Tampa Recording Studio

ROOMS FULL OF WIRES!
Seriously, you can expect a comfortable and laid back creative environment with southern hospitality. I'll shake your hand, offer you a seat on the couch and something to drink. I have never had an artist walk out and say "Thanks, but I'm not comfortable recording here". In fact, I would say that we are the #1 studio for comfort and creative expression.

I have worked in commercial studios with leather couches, desks, receptionists and interns and it's hard to get into "the zone" and perform with all these people walking around. It also doesn't help that they start the clock the second you walk in the door...

I HAVE YOUR BEST INTERESTS:
I want every artist to succeed and at Tampa Recording, the clock doesn't start until you're mic'd up in the booth or playing an instrument. I generally like to sit down with the artist and talk about your goals and listen to a few of your songs. If I think you're taking the wrong approach, I will flat out tell you "Hey, that won't work, but we should try this."

I am involved with the creative process the whole way. As a producer, I have seen artists make textbook mistakes and as a musician myself, I can't help but step in and add my creative input. For example: Many aspiring recording artists bring me 5-6 minute long songs that will never see radio airplay. That's where I remind you that the average radio song is 3:40 and try to arrange it into something more marketable.

MY SOUND:
Finally, I want to say a few words about sound. I have recorded in multi-million dollar studios and I have recorded in garages. Some of these "budget studios" sound surprisingly good, but most of them are making simple mistakes that are critical to the sound quality. For example: I have watched newbies connect a $700 mic to a $9.99 Radio Shack cable- and they wonder why their recordings are so low quality. World class microphones and preamps are very important but it's useless if you have cracks and pops in your signal chain. These things cannot be fixed with Pro Tools or other software so it's very important to get a clean sound with character.

REASONS TO NOT RECORD AT MY STUDIO:
1. Here at Tampa Recording, I do not have a huge selection of gear like commercial studios do. I am fine with that, because the gear I have is world-class and specific to the work I do. I am the master of my domain and I am not trying to impress anyone with my small collection of mics. If lots of gear and leather couches are what you want in a studio, we are not the place. In fact, I'm a vegan. I don't even wear leather.

2. My live room (AKA vocal booth) cannot compare to a commercial recording studio. I do not have $1,000 bafflers and bass traps, nor to I have a glass window that you can see me through. I constantly strive to get better acoustics, it's an area that I could use improvement in, but for $30/hr, I think it's well worth it. And if you buy 5 hours, I'll give you one free.

3. I am mediocre at miking drum kits, there I said it. However, it's totally possible to record your drums somewhere else and finish your session in my studio. Clients do it ALL THE TIME. This is why it is important to record in Pro Tools. If you don't know, Pro Tools is the industry standard for multi-track recording, mixing and editing. With a Pro Tools file, you can take it to any professionally trained engineer and they will be able to add or remove tracks, remix, rerecord, edit and arrange your song. I can recommend a dozen or so engineers that specialize in recording live drums that charge as little as $50 an hour.

Over all, my studio is affordable and high-quality. It doesn't get much better than that.

I have recorded music for over 16 years and have been a technician even longer. I started Tampa Recording with a vision to bring affordable rates to songwriters and artists that don't have the budget to record in larger commercial studios. It is comin to fruition and I am thankful to be doing something I love full-time.

I record with strictly with Pro Tools.