Recording your Band

Getting a good first demo or e.p. recorded is the difference between starting out with a good reputation or a bad reputation. A badly produced demo will leave executives(promoters/record labels/agents) a bad impression of the band, not only that... when it comes to future demo's(which are much better than the first) being given to the same executives they will already have an opinion in mind with your band and may not even bother listening to it when they see your name associated with it!

You do not necessarily have to invest in expensive recording studio time with a well known studio or sound engineer. In fact a good recording can be achieved at home for the budding D-I-Yer! How is this possible? Well with the extended time you will have to spend on the recording and production! It doesn't cost as much as you may think either... you do not need top end pro studio gear and racks to do it, a basic set up may be all you need. A computer, a mixing console, some microphones and some time!

Things like a mixing desk or microphones you may not have but a computer is always available in today's world! You should be able to source a mixing desk and/or microphones through contacts you will inevitably have within the band; if they don't have it then they are sure to know someone who will! Sometimes you may even encounter a hire fee, although when you compare this to time you would have had to pay for studio recording it works out a lot cheaper.... You may even have friends who know sound engineering, recording and may be available to lend a helping hand. Home recording is a lot cheaper than professional studio time but it also a very valuable experience which will hold you to an advantage when it does come to potential future studio time.

Recommended equipment:
1) Good recording software – e.g. CoolEditPro, cubase, logic.
2) 8 channel mixing desk minimum.
3) A good range of microphones suited to vocals and then instruments/drums. -
e.g. Shure, Sennheiser, AKG, Neumann etc.
4) Connection from mixing desk to sound cards line in or microphones input.