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Laptop Recording Studio – Affordable And Portable

Written by Noble on May 20th, 2011 | 3 Comments »

A laptop recording studio has many benefits especially for those on the go who wish to record and make music at any location. Depending on the amount of audio equipment needed by the artist, setting up a home studio for laptops can be very affordable as well.

This article is intended for those who already own a laptop and wish to utilize it for audio production purposes, although the audio equipment mentioned here may be used on any type of computer. We will outline the basic equipment needed for a laptop recording studio for you and show where it can be found. Here is an article that will help you find the best laptop for home audio recording if you do not already own one.

If a large scaled home studio is desired then we would suggest using a desktop computer due to them being much easier to work with when it comes to large amounts of audio equipment. Affordable and portable is the name of the game here though and a laptop recording studio is just that, granted you have the laptop already.

Laptop Specs For Audio Recording

While there are various answers on the best laptop specs for recording, it is not necessary to have a supercomputer for most everyday home audio production uses. At the least you will need the minimum requirements suggested by the audio software you will use. While the requirements themselves are often pretty low it is good to be running at least double what is suggested.

There are simple audio programs available that will require much less power to use than some of the larger audio software programs. Ideally you will want at least 2 gigs of ram with 4+ being even better. The cpu speed should be at least 2ghz and the more cores the better as well.

With lesser specs you will still be able to run the audio program and depending on the amount of plugins you use there might never be a problem encountered. The more complex you plan to make projects the more cpu and ram the audio software will need.

Personally on my laptop I have a 2.6ghz duo core with 4gb of ram and have never had any problems maxing out my laptop in my projects. For serious audio production work a good soundcard is also recommended. Again if this is the case I would suggest the desktop pc option.

Choosing An Audio Software Program

The main component of your laptop recording studio will be the audio software, next to the laptop of course. Music making programs come in many different sizes and prices. Depending on what you plan to use your home studio for will help determine which program might be best for you.

Audacity, a free audio program might be all you need. Or one of the larger big name programs might be more suitable. Many offer free demos so you can test the different programs and find which one suits you the best. You can learn more about music making software before continuing if you like.

Basically you want an audio software program that feels comfortable to use while allowing you to make your music sound the way you want it to. If you don’t have a program yet then try out several demos to see which one feels best and has all of the options you need.

For those who just wish to make electronic music then this is all you really will need. FL Studio is a program many use for electronic music as well as Hip-Hop. It works for every music type though. There is also a FL Studio discount if the program interests you.

While you can stop here and begin producing your music with just the laptop and audio software alone, you might want to consider a midi controller to help increase workflow. Prices will range from free to many hundreds of dollars for the larger and most powerful audio programs.

Studio Monitoring Headphones And Monitor Speakers

Once you have your audio production software you will need a way to hear the audio during playback, editing, mixing, and mastering. Studio monitors and headphones are made specifically for this purpose, and with a good reason.

Normal headphones and speakers/ entertainment centers are made to sound good. They might embellish certain frequencies to produce a more desirable sound for listeners. This is called adding color to the frequencies. While this makes for a great listening experience it is bad for monitoring audio during production.

For audio production you want the speakers and headphones to have as flat of a frequency response as possible. You don’t want any frequencies to be altered by your listening equipment for this simple reason: You need to hear the actual audio source replicated as closely as possible to know exactly what is going on in the sound. This way you can make the corrections or boost desired frequencies (through EQ and editing) more efficiently for a better sound quality.

Good monitoring speakers can be quite a bit more expensive than good monitoring headphones, but they will definitely help you hear everything that is going on within your music and provide you a good overall feel of the song. Here is some more information about good studio monitor speakers.

Studio monitoring headphones can be much cheaper than studio monitoring speakers. They are also good when speaker playback is not an option in quiet settings.

Some studio monitoring headphones such as the Sennheiser HD 280′s offer outside noise reduction as well. This is really useful in noisy households or around loud fans. The Sennheisers are also quite affordable with a price under $100.

Headphones are a good choice if you really want to go for the portability aspect of a laptop recording studio. Good monitors are hard to beat though so I would suggest having both eventually if you are really serious about your audio.

