home studio recording package perfect for any singer songwriter or hip hop artist. In addition, REC3 home studio recording package is great for podcasting. Package Includes: Pro Tools M-Powered 8 software puts the industry standard in audio MIDI production on the fast track, letting you enter the powerful world of Pro Tools on your own terms. Pro Tools M-Powered has the same user interface as Pro ToolsHD and Pro Tools LE. The Fast Track Pro delivers all t… More >>

Home Recording Studio Equipment Package Includes M-Audio Pro Tools M-Powered 8, M-Audio Fast Track Pro, M-Audio BX5a Deluxe, Blue Bluebird Microphone, Sennheiser HD 280 Pro, Atlas Sound TEB-E, and a Microphone Cable.

A microphone is a device made to capture waves in air, water or hard material and translate them to an electrical signal. The most common method is via a thin membrane producing some proportional electrical signal.

Most microphones in use today for audio use electromagnetic generation (dynamic microphones), capacitance change (condenser microphones) or piezoelectric generation to produce the signal from mechanical vibration.

What are the differences between the types of microphones available? Well, that’s what we’ll be looking at in this article.

There are a lot of things to consider when it comes to the sound you get from your microphone, not only in terms of price and quality, but also where you actually place the mic in relation to your amplifier.

Whilst the chances of getting a great recording are consistently better with a high quality microphone, price and quality do not always match. However, with that said, when it comes to high quality recording, the most important part of the entire process is the original sound source. If you’re original sound from the microphone is good to begin with it will generally have fewer problems at later stages when you are mixing.

Dynamic Microphones -

Most people’s first microphone is a dynamic one. They’re simple, versatile and they generally sound quite good on everything from voices to guitar amps and brass instruments. Also, dynamic microphones are usually cheaper than condenser microphones (which we will look at next­)

Dynamic mics are usually cardioid or hyper cardioid in their polar pattern, which means that they only pick up the sound that’s coming at them from the direction in which they’re pointing.

Dynamic microphones can be great for use at home as they tend to reject a lot of background sounds like the noise of traffic outside your house. Once you start using a quality microphone, you won’t believe how noisy your home studio room can be. Dynamic microphones also have a high SPL, which stand for sound pressure level, this means they are perfect for pointing at loud amplifiers.

Condenser Microphones -

Condenser mics are generally more expensive than dynamic microphones; however they do share a lot of the same characteristics.

You’ll find that a lot of condenser microphones are used when recording vocals. Most artists record vocals through a large diaphragm condenser microphone because they are a little less harsh than a dynamic mic, can be smoother sounding and have a broader frequency range.

Condenser microphones may not be entirely suitable for use in an ordinary house as they could well receive sound from televisions, neighbours or sounds from the streets.

Some condenser mics have a cardioid polar response while others have an omni-directional pattern. This means that they pick up sound equally from all directions. What’s great about some condenser microphones is that they have switch-able polar patterns. This means they can be cardioid, hyper-cardioid or super cardioid like a dynamic microphone, but can also be figure 8, which means it’ll accept sound from the front and back, or omni, meaning it will accept sound from all round.

You can find some great condenser mics for $150 – $250, which will serve most home recording needs. There are absolutely tons on the market, even at the lower end of the price range.

Another factor to take into consideration is that condenser mics require power to operate. Some will take an internal battery but others need to be powered remotely from the mixing desk. This is done through a power source called Phantom Power.

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• ISBN13: 9781598630343
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.

Product Description
With the advances in digital technology, musicians can now produce their own music. But the gear is only part of the equation when it comes to recording and mixing. The next part is finding a soundproof room that you can produce it in. Unfortunately, any old room in your house will not suffice for a quality recording. Without a decent room, you’l never be able to record a studio-quality recording you’ll be proud of and excited to have other people hear. So how do yo… More >>

Home Recording Studio Build it Like the Pros

Having your own home recording studio is one of the biggest advantages you can provide for yourself as a musician.  In this 7 part report on setting up your own home recording studio, we are discussing some of the technical specifications and advantages to necessary recording equipment.   As we arrive at Day 5,  it is time to discuss the necessary software your computer should have to record music from your home recording studio.

