Dress to Impress.... Studio Bling???

[e-cue]

I think Funk Logic makes some "gear" to address this issue.

[PRS1JAZZ]

HAHAHAHHA!!!!!! I admit it! I Admit it!!! I have the Palandrometer!!!!

[Robert Sands]

yep - sad, but true. But, I myself, as I'm sure most everyone on this forum, have never bought a piece of gear because of how it looks but we do love the look of a piece of gear when it's got the mojo visuals going on - and the reality is - so does the paying customers. It's just one of those crazy facts of life and it'll always been that way I'm afraid it always will. Why does Britney Spears sell so many records? The Avalon gear is awesome looking alright ( it's like the Britney Spears of audio - although it DOES sound great!) although I don't own any of it and will never buy it solely on it's looks. When a perspective client walks in the door and checks out your studio it does help if it's looking great but don't ever buy gear for the look of it in the rack. Big mistake IMHO.
Robert

[pounce]

i am not sure this addresses "bling" which i just think of as a trendy kiddie word.

although it appears he may have the minimum kit he needs to do the job, setting up studio vibe is part of the equation. and being clear to clients that you are also really only selling your self and your skills as an engineer, not just renting them time and gear.

he is either not doing the sales pitch right or is selling to the wrong people. a higher price might even get a better client, but with that gear list he'd be hard pressed to get much more money (experience in the industry notwithstanding). lots of people with solid credentials have trouble getting and keeping clients nowadays.

can i presume this setup is at his house? surely not at a commercial space with so little kit? he needs to set up a vibe that gets people comfortable and doesn't look like it's more or less the same amount of gear as the average home enthusiast.

and although a little oooh and aaah is great, i think of my gear as tools and not as "bling". i hate even using the word, and i don't want to continue to present the idea that the gear is more important than the skills and personality of the engineer. i think this website sometimes overemphasizes gear itself. i don't use those funk logic panels as a result.

granted, i picked up a large analog console this year because i love the sound of it, but it also seperates me from the average music hobbyist and helps prevent any questions about whether of not my project studio warrants the money i charge. so there is some confidence that i have tools that they could not easily buy and wouldn't know how to operate. it's not a good measure of a studio, your friend may well be a great engineer. however, he obviously needs to stress to people that his space is simple and people freindly, but that he can knock out killer mixes. and then so long as that's true, he can have some other demo's of work done there to calm down any doubters.

i'd think any initial phone call with them would help set expectations so that minimal kit wouldn't be a problem. he has to sell himself and not allow his abilities to be measured by a minimal kit. and now that so many people have small recording rigs, be they young engineers or muso's, an experienced man with a small kit will have to work a lot harder to differentiate himself.

[natpub]

very true stuff here--too bad there isnt a funk logic console :-)

[jameslugo]

My dad always says "son don't sell the steak, sell the sizzle", people listen with their eyes. Personally, I think mixing with an 001 sucks.

[grahluk]

Engineer, Producer, whatever. All the people working at the top of their game know that just having great chops is not enough. The human aspect still figures highly if not equal to technical skills. There are probably very few that get by on track record alone and clients that will bend to their schedule and tolerate their idiosyncrasies. If this guy feels he has enough kit to get quality results it's his job to sell people that it's his skills they're paying for not what he uses. If he can turn out results that equal most of his rivals good for him. If he's complaining that his setup puts people off then he's got to do a little smoke and mirrors job. You'd be surprised (or not) to see some of the rigs and environments some name music makers get by on. Either their clients trust them enough to not give a shit and get hyped on what they're doing than the view from where they're sitting or they do a great job making them not pay attention.

[MASSIVE Master]

I remember when people used to get turned OFF by walking into a studio and seeing a bunch of "old" gear!

[natpub]

Another principle similar to this is the name-game, where people look at your gear list and if it says, for example, "Neumann TLM103" they will choose your studio over one that says "Soundelux 251," since many band folk have picked up on Neumann, or Neve, or ProTools as being what to look for.

