What I do:
Recording (tracking): I can record your band here in my comfortable studio, either “live” or piece by piece. Of course I can also record solo acts here as well. Additionally I can come to your home or rehearsal space and record there, depending on the scope of the project. Mixing: In addition to mixing projects that are recorded here, I can mix any project that may have been recorded e
lsewhere. I can work with anything from a full blown studio production, to a project recorded at home with Garage Band or any other DAW. I enjoy both for the unique challenges they present. Additionally if you have a song that was started elsewhere that just needs some finishing touches at mix time (The most common scenario) I am happy to do it! Full Productions: This can include anything from helping to write or arrange the songs, to sourcing outside musicians if needed. This can also include”pre-production” in order to map out a song or full project. Mastering: Whenever possible and if the budget allows, I will always recommend using an independent mastering engineer for this last step. Having another set of ears that can squeeze that extra 5% or so out of a mix is often worthwhile. That said, sometimes the budget is just not there for specialized mastering. In those cases I can master your project for you at a reasonable rate. This is something I have done quite often for artists for songs that are for streaming, download or CD. Other Services: I can convert, and in some cases “clean up” old cassette tapes and other formats. Have an old DAT tape from 1990 that you haven’t heard since then? Are you just getting started in recording? I can help you with sorting through some of the confusion in setting up your own space. FAQ
How much do you charge? It truly depends on the project. Some projects may be a good fit for an hourly rate, while for full productions or mixing it will usually be on a “per song” basis, and this can vary by the song or production. With a quick and descriptive email or phone conversation I can usually nail down a ballpark figure for your project. Can I record something at home and then send it to you to mix? Sure. In fact that probably represents about 50% of the work I do. If you record something in Garage Band, you can just send the entire Garage Band project file, which I can then open in Logic X. If you are recording in Pro Tools, Reaper, Studio One or another DAW I can help you to transfer the files for the individual tracks. What kind of equipment do you have? The basis of my system is an Apple I-Mac running Logic Pro X. My interface is a Universal Audio Apollo 8 with an additional UAD Satellite. In addition to the Apollo, I have outboard preamps from Grace Designs, Heritage Audio, Spectra Sonics , UA and others. My monitoring set-up includes speakers from Dynaudio, QTS and MartinLogan. The microphone collection keeps growing but as of now includes a Vanguard V13 Tube mic, a Lauten Audio FET FC-357, Michael Jolly modified NT-5s, as well as the usual suspects from Shure, Royer, AKG, Beyer and others. I also have a nice collection of guitars, basses, keyboards and amps that are all available. Feel free to reach out for specifics. What’s the deal with that Name? Couldn’t you have been Pink Toad Studios or something? Anyone who has ever tried to come up with a name for a band can probably relate to the struggle, so here goes: I wanted something that paid homage to some of my recording heroes. In early 60's England the “Balance” engineer was the person who would mix 2, 3 or even a whopping 4 tracks of analog tape to arrive at the final “mix” of the session. This was during a time when some of my very favorite records were being made. The “Recording Services” part of the name is a throw back to Sam Phillip’s first studio after Sun in Memphis. (Memphis Recording Service) From Elvis to Otis Redding to Big Star, a lot of great records came from Memphis, so....... And Pink Toad was already taken.
