Whats the best way to record a band without spending alot of money?

Question

i mean good quality recording so we can send it off to companies.

Answer 1

If I were you, I wouldn't take the "cheap" route...I know it sucks and it may take time, but save up your money and record somewhere that has a reputation of being top-notch. I played with a Christian band here in Charlotte for 5 years before we even cut a demo. And when we finally cut a demo, we went to a studio here in town that records James Brown, Kid Rock, Coca-Cola radio Jingles, and Harry Connick Jr. I'll tell you what, although it took 5 years, it was well worth it. I know that this idea is probably not going to work, but take your time. Trust me, it will be so much better. I work as an engineer and have heard demos from bands who jumped straight into a demo with a hole in the wall studio or did it themselves, and it honestly sucks...The mix is muddy, and it's really nasty. Nothing can substitute for a professional recording. Some of these do it at home studios are ok, but they cost less than a pre-amp does in a professional studio. Just take your time, hone your skills on a click track, and then go for it. I emphasize click tracks, because you have to be tight on it without losing your own creativity. What I see alot is musicians who can rock out at their own tempo, but when you move them to a click track, they freeze. Remember, every small mistake is magnified 1000 times in a studio. You can be 1/32 of a beat off and we'll know :) Alot of studios now are offering payment plans as well. I hope this helps!!!

Answer 2

Buy a seconhand 8 in 8 out multitrack recorder (try and find one with seperate outs so the engineer can rerecord it onto there pro stuff! in one take) do all the recording at home then have it mixed at the studio.
Because you did the expensive bit (the time recording and rerecording on your time the mix down of an album 12 songs can take as little as 2 hours with a really good engineer.
I did a band demo like this it cost me £65.00 in studio time and £400 in equipment plus the same thing now costs about £250!
Hope it helps

Answer 3

The best way would be to hire an eight channel mixer and Use some software that u can lay ur hands on like Audition, Cakewalk or whatever wave editor soft u can get. Cos if u record stuff directly to ur comp's hard drive its gonna b more economical for u to burn cds n send em off to the rec comps. Since am into electonic music.... all i use is an eight channel mixer n some hardware most of my work is done usin the comp n midi controlers.

Answer 4

You can hire a recording room for a session for not too much money, somewhere like 'rich b*tch studios' in Birmingham.

Make sure you do a trial run beforehand so you know how the session will go, to get the best results from your time. If you go for a home recording it will be difficult to get high quality, but you can always try.

Answer 5

I would say you record it to a tape. And add your own effects and improve the sound using the free audio editing softwares on your PC. You will find loads of free softwares that can encode the audio from tape recorder to the PC. Musicmatch is one. All you need is wire to connect the Tape Recorder onto the Line - in jack on your PC. But the only disadvantage is that it takes some time for conversion.

Answer 6

You could just tape it on a sound deck if you really wanted to. Also, if you have a friend or family member who has the equipment to record, you can do it for cheep. However, studios know how to make the track sound professional so if you want to cut a demo for producers and such, I wouldn't cut corners if I were you.

Answer 7

You can go cheap, but you'll need to put in lots more time.

In 1994, we used a 6-channel mixer, 6 microphones and a 2-track DAT deck to record this album for under $25.00:
http://www.rickshawrecords.com/bie-order.htm

in 1996, we paid $30/hr for 10 hours in a studio to record & mix this album:
http://www.rickshawrecords.com/inf-order.htm

In 1999, I recorded "Lavarockreverb" in our rehearsal studio on a cassette 4-track:
http://www.rickshawrecords.com/lav-order.htm

Next, in 2002, I borrowed a friend's Hard-Disk recorder some POD & V-Amp modeling boxes, and 2 overhead mic's for the drums, and recorded this CD:
http://www.rickshawrecords.com/sss-order.htm

Answer 8

Take a tape recorder,insert a tape,and push the "record" button.

Answer 9

T A P E RECORDER

Answer 10

Get a college to burn your CD then send them free on MySpace & Yahoo like The Arctic Monkeys did, they made it big and all the publicity was hyped for free.