STUDIO P

Studio P is a small production studio that has been work in progress since 2016

After what felt like an eternity of waiting Studio P is finally ready for launch. It has been there have been many setbacks and obstacles to overcome but with persistence and the drive to make music our own way nothing stopped us!

Ever wonder what is takes to make a studio? Lets walk through the building of Studio P and provide some insight about what we learned and what we were going for during the entire process.

Here are some rare pictures of our first days converting a spare room into a makeshift production space. We might not have a lot but we do our best to make the studio a place where artists can create and work comfortably with out restrictions.

Making the space to make music was quite a challenge. There are many questions you need to ask yourself. What kind of music do you want to produce? Whats the overall vibe where going for? Do we want to be like every other studio or do we want to do our own thing? Do we want it to be retro or modern? There really is no right or wrong answer. Its all a matter of preference. With Studio P we wanted to have a space that is the best of both the old and the new.

After renovating our space, we started to think about what kind of instruments we wanted. Recently there has been kind of a trend of musicians wanting Analog and Vintage gear because of the reputation of quality and authenticity. Things like Guitars with nitrocellulose finishes, tube amplifiers, tape recorders, Analog synthesizers with no digital effects have become a very big deal to recording studios and artists as well. We have tried to get a blend of old and new. There are benefits to old gear but There really is nothing wrong with Digital as well. Its more a matter of the right tool for the right job. high end and low end equipment. There are advantages and disadvantages to everything but when it comes to recording the name of the game is versatility. Not everything needs to sound like a multi million dollar pop record and some noise from old or budget gear can really add to the feel of a track. Just like sometimes you need to capture a vocal performance in the highest quality possible its good to have some high end gear to get the best recording you can.

Being a studio that mainly produces rock, metal, and electronic music we have made an effort to build up a collections of both old and new guitars, microphones, and keyboards. This gives our artists the most creative options and the opportunity to explore and exparament with as many musical possibilities as we can afford to provide. But its now always about the gear. the space you create in is still an important factor.

Having a "Vibey" space can bring out the imigination and creativity of an artist

When you are designing a space you're going to spend hours upon hours in it is important to make sure it is a comfortable and accommodating as possible, Another thing to consider is decorating the space with cool and inspiring things to bring out the best in yourself and the artists. Your environment has influence over you. if you're working in an unpleasant space than there is a chance that your work might reflect that.

Outboard gear is one of a studios most defining features. Every little thing imparts a bit of character into the final sound of a recording. Studio P uses a combination of analog and digital compressors and preamps in the production process. One of the most important things to us is having a setup that is both versatile and simple. We want to be able to get let people play and record with a few steps as possible, Turn on two switches and you're ready to go. But, we also want the options to create complex signal paths and use all the gear we have to create some more interesting nuances in recordings. The equipment we use is relatively humble compared to many other studios. We are slowly and surly adding in new equipment when we can but our focus is on trying to make as much fun and exciting music and promotional videos as possible. Gear is important but we don't want to put the cart before the horse.

There are many different ways to mic up guitar cabinets. Sometimes you want just one microphone and sometimes you want a blend of several. The settings on the Amplifier its-self also factors in. How loud is it? how close are the microphones? do you want a close sound or do you want to hear the natural reverberation

and echo of the room your are recording

We have tried many different methods of recording and it is one of the most challenging and interesting things we have encountered. Each piece of gear has a learning curve and its own unique differences. There is a lot of comparing and trial and error that goes into a recording but it is one of the most rewarding feelings to finally hear that right microphone paired with the right amp placed in the perfect spot of the cabinet's speaker.

The Korg MS 20 a "Semi Modular Synthasizer". The patch cables allow players to create widly complex and unique sounds and effects by linking different sound making, or sound altering components called "modules" together

One of the other truly unique features of Studio P is our synthesizer collection. We pride ourselves on having a collection of iconic synthesizers. These little keyboards each have their own unique voice and character that can add some truly one of a kind elements to a production.

To a lot of rock and classical musicians electronic music has a negative stigma. Some people think of it as "cheep" or something that doesn't require much skill to produce. While there may be some examples of that; there is also a side to these instruments that is over looked. On many of the older synths there are no presets and it is up to the player to learn all the different dials, plugs, switches, and effects. Because of this each person can create sounds that are truly original to them. unless you get a "patch sheet" from someone else it is very unlikely that any two players would come up with exactly the same sound. The entire process is much like an artist who mixes their own paint from pigment. Everything that is made will have slight variation in this way these are very alive instruments they have all the same sort of ebb and flow that acoustic instruments have.

The Mini Moog Model D is one of the most iconic Synths in popular music. Its sounds have been featured in many famous recordings. One of the most surprising challenges when working with these old style keyboards was that they only played one of two notes at once. The Moog Keyboards are notorious for being "Monophonic" Or only able to play one note at a time. So they are often used as bass or lead instruments. Once you start to record and layer multiple recorded synths parts together or throw some echo and delay on it keyboards you get a rich sound that is like nothing else.

There are many options when it comes to keyboards. some keyboards are very user friendly and others can require some fussing with to get a desired result. Like with many things when you take the extra time to craft the sounds or really become familiar with a keyboard it gives the best result. Synthesizers are really amazing because they are only limited by your own imagination and technical understanding. They may look like a keyboards but with a bit of know-how you can make it sound like just about any instrument or something entirely new.

There is a lot to Learn with these keyboards but it is not as complex or daunting as it looks

It has taken a long while, countless hours and the support and encouragement of friends and family to make this studio possible. We want to continue to post and create inspiring content to other musicians, and music lovers,

there are so many topics that can be discussed in depth its too much to fit into one article. We plan on elaborating on our creative process over time. We still have a lot to learn and are excited to finally be out in the world and ready to share some material.

Even though things are small and just starting out everything feels very encouraging.. Be sure to Follow Us on social media and check in with our latest projects, articles, and other creative works!