Portable recording - worth it? or pointless?

[karp47]

I have recently gathered up enough gear to setup my own 'portable recording' setup, I am still a student/assistant and therefore experience is basically what I am after (opposed to cash).

I basically want to record decent quality demos for up and coming bands for virtually nothing$ and just get my name out there the best that I can. Only problem is that I don't have a studio, (why it is portable) and would need to record at different and perhaps in acoustically 'unsound' rooms.

Wondering what everyones thoughts are on this? Is it worth it? or should I try and find myself permanent room?

[karp47]

Forgot to add my gear list, this is what I will be using to record, any suggestions or anything I can add to the list please let me know as well!

Mics
2x sE 4400a's
4x Sennheiser MD421's
3x SM57's
1x Heil PR48 Kick Mic
1x AKG Perception 820 Tube
1x AKG C1000S
1x AKG C2000B
1x SM58
1x Mic Thing (Vocal Booth)

Gear, Software, Misc
Focusrite Liquid Mix 32
Waves Renaissance
M-Audio Profire 2626
Focusrite Octopre mkII
BFD2
Drumagog
Steven Slate Drum Sample Library
Pro Tools 8
Logic 9
Reason 4.0
PT Music Pro Toolkit 2
Melodyne
2010 Macbook Pro
2009 iMac
Beyerdynamic DT770 Headphones
AKG K77 Headphones

Instruments
1994 Gibson SG
Marshall JCM900 Head
Marshall 1960a Cab
Emperador Tele Rip
M-Audio 88 Key Weighted Midi Controller
MicroKorg Synth
Axiom 25 Midi Controller

[NorseHorse]

Wow! How'd you get all that stuff without already having a network of people to work with?!

Since you're asking in the Remote forum whether a portable rig is worth it, then the short it's is YES. Whether it's perfect for you is really up to you. Since you're mainly looking for experience - do you know any engineers in your area? Do you have any friends with bands?

Cheers.

[karp47]

Originally Posted by NorseHorse

Wow! How'd you get all that stuff without already having a network of people to work with?!

Since you're asking in the Remote forum whether a portable rig is worth it, then the short it's is YES. Whether it's perfect for you is really up to you. Since you're mainly looking for experience - do you know any engineers in your area? Do you have any friends with bands?

Cheers.

I've worked with a few engineers mainly doing editing and general assistant work, I have been playing in bands as well for years and have built up a pretty strong contact base (so it shouldn't be too hard finding something to record).

My main problem is finding 'somewhere' to record, I've generally always worked in a dedicated studio setup and have never really used a 'portable' rig.

[alyricalmind]

I've done portable a few times and honestly, it works great for tracking! As for mixing and mastering, I need to be in a treated control room with my Adams or it just doesn't work out very well.

Laptops are fast enough now that they won't give a single glitch. Coupled with an Emu 1616m or something similar, you'll get yourself some pretty decent results.

However, going portable should always be out of neccessity.... nothing beats an actual studio with a booth and acoustic treatment.

[0bazooka_joe0]

honestly i think you have one of the better all around set ups on GS as far as someone who isnt an owner/employee of a pro studio. but yea if youre willing to lug all that shit around for your artists than id say go for it. im also in a similar boat as you. graduated work as a music editor and doing freelance stuff on the side. started out for nothing, helping new artists get something decent sounding they can show people. i quickly realized that most new artists know nothing about recording and you have to hold their hand and often co-produce to move things along and therefore started charging a small fee. the fee isnt really to make money its to keep the relationship and focus professional. if theyre paying you than youre not going to mess around because theres an obligation. and if theyre paying than they dont want to waste their money messing around. anyway, i digress. with what you have you have alot to offer new artists and should market that. as far as remote recording and what not... whether they have a shit room or not, youre gear is likely 10 times better than theirs and therefore even if you dont find the final mix to be great because of where it was recorded, its almost garenteed theyll love it... its gonna kill their built in mac mic > garage band demo!

[surflounge]

are you:
recording?
mixing?
mastering?
combination of work?

maybe separate your services, or only offer tracking for live performances. Then a side business of mixing.

[karp47]

Originally Posted by surflounge

are you:
recording?
mixing?
mastering?
combination of work?

maybe separate your services, or only offer tracking for live performances. Then a side business of mixing.

I will definitely only be using the portability for tracking, I have a dedicated mix/control room at home that I will be using to mix everything. As for mastering, I prefer to leave that to the people who really know what they're doing.

