We all have heard of major hits that were recorded in an apartment bedroom or garage or basement. So why spend all that money paying someone to record you if you can make the big time without them?
Here are a few good reasons:.
- It’ll sound a lot better.
- It’ll free you up to be a creative musician.
- It’ll be faster.
- You’ll have access to more toys than you would want to buy yourself.
- It doesn’t have to cost that much.
It’ll sound a lot better.
It takes space in order to capture the low frequencies in music at all, and it takes a carefully designed space to have a flat frequency response across the whole audible range. Most spaces designed for living, like the proverbial garage, basement, or bedroom are small and cubical. Spaces like this have big holes in the audio spectrum, big dead spots that suck up sound, and conversely they also have frequencies which are annoyingly accentuated. So what happens if you record in a space like that? You end up with a muddy mess. Walter Mid Recording is located in a specially designed, purpose-built structure. This is not a repurposed garage or shed, this is a dedicated, new building designed for just one thing: recording.
The choice of microphone and preamp makes a huge difference in sound. The difference between inexpensive preamps built in to a $200 interface and a professional preamp and mic make all the difference in the world. People tell me that when they go to the clubs they always know when it’s one of my productions because it’s really banging. Walter Midi Recording has top of the line pre amps and a wide selection of professional microphones.
Knowing what to do with all that fine stuff is just as important. Matching the correct mic to the source, placing it just so, adding in the correct outboard gear, and getting it to tape correctly takes experience which only comes with time and pain. Walter Midi has already done the work, you don’t have to.
It’ll free you up to be a creative musician.
You can say what you want about multitasking, but acting as artist, producer, and engineer is draining. Having someone with experience and knowledge take over the engineering will free up bandwidth so you can get into the zone about your art.
It’ll be faster.
If you have nothing but time, and who doesn’t (snark!) then taking a year to produce and record is fine. But if you’re like the rest of us, time matters. Having a professional engineer will not only make things easier for you, it’ll make things go a lot faster, too.
You’ll have access to more toys than you would want to buy yourself.
Again, for those of you who have nothing but money, and who doesn’t (double snark!!) then spending a good ways north of three hundred thousand on purchasing, maintaining and housing compressors, pre amps, mics, keyboards, guitars, banjos, penny whistle…well you get the picture…is no big deal. For the rest of us, Walter Midi has already done that, and you’re free to play with any of it during your recording.
It doesn’t have to cost that much.
As with everything else, preparation pays off. If you have a plan and have rehearsed your material, there’s not reason why you can’t get in and out in a reasonable time. Like the saying goes, the Beatles took 10 hours to record their first album, and the second one took even longer. If they could do it, so can you.