Time to record!

[Slash1337]

Okay, so I've been contemplating for about 2 weeks about recording the song we wrote and maybe a cover. Thing is, should be just all go to a recording studio, pitch in and get it recorded there. OR most likely me buying a bunch of stuff and get another computer. Plus recording gear.

If I go the home studio route what are the main things I should look at buying? Mics, mixers, etc. I don't know shit about recording.

Or should we just go to the studio and spend a whole day recording? I'm leaning towards the studio. But it'd be nice to know what I should get if I were to get a bunch of gear for recording.

[jamie]

I'd personally go into a studio for a day.
( dont choose to do more than 2 songs though, time really does fly in a studio !)

It would be a great experience and you can ask the sound engineer loads of questions if you are interested in recording.

[MKB]

+1 on the studio. If you do a bit of searching, I would bet that you can find a good professional studio at a reasonable price. We have gone the home studio vs. pro studio route with our band, and for time, quality, and "lack of aggravation" factor, the pro studio wins every time.

On thing to consider; if someone in your band owns a home studio, and you try to record anything but demos there, that person becomes the engineer and producer and can cause a lot of friction in the band. It's so much easier to have an unbiased external ear to make suggestions, it leaves less opportunity for band members to get upset.

[Slash1337]

Thanks guys. I'm gonna throw the idea at them later this week. And maybe get a spot later this month.

[surfnorthwest]

Thing is, should be just all go to a recording studio, pitch in and get it recorded there. OR most likely me buying a bunch of stuff and get another computer.

Absolutly go to the studio and get it done right. Eventually you will want a nice home studio, we all do. But untill you are ready to lay down some serious cash to do it right stick with the studio and their high end gear. I have been home recording for 5 years now and it would take me months to teach you what I have learned on my own. I also am up over 30k for my little hobby, so yes go to the studio.

[Slash1337]

I was waiting for your reply Surf. You def. know your shit about recording. No offence to anyone else of course..

We plan on recording one original which is a rocker, and one cover which we will soon all agree on doing. I personally would love to record "Dead Flowers" by the stones. But we'll see.

[slowpokerhino]

A little advise before going into the studio:

Make sure you know whatever songs you're going to play inside & out. If you're used to doing them as a full band then you may be shocked at how hard it can be without you're singer etc.
Most studios will want you to record seperately, this makes mixing a whole lot easier and eliminates mic "bleed" which makes for a much better recording. Make sure the bass player & drummer can play them without guitars & vocals. Since bass is usually recorded direct they can be recorded at the same time with no "bleed". They may (or may not) be able to let one guitar play along as a "scratch" track which will be replaced later.
All this of course is unecessary if you can afford a big pro studio with isolation rooms to seperate the instruments, but never the less it still doesn't hurt to be over prepared.

Good luch Slash & I look forward to hearing the final product.

[Kongels]

Most studios will be set up to record live playing. Its not hard to isolate and just run everyone through headphones. I hate recording everything seperate and think it makes an opportunity for a more sterile finished product. Band Dynamics are something you should try to capture, not eliminate.

You should also try to contact any local teaching studios or schools and see if they need bands to come in and play for classes. This will get you a free recording and a chance to pop your cherries in a relaxed and free way. It might be a little more frustrating having several students setting up everything and an instructor there, but if you listen to them and watch you will learn invaluable lessons. This was how I got into the studio my first time. A friend called doing a class and they needed a guitar player to stand in for one who didn't show. After that I was there all the time hanging out and eventually joining the program.

Be tight going in or you are wasting your time, money, so on. When your rich the studio can be your playroom.

[slowpokerhino]

I hate recording everything seperate and think it makes an opportunity for a more sterile finished product. Band Dynamics are something you should try to capture, not eliminate.

I definitely agree. I'm assuming that Slash & Co. will be on a tight budget. My first time in a "real" studio it was a rinky dink little one room studio & we weren't given the choice to record live or not. That was long ago & even the cheapest studios have come a long way. My point is just that you need to be prepared for anything.

Once you have decided on a particular studio, go in and see what they are set up for. Even if you can record "live", you'll probably want to overdub the vocals & solos so be prepared to play the songs without them.

[MKB]

Another tip: when you are checking out the studio, check and see if they have a high quality drum set already set up and mic'd. If so, that will save you at least an hour, maybe more on your studio bill. Setting up and mic'ing drums well takes an incredible amount of time. One song we recorded a few years ago was in a professional studio, with an engineer we hired to produce. This guy really knew his stuff (had engineered for Kansas, Guns 'n Roses, and other big groups); and our drummer had a new set of top of the line DW's, even with the experienced producer it took over an hour to get the sound right. The studio we use now has a great set of Pork Pie drums permanently mic'd in an isolation room; our drummer just sat down and started. We mic'd my amp and plugged in the bass to a DI, and had a scratch track down in less than 1/2 hour, the whole song was finished in 3 hours (even with a full horn section).

[Slash1337]

Haha. Depends who we get to drum for us on the tracks really. WE don't really have a set drummer though I have ads EVERYWHERE and got a call from a drummer who's 16. Only thing is he hasn't jammed with us yet. So e'll prolly use the drummerwe had on the Paradise City video, or this other guy I know from a friend. Both are like 21/23 years old.

We'd prolly be better off recording live though.

[MonkeyBoy]

This goes along with being tight before you go in, but I strongly recommend setting tempos with a metronome and getting used to playing to it. You may even want to try a few beats faster and a few slower than usual. You'll be amazed what you learn about your own songs when you do that. And tight to the ear while playing may not be tight when played back from a good recording. My band played to a click track for about a month before going in, and we experimented with the tempos a bit. We also took the time to play with just the drummer and bass player, just the guitar and drums etc. The studio is a ton of fun, I cant wait to go back.