Advice Before Booking:

No matter where or when you plan to record, there are some general guidelines to consider before you book your time. Your needs (and by extension, your cost) depend on your purpose for making the recording. In the end, it comes down to this fundamental question.... How much time do you want to spend sweating over how small a detail?

Seriously... that's it. Bands like Def Leppard and Aerosmith spend five years or more making an album. Mutt Lange will spend an entire day auditioning various snare drums with different mic and preamp combinations. Why? Because he's a chronic perfectionist, and because there is a ton of money backing the project.... and because he's Mutt Lange and he can. :-) Most of us mere mortals can't - for a variety of reasons - entertain the idea of taking such great lengths for our recordings.

Was that part perfect? No? Would you like to do it again? How many times, before "good enough" is actually good enough? How many layers do you want to add in overdubs? Will it sound great? Probably. Do you want to spend a day doing them? Can you? I don't mind... do you?

By comparison, I have had bands come in and nail down half a dozen songs or more in a single day. Done. That's a wrap! Would it be better if they spent six months on it? Of course. Is that what they need, want, or is it within their means? Those are some important questions to ask yourself.

In any case, your own level of preparedness is key - whether you want to spend a day or a year making your recording.