Kids with lots of recording equipment

[AstroSounds]

Maybe this is an inappropriate rant but I gotta admit to geting frustrated when I meet someone like I did today. This was a 21 y.o. with easily $40,000 worth of recording equipment in his collection. His mic locker alone probably out valued my entire studio. Oh, and he's been doing this for 2 years and is a college student.

It's nothing personal, he was a super nice guy, very cool, but I gotta wonder where he got the money for this stuff. Maybe he threw himself into credit card debt? Maybe he managed to get a reasonable loan from a bank? However, both those seem unlikely since he was nicely dressed sipping coffee at a coffee house. So I suspect significant parental contribution.

My parents did not have spare money to throw around when I was 21 and would have laughed in my face if I told them it was needed for recording equipment. So here I am scrimping and saving (and throwing myself into credit card debt) so I can eventually upgrade to some nicer (>$500) monitors after 4 years and this kid is getting jobs recording bands and using $3000 of mics on the drums alone.

I know gear is FAR from everything and great records can be made with minimal gear but convincing non-engineers/clients of this is very difficult. Shiny knobs and buttons = quality studio, right? So how does one compete against this?

[megajoe]

I have friends who earned enough money in high school and college to buy that much gear. I also have friends who didn't do a thing and were given that much money. Does it really matter how he got it?

How to compete? Make better sounding records than him. Or maybe you shouldn't compete. Are you guys hitting up the same bands/musicians? If he's down, figure out a rate and engineer using his gear. I don't earn or save enough to go out buying a bunch of nice gear either, so I let the artist decide when or if we want to use a studio and plan a budget accordingly.

[Gentleman Jim]

I have a friend who, in his younger years, was a lot like you describe this guy. He's a good person, and pretty smart, but people got hung up for years on the fact that his family has money. In the end, that money didn't really make a huge difference; he had to learn how to do stuff just like anyone else did. His dad's checkbook might have meant less hand-wringing over how he was going to pay for the schooling to learn Pro Tools, but it didn't light a fire my friend's belly that led him to spend years working in studios recording bands. In fact, after spending however many thousands, I'm not sure if he ever even recorded a single demo.

Then he went to some film program I think. Not sure if he ever made a single film, either.

Now he's married with a baby, and he does web design. He's reasonably happy, I think. His years spent jumping from one passion to another didn't really hurt anyone. He just added to the economy in a really inefficient way.

So this is probably something like what your new friend is doing. He convinced his parents that once he has the ultimate gear, he's set for a career. But he might be treading water, just trying things out. Only time will tell.

What might end up happening is he gets bored with it when he's not the next Quincy Jones inside of a year, and ends up selling it all off for money to get into his next calling. My guesses are professional parasailing, or opening a nightclub, or becoming a clothing designer. In any case, maybe you can pick up some of his gear cheap if/when that day comes.

But don't be mad. His possessions don't have any effect on your reality. If you lose potential clients to him because of his gear, you probably would have lost them to someone else because of their gear, anyway.


EDIT: I just checked out your www link. You have a MA in psychology and a PhD in neuroscience and I'M giving YOU advice?! What the hell chance do the rest of us have for self-awareness if YOU can't put it together?!

[thethingwiththestuff]

Things I've Learned in Life #461:

There are rich kids. Fuck 'em.

[AstroSounds]

Does it really matter how he got it?

As I said, technically even the gear doesn't really matter, but I get bothered by money begetting money. Something about what he has, maybe it's gear, maybe it's talent, is getting him jobs that will allow him to buy more gear. If it's his talent then I need to work harder and become better. If it is the gear that someone bought for him, then I get frustrated.

I just checked out your www link. You have a MA in psychology and a PhD in neuroscience and I'M giving YOU advice?! What the hell chance do the rest of us have for self-awareness if YOU can't put it together?

Hahahaha! I do experiments on how androgens alter brain cells - far from better self- awareness. You also just identified why I have no money. Grad school doesn't exactly pay well.

There are rich kids. Fuck 'em.

Normally I can live with this. Just really bugged me for some reason today.

[@?,*???&?]

I wonder what he's charging? My guess is he's doing it for free.

AND around in a circle we go.

[tdbajus]

maybe you should show your photo around, and get yourself a sugar momma. I recommend it. They're awesome.

[Rakoro]

"If you can't beat 'em, join em"


Like megajoe said, you can use his financial surplus to your advantage.
Or if you like the guy, maybe a partnership is worth exploring?

[Jeff White]

*reads thread, gets back to making music*

[Nate Dort]

I'm paraphrasing here, I think... everybody always uses stupid analogies about boats and oceans:

It's not how big your dick is, but how good you are at fucking that counts.

You could replace "dick" with "microphone" if you want another terrible analogy. Don't replace "fucking" because it's still valid and fun.

I'm not sure what my point is, but keep recording.

[chris harris]

*reads thread, gets back to making music*

I know. Worst thread ever.

[Gentleman Jim]

(redacted)

[cgarges]

*reads thread, gets back to making music*

I know. Worst thread ever.

Really.

Please tell me why this thread should stay.

Some people have more money than others.

The end. Amen.

Done.

End of discussion, right?

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

[Gentleman Jim]

Well gee whiz...

Some people have more money, but everybody dies. Heck, I've been to three wakes in the last four months.

Does this mean we should also do away with the RIP threads? I don't think so.

[cgarges]

So, this thread has the same value as a passing tribute thread because?

I'm not trying to be snarky, I'm seriously asking.

Like,

A) "Just to let you know, this person in whose career you may be interested in will no longer be contributing to your interest."

vs.

B)" Someone has the ability to buy more gear than I do."

My parents bought me one crash cymbal and a good bit of music education. My grandparents bought me an inexpensive set of drums. I own a SHITLOAD of musical equipment, a good 95% of which was bought with money earned by creating music. Statistically speaking, I am considerably better-off than most of the people on the planet, financially. That alone does not makek me a jackass or worthy of a thread about how much money I have to spend on something. Michael Brauer and Tom Lord-Alge and John Fry and Steve Jobs have much more money to spend on that stuff than I do, but you don't see me posting about it.

Again, the end. Amen.

Sorry. I see this as going nowhere fast, but I will entertain explanations as to why this is relevant or interesting to anyone else.

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC