Rimskidog

Thanks guys! Good feedback. I've changed a few things on the site per your comments. In the meantime, the control room takes a step towards completion: [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/BA5C52B5-7D50-4139-81CE-E233D81888B8-4390-0000089D7A890FE9_zps1bd66f11.jpg[/IMG] See it at www.circlestudios/controlroom

nobody else like it?

Hi Man, good points. I certainly hadn't noticed the vertical screen issue. Thanks!

Website has had a refresh if anyone is interested: http://www.circlestudios.co.uk/ Not quite finished (I need to get a real photographer in to take some pics) but am happy with the way its turning our. Thoughts appreciated!

[quote name='jalapeno' timestamp='1358431576' post='1938996'] Awesome read. Thanks for sharing. [/quote] Thanks man! Glad you liked it! [quote name='Jellyfish' timestamp='1358427771' post='1938914'] Been tracking the progress of this for a while and have been very interested, especially as a musician who lives in Birmingham. I currently help manage a new music store in Sutton Coldfield and although I'm sure you have plans to get the word out, if you get any cards or adverts any time soon, send me a PM and I'll make sure I spread the word to anyone who sounds like they might be interested. [/quote] Hey man! I live in Sutton too! I'd heard there was a new guitar shop in town but havent managed to make it down yet because I've been so busy! Let me know if you want the backstage tour before we open to the public. Likewise if you want us to carry posters/cards let me know. Cheers!

[quote name='51m0n' timestamp='1358377994' post='1938370'] I think that looks excellent - especially the DIY bit, creative bit of business strategy that, you have no idea how many times I've done a bit of sly tracking in an at best halfway decent sounding rehearsal room to help friends out etc etc, knowing the room is going to sound excellent wouldnt half help! [/quote] Cool. Glad you like the idea! [quote name='charic' timestamp='1358425777' post='1938855'] Does the DIY option come with a computer to allow you to do the recording? For example, I'm a protools user but don't have a system which could really be transported to the studio (doesn't support Firewire anyway ). A local rehearsal room has a really interesting offer where they allow an "overnight" session (10pm - 10am) for a reduced rate as it won't impact on normal studio hours, which may be something to consider [/quote] Unfortunately the DIY option doesnt come with a computer. Too much risk of some little tyke uploading a virus or the like I'm afraid. The overnight option is an interesting one but it would be difficult to reduce the rates significantly if at all because you'd have to pay someone to stay overnight for the security of the place. As you can imagine there wouldnt then be any profit in it unless you had more than one band pulling all nighters.

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1358203090' post='1934957'] But which year..? Just joshin'; it's a great project that we're privileged to share through your posts here. Many thanks for the ride. [/quote] Haha! (Im able to laugh again so we must be close at this point... ;-) There's still quite a lot to do around the place but I've got a bunch of back to back sessions in at the moment so I'm not sure how quickly it'll happen. This week the developer is working on updating the Circle Studios website. As an aside though, the various live rooms can now be rented out separately for budget or even DIY recordings through our sister company http://www.dbmstudios.co.uk Take a look and tell me what you think!

That's exactly it! Hoping to open fully for business by the end of January!

As an aside, here's how the stone room looks with the lights off. AKA, the gates of doom are right here in Birmingham: [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/DSCN9058_zps452d3261.jpg[/IMG]

[quote name='51m0n' timestamp='1357598284' post='1925288'] Sounds ace, want to hear it for real now though [/quote] You know where to find me! ;-) Think of it this way. In a small square room you will have 6 sets of early reflections coming back at you. Because of the different distances from mic, source and yours ears you will hear the gap between the reflections. We hear that as a slap echo. In this room because of the multitude of rounded boulders and lack of parallel walls there are about a thousand early reflections all arriving at your ear within nanoseconds of each other, but there's then no parallel wall to slap them right back to you. Result? Very intense reverb with a short decay.

There are 7 tons of boulders, each one about the size of a man's head, stretching those baskets every way you can imagine. There are no rattles. As for the reverb, quite the opposite actually. The mahoosive diffusion and lack of parallel walls has the effect of reducing the decay time but concentrating/intensifying and smoothing the reverb.

