Your home studio

[Jeremykeys]

Hi there everyone! I'm just sitting here at my computer in my home studio and I got to wondering. What's your home studio like if you have one?

I'm also going to throw another unrelated question in here just because I'm enjoying a nice glass of Grant's Green label Scotch. I really enjoy the odd whisky now and then. It doesn't have to be a single malt or even a Scottish whiskey. It just have to taste good to me. So for the unrelated to your studio question, what's your favorite tipple?

On to the studio question.

First I'll tell you about mine. It's nothing too fancy and I can't get loud here since I live with my wife and 2 cats in an apartment building. I also think I'll start off signal chain wise. My best microphone is my old Sennheiser 421 MD but I tend to use my cheap Apex 435 large diaphragm most of the time. I also have a pair of Behringer B5's small condensors that I sometimes use for things that I want a slightly less bassy sound on. From there I generally go into my Behringer Tube Ultragain stereo tube pre-amp. Now this is strictly my microphone recording system. For my keyboards, I run direct. Everything goes into my Presonus Studiolive 16-4-2 mixer before it gets to my computer. I'm running a PC style system and I'm not entirely sure what the processor is but that doesn't really matter. It's ridiculously fast. And quiet too. I got a muffler for it from NAPA!
anyway, when I'm recording acoustic guitar, vocals or even and electric guitar through a small amp, I run it through the tube pre-amp first, into the mixer and then to the computer.
For keyboards I just go straight into the mixer to the computer. I'm recording into Cubase 7.5 Artist right now but I'm anxiously awaiting for a sale where I can update to 9.5 pro cheaply.
I listen back on a pair of Edirol MA-15D monitors and a pair of Audio Tehnica ATH-M40fs headphones. The headphones are starting to kak out though so it might be time to ask for a Christmas present!

I have 4 acoustic guitars, 7 electrics and a 5 string Ibanez bass. None are expensive. My most pricey is my Martin 6 string acoustic that my lovely wife bought me for my birthday this year and it was less than $900.

My keyboards tend to be more high end since I am a keyboard player first and foremost. My primary board being a Korg Kronos. Right now on my 3 tier stand I have the Kronos on the bottom so I can sit and play, my old Korg Wavestation EX next up and my King Korg on the top.
If possible I always record keys in stereo except my Wavestation only has a mono out, I think..D'oh! Just checked and it has stereo outputs! What do you know? I'm a moron! Right then!

Anyway. Now that I've just gone and embarrassed myself here, what is your studio like?

Jermykeys, out of the whisky and into the Drambuie!

 

[Rayblewit]

I'm enjoying a nice glass of Grant's Green label Scotch.

Jermykeys, out of the whisky and into the Drambuie!

That was a quick drink . . . Or a slow type . .lol

Ray . . . all kinds of beer . . Pils, pale ale, stout. All good. Local and imported. Boutique and standard.. . Hic!

 

[CowboyNQ]

So for the unrelated to your studio question, what's your favorite tipple?

Hey Jeremy,

I don't have a home studio, but I love single malt scotch whisky. And beer.

 

[happyrat1]

Seeing as you've already found the keyboard rig pics thread and posted there this thread is sort of redundant, but in any case, a picture is worth a thousand words. Here's the rat's studio in all of its current glory.

The first is the audio hookups and the second is the MIDI hookups.

As for recording in stereo, I wish it was doable but only the Kurzweil, the Studiologic, the Deepmind 6 and the Blofeld have stereo hookups.

After that my mixer craps out on stereo inputs and the rest are all mono.

And on Saturday night I went to a small venue live show with a friend and hoisted a few Kronenberg Blonde Draught Ales.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCehUpPAGi4HK5yrub4GNvRA

Gary

 

[SeaGtGruff]

Right now my adult beverage of choice is Coors beer (not Coors Light, just Coors). However, I've flirted with a number of types of beer over the years.

If I'm splurging, I really like Crabbie's Original Alcoholic Ginger Beer, but I have to be careful not to drink it too fast or it can give me a minor case of heartburn.

Or if I'm really splurging, I sometimes make adult milkshakes-- a little Irish Creme, Coffee Liqueur, Chocolate Liqueur, Frangelica, and Praline tossed in a blender with some ice cream, chocolate syrup, caramel syrup, milk, and crushed ice. But I haven't made any of those in a few years.

Something I discovered about a year ago, that I occasionally like to sip on straight, is Patron XO Cafe Incendio, but it's an acquired taste. Sometimes I put a few spoonfuls of vanilla ice cream in a small glass, pour some Incendio over it, let the ice cream melt a bit, then stir it to make what I call a "hot van-ocolate."

 

[Rayblewit]

Hey SeaGt.
Wow! So much stuff!
I think your body could use a sludge pump.
Ray

 

[SeaGtGruff]

Yes, but only once every 3 years (if you're referring to the adult milkshakes).

