5 Pitfalls to avoid when building a home recording studio

A couple of years ago I made the decision to work from home and build a studio in my basement. It’s still a work in progress but I wanted to share with you what I learned and what you should avoid when making a studio at home. So hopefully showing you my mistakes it will help you with your home studio.

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1. Plan out your space

Take some time and really think about the space you will be working in. The more space the better however for a lot of folks especially those starting out you might be working in a bedroom or a basement room. Take some time and really plan out how you want to use the space. What is your ideal setup for what kind of work you want to do? Are you going to track instruments and do some engineering in the same space? Or just mix? What kind of external noise issues are you facing? Will you be running an xlr snake or ethernet cables in the walls? How much treatment do you want to set up?
Basically, make a list of everything you need and your ideal layout. This way you will have a plan going forward.The worst thing is you start setting up your desk, get your gear routed and realize you don’t have enough power to plug anything else in.
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2. Gear or no Gear

K, I understand the importance of good gear. Having truly good quality tools will help you work and achieve your goals…. However, you will be surprised how little that is. Basically, anyone with a computer and DAW can start working with audio. Yep, I said it. Don’t let the thought of not having the greatest gear stop you from working with clients. Don’t put yourself into a ridiculous amount of dept thinking eventually you’ll pay it all back with your award-winning clients. You will just go bankrupt before you have a chance…. Instead, start simple. Your computer, mic, and an affordable interface. Start working with local talent, build your skills and grow your gear that way.

3.  Don’t skimp out on room treatment

So the first pitfall you will want to avoid is not treating your space. I no a lot of home producers that kind of put this on the back burner. They want a nice mic and a nice pre-amp but don’t think about dealing with the room sound. You can get away with less treatment in bigger spaces but if you are starting out in a smaller 10 by 10 bedroom. There are going to be a lot of issues. Especially in the low end.  The best investment I made wasn’t my mics or pre-amps. It was building absorbers and diffusers.

If you are fighting your space you are going to always be frustrated with your mixes and questioning your existence. Save yourself some time and treat your space and treat yourself.

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If you want a good DIY video on how to build diffusers check this out HERE!!!

4. Physical Storage

Here is something that I am dealing with right now. Something I didn’t do when I was planning was think about storage. I’m finding my initial plan when it comes to storage was lacking. While you go down your home studio journey you are going to collect a lot of shit. If you have a pile of stuff it’s easy to get distracted… and hurt.
In my situation, my studio is my recording/YouTube space. So I have a lot of lights and I find that sometimes when I’m in a writing frame of mind the lights are distracting.

5. Monitor position

Plan on where your speakers are going to be and where in the space you will be doing your listening in general.

You could put them right up to a wall and be done with it but you are going to have issues with your low end I promise. Ideally, you will want to be at least a couple of feet away from any wall. And remember to monitor in the apex.

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