Good guesses, but all wrong. We are going to make the most diffusive stone room in the western world. Here goes: [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/D430EFB2-CFC4-4477-867B-FF3B23B3D0CB-198-000000D2324A608B.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/FF825E9A-5372-4DBC-9C95-E3AF6EAE6278-198-00000125FA5CB7E0.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/274AED81-E2B8-4CE3-990B-6389DA8B8FAC-1651-000001D67F143187.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/C5CDEB33-65A5-4A3E-A8FA-D64DFD012514-2018-000001FB2073ECEA.jpg[/IMG] and it's done! [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/DSCN9129_zps2ac2cce0.jpg[/IMG]

Just put down what's in your head and build from there. there is no wrong way. I've started with lyrics and worked backwards, started with drums and worked forwrd and every way in between. Trying to make your muisc fit a pre-determined pattern will stifle your creativity.. My find of 2012 for getting writing ideas was garageband for ipad (it has different features than the standard garageband). so my tip to you is pay the £3, download garageband to your iphone/ipad, open smart drums, set the tempo and keep rolling the dice until it throws up a drum track you like.

Yup. What ever feels most right to you and gets your creative juices flowing best, is right.

so you've seen the big room, the white room and the wooden room. It must be time to reveal our last recording environment. Here's a 'before' shot: Hmmm... How's this gonna work then?

You need to think about how many simultaneous inputs and outputs you want and what your budget is before we can give interface recommendations. As stated above, Reaper is the cheapest DAW on the market and, if you just want to learn it for the purpose of creating your own demos, it will be ample.

Haha. I wonder where you get your information from... ;-) Wooden room it is! Side wall going up: And up: With a little perspective: Almost there:

As work on the ceiling geometry continues so my latest madcap plan starts to appear: [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/90BB2DF0-D639-4695-8659-C7278E2A10A5-96-00000009DAB9B8FA.jpg[/IMG] and to look like something [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/3F5D4BA6-2F79-4079-8C1E-0E46EB2EDA90-96-00000009E7A45F35.jpg[/IMG] and just keeps on going up! [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/437919A9-8C95-4332-9C2D-810C477FCA9A-96-0000000A0F65CACE.jpg[/IMG] Until it gets all the way to the top: [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/D3124BB4-20E9-4A68-AE9A-9B87E86760CD-96-000000F1AE456EA9.jpg[/IMG]

Heheh. Liking 'em all! Only wish I'd been creative enough to think of them! Nothing so exciting though I'm afraid. We are just putting in the shaped ceiling to maximise the acoustics and nail the particular sound and reverb time we are looking for in each room. In order to minimise any cavity resonance we are stuffing the new shape very tightly with rock wool: [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/47A2F993-554D-47D7-AAE0-69E3944A9F8B-22148-00001819ADADE80A.jpg[/IMG] Here's a bit more 'geometry': [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/2BB99B12-FB9C-411A-87DB-AB86DD184722-22148-0000183BFD6FC812.jpg[/IMG]

[quote name='charic' timestamp='1355750666' post='1902118'] Is installing monkey bars really essential for a studio? [/quote] Haha. No but I like your thinking! [quote name='51m0n' timestamp='1355750711' post='1902122'] You're not hanging a cloud off it are you?? [/quote] Nope! Keep guessing! ;-)

No more ideas? Here's a bit more: [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/53525CFB-A5F8-4FFA-830C-4F3439D47B7D-21383-00001707E798AE0B.jpg[/IMG] Starting to look like something: [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/06FC210F-FED9-43A8-AF79-AD3F99A33FFF-21383-000017DE613E4055.jpg[/IMG]

[quote name='charic' timestamp='1355648056' post='1900807'] Are you hanging the last person who's cheque bounced? [/quote] Haha! Great idea! No quite though!

so what on earth are we up to now... [IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g28/Rimskidog/DSCN8742.jpg[/IMG]

last chance to help us chart this week. Buy now! ;-)

what's your budget?