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My new music production workspace, 29th Dec 2021, last updated 23rd April 2024
- Thread starter MajorFubar
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For anyone at all interested, I'm nine videos into a series on my YouTube channel where I'm mixing well-known popular commercial multitracks by artists like Queen, Doobie Brothers, Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye on my home 32-channel console with flying faders:
If you are at all interested in things like this, please stop by, maybe give me a like and subscribe to my little channel.
If you are at all interested in things like this, please stop by, maybe give me a like and subscribe to my little channel.
Dude this is awesome. Love the tape machine! Can't believe I only just found this thread... but I've really enjoyed seeing the evolution of your studio. My studio space has changed a lot in the last few years too (I'll post a picture of its current state soon!). What kind of stuff do you normally work on?
That's just awesome and inspirational. Thanks for posting it in my thread. Definitely more pictures there for the w**k bank lol.
I know you've kindly recommended it three times so far in this thread, and I've pointed out I don't need it because my audio interface has a hardware loopback facility built-in
I'm sure it's a great product for those who need it.
Ok so it's been a while since I posted an update.
I sold the turntable. Sold the MacBook. Both of which I felt I didn't use enough.
In January I sent my Nakamichi DR1 cassette deck to a guy about 100 miles from home to have its belts replaced, because they had turned to goo. It’s now reinstated and sounding exceptional again. Speaking of cassette, I reinstated my Yamaha MT-4X portastudio so I can start digitising some multitrack cassette tapes I made in the 90s, which still sound awesome after all these years having been recorded at 3.75IPS on TDK chrome tape with DBX. They can be transferred in one pass into the four-channel interface attached to my computer, for further processing in my DAW.
So…I’m really happy with my studio now, and where this journey has taken me since I started it by assembling a Thomman Combodesk 88 into my ridiculously-cramped 6’ x 7’ boxroom on 28 December 2021. On the digital-side, I have the facilities to undertake most kinds of in-the-box post-production and mastering, and on the analog side I have the equipment required to undertake digital transfers of nearly all speeds and formats of cassette and ¼” R2R tape.
Creatively, I mainly use VSTs and plugins in Logic Pro to write and perform new-wave/synth/dance/trance. The room isn’t ideally suited to acoustic recording, but I do have a client who visits a couple of times a month to lay vocals against YouTube backing tracks. So it can manage acoustic recording ‘at a push’, but it is more suited to creating productions using VSTs, and being used as post-production-suite, which is what I set it up to be.
I sold the turntable. Sold the MacBook. Both of which I felt I didn't use enough.
In January I sent my Nakamichi DR1 cassette deck to a guy about 100 miles from home to have its belts replaced, because they had turned to goo. It’s now reinstated and sounding exceptional again. Speaking of cassette, I reinstated my Yamaha MT-4X portastudio so I can start digitising some multitrack cassette tapes I made in the 90s, which still sound awesome after all these years having been recorded at 3.75IPS on TDK chrome tape with DBX. They can be transferred in one pass into the four-channel interface attached to my computer, for further processing in my DAW.
So…I’m really happy with my studio now, and where this journey has taken me since I started it by assembling a Thomman Combodesk 88 into my ridiculously-cramped 6’ x 7’ boxroom on 28 December 2021. On the digital-side, I have the facilities to undertake most kinds of in-the-box post-production and mastering, and on the analog side I have the equipment required to undertake digital transfers of nearly all speeds and formats of cassette and ¼” R2R tape.
Creatively, I mainly use VSTs and plugins in Logic Pro to write and perform new-wave/synth/dance/trance. The room isn’t ideally suited to acoustic recording, but I do have a client who visits a couple of times a month to lay vocals against YouTube backing tracks. So it can manage acoustic recording ‘at a push’, but it is more suited to creating productions using VSTs, and being used as post-production-suite, which is what I set it up to be.
Awesome. Been super cool to follow this thread. Don’t hesitate to post any updates in the future!
Bonjour , votre combo desk est très beau et j'envisage d' en acheter un .
pensez-vous me dire quelle est la dimension entre le tiroir du clavier et le dessous du plateau de travail ? je voudrais y mettre un Genos Yamaha et cette mesure n'est pas précise sur les documentations.
Merci beaucoup
cordialement
Evh 5150 .
pensez-vous me dire quelle est la dimension entre le tiroir du clavier et le dessous du plateau de travail ? je voudrais y mettre un Genos Yamaha et cette mesure n'est pas précise sur les documentations.
