Should I put my studio in a truck???

[Zep Dude]

I'm moving my studio out of a facility in NYC and looking around for spaces, trying to decide where I want to be (Brooklyn, Queens, Jersey) when I start to think, hey, what if I put the whole damn thing, including a live room, in a 26' box truck, then I could be anywhere I want.

Here's my thinking. This is not for commercial use. It's for my own projects working with artists, mixing albums, mastering, song demos, editing etc. For editing, mixing, mastering and overdubbing on my own (guitars, keys, vox) I drive to the beach or up to the mountains or visit friends. When I overdub a musician I pull right up to their place, park outside or drive anywhere we want to work and then drop them off when we're done. If I'm recording a band, I book a studio, pull up and tie in or just use a house etc.

Here are the issues:

Acoustics: live booth -fully floated. Control Room -floated floor to isolate gear from vibration when driving, wood panels on ceiling and walls, absorption treatments for acoustics.

Electricity: tie in when possible, otherwise generator power when remote. 20amps studio, 20 amps heating/cooling, lights

Internet for uploading/downloading: mmmm, like the iphone find wifi wherever possible, use cellular internet for remote connection.

Bathroom: Well, I'm not living in the damn thing so I don't need to shower. porta potty, but use restaurants etc when travelling.

Type of Vehicle: I'm thinking a box truck since I don't need a special license and the dimensions are good (typically 8.3'h x 7.7'w x 24' L). I don't think I could get this much open space from a trailer, bus or RV.


So does anyone have any comments, suggestions or experience with this?

[bigos]

what about security, do you have a secure place to park the truck when not in use?
bigos

[Remoteness]

Why not design a portable rig that can go anywhere you want it to go?

[Zep Dude]

Originally Posted by Remoteness

Why not design a portable rig that can go anywhere you want it to go?

Well, my studio is pretty extensive, so the truck IS the portable rig, lol.

I've got about 9 x 16 space racks worth of gear, 12 guitar heads and some keyboards.

Your truck looks great, Remoteness! Any tips for things I need to look our for? What was the biggest obstacle you faced when putting your rig together?

[CAMGRec]

I think I'd go for an RV or even a trailer that you could park in a safe spot when not in use. Convert the back bedroom into a control room and then you've got a bathroom, kitchen, and lounge. You might even be able to do some limited tracking in it.

Just found this on the Googles:
Sound Drifter Recording
Tom's mobile unit build diary

[Zep Dude]

Originally Posted by CAMGRec

I think I'd go for an RV or even a trailer that you could park in a safe spot when not in use. Convert the back bedroom into a control room and then you've got a bathroom, kitchen, and lounge. You might even be able to do some limited tracking in it.

Just found this on the Googles:
Sound Drifter Recording
Tom's mobile unit build diary

I'm figuring I can put a control room (12ft depth) and a floated booth (11ft depth) for overdubs. Maybe tight for drums but everything from guitar amps to acoustic instruments would work in there.

Problem with an RV is that it's already full of stuff. I need an empty shell.

[Remoteness]

Have you searched this forum using the TAG search feature?

There are lots of threads about this subject on this forum.
I'm sure you will find plenty of ideas from them.
If not, look over those threads and report back.
Many of your questions are within those threads.

I have built five remote trucks in my 30 plus year run.
Three of them are still part of my company's production arsenal.

Each of the five trucks had their own obstacles to be addressed and dealt with.

On another front:
I do not agree that an RV is your best solution even if you had an empty shell to work with.
For the most part an RV cannot really handle the extra load you are considering to use.
A completely digital rig is doable, but IMO your equipment list and ancillary gear is top much weight for a typical RV.
You would have to find a rig that can handle the extra weight and such.
There are some serious RVs out there that are built on real truck chassis' and can handle the task, but they do not come cheap.

Based on your situation a truck or tractor/trailer set up sounds like the better plan to me.
Or even a truck and pup idea. That’s a truck with a small trailer for all your extra stuff not needed in the main rig. The pup could also house the portable generator so it's not connected to the main chassis of the vehicle. Even with the best isolation technique you will still have vibration issues.