How Long? How much?
For many home studio entrepreneurs the question will come from someone with an interest in recording a song or two, and maybe even at your studio. It’s possible that at some point, someone (a potential client!) who is not a “good buddie” will ask the question. The typical question starts with either “What do you charge?” or “How long does it take to record a song?” Reasonable questions, and ones to which most don’t have a good answer for.
How much you charge should be based on some business basics, rather than a nice round figure which puts dollar signs in your eyes. There are a number of questions you need to ask yourself and the answers need to be honest ones.
Overhead: The hard cost of doing business. This may seem like a silly question, and I often hear the answer, “It doesn’t really matter because it’s in my house and I have to pay those bills anyway…”
But let’s think about this realistically. If you weren’t recording someone else, would you have amps turned on? the lights? All your gear? You’d be surprised to find out how much electricity can get consumed related solely to your studio, and guess who pays for it?
Rent or mortgage payment- this can be a moot point if you have no plans of ever moving to a commercial space. However, if this is something you’re entertaining, there will be a hard cost associated with “rent”, no matter how small the space. The cost is easy to figure, just divide it by the number of business hours you will be operating, and that's the hourly "burden".
Do you have amps, guitars/bass, and drums in your studio that “clients” could use? Who maintains those? Meaning tubes, speakers, drum heads, and guitar strings. They will need to be replaced periodically, more clients = more use = more maintenance.
How about your recording gear? Software upgrades, (both recording and operating system), acquiring better pre-amps, mics, etc.
Having considered the above issues (and a few we’ve not covered like insurance, alarm systems and... well this should get you thinking in the right direction) there’s the question of what is the “going rate” in the area? Most likely there’s other’s in your vicinity offering their services. Craig’s List is a good place to start. In my area the fee structure is all over the place. Being somewhat of a “spy” is helpful, as there may be some people really under-pricing themselves (and the opposite), as well as the bargain rates. There will be “commercial” studios which will denigrate the “home” studios, however, just being in a “commercial” building is no guarantee the studio (or personnel) is of a higher caliber. Rates will vary and in some cases a quick “tour” of the facility will explain the rates (high or low)
“Home studio” gives many the impression of a spare room with a desk, a computer and some monitors with blankets on the wall, and sometimes that is what you get. Or it could be an custom built addition or stand-alone building in the back (and everything imaginable in-between) built just for studio use. The term “home studio” can be misleading, so be prepared to sell yourself and not just your studio.
Hourly rates? Block time, per song or project rates?
An hourly rate is truly a “pay-as-you-go” plan. About the only additional detail is how you deal with fractional hours- do you round up or down? To the nearest quarter hour? Or half hour? And is there a minimum? (I hold to a 2 hour minimum). Many people are much more comfortable with a defined number as they’re probably working with a known amount of funds.
Block time is a discount given to blocks of time- 4 hour blocks, 8 hours, and so on. You may knock 5% or 10% off your hourly rate for the block time, but here again, there are a few details to work out, such as, what if they go over the block amount- how will you charge? If they don’t use all the block amount, will you refund, credit, or simply “all sales final”? (I use the latter)
Flat rates (by the song)- I see many people offering this, but I always wonder what happens if the session doesn’t go smoothly and it takes a long time, or there are numerous re-takes… or does the client just get rushed along and get a less than acceptable mix?
And, you need to decide about payments- cash? Personal check? Pay-Pal. Up-front or at the end of the session. If you do opt for the end of session, I would suggest not releasing any mixes (MP3 or otherwise) till you're paid. And a final concern- do you keep all the session takes/tracks? Or do they belong to the client? It has been common for studios to retain ownership of the tracks- so the client gets a final mix only. To me this is a little like holding the sessions hostage, should the client want to make changes down the road. I’d prefer clients return because I provided a quality service and product, not because I’ve got the tracks. I offer the session tracks to the client at the end of the session(s) and once final payment is made. The session folders/files are transferred either to a flash drive or an external drive (provided by the client). I will keep the sessions on my system for 60 days, after which I remove. I honestly don’t want the responsibility for them! I also do not provide blank CD
So now you have a figure in mind, but now comes the “how long” will it take question. The client needs to be asked the following questions:
How prepared are they? (and many people think they’re much more prepared than they really are)
Is the arrangement completely worked out? How many parts are there?
Are all the required musicians solid on their performance (well rehearsed)? Or are there parts of the song that you’re not completely sure about?
Or is there an instrument or voice that they’d like to have in the song, that isn’t part of their itinerary?**
What is their goal? A simple song, a full “band” sound production, a demo, or a marketable CD?
What is their budget?
Have they included the cost of copyright, or licensing fees for any songs they do not have the rights to (covers)?
Will they be self producing? Relying on the studio for direction? Or bring in an independent producer?
Have they included the cost of duplication or replication? Artwork? Graphics?
**Will they be hiring any “session players” and have they negotiated a fee?
Do they have specific equipment needs that may require rental?
These all need to be taken into consideration, discussed and agreed upon before you start. A written agreement is wise and can save a lot of grief and disappointment. You don’t want to be the disgruntled engineer, nor do you want the disgruntled client.
I have had a few people (usually a solo artist, or once a duo) who came in nailed the scratch tracks in a single take, and then the subsequent instrument(s) and voice(s) were likewise done in a single take. Total time to get a final mix, bounce to MP3 and “RedBook” format, and burn to CD(s) between 2 and 3 hours. However, I’ve had a trio, with a single vocalist, who boasted they could play the tunes in their sleep, manage to eat-up 8 – 10 hours of time per song! When they heard themselves played back… it wasn’t quite the warm fuzzy glow they were expecting. Sour notes, missed beats and chords, and pitch problems with the vocalist- none of which they heard while they were playing, and apparently neither did their friends… or they chose not to say anything. The client may be a pro in the studio or a novice, humble or an ego-maniac. Be wary of making a judgment on their abilities and readiness from a rehearsal recording and previous CD. I almost passed on a band whose rehearsal recordings to my ear were awful, yet they turned out to be a joy to work with in the studio! Another client brought a prior CD that was polished, but they were inconsistent, and the band had a couple of full-tilt arguments that brought sessions to a complete halt!
How much does it cost and how long will it take? Unfortunately there is no universal answer, but if YOU are confident of YOUR abilities and capabilities and have provided a rate schedule you’ve established a starting point!
