Why Choose a Recording Studio?

Recording Studio Stuff

“Should I record at home or book a studio?” is usually asked as an either/or question. Plenty of people do both. The more useful question is which parts of a recording belong where.

I’m using three kinds of sources here: a working producer’s opinion, Wikipedia on home recording and studios, and a 2021 government-commissioned survey of the studio market in England. I’ll mark which is which.

What people actually do

The survey, the Music Studio Market Assessment prepared by Sound Diplomacy for the UK’s DCMS, says the growth of home studios, at all levels of professionalism, can reduce demand for traditional studios, but that the two are often used together: 57.1% of surveyed home studio users also used commercial studios. The report’s figures cover England around 2020 and 2021, so they are a snapshot, not a world average. The point still stands: for many people the choice is a mix.

Several people standing among microphone stands in a studio live room with a rug and wood-paneled walls

Image: Musicians in the Studio A live room at Downtown Recording by Jason Meredith, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

What the producer suggests doing at home

Travis Huisman, a producer and mixing engineer, wrote an article for Audio-Issues on keeping a budget down by choosing what to record where. His home list, in his order of preference:

  1. Background vocals. One microphone and you are ready. He says they will actually blend better if the quality is not the same as the lead vocal.
  2. Keyboards. No microphones, no big open space, and he says this can often save a day of studio time.
  3. Acoustic guitars. Not difficult to record, and small condenser microphones will do the job. He suggests a simple XY stereo technique if you have not recorded them before.
  4. Bass guitar, with caveats. A bass can be recorded straight into the computer through a DI box. His cons are that you may not be able to turn an amp up at home, and that he has never met a bass player who doesn’t play better when tracking with a drummer.

He adds a warning that applies to everything at home: you are wearing two hats, the artist and the engineer, so set up and test ahead of time, take a 15 to 30 minute break, then track.

What he suggests doing in a studio

  • Drums. He says live drums should always be recorded in a studio, because the rooms were designed to make drums sound big, with none of the standing waves or bass buildup of a basement or garage, and because drums are about the toughest instrument to record. Mic placement, phase problems, a busy headphone mix and a lot of channels all go wrong more easily.
  • Horns and strings. He says these are best in a studio because distance from the microphone lets the room contribute, and cheap microphones tend to bring out shrillness in horns.
  • Lead vocals. His opinion is that the lead vocal should always be done in a studio. The lead vocal is the most important thing in the song, studios usually have better microphones, and a good producer can get a better performance out of the singer.

Those are one producer’s opinions, and plenty of people record great lead vocals at home. They are a fair starting point for a conversation.

Wikipedia says the same about loud instruments

Wikipedia’s recording studio article says recording drums and an amplified electric guitar in a home studio is challenging because they are usually the loudest instruments, and that acoustic drums need sound isolation there. Its article on home recording adds that untreated rooms give an uneven frequency response, so mixing decisions are made on colored sound.

A black grand piano standing in a large, dimly lit live room with a high angled ceiling

Image: A grand piano in the live room at Windmill Lane Recording Studios, Dublin by RayLonergan, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

A simple way to decide

This part is my own suggestion rather than anything from the sources.

  • Split by the room’s job. If a part needs a big, good-sounding room or a lot of microphones, book time. If it only needs one mic or a plug-in, do it at home.
  • Book the hard days, not every day. Studio time is often best spent on the sessions you cannot do at home, such as the drums.
  • Prepare at home. The things that cost money in a studio, such as arrangement decisions, are free at home.
  • Be honest about the two hats. If you will be distracted by the controls, hire the second person.

The series post Home Recording Studio Basics: The Big Picture covers what a basic home setup can do well, and Careers in Audio, and When to Book a Studio Instead of Recording at Home covers when a studio is worth booking.

Sources