As we have mentioned before, the modern advances of technology have provided many outlets for new music to be developed.  Software is no exception.  With the appropriate software installed on your computer, you can eliminate the huge amount of hardware that used to be required for recording audio.  From freeware to expensive software suites designed for specific purposes, the software available for home recording enthusiasts offers some great options.

Free is always a good thing, especially when you are just getting started.  Believe it or not, if you are a Windows user, one of the best applications for recording your music may already be on your computer.  Windows Media Encoder is an application that offers the ability to record and save your music in the wmv format or stream the recordings via web server for live broadcast.  The bitrate and quality can be adjusted to meet your specific needs.  While the Windows Media Encoder may not be as fully featured as some of the paid software suites, the advantage of being readily available on most machines and not costing any extra money is a definite selling point.

There are many great freeware applications that do an excellent job of recording audio but sometimes you just want options that freeware may not provide.  If you choose to take things further, paid software suites are available with all kinds of bells and whistles to turn your home recording studio into a professional sound studio.  When you choose any software application, especially paid applications, it is important to consider a few things to make sure you get the most for your money.

Recording Formats -  Does the software record in popular formats or will you be required to use a format converting program to make the recording useful to your fans?

GUI -  The Graphical User Interface is the part of the program that you interact with.  Choose a program with a simple GUI that you can make sense of and you will be much happier than if you choose one with hundreds of adjustments that you don’t understand their functions.

Features -  Software is only as good as it’s features and if it doesn’t have the particular feature you are looking for, then it just isn’t worth the money.  When shopping for audio recording software, make sure you get features you need now or think you might even possibly want to use in the future.

Two more days are left on our seven part discussion.  In the next segment, we will discuss the editing software you will need to make your home recordings sound their best.

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Your tunes simply won’t be great without hot beats. You know that your music beats is what makes your rhythm outstanding. They need to have this magnetic power behind to arouse the audience interest and make them want for more of your music. Here are 5 tips to making awesome music beats at home without expensive instruments and time consuming learning process.

1. Create and Stick to a “Feeling-Rich” Signature Sound

This is not so difficult but it is not easy either. It doesn’t matter if your signature sound is giving a country or funky or even rocky feeling; you will need to tweak them with unique beats so that listener will know immediately that it’s yours beats after hearing your music. That’s it, you need to be outstanding by grabbing the audiences’ attention and set you apart from the masses.

2. Take Advantage of The Music Beats Resources Available Online

It has never been so readily available than now with the power of internet that allows almost all resources that you will ever need to create your own beats from home. Get sophisticated beats making software like Sonic Producer, listen to free sample beats, download royalty free beats that you can edit, join beats making forum etc. Just engaged yourselves and your creativity juices will gradually pour in to create your very own, original, unique beats.

3. Exchange Ideas with Beats Making Communities To Add Variety To Your Own Beats

There are many ways to create beats and some of which you’ll not even know they exist. Search for forums about making music beats and be a member. It is usually free to be a member. There are general beats making forum and more specific forum that focuses only on certain style of music beats. Choose the one you like or you wish to learn. Forum is a great place that helps to generate ideas and tips for making truly amazing beats. You will probably find someone who might be interested to collaborate with you to exchange beats making style and more.

4. Be Sensitive To Music and Let Your Creativity Take Charge

If you like music, then naturally you will have the urge and curiosity every time you hear something that matches your feel at that time. Cultivate this natural instinct and try to emulate the beats yourself in your own beats meaning to make the beats unique and yours. Once you’ve developed this skill, you’ll be surprised at the music beats that you can make. It’s a stage where making your own beats are only limited to your imagination.

5. Record Your Beats In Transferrable File Format

Record your beats in popular file format like MP3 that is easily readable by most devices to allow you to play them in a generic PC or DVD player without ado. MP3 is also easily transferrable among software to enrich the beats. Some beats making software might not have this capability to save file in MP3 format and allows you to save in raw file format which is difficult to access with other software. Others limited to certain unpopular format like 3gp, wma, wav, mid. This will hinder you from sharing flexibility. So, check the software if it supports MP3.

One of the most highly recognized music beats making software with MP3 export capability and numerous keyboards options is Sonic Producer. It’s well known for the sound quality it produces and its user friendly interface that makes it a breeze for beginners and experienced beats maker alike.