 

[happyrat1]

Yes, but only once every 3 years (if you're referring to the adult milkshakes).

That sounds about right if you're scheduling the cleanout of a septic tank

Gary

 

[happyrat1]

BTW, I pretty much gave up binge drinking in my 20's.

Nowadays it's pretty much limited to a half dozen beers a year and a couple of Irish Coffees around Xmas and New Year's Eve.

BTW, if you feel like making a quick and lazy Irish Coffee and and you lack the Jameson's, the whipped cream and lemon juice for sugaring the rim, yoiu can get away with a quick and easy one simply by adding a shot or two of Bailey's to a regular cup of coffee.

Otherwise the rest of my year I pretty much only drink Water, Coffee and an occasional Coke with dinner.

Gary

 

[SeaGtGruff]

Yes, my adult beverage consumption is way down from what it used to be. These days it's rare for me to drink more than 1 beer in a night, which I typically sip on for an hour or more-- and when I do open a second beer I might drink only half of it. If I go crazy and drink more than 2 beers, my stomach feels yucky the next day.

Now, if I make a batch of adult milkshakes, I have to force myself to sip them slowly, because they taste so good! So it's a good thing I make them only once every 3 or 4 years, usually during the Christmas holidays. I think it's been at least 3 years since I made them, so I guess they're due again this year.

 

[Rayblewit]

We often have a glass of wine at dinnertime. We usually end up finishing the bottle. It's a trap. Once you start it is hard to stop.
I believe 1 bottle of wine split between two over 7 days = 1 kg stomach fat.

1/2Wx7=2x1Kg.

Ray

 

[happyrat1]

Once your body ages beyond 50 or 60 chances are you have some sort of beer gut regardless of whether or not you drink regularly.

It's just one of mother nature's cruel little practical jokes that she plays on everyone

Personally I eat and drink what I like but only in moderation and my weight hasn't shifted by more than 5 pounds in either direction in the past 15 years. I do have a bit of a spare tire but that's mostly due to lack of muscle tone due to a back injury that keeps me from working my abs.

Gary

 

[Biggles]

No studio, just a Gibson Les Paul, an Ibanez bass, Boss GT100 Fender amp, my Korg PA700, laptop, Alexis MIDI keyboard and Shure mike and thats it.

As for drinks well none of your low alchol lite/light rubbish, specialist beers taste far better, Hobgoblin, Black Sheep, not to mention the Irish velvet that is Guiness. The odd Peroni or San Miguel.

For something stronger it has to be a single malt, Macallan ot Talisker are my faves.

Ps
I do not have a drink problem .......... I spill most of it.

 

[happyrat1]

In Canada we drink to get buzzed. In Britain they drink like somebody's going to take it away from them

Gary

 

[Jeremykeys]

Well I guess I'm a very bad person destined to end up in the bowels of hell. I drink most nights, usually 2 or 3 craft beers although on weekends it might get up to 5 or 6 depending on what I'm doing. The car is parked, the keys are lost, and I often hear the sounds of bubbles calling me!
Right now I'm having one of my all time Canadian craft faves. Barking Squirrel.
But it's time for supper and I need to play a musical instrument after.
Cheers to all!

 

[happyrat1]

Dunno about the bowels of hell, but the increased risk of a hardened liver and cancer are real enough.

To each his own I suppose. My painkiller of choice is that I still smoke tobacco, but I know the risks and seriously don't plan on living more than another two decades at most.

As long as you're not a feisty drunk who picks fights when you've had a few then I guess all is right with the world.

Gary

 

[Jeremykeys]

Naaa. Not me. I'm too laid back. Quit smoking 8 years ago.

 

[Biggles]

In Canada we drink to get buzzed. In Britain they drink like somebody's going to take it away from them

Gary

Thats not true.

Anyone tries to take anyones drink in the UK ends up with a punch on the nose.

 

[Lenster]

Hello Jeremy. In our modest house, I have claimed the small downstairs bedroom as my "Cave". It is about 8ft by 12 ft and is enough room for my computer desk, stationary Yamaha Digital Piano, Roland amp for whenever I hook up my gig gear (Kronos / Krome) and a little closet space, which is part old keyboard storage and wardrobe.
Since I am being mindful of carbs for a while, my drink of choice has been some finer vodkas for sipping.
If I invite a friend over to jam or record, it gets really tight real quick. But it's my cave and my sanctum. Little niche corners hide some percussion bits, Cajone and an Ibanez acoustic bass and a shortened bar stool. The window has a shelf for the cat, as she likes it in here.

 

[Jeremykeys]

I dread looking at the inside of my Kronos. I don't know how many times I've found one of my cats sleeping on it.