Tips and Info

Just thought I’d knock something together to try & answer questions you might have:

HOURS:        Unless otherwise arranged the session hours run from 10am to 7pm

BOOKINGS and PAYMENT:  Bookings are secured with a 20% deposit, which needs to be received before anything goes into the diary. The rest is due at the end of the session. Full, cleared (ie don’t bring a cheque unless there’s time for it to clear) payment must be received by the end of the session. No  mixes or masters can be given to you until fully paid for,  sorry  no exceptions or  IOUs!
If you find you've booked too much time and end up finishing early, don't worry - I only charge for time we actually use.
 

FACILITIES & GEAR:     The studio gear list is usually up to date and can be found on the EQUIPMENT page
Please check the guitar/bass/drums section - I’ve spent years building up a badass collection of gear that sounds great in this studio and you’re welcome to use any of it..... bands often  don’t bother bringing their cabs for example if they’re happy using the ones on my list . Some bands hardly bring anything  and use the studio stuff – its up to you really.

    SPARES - sadly the local music shop has closed so you must bring plenty of strings/sticks etc with you unless you want to risk your session grinding to a halt!

     It’s always a must to bring spare sets of guitar and bass strings with you, as fresh strings will always sound brighter and will hold their tuning better. Heavier gauges often record and stay in tune better too, especially at low tunings.
     Drummers  always need to bring kick pedal, cymbals and plenty of frresh sticks even if they’re using the studio kit. A spare snare skin is a good idea too so we’re not wasting valuable studio time going out to buy a replacement if one goes.
     Non studio-wise we have a kitchen with cooker, fridge and microwave; a lounge with free pool table, TV, DVD player and free Wifi 

OTHER:   It's very useful to bring audio CDs (rather than ipods or burned off mp3s) with you of bands/sounds that are a useful pointer for the sound you’re aiming for.
    It's a good idea to bring a USB memory stick on the last day so we can put the wav files of the mixes straight on to that. Not all hard drives are compatible.                                                       
    There’s always a LOT of hanging around waiting for your turn etc.  so feel  free to bring games, books, laptops or whatever  floats your boat.                                                                                                                                                                 Ps. Things generally get done better/faster if you are focused   … please leave girlfriends, mates, girlfriend’s mates, pets, fans, family members  and other distractions at home!

SONGS:  While it's tempting to try and squeeze as many songs as possible, the quality will inevitably suffer  - which probably defeats the object of booking into a pro studio! Its best to be realistic if you're looking for professional results rather than demos. Obviously every band/situation is different but I've found a general rule of thumb in here is to allow the following:
 To record and mix 1 song to a pro standard = 2 days; to do 2 songs = 3 days; 3 songs = 4 days, 4 songs = 5 days etc etc. Its more cost effective to do a few songs at once due to less set-up times miking drum kits up etc.
  Everyone's different though and like I said above, if we finish earlier I only charge for the time we actually use.
At the risk of stating the obvious, things get done faster and better if you are well rehearsed, have finished writing the songs (including sorting backing vox and any extras) and have gear that is well set up and sounding good!

So let's record  great songs and have fun doing it :-)