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For the musician or singer looking to find their place in the music industry, having your own home recording studio is one of the biggest advantages you can provide for yourself.  In this guide, we will consider the equipment needed to properly record your music in a home recording studio.  For the first day, we will discuss the most basic component of your recording equipment; the computer.

The musician or singer seeking to record music in a home recording studio environment will need a computer system for several reasons.  By using a computer as the base of your home recording studio, you eliminate several very expensive pieces of equipment from your shopping list.  Some of the items that can be eliminated from the list include:

Reel to Reel Magnetic Tape Recorder

Mixing Board

Storage Space

To eliminate this equipment, your computer will need to meet certain specifications to properly handle the work you are wanting to do with it.

Laptop or Desktop?

This question is a matter of personal preference but there are a few qualifiers to this statement.  To decide which machine is the best choice for your home recording studio, you need to ask yourself a few important questions.

Do you plan on recording only from home or do you intend to travel with your recording rig?

Do you need multiple input abilities or can your sound be recorded through a single audio input?

If you need a system that can go on the road with you, a laptop is probably your best choice.  If you need more features or intend to do all your recording from home, a desktop unit may be more suitable.

Can I Use What I Already Have?

The short answer to this question is yes.  Again, there are qualifiers to this statement.  Older machines with 256 Kb of memory and a 133 processor aren’t going to have the power you need to record yourself rocking out to a screaming Van Halen style solo.

That said, there are a few minimal requirements to record music on your computer.

A minimum 1 gigabyte of RAM, also called memory.  More is always better in this case, so get a computer with the most RAM you can afford.

The hard drive of your computer is the storage center of your machine.  Again, bigger is better.  Yes, you can record on a 4 gigabyte hard drive but you won’t be able to record much and you will quickly fill up the available space.  With the low costs of modern SATA hard drives or 120 gigabytes or more, spring for the largest hard drive your budget will allow.

The processor is the brain of your computer.  You can record with older single core processors and produce good results.  A 1.5 Gigahertz processor is the minimal amount of power you would want for recording music.    If you can afford it, go with the faster dual or quad core processors and you will be much happier with your recording system.

Watch for the next section of this tutorial, Day 2, where we will be discussing the sound cards needed to properly record music from your home recording studio.

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Thanks to technological innovations, including professional recording software more artists are creating home recording studios, and even laptop studios. This article will provide tips and ideas to help you create the perfect home based studio for you and your music, based on your budget and needs.

Before you begin, consider whether you plan to record all of the songs and or musicians and instruments associated with a project all at once, or individually. You should also factor your familiarity with computers and recording software in general into the equation.

If you arent as familiar with recording software tools as you would like to be, the good news is that most music recording software offers simplified versions of their full software programs, that can be upgraded to full versions later, once youve mastered the basics. These programs provide a good introduction to the fundamentals of recording software.

If you are going to build a studio, keep in mind that software studios are much more space saving than hardware studios, but if space is not an issue, then a traditional hardware studio may be your best option.

A mobile laptop studio is always a good option for the truly pressed for space, since this offers you the greatest flexibility, and most laptops are more than capable of running recording and mixing software and programs. This means that your recording studio can go with you, and you will never leave home without it.

You can also create a combination hardware and software studio, but in any case, the most basic studio should include a computer with a sound card, a microphone and a mixer, a stereo or powered speakers, and an optional midi keyboard.

Buy the best equipment that you can afford now, and keep in mind that you can always upgrade later, but that in the long run, purchasing the cheapest equipment may actually end up costing you more, since more upgrades will be required.

Creating your own recording studio will save you time and money, since it will eliminate the need to rent studio time, and, especially in the case of a mobile laptop studio, will give you greater freedom and flexibility when it comes to your recording projects.

Whether you have unlimited space and a large budget, or very limited space and an equally limited budget, thanks to recording software programs and advances in recording and mixing technology it is possible to have your own home, or mobile recording studio.

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www.nextlevelguitar.com home recording studio home recording home recording studios equipment home recording techniques

I’m looking to buy a microphone for a home recording studio. I want a really clear mic for under $300. I’d love help from someone who has a good one, or knows one.