Blockbuster Recording Studio Plans

Have you ever walked into your local video or record storeand felt totally overwhelmed with the range and selection to choose from? It’slike a kid in a candy store trying to figure out what they want. The truth isthat the more selection you have the harder it is to make a decision.

The same idea holds true in recording studios. It helps to know exactly whatyour recording studioplans are before you walk through the front door.

The whole point of a recording studio is that there is meant to be variety andchoice to help make your recordings unique –Other than having great acousticsand an adequate mixing desk, this is what makes one great recording studio better thanthe rest.

Great little studio’s will have a range of old schoolkeyboards, synthesizers maybe a few drum kits, while almost all studios will have a ton of micsto choose from. My general rule of thumb is that the more variety there is in astudio, the cooler the studio generally is. These extras add some creativeflair to a studio that the most modern hi tech state of the art mixing deskcannot deliver.

However, the more variety also means being able to putbetter recording studio plans together so when you get in there, you knowexactly what you are doing.

Here are some tips and ideas to consider while formulatingyour next recording studio plans

1. Visit The Studio A Few Times Before You Record

I cannot remember ever booking a recording studio withoutactually going there a few times first and checking out the vibe. Any band orartist must really feel comfortable and safe in the studios and get a feel forits energy

Considering the fact that you will be expected to pour outyour heart and soul and capture some moments or artistic greatness, you reallywant to make sure your comfortable in the recording environment.

Failing to do this will surely increase the blockbustersyndrome when you arrive on the first day. This should probably be one of themost important components of your future recording studio plans.

2. Visualize While Your Inspecting

Make sure you get a good feel for each room and booth as youvisit the studio. Begin to collect thoughts and ideas about how you canconfigure and set the rooms up. Normally, most recording studios and in houseengineers will tell you how things are normally done but if you come up withalternative ideas – go for it – the amount of times I used to end up recordingbass lines right next to the mixing desk with my amp set up in another room wascountless

Obviously you will only really feel true inspiration once yourthere with everything set up ready to go however visualizing and contemplatingwhat could be is also quite a powerful tool to reduce the blockbuster syndromeof freaking out when you get there

3. Discover All The Extra Equipment

Like I said before, any good studio will always have greatold school instruments etc. make sure you really take a good look at them,consider how you might be able to use them in your arrangements. Find out whatworks and what doesn’t.

Make sure you walk away knowing full well what the musicalopportunities are with extra equipment lying around. By visiting the studiobefore you record and understanding the details of what the studio has tooffer, your recording studio plans will surely minimize the blockbustersyndrome

4. Talking with the engineers and studio owners

This is so important!

Knowing you will be able to work easily with the in houseengineer is critical. If you get bad vibes straight up, it might be worthinvestigating other recording studios.

Ask the engineers questions, find out how they work,discover how committed to each project and how hands on they are. Considerhow you think you could best utilize the engineer while you record.

Make sure you make the engineer understand what your goalsand objectives actually. Sometimes I’d even given them a demo of the tracks afew weeks before so they can familiarize themselves with your music.

Does the engineer understand your style of music and therequirements to create the right sounds your looking for? Most times peoplewill bring in a producer to really work on this aspect but I’m assuming thatmost bands reading this can’t afford producers yet so relying on having a goodengineer is critical.

Highly important consideration for your next recordingstudio plans.

5. Asking the Engineer for a rundown of the technical specsof the studio

Some questions should include - How many mics are there?What kind of mixing board do they use? Do they have any digital devices likepro-tools? How proficient is the engineer in digital recording?

Ask the engineer if you can try a few mics out and see howthey sound. You might piss a few people off a little but hey, you’re the onethat’s going to be paying for this expedition – you have the right to ask andtest.

Most recording studios generally stock up pretty hard onstandard mics, however again you’ll generally find that a lot of studios willhave a handful of really rare or unique mics. Find out what they have, considerhow you might be able to use them in your songs to enhance the recordingprocess.

So there you have it. A handful of very importantconsiderations for your next recording studio plans. But more importantly, youneed to consider the above to avoid the tragic case of the blockbustersyndrome.

I know people that have walked into a recording studio,placed a 2 week lock down and have walked out with very little to show for itexcept for the extra 5kg’s they all put on from eating pizza three times a day.

Don't let it happen to you. Put some serious pre recordingstudio plans in place and avoid the headache and heafty bill at the end of thesession

I think you get the drift….