Advice on stating a commercial studio

[Internet_Junky]

I was wondering if anyone could me with some advice on stating and running an commercial studio. It's been my life long dream and I think I am ready. I am going to build the room forty miles outside of downtown Los Angeles. It will have a 9000J in it with all the outboard gear and mics that all the big studio have minus vintage gear. So I am wondering for what kind of rates should I ask for that are comparable to a studio like this. Thanks for the help.

[drBill]

Nice first post.

Me? I'd ask $200 per hour. Go for it!!

[Internet_Junky]

Really I thought that would be a little to much. But I do not know how much the majors studios are go for. I would like to stay well below them. And make a room that freelance engineers and myself can use without killing our clients but still make great sounding records.

[drBill]

Well, what you can ask and what you can GET are two different things. Most commercial studios in the southland can BARELY keep their doors open. Not a good time to be operating a studio for commercial gain.

[narcoman]

have to echo Dr Bill here. It is really hard to turn a profit or probably even turnover. If you're wealthy and it is indeed a dream - then fair enough. There is no market for new studios though..

If you have resources and contacts in some of the niche markets then you might be okay. But with no contacts, track record etc - then you'd better be wealthy !!

It's dead business - especially recording bands.

[The Byre]

It takes at least five years in today's market for a studio to make an operative profit. Making a return on investment depends on how good you are at buying and operating at low cost.

The day-rate for studios is falling in real terms, to the point where one of the most famous studios in the Uk has a book price of £1,200 for one of their rooms, but can only get £300.

If you follow the links on my website to audiotalk and then go to the business pages, there is a wealth of information there on things that you really need to know.

But if I can give you one piece of advice, it would be to offer the customer a single, fixed price for a complete project. We have seen a massive increase in this side of the business, where we do everything from recording, editing, mixing, mastering, layouts, CD replication and delivery and even distribution in some cases.

I would also take a long, hard look at remote recording and working together with local hi-def video production houses with a view to an all-in-one offer for concert DVDs.

That is not much of a market right now, but it will be in a few years time and you will need experience in learning all the many gotchas between then and now.

[Studio Addict]

Originally Posted by Internet_Junky

I was wondering if anyone could me with some advice on stating and running an commercial studio.

Yes.

Don't do it.

Your dream is over.

[Musiclab]

There's a big difference between stating and studio and STARTING one. sorry I couldn't resist

[Greg Curtis]

How big are you going to go, room-wise? Build too small and the garage-studio guys will eat you up @ $25/hr. A little bigger and you will spend $1m to build it with many comparable, established rooms in L.A. with lots of nice gear to battle with. A little bigger and then you have a niche market.

40 miles out of L.A. is not good, unless you are a destination studio. A place so awesome that musicians are willing to put up with 3 hours of driving to lay down a track. or a really cool place to stay for a few days and cut an album.

Where u at?

greg

[mrlouie]

Originally Posted by Internet_Junky

I was wondering if anyone could me with some advice on stating and running an commercial studio. It's been my life long dream and I think I am ready. I am going to build the room forty miles outside of downtown Los Angeles. It will have a 9000J in it with all the outboard gear and mics that all the big studio have minus vintage gear. So I am wondering for what kind of rates should I ask for that are comparable to a studio like this. Thanks for the help.

Simple test, do you have the money once the studio is all built to sit empty without clients for a solid month, then the next month only one week is filled, then things pick up and from now on two weeks a month are filled for the next year.

The only people who can survive now a days with a big commercial studio are ones backed by big non studio money.

Unless you are a big time producer and/or engineer with his own private studio not alot of people are gonna want to drive out 40 miles from LA to work there.

[DynaForte]

I'm not a cynic, but a realist.

Don't build your own commercial studio.

Instead, buy the most expensive house you can afford, outside LA. Turn it INTO a nice place for people to retreat and record. Throw an SSL in the big room and build it so the rooms can be used for recording.

This way, instead of wasting money on acoustic design and too much equipment - which ALL depreciates in value, you can focus your marketing on an INVESTMENT in a house, and just enough select equipment. The vibe is what you need....

Clients aren't wowed by the equipment, they're wooed by the atmosphere.

Be prepared to spend 50,000 a year just on repairs of your equipment. That's how much it costs many studios to maintain an SSL board that is old.

PS: On the bright side, I'm available to hire for the design and building, and later on for the engineering as well. Seriously, I am actually decently helpful and can start in a couple of weeks.

[Greg Curtis]

Still waiting to see where "40 miles outside of L.A." is.

Could be Claremont or Pomona. Or Palm Springs or Santa Barbara. Or Ojai...



.

[nickolo]

Look at it this way..In the last 10 or so years many of the worlds well established know recording studios have closed..Some proper [traditional] studios manage to survive but often have their fingers in other pies so that the main studio is not the only source of income..Here in london few survive..One that i know that is very good has rehearsal rooms and lock ups for bands..Even though they have a great live room,neve desk and all the classic mics and outboard,they will offer competitive rates..Its been running for years and is known to certain bands and a few labels..The money invested always goes on gear,acoustics and maintenance of the aging console..Its not uncomfortable but its not luxurious in the slightest..
I say this because sadly its become so hard for new proper big studios and if you dont have the contacts to fill up the place,its going to sink fast..Also if as someone said you are way out of town,its got to offer something in the way of a great place etc..etc..plush/expensive etc..
But if you were perhaps close or in town,had a smaller idea which offered compatibility[SSL AWS] Good sound,good staff and a way or ways to keep income coming in whilst it grows and more artist/radio/TV/film projects fill the books,then IMHO today that makes more sense..
Good luck..

[The MPCist]

The best advice would be to not do it!

There's no way a commercial studio can stay in business these days. Especially with all the other commercial studios closing, going out of business, or charging so little it gets ridiculous....

Unless you have some serious money to burn, don't do it......

[atomicstudio]

I've been renting studio space to producers in London for years and some survive because they know how to network others last a couple of months because they don't. You gotta spend hours and hours networking keep your prices low and know what your doing, build up a client list, work with other producers/ writers ( sometimes for nothing ) to keep your face in the place.

[RCM - Ronan]

Originally Posted by Internet_Junky

forty miles outside of downtown Los Angeles. It will have a 9000J in it with all the outboard gear and mics that all the big studio have minus vintage gear. So I am wondering for what kind of rates should I ask for that are comparable to a studio like this. Thanks for the help.

You can ask anything you like, but unless you are in a beautiful location on the coast, or have something incredibly enticing, my hunch is that an SSL room with no history and not run by a well known and respected producer/engineer will probably be pulling in $400-600/day when its booked. Maybe less on longer booking by freelance guys.

[narcoman]

Originally Posted by atomicstudio

I've been renting studio space to producers in London for years and some survive because they know how to network others last a couple of months because they don't. You gotta spend hours and hours networking keep your prices low and know what your doing, build up a client list, work with other producers/ writers ( sometimes for nothing ) to keep your face in the place.

Tom?


ah no. Rob.