Home studio equipment choices can be bewildering; each new purchase promises to improve your audio production but costs can add up quickly.
An effective budget approach involves selecting basic tools and accessories. A good place to begin would be with recording-specific headphones featuring flat frequency response for accurate hearing of music.
Microphones
One of the first lessons a new home studio owner needs to understand is how to select a suitable microphone. There’s an overwhelming range of mics out there with prices varying drastically; choosing wisely may cause confusion or lead to people purchasing items they don’t require or don’t understand how to use properly.
Good news for those on a tight budget is that high-quality mics can still be purchased for much less than in years past. Today there is a range of entry-level microphones designed for multiple purposes that would work well in a home recording studio, as well as more companies producing original multi-pattern mics tailored specifically for home use.
Condenser microphones may be more expensive than dynamic mics, but there are budget options that deliver excellent results. One such mic is the Audio Technica AT2020 designed specifically for voice and instrument work and featuring a cardioid polar pattern to filter out room noise. Another budget choice is Shure’s legendary SM7B that provides added crispness for string instruments and vocals while being lower sensitivity with variable-D design for reduced room reflection pickup; making it suitable for rooms that lack an acoustically treated space or have noise problems due to neighbours or traffic noise pollution.
An essential purchase for those listening to their recordings for editing or adjustments should also be high-quality headphones with flexible headbands to provide comfort during extended use. These should ideally have sonically flat design as well as be sonically neutral to ensure optimal listening experience.
Speakers
To ensure your home studio sounds amazing, high-quality reference speakers are essential. Studio monitors offer true frequency response so you can hear music the way artists and producers intended, providing more revealing sound than regular speakers when trying to identify issues in mixes.
Speakers come in all sizes from 3 or 4 inches up to 10 or 12 inches, typically producing more bass and less treble than smaller speakers. Most modern monitors are active speakers with built-in amplifiers to simplify setup and ensure optimal matching with their capabilities. For an enriched sound experience, look for bi-amplified models which have separate amplifiers for their woofer and tweeter drivers.
Your room type and size will dictate how to position your speakers for optimal results. In general, speakers should be about 30 degrees from where your listening seat will be situated and evenly spaced from one another – although the type of acoustic treatment selected may help determine this optimal location; most rooms require some fine-tuning to achieve desired outcomes.
Use a protractor to draw two imaginary lines across your room from your listening position to the speakers, marking two imaginary points directly in front of and equidistant from each speaker. Use speaker stands or anti-vibration pads to isolate speakers from your desk in order to reduce surface noise and vibrations which interfere with pure signal reproduction.
Once your monitoring speaker placement is correct, you’ll require an audio interface and cables of appropriate quality to connect them to your computer. Make sure you include power cables, speaker wires (TRS), microphone cables and instrument cables amongst other types.
Speaker Stands
No matter if it is audio monitors or speakers in your home studio, a great pair of speaker stands can make a tremendous impactful statement about the quality of your hi-fi system. Speaker stands (also called platforms) can reduce vibrations and resonance that may impair the sound quality of speakers; additionally they help isolate your hi-fi to reduce floor vibrations for tighter bass response and cleaner soundstage performance.
There are various stands available, so you’re sure to find one that meets both your needs and budget. Some options even allow for you to fill it with material to increase the weight and dampen vibrations – an especially helpful feature on smaller stands that aren’t as secure on their own.
Desktop or Bookshelf Speaker Stands
These compact stands can be adjusted in terms of height and tilt angle to optimize speaker placement for desktop and bookshelf speakers used in smaller setups like home studios.
Heavy-Duty Speaker Stands
These large speaker stands are designed for use with larger floor-standing speakers, and may feature additional bracing to ensure stability. Some models feature spiked feet for solid floors as well as a base plate to manage vibrations.
Adjustable Speaker Stands These stands offer customizable height, tilt angle and rotation adjustments for an array of speaker sizes to achieve optimal sound projection and coverage.
Although technical aspects are important, don’t overlook aesthetic considerations when searching for the ideal speaker stand! After all, you will likely spend much of your time looking at this piece – be sure to select something you find pleasing!
Audio Interface
An audio interface serves as the central component of any studio setup, providing inputs for microphones, instruments, line level signals from synthesizers, grooveboxes and samplers, headphones and speakers, outputs for headphones and speakers and more. From singer-songwriters who want to record vocals with an acoustic guitar through DJs or producers looking for line level inputs – there’s sure to be an audio interface perfect for their setup!
An audio interface acts as an intermediary, converting analog signals to digital ones for processing in your computer and then back again when listening through studio monitors or headphones. Some also provide MIDI connectivity so your computer can communicate with external synthesizers over 5-pin DIN cables.
Before making your selection of audio interface, consider your immediate and long-term goals for home recording setup. If you are just getting started, a two-in/two-out USB interface might suffice, while for expanding setup with additional inputs or outputs you may require an advanced model with more flexibility.
An audio interface typically features both XLR and 1/4” mic/instrument inputs to ensure maximum compatibility with all of your equipment, along with headphone outputs for monitoring mixes/recordings in high fidelity. Some also provide extra outputs for connecting multiple pairs of headphones/speakers or external summing/re-amping.
An audio interface must feature quality preamps to sculpt the sound of microphones and instrument inputs. Poor quality preamps may introduce unwanted noise or distortion; be sure to choose an interface with an excellent microphone preamp – it will have an enormous impact on your final sound quality!
Computer
Computers are at the core of any home recording studio, used for everything from recording and editing audio tracks, editing video footage, running software instruments and effects, as well as choosing software instruments and effects. A good computer should serve as the centerpiece for your studio; you should aim for one with multi-core processing power, plenty of RAM memory and an expansive hard drive if possible – laptops may cost more and often have limited screens or batteries that limit performance.
A MIDI keyboard is an indispensable piece of equipment for any home studio, enabling virtual instruments to be played through USB connection. A MIDI keyboard allows your recordings to take on an extra dimension with more authentic sounds that allow you to create dynamic tracks more easily than ever. Many music producers favor MIDI controllers over pianos when setting up their studios at home.
If you want a professional sounding mix, investing in quality studio monitors is absolutely necessary. They should feature flat frequency responses and reproduce accurate tones – both essential elements in providing a pleasant listening experience while working on productions.
Additionally, additional non-necessities that will significantly enhance your studio’s performance include acoustic treatment panels and audio calibration software. These products help treat the room to reduce unwanted sounds, and ensure monitor speakers have a flat frequency response for mixing and mastering purposes – these expensive additions will make recordings sound much more professional and polished!