I've decided to devote this little corner of the internet to documenting my basement studio build. Showing how it went from this...
To this...
(dog just behind camera)
Ever since I was a teenager I had the dream of 'owning my own studio' as I'm sure most budding engineers do! Naturally, my initial dream was... shall we say, overkill? It would have resembled something along the lines of Ocean Way Studios. However, as you work through the audio world, working in various studios, interacting with different equipment and workflows you begin to develop your own sense of musical self, a decreasing perception of grandeur, and an increasing awareness of finances. How you like to work, what are needs and what are wants come into the fore, and the idea of having your own studio begins to look more attainable.
Fortunately (or unfortunately), I didn't have the money back then to build my 'dream' studio, and the time it's taken for me to get into the fortunate position of being able to have some form of home studio has allowed me to focus on a build that is 'just right' for me. Being realistic with what space I have to work with, understanding what type of work I mostly do, cutting out equipment that doesn't suit my workflow or I just don't need. Hell, even just 5 years ago I would have been buying some suspiciously superfluous equipment if I could afford to!
So, in these blog posts we'll look at how I wanted my studio to function, the following design process and each stage of the build. Not forgetting the all important 'issues' (foreseen or otherwise) that arise, and transparency on the cost and time taken. I should also note at this point, that I have no previous building experience! However, I love learning, researching and getting my hands dirty so I just threw myself into the deep end.
Whether you're still in the dreaming stage, closer to reality, or just stumbled here with no idea what's going on, I hope you find it interesting/useful/disgusting/morally bankrupt (replace as appropriate) and please leave comments or questions if you have any, I'll reply as soon as I can.
See you on the journey,
Frank Leonard Walker