Big recording studios that cost thousands of dollars to rent and use are simply unaffordable for the average musician today.
The result has been a lot of these studios pricing themselves out of their own success. Musicians have gone to other means of recording music, from mobile recording setups to simply buying a laptop for recording music.
At the same time, big facility recording studios have either shut down or sometimes appear so antiquated and without utility to the newest generation of musicians that they no longer serve much of a purpose in modern music.
Here is a glimpse into what major recording studios are up to and why today’s musicians mostly aren’t interested.
Major Recording Studios Have High-Quality Equipment But Plugins May Be Comparable
Producers today spend so much time on laptops for recording music and creating music remotely, at the same time that big facility recording studios are either going out of business or finding ways to limit expenses.
To the current generation of musicians and artists, big facility recording studios in large part are not worth the time.
As intimidating as it can be for artists to operate in a big facility recording studio, what’s most important is having someone there who knows how to use the equipment and who is familiar with creating in such an environment.
There are many advantages to making music in these types of recording studios, including access to equipment you wouldn’t otherwise have, access to producers that know how to make the most from what they’re given, and the opportunity to implement digital processing in the recording process.
A lot of people also find recording in a real studio as opposed to doing it on a laptop equates to an overall warmer sound on real instrument capture and the vocal.
Recording remotely is fun, effective, and evocative, sure. In most cases though, it requires someone in a professional recording studio to make an artist sound bigger, better, and more polished. Don’t be intimidated. If you select the right producer to come in with you to get the most out of the space, absolutely magical things can happen in a big studio.
At the same time, a lot of the equipment in a major studio is duplicated in the form of DAW plugins. Musicians rely on plugins, from compressors to EQ and special effects, to achieve their sound. Most don’t need a major recording studio to do that.
Major Recording Studios Look Professional And Provide You The Space To Create Music
A major advantage that big facility recording studios offer is enough space to set up equipment and record comfortably.
For rock bands and live instrumentation, this is the best way to record a group together, capturing the energy between the notes and the players.
Imagine trying to do the same with a laptop. Even an extremely powerful laptop, trying to record five or more instruments all at the same time, you’re bound to encounter latency issues and an out-of-time performance that’s going to require extensive editing after the fact.
For those who are not dependent on live instrumentation, they still get more space to lay down a track. Imagine inviting collaborators to a recording space that is professional, tidy, and that makes an impression. Being able to show off a professional creative environment sets the tone for a project, keeping things tight and focused.
Also, you have all the equipment there you need to get down whatever performance you want, making the track sound as big and creative as it has the potential to be.
As it pertains to recording tracks for demo submission as well, a recording studio like this more than gets the job done.
When you come to rely on a pro recording studio, especially when you’re working with others, it communicates something that a mobile setup or a simple DAW laptop never will. That said, when you require something easy and still with all the utilities of a major recording studio, of course, a DAW works just fine.
Big Recording Studios Have Lots Of Collaborators, Musicians, & Industry Contacts Within Arm’s Reach
Another key point as to why a major recording studio may be a better bet than using your own laptop is this.
In a big facility recording studio, you never know who you might meet. Be it hip-hop, dance, the top EDM DJs, house music, or pop, recording studios are filled with creative minds working in these genres and others.
Connect and mingle with songwriters, engineers, producers, and other artists. Find new collaborators and inspiration.
A lot of contacts can be made this way, providing you with a chance to network while working. In music and entertainment, it’s all about who you know. With that, some big opportunities may come your way just by being in the right place at the right time.
At the end of your experience recording a track in a professional big-time studio, you should come away a better artist. If you take in all the opportunities there are in a major recording studio, an artist can reap some big rewards.
All of this is not to say that home recording or mobile recording arrangements are bad. Much to the opposite, mobile recording is a necessity in this day and age, for any artist. It captures a performance or a musical idea that you might not otherwise get the chance to record down.
Just remember, a big facility recording studio comes with its advantages, and for most artists, including those serious about their careers in music, recording in one is a positive.
Follow Playlist
