I second AJ's suggestion to pick up a copy of Chris Stone's book.
A successful high end studio is above all a client-oriented, reputation-based, finance-anchored, capitalist business. To start one requires sufficient financing and capital to make it through the first year of establishing the new high-end reputation and client base. Do the numbers and time estimates, then -- seriously -- double them.
At a high-end "sound hotel", client-service attitude is key....when clients are there (which should be all the time), it's not just your place, it's their place. Especially producers and engineers...they have to feel good and adopt the studio as "their" studio where they want to work. Your personnel, all the way down to the interns, has to have competence coupled with a calm "no-problem" helpful attitude.
Quote:
Originally posted by nemisis633
Is outboard the best investment of my money for now and the future? |
Lots of high-end outboard and mics can be very cool, and you need to have a good selection of them in-house, but since special needs in mics or outboard can be rented in very easily (at least in the major music cities), and since many free-lancers bring their own fave goodies in with them anyway, I think of this stuff as deal clinchers or icing on the cake.
More important would be the rooms (acoustics, comfort), console, monitors/translatability, multitracks, service/maintenance rep and overall reputation amongst engineers -- who frequently are the deciders or the proposers to the deciders.
Not doing music for picture (i.e. doing music only) shuts the doors on a major and complementary revenue stream.
For a high-end room, not having a console would be like a sports car without an engine.
One definition of high-end: Anytime a high-end studio has a slow week coming up, a phone call or two is enough to fill that week (at the expense of the other studio the client ditched to work in the high-end room...)
Another definition: A high-end studio provides the perception that there are no possible excuses or obstacles to achieving the best possible performance or mix. This can be a vital thing, for different reasons, to the artists, engineer, producer, and record company.
Good luck!