Another funny example is where people will put "Neve" beside their clone name, to make sure shoppers get it.

[Jburn34]

I put "Neve" next to my Vintech. I felt like a poser doing it but no one around here has ever heard of Vintech, but they think it's awesome there is a "Neve" 1272 here!

[Drumsound]

Impression and perception are very important when selling time in your room. I make sure all of the gear is on and the mood lights are set whenever I'm giving a tour. I have a CD with work I've done ready to go and I tend to tell stories about past recordings I've done. A large console and a rack full of pretty lights and VU meters can help to sell the room. My last big purchase was based more on client desire that personal...

[Jules]

If the guy is doing awesome work with small amount of gear perhaps he needs to to send his impressive work FORWARD in advance on a CD showreel then explain over the phone that he can do this quality of work on his set up and to warn folks that 'it might not look so impressive' but that they shouldn't worry about it and trust him..

Its all about the initial meetings, I suggest his initial 'meeting' with the client is via them hearing his work on a showreel CD.

[Shaman]

Originally posted by PRS1JAZZ
I have been very impressed. But since his rig is small... people refuse to go to him. They walk in and say.... "thats it? I am not paying $35 an hour for this" (He really is undercharging) They want the whole stereotypical picture of a studio.

Do those people rent only the studio or do they rent him with his musical / technical skills ?

[dim light]

Gear Slutz Forum?

1#I want the candy on the fader, I want to play the neve console like a bad ass dancer.

2#I want the colourful light of light beams from the working compressors at 24/7.

3#I want to go from A to B in my Air chair.

4#I want to answer the telephone and put a dim on the studio lightning.

5#I want the crain songs to kiss me goodnight when I'm tired.

fuuck

[Boogle]

Originally posted by Jules
If the guy is doing awesome work with small amount of gear perhaps he needs to to send his impressive work FORWARD in advance on a CD showreel then explain over the phone that he can do this quality of work on his set up and to warn folks that 'it might not look so impressive' but that they shouldn't worry about it and trust him..

Its all about the initial meetings, I suggest his initial 'meeting' with the client is via them hearing his work on a showreel CD.

I agree. It feels like he might be unintentionally shooting himself in the foot.

[Jam]

Is this the time to remind everyone of the Focusrite Red 2U blanking plate. MMMMMMMM Anodized

Jam

[dim light]

I don’t agree with the thread starter. I think a studio always should look great. Nice design and great people behind the console. The studio vibe is very important. If the music rocks, then the artist should stay for more coffee… Maybe your friend needs to get more cosy with the clients and do a better job on promoting his work etc.

[hollywood_steve]

Another funny example is where people will put "Neve" beside their clone name, to make sure shoppers get it.

I put "Neve" next to my Vintech. I felt like a poser doing it but no one around here has ever heard of Vintech, but they think it's awesome there is a "Neve" 1272 here!

This is sort of bizarre but its also a good example of one of the many problems with this "business" (something with such a poor return on investment really stretches the concept of "business".) I don't disagree with either jburn34 or natpub, I just find it unfortunate that potential clients make decisions based on nonsense like this.

I guess I should be glad that my Vintech is one of the old ones that actually says something like "made from Neve 1272 parts" on the front.

[dim light]

I thought Hollywood was all glamour? Here I’m sitting in my country hell with an Allen&Heath dreaming of a Neve success story that never will happen.

What I was trying to say was, people who devote there life to music should be surrounded with funky junk, nice furniture etc. I can appreciate good taste from time to time. I’m not a snob but nice looking gear and happy surroundings make me happy.

Save the forest.

[hollywood_steve]

hey dim,

Yeah, we're all so glamourous around here that we occasionally forget that the rest of you aren't all working on fur lined consoles. With every suburban kid hanging out at the shopping mall covered with tacky gold and/or diamond jewelry, it gets harder and harder to set your studio apart from the trailer park "home" studio crowd. (Have you seen the new line of Gucci rack screws?)