[DannyL]

I have made (as many of us here in Remote section) a perfectly decent career out of mobile remote recording. So, yes, Remote Recording is a viable option. I am currently using Nuendo 4.3 on a Macbookpro with Lynx Auroras and ATI 8MX2's. I will either use a splitter or a combination of a splitter and my own mics. I record live concerts and shows as well as set up a "studio" in someone's home or rehearsal space. I can setup cue mixes as needed.

I have set up a mix room with traps, diffusors, absorbers and so forth.
The treatments seem to work very well.
I bring my field work "back to the office" and mix there.

In my experience it is not the equipment or acoustic space that make a great record, it is the performance. Some people are more comfortable working at home or performing live. This is my client base.

Some people like to record in studios. It certainly is easier, though I find I often have to interface my portable rig into the studio's infrastructure, depending of course on the quality of the mic pre's and converters.

I still prefer to mix in my room, though.

Danny

[RobAnderson]

My main problem is finding 'somewhere' to record, I've generally always worked in a dedicated studio setup and have never really used a 'portable' rig.

With mobile recording the world is your studio.

In some ways this is tough because you never know what you are going to have to deal with, but for me it's always pretty awesome to get to experience such a wide range of possibilities.

Every day brings a new challenge.

[karp47]

Originally Posted by RobAnderson

With mobile recording the world is your studio.

In some ways this is tough because you never know what you are going to have to deal with, but for me it's always pretty awesome to get to experience such a wide range of possibilities.

Every day brings a new challenge.

I'm pretty sure thats how i'm going to look at it, it will be really great experience having plenty of different (and most probably challenging) environments to work in, if anything, it will definitely improve my knowledge of acoustics.

i have a few projects lined up, when i get them done i might post them here to show how i've gone.

[karp47]

Originally Posted by DannyL

I have made (as many of us here in Remote section) a perfectly decent career out of mobile remote recording. So, yes, Remote Recording is a viable option. I am currently using Nuendo 4.3 on a Macbookpro with Lynx Auroras and ATI 8MX2's. I will either use a splitter or a combination of a splitter and my own mics. I record live concerts and shows as well as set up a "studio" in someone's home or rehearsal space. I can setup cue mixes as needed.



Danny

thanks for the advice, keen to get the ball rolling on my upcoming projects!

[Michaelrophone]

Originally Posted by karp47

I've worked with a few engineers mainly doing editing and general assistant work, I have been playing in bands as well for years and have built up a pretty strong contact base (so it shouldn't be too hard finding something to record).

My main problem is finding 'somewhere' to record, I've generally always worked in a dedicated studio setup and have never really used a 'portable' rig.

Man, you're gonna have some fun!

I started out with mobile for the same reasons you are. Then I got a few studio gigs, one full-time, and it turned out I actually preferred working mobile. So, I took all my gear out of the racks, loaded it all back into road cases and hit the road.

The challenges of mobile (or remote, since it's the name of the forum) are what make it fun for me. I dig being able to tear a studio down to the point that it can be stuffed in a car and driven to the next spot. Then I set it back up and roll with a new set of challenges.

I guess what I'm trying to say is: get ready to learn.

You're about to find yourself in an crapload of complicated situations that you have never, and most likely would never encounter in a studio. It's from these situations that you will learn more about your gear and your skills than you ever would in a studio. For example, the challenges of working in an acoustically imperfect environment will make you that much better when you do step back into a studio. You'll learn to work around every obstacle that crosses your path and this will make you a stronger engineer.

Then, if you're like me, someday you might find yourself in a studio where all hell is breaking loose. You'll watch three guys start crying because they're mid-session and the gear isn't doing what it's supposed to be. That's when you'll roll your eyes, walk around to the back of the racks and fix the problem in less than a minute. They'll look at you in astonishment and ask where you learned to do that. That's when you'll realize the answer to your "is it worth it" question.

Try not to think of going mobile as a sacrifice. It's quite possible you'll end up liking it more than working in the studio. And, very likely, it will speed up your learning a lot faster than coffee runs will.

As far as where to record? I leave that up to the band. If you get in a bind, think community spaces, churches, an empty warehouse or garage... the possibilities are really endless.

Have fun and best of luck,
-Michael

[surflounge]

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Remote Recording Business | State of Remote Recording Business in Professional Audio 2010 by Sarah Jones