Q: How many elements need recording? Drums, Guitar, Vocals etc.
A: We can record up to 32 tracks simultaneously and this is expandable to 56 if required. We have a large main room that allows the entire band to play and record at once if desired.

Q: How should we record them? Live take with overdubs as required or separately recorded tracks?
A: We have a separate drum booth which allows us to record drums along with other elements 'live'. This tends to add 'feel' to tracks and allows the entire band to play at once. This affords more time to be spent on the mixdown and production of tracks if you have a limited budget.

Due to our advanced multi-track system we can perform over-dubs/multiple takes/punches quickly and efficiently. We can punch in and correct even the smallest of errors so there's often no need to re-record entire sections of a song. The use of optimal MIC placement and the drum booth ensures minimal bleed between tracks.

If you have more time then you can record each (instrument) part separately ensuring zero bleed between tracks. Again, our equipment allows multiple takes to be made and stored for comparison. In fact, we can handle 192 tracks in total for use during mixdown!

We find that most bands record bass and drums together and then layer guitars, vocals etc. on top, this gives excellent results.

Q: How much production work do you want to do?

Special effects, Extra Keyboard parts, Sample additions etc.
A: Our aim is to produce something you're happy with and is more than the average demo. As part of the mixdown process we can do as much production as you like. We have a separate MIDI suite that can be used in parallel to the main control room to add special effects, keyboard/synth parts etc. These are in addition to the rack of effects and plug-ins we have in the main control room. The world is your oyster and your welcome to experiment! Our engineering and production skills (and artistic input!) are included as part of your session and the price.

Studio work is as much about planning as it is recording. Remember you will have to allow time to setup your equipment, sound check, record, re-record and then finally mix and produce your CD. Try and draw up a plan for the day detailing how much time you'd like to spend on each section.

A very basic 8 hour recording session (2 tracks perhaps) might be as follows:

 
In an ideal world you would take as much time as possible getting the best sound you could, particularly in the mixdown stage. However, you're going to have a budget to work to. We'd recommend that you try not to squeeze too many tracks into the day; also if possible, we recommend that you record on one day and mixdown on a seperate day with fresh ears.

Q: Do you want the final CD mastered?
A: This is a process often overlooked by many bands. Basically, this process involves final processing of the completed track to make sure it will sound good on all platforms. If required, we may re-visit the mix in order to fix any issues that are identified; this is easily done as all desk parameters are recallable in seconds. We listen to the track through a variety of speakers to ensure the finished article is polished and represents the artist’s intentions.

Once this process is complete we compare and contrast each track to make sure they match each other in quality and level. We then produce a CD-R master with track indexing, CD-text and copyright information embedded within it.

Many studio's have example recordings on their websites. However, not many studios actually tell you how long these recordings took or for that matter how much production work went into each track (and therefore money!). Think of it this way, some albums take months to perfect and master, some even years! Some tracks are recorded and produced in a matter of hours.

We have the equipment and expertise to deliver 'release' quality material whatever your budget. We feel that all the artists using our facilities take away more than just a 'demo'.

In order to help you get a 'true' indication of what is possible within your budget we've included the total time taken and an indication of the process and percentage spent on the production of each track.