Merci beaucoup
cordialement
Evh 5150 .
Whoops sorry I missed those questions...guess it's too late now.
Crazy how it's been over a year since I last updated this thread. But that's because in this space I've been mostly consumed with creating and producing, and I haven't needed to change anything. However I have branched into offering tape-to-computer transfers and also mastering to tape. Swapping around my various machines for these tasks has been quite strenuous on my back which definitely isn't 25 any more (you can double that and add some). So I needed something which could hold about 6 of my recorders that I could patch-in to my workflows quickly, as-and-when required.
I found a TV unit at Argos (UK mail order store) and yesterday built it in my home studio. All I'm waiting to arrive now is a pair of switchboxes which will allow me to quickly and easily hotswap the decks to my main desk with the push of a couple of buttons for both recording and replay:
From L-R T-B:
Revox B77, half-track stereo R2R, 7.5IPS and 15IPS;
Akai GX4000D 1/4-track stereo R2R, 3.75IPS and 7.5IPS;
Nakamichi DR-1 three-head twin-capstan-drive cassette deck with azimuth adjust;
Yamaha MT-4X 4-track multitracker with DBX, 1.875IPS (standard speed) and 3.75IPS (double speed);
Aiwa AD1250 two-head cassette deck with FeCr (Type III) tape capability;
Grundig TK121 twin-track mono R2R, 3.75IPS.
Crazy how it's been over a year since I last updated this thread. But that's because in this space I've been mostly consumed with creating and producing, and I haven't needed to change anything. However I have branched into offering tape-to-computer transfers and also mastering to tape. Swapping around my various machines for these tasks has been quite strenuous on my back which definitely isn't 25 any more (you can double that and add some). So I needed something which could hold about 6 of my recorders that I could patch-in to my workflows quickly, as-and-when required.
I found a TV unit at Argos (UK mail order store) and yesterday built it in my home studio. All I'm waiting to arrive now is a pair of switchboxes which will allow me to quickly and easily hotswap the decks to my main desk with the push of a couple of buttons for both recording and replay:
From L-R T-B:
Revox B77, half-track stereo R2R, 7.5IPS and 15IPS;
Akai GX4000D 1/4-track stereo R2R, 3.75IPS and 7.5IPS;
Nakamichi DR-1 three-head twin-capstan-drive cassette deck with azimuth adjust;
Yamaha MT-4X 4-track multitracker with DBX, 1.875IPS (standard speed) and 3.75IPS (double speed);
Aiwa AD1250 two-head cassette deck with FeCr (Type III) tape capability;
Grundig TK121 twin-track mono R2R, 3.75IPS.
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@MajorFubar, Great gear and setup, congrats. And you have the lava lamp. Approved!
Which switchboxes will you be using?
Which switchboxes will you be using?
@hjorte I bought these cheap 8-way passive switchboxes off eBay, one for Record and one for Replay. They're just 'no brand' eBay specials from PRC, described as 'AV switchboxes' but they're fine for just audio alone, they just have nine yellow RCA sockets I won't use:
Everything is 'plumbed in' now and they work great, but the next question was where to put the switchboxes, because stuffed behind the R2R recorders is not convenient. So I've ordered a wooden monitor-riser, again one of those no-brand eBay specials, which will fit under the Akai tape recorder on the top right and quite by luck will raise it to the same height as the Revox:
I'll update the thread again when the riser arrives and everything is set up in its final position.
Everything is 'plumbed in' now and they work great, but the next question was where to put the switchboxes, because stuffed behind the R2R recorders is not convenient. So I've ordered a wooden monitor-riser, again one of those no-brand eBay specials, which will fit under the Akai tape recorder on the top right and quite by luck will raise it to the same height as the Revox:
I'll update the thread again when the riser arrives and everything is set up in its final position.
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So the monitor stand arrived. I built it. And I hated it:
I just didn't like the look of the RH machine towering over the left. And the monitor stand is not wide enough for me to just saw off the bottom and put the switchboxes side by side. Undeterred I fashioned a better-looking solution (IMO) by dismantling it and making a shelf out of its upper piece with adhesive felt feet that sits on top of the switchboxes, and I used the remainder of the wood to made supports for the back:
So at least the money wasn't wasted. I'm happier with that look now.
