The possibility of a studio outside of Nashville

[earl parameter]

i think that there is something else being overlooked here. the engineers abilities and style (not that you'll work on every single record but). there is a good chance that bannerj can get something out of someone that the other people in the area can't. its really not about gear at all. but of course you want to be able accommodate a given situation. on top of that maybe the structure will just sound incredible once its finished. that can be magic all on its own.

oh and personality goes a long way too. like if you can make friends for instance, instead just being a salesman.

the overhead is so minimal that not doing it sounds a little crazy to me.

[Rivers]

The thought is that ofcourse almost everybody has their own gear, but they might not have the space to set everything up for a week or two at a time. We have beds, a kitchen, bar, pool and a place to get away and focus, and because the property is already paid for, I don't have to charge a ton. I am thinking something like $200 a day for the rooms and even $30-$50 per person to stay overnight. They can rent whatever they want and bring it out. We wouldn't be advertising as a fancy B&B. It would be for the most part self-cook etc. If I try to outfit it with a ton of gear, then I will be definitely be trying to compete with all the many studios. Think of it as raw space to accomodate the folks with project studios who need to get out of the house for a good stretch of days to get some work done at a really affordable cost.

That might work but I still see it being a tough sale unless the space is ultra cool.
I don't know if I would relocate/rent a bunch gear and rent out a space unless it was a signifigant upgrade on the typical project studio space,but that's just me.

Also seems like you would kind of be more an "innkeeper"than Engineering and recording?
I'm not trying to shoot you down just playing devil's advocate.

[bannerj]

[quote="bannerj"
I'm not trying to shoot you down just playing devil's advocate.

I appreciate the advocate's position. That is why I put this up here. Yeah, the place is no pachyderm (sp? the place suggested above in MN) as far as the luxury living. It is really comfy though. I am realizing that it will have to be a combination of an affordable place to create and also the relationships. I have some leads on a few publishers and labels. I am wondering if we could start out pitching it as a place for artist development. Most of what I have done is help out beginners--people who have never been in a studio before, and I really like their excitement. I think there are still some people who still do artist development...in some way...not like they used to of course. Maybe not...

My thing with just being an inkeeper: is that I love beeing around the creative process in any way. I kinda feed off it and the whole teaching thing is sucking me dry.

[Rivers]

It sounds like you got the right attitude and are considering all the options...plus the price(free)is right.
Go for it.
Hell I might take a band and hang out and do some recording.

[treymonfauntre]

this sounds like an incredible opportunity, i'd do everything possible to try to take advantage of it if i was you!

[seaneldon]

regarding the building, just be thankful that you're not from new york. when i was ready to open my first facility on long island (can you say "close to the highest property taxes and highest rent in the country?"), i figured i had enough money for a full blown PTHD rig with a great mic locker, killer outboard, some serious monitors, and room treatment. then i started shopping around for warehouse-type spaces and learned that if i wanted to lease somewhere as large as i wanted, i would be cutting the budget for equipment more than half. like, spend all of this crazy money on a great space that looks like the million dollar manhattan rooms, and then have m-audio all over the place.

so i went halfway, and simply rented out a few rooms in the basement of a bar and tattoo shop a few towns over. 8 foot ceilings were a bummer, but i got all the equipment i wanted, the vibe was good, and i got drunk for free about a million times. the problem was i couldn't bring in any clients higher than "slightly broke local band" status because "real bands don't fuck around with basements". i made about enough dough to keep the studio open and got out after about a year and a half. now im in a bigger, nicer, more "studio" studio in new york city. we'll see how this turns out.

best of luck with your space. take care of the rooms before you worry about equipment. if you're hiring engineers...try hiring people who have a decent amount of gear they wouldn't mind bringing/leaving at the studio. that'll cut your costs a little bit, at least until you're up and running enough to buy your own stuff.

[ZenLex]