Are producer owned studios the way forward?

[bjornson]

No wonder our industry is in chaos.

[Ol' Betsey]

And another thing about the video game industry...

Just re-read an interview (so I could get my facts straight) in Sound On Sound about the guys that did the Grand Theft Auto sound-design etc.

OK, so image if the music-industry could anticipate sales of 667,000 of an album in the opening week-end... in the UK ALONE!!!!

I reckon we would be seeing BIGGER bugets that's for sure.

Then looking at their studios (little more than office's with some aurelux on the walls by the look of it) I counted 2 PT HD Systems, 1 Avalon DI, 4 Behringer , 2 BBE Sonic Maximizers, 2 Drawmer 221, a TC 4000 and few other bits a pieces across 2 (!) rooms.

Granted it also said that they spent 4 days in the US doing most of the voice-overs but still...

They did ALL the mastering in-house too.

On THAT equipment.

Is it any wonder why big studios and big budgets are disapperaing?

They'll sell over 10,000,000 of those games @ £40 a pop!

How many records even sell 1,000,000 copies @ £9.99/$9.99? Not THAT many, that's for sure...

Makes you think...

R.

P.S. I doubt most the people that buy these games would even LIKE my music either.

P.P.S This was in no way meant to slight these recording set-ups, chosen merely to illustrate what's being done in the REAL world. These guys have done ALOT of work on those soundtracks. Very impressive indeed...

[Alécio Costa]

Hi, friends
Here at the very south of Brazil things are not different at all. 2004 was a very busy year but at the end.. seeems money has shrunk. :(

Yes, people are looking for producers wuth their own "recording caverns" so as to avoid the hour rate paranoya.

More and more, we see singers that can not sing properly, drummers who cant play with a click, bad arrangements, weak songs and a strong wish to become a sucess and recover investments on one week.

I have been producing Pop/Gospel and Classical stuff mostly; however things are getting so tough tht we just can not upgrade/update gear as we have originally planned.
On the other side, being a producer with his own private space, you do what is better for your needs. You do not need to have PT HD Accel and Icon just because all the neighborhood is planning to buy it.

What I(we) offer:

preproduction (select 10 songs from the crap)
vocal instruction ( yes, most have bad technique)
Arrangement
Recording team (drums, bass, acoust and elec guitar, keys, back vocals, violins)
Editing
Mixing
Junior Mastering

Now... if you guys think things are pretty bad in your area.. .imagine doing all the aboive mentioned for U$3500.
And we have been thru this business for 9 years, simple but best gear on our region.