I just didn't like the look of the RH machine towering over the left. And the monitor stand is not wide enough for me to just saw off the bottom and put the switchboxes side by side. Undeterred I fashioned a better-looking solution (IMO) by dismantling it and making a shelf out of its upper piece with adhesive felt feet that sits on top of the switchboxes, and I used the remainder of the wood to made supports for the back:
So at least the money wasn't wasted. I'm happier with that look now.
For anyone interested in the signal flow this is it
This long-term project post of yours inspired my own home studio aspirations:
The space is exactly 7' x 7' x 7' and I'm a long-time Rush fan, hence the nickname of the studio. I am also a sucker for heavily-saturated colors, like one experiences on the live stage under par cans, hence the LED lighting.
I'm at the beginning of this journey, really. I love a big, heavy control surface with motorized faders, but did not have the budget to splurge on Icon, Mackie, or any of the other players in that niche market, so I opted for renovating an old Avid/Focusrite/Digidesign Control 24 control surface running Neyrinck's V-Control (which means this once-Protools-only device can now be used with nearly any DAW, including Logic, which I currently use). So I get 24 moving faders and most of the board's original button implementation for about a grand ($700 for the unit, $100 for a spare unit I scavenged for spare parts, and $200 for the V-Control software). Yes, it's essentially an 88-lb. mouse, but it is fun to use, looks cool, and has a reclaimed retro-vibe I like.
The monitor is a Walmart special 43" TCL 4k TV, which I got for a steal. Probably not "color accurate," or with the super-fast frame rates of a gaming monitor, but for audio production it's more than sufficient. My audio interface is an SSL 2+, and currently I mix on phones, often using the Waves Nx software to emulate famous pro studio monitoring (CLA, Abbey Road, Germano, Ocean Way) as needed.
Since you're a Queen fan, you will probably enjoy the unusual accessory mounted below the right corner of the monitor, next to the SSL 2+. Yep, that's a coin dispenser, like a baseball park beer man would have on his belt. I like playing guitar using reeded-edged coins as pics (dimes usually, but occasionally quarters), in a manner similar to Dr. Brian May playing his Red Special with a sixpence. Since I hate misplacing and having to dig around for them, I thought this would be a better solution! It's an oddball conversation piece, anyway.
The computer is an M2 MBA that I maxxed out at 24GB RAM and 2TB SSD. I wanted a cpu that was portable for live or remote recording, in a laptop with NO fan, i.e., dead silent. Since work offers interest-free computer loans, I indulged a bit in this department.
Someday, when I move it all to a better-treated room, I will break down and buy a pair of proper NF studio monitors (leaning toward the IK Multimedia MTMs with ARC room correction built-in) and make the midi keyboards more readily accessible. Since I never track more than two channels at a time, there's no push to get an interface with more channels. Other than that, I can get a LOT done on this system ITB.
Cheers!
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Just completed a studio renovation last month. Still needs a few tweaks.
Looks great to me.
I've been fairly quiet in this space because I've spent a lot of spare time this year restoring vintage analog tape recorders that I doubt would be of interest to most, one of which was this 1970's Revox A77 which needed various mechanical and cosmetic repairs including the box stripping and refinishing (which had been sprayed grey), new brake-bands, new VU meters, and new lower-font panel. I know no one here is really interested in this kind of stuff so I haven't posted it up.
I've been fairly quiet in this space because I've spent a lot of spare time this year restoring vintage analog tape recorders that I doubt would be of interest to most, one of which was this 1970's Revox A77 which needed various mechanical and cosmetic repairs including the box stripping and refinishing (which had been sprayed grey), new brake-bands, new VU meters, and new lower-font panel. I know no one here is really interested in this kind of stuff so I haven't posted it up.
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Not been too well recently, nothing life threatening, just general change of season colds and generally feeling meh.
Nice to be relaxing in the studio tonight. This is where happiness happens for me.
Nice to be relaxing in the studio tonight. This is where happiness happens for me.
Hey bud! I've been getting over a nasty upper respiratory infection myself... it's weird. I tested negative three times for COVID, but antibiotics didn't seem to do much so it's probably viral and therefore most likely a very aggressive cold. But even after I stopped coughing yellow-green crap out, a dry cough persisted like the lining of my throat is messed up.
I think I described my setup to you once before but here's a few pics... Get better soon, my man!