In all seriousness, no client completely ignores the appearance (style, cleanliness, "vibe" etc.) of your studio when they are deciding where to spend their money. Even the most authentically bohemian post punkers appreciate a clean bathroom and a comfortable environment. Although your options are to a large extent limited by your budget, there are a lot of things you can do without breaking the bank.

All of the clichéd bargain basement design tips are as appropriate for your studio as they are for your new loft apartment. You would be amazed at how different a space can look with as little as $100 budgeted for improvements.

Impressing a gear-slut type of client can be lot more epxensive, but there are still things you can do without robbing a bank. (we're assuming that you already have what you need to get the job done, you are looking for something to impress clients, its actual performance is secondary to the fact that it looks great sitting in your rack). Before you waste $100 on one of those cheap "toob" compressors or preamps that are actually super cheap solid state designs with a tube installed in a viewing window, instead, go find some surplus piece of audio related tube gear from the 1950s. For a hundred bucks you can find a working piece of tube equipment thats at least 5 rack space high and is covered with huge knobs, dials and lights. Just having that thing glowing in the corner of your room can go a long way towards making your studio look like a "real" studio, worthy of commercial rates. (I knew a guy who had two floor-to-ceiling racks filled with this kind of stuff - his room looked like bridge of the Starship Enterprise and most of the gear cost him $10 or $20 at garage sales. There were no Fairchild 670s in those racks, but it all looked sooooo damn cool.

[dim light]

Laughing out loud man, great post – I couldn’t agree more…

You are on my cool list.

Thanks!

[Fleaman]

Originally posted by natpub
very true stuff here--too bad there isnt a funk logic console :-)

funk logic console



Fleaman

[hollywood_steve]

[i]
quote:
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Originally posted by natpub
very true stuff here--too bad there isnt a funk logic console :-)
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funk logic console
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Oh man, don't get me started on that Argosy stuff.......Nothing against the actual product, they look kinda nice, but what kinda moron spends $2,400 to house a P.O.S. Mackie 8-bus? I know that some guys buy the Argosy desks for the Sony DMX or any of the various Yamaha digital mixers, but I swear that 90% of the time that I see an Argosy desk, there is a Mackie board inside. WTF?!?! That's like paying $600 for a custom ebony jeweler's box for your cheap Chinese knock-off mic. Priorities, gentlemen!

[dim light]

lol!

Man you just killed my pink dream. Actually I love there concept, I have contact with a carpenter that possibly could build me something like the Argosy. I own an Allen&Heath GL2200 and it just look stupid on an IKEA desk. The nicest part is the rack space; I would love to have all my stuff straight under my nose. Hate leaving the desk to fiddle the outboards.

[PRS1JAZZ]

OK... again I give in.. I own an Argosy Console myself. I dont house a piece of sh#@ Smackie, but it is SO much better than some of the ergonomic desks out there. It is much more comfortable overall.

[dim light]

It's nice to come clean!

Shame on you tutt

[Reslo00711]

he should give the client his rate and a separate studio rate for doing their project at a more expensive and gear groovy room...and then give them a composite rate for doing the project at his more "economy with dignity" set up. if the latter is at or approx the same...and the client can hear things done on "his" rig...

a few of the Top Knobs I know actually think the 001/LE stuff has better "sound" (different math?) than the more expensive PT sand. sounds better to me as well, but I'm not a fan of...aww you know.

001 is probably a buzz kill for the young aspirants however.

[cowtrax]

As I always say: "If I only had a dollar for every time someone calls up and asks if I have a "Newman" microphone"...

[Auxillary]

Well, I got the bling. 1ft mohawk.

Now, the studio bling.... howabout all the discs on the shelf Ive done that sound better than anything anyone in this area could ever imagine to put out.

BOOM. take that.