Recording

We aim to perfectly bridge the gap between bank-breaking, major recording studios and your home recording set-up. We've carefully combined knowledgeable and helpful Engineers, great sounding rooms, top quality microphones and some of the best analogue outboard equipment available. We use the latest digital audio workstations: Pro Tools 12 and Ableton Live 9. Our recording clients get a high quality recording experience, expert guidance (if required) and fantastic value for money.

We work with a wide variety of clients, from full-blown album and EP projects, with record label backing, through to young bands or singer-songwriters entering the studio to cut their first ever demo. We try and keep things relaxed, but focused, so that using our recording studio is something to look forward to and enjoy.

The studios have been designed to provide excellent lines of sight from the control room to the main live room, so live recording sessions are easily accommodated. A good studio should be a creative playground. We have plenty of interesting instruments, a live piano, guitar amps, pedals and things to hit, shake and generally play with - which hopefully add to your project!

Over the last few years we've seen more people combining the use of a commercial studio with their own DIY-style recording. Some people just use us for recording their drums, or to help with mixing. We fully embrace this collaborative approach, and it can produce great results. We'll always be honest and upfront about what we think is best for your project, and work with you to get the best possible results with your budget.

FAQ

How much is it to record at half-ton Studios?

Prices start at £175 for an 8 hour day but get in touch and we'll put together a quote for you. The minimum booking is half a day (4 hours).

What is included in the price?

Full use of the studio, a skilled engineer, all equipment and instruments in the building, tea and coffee and a couple of CD's to take a away. We can also provide you with high quality MP3's of any mixes/masters.

What's not included in the price?

Replacement guitar strings and drum heads etc. You might want to consider getting the piano tuned if your planning on using it. This is about £60 if the tuner is available. We also don't offer CD replication - but can point you in the right direction

Is there parking at the studio?

We only have a few dedicated parking spots and we are on quite a busy estate so it's best to try and keep vehicle numbers down if at all possible. It normally works just fine though and if you have any problems just call us and we'll guide you!

How do I book and do you require a deposit?

We can book and confirm your session via email or over the phone. For 1st time clients we tend to ask for a 25% deposit and this is only non refundable if you cancel your session outright. If something comes up we might be able to move dates around.

Do you do mastering?

Yes and we offer very reasonable rates. Sessions we record and mix here come with basic mastering as standard but we also work with some fantastic, specialist mastering engineers who we recommend you consider using for release quality projects.

Do you offer production?

Being a music producer is a very broad umbrella these days and is often misunderstood. All our engineers will try and help you as much as they can during your session and will be happy to give opinions, if required or asked for, on sounds, arrangement, vocal performance etc etc. This kind of help is what a good engineer should do as standard though and production, in our opinion, is more of an involved role - where someone would fundamentally help steer and shape the direction of the project.

This might involve some pre-production work before the recording takes place and generally it becomes more of a collaborative process between the band and the person chosen to produce. These days this 'person' is usually the engineer as well so it becomes a combined role and it's common for an engineer who ends up working more closely with a band to be labelled a co-producer. If your interesting in working with someone in more a production type role It's best to get in touch and ask for more details, or if you have specific one of our team in mind we can put you in touch!

What happens to the files from our session?

We guarantee to keep your session backed up on multiple hard drives for 1 year. After this time there's a good chance we'll still have them, but make no guarantees. It's a good idea to take away an archived version of your session and most projects can easily be fitted on a small flash drive these days. We might ask for a small fee (£15-30) for this service.

Can we take the raw audio files away with us?

Yes no problem. We may ask for a small fee to cover our time preparing them for larger sessions however.

Can I do work experience at Half-ton?

It's unlikely we'll be able to help with this due to the nature of how most recording sessions are planned and booked. Do get in touch though and we might be able to offer you a bit of advice or ideas - we're a pretty friendly bunch.