USB Midi Controllers

USB Midi Controllers make a great addition to any laptop recording studio. There are several types and sizes of midi controllers. Some come with just knobs and faders (sliders) for linking to parameters inside your audio software for allowing. Keyboard Controllers are common as well. They often have knobs faders and varying amounts of keys to help you your workflow within the music making software.

I find the keyboards to be especially useful when I am coming up with new melodies, and the knobs and faders are great for tweaking multiple parameters at once to hear different sound variations of my melody or finding good levels for multiple tracks.

Since many midi controllers are made to connect to your computer via USB they are idea for laptops. Several require no additional power supply as well outside of the USB connection.

Drumpads, knobs, and faders are just a few controller options. You can even find controls with all 3 plus a keyboard. Many midi controller keyboards come with multiple types of controls. 25 key controllers are available for ultimate in space saving and portability, while 88 key versions are available for those who wish to have a larger surface to work with.

There are also several key amounts such as 49 and 61, for example, in between as well. Pitch wheels are another common feature on many keyboards. Here is some more information about midi controller keyboards if you are interested. Prices can range from under around $50 to hundreds.

USB Audio Interfaces

For many who play instruments and sing they want a way to get their sound and voice into their laptop recording studio software. This is where an audio interface will come in handy.

Audio interfaces allow you to plug in an instrument, microphone, or both. They then connect to your computer and send the audio signal to your music software program. Since many audio interfaces come with USB connections they are ideal for Laptop recording use.

You can choose an audio interface that has nothing more than a 1/4 inch jack for guitars or an interface with several inputs for multi track recording. There are even combo jacks that will can take either a 1/4 plug or XLR plug. Some USB audio interfaces offer phantom power for microphones as well.

Read about USB audio interfaces to find out more. Depending on the size (and price) some audio interfaces will also include digital inputs and outputs as well as RCA connections. Most come with headphone jacks. USB 2.0 and varying Firewire versions are also available.

For those who just wish to record guitars that use a 1/4 cable such as electric guitars and some acoustic guitars, then an audio interface and software program will be all you need for a laptop recording studio. Audio interface prices are mostly $30 and up.

Microphones

Microphones are a necessity if you plan on recording vocals. Some audio interfaces come with pre-amps although sound quality may vary. You might need to purchase a good microphone pre-amp to connect to your audio interface if you plan on using a condenser microphone. Condenser mics are often used for vocals and acoustic guitars, anything with vibrant highs.

While dynamic mics are more of an all around general use microphone capable of handling some heavy use. An example of a dynamic mic would be the Shure SM57 while A Rode NT1 is an example of a condenser microphone. Many people start out with a Shure SM57 since they are good for about everything and relatively inexpensive.

Many different microphones are available for whatever purpose you have in mind. Prices vary but some decent mics can be found for around $100 and possibly less. You will also want a pop screen if you plan to do vocal work.

Your Laptop Recording Studio

With all of the above audio equipment I mentioned you will be well on your way to having a very decent small home studio setup. Of course different combinations of the equipment can be made to suit each persons purpose.

For example someone who wants to just record electric guitar would only need the audio software and a guitar audio interface which can be found as low as $30. For those who just wish to make electronic music then nothing more than the recording program will be needed, although a nice midi controller keyboard can really help with the creative process.

For those who wish to create Hip-Hop tracks then an audio program mic and audio interface are what is needed. A mic pre-amp or audio interface that has phantom power will be necessary for those who wish to use a condenser mic.

You can have all of the above for under $1000 or just certain components for just hundreds. Building your laptop recording studio doesn’t have to be done all at once either. You may wish to buy the audio program then other parts later on.

I will list my current audio setup and the prices I paid for each component at the time to act as an example of just one combination of the endless possibilities for a laptop recording studio. I will not include smaller items such as cables and such.

My Audio Gear

FL Studio 10 Signature- $300 ($270 with discount)

M-Audio Fast Track Pro 4×4- $200

M-Audio Oxygen 49 Midi Controller Keyboard- $150

Shure SM57- $110

Sennheiser HD280 Pro Monitoring Headphones- $100

Total= $860

I built my small studio over several months starting with FL Studio and have everything I need for a decent small studio package for less than $900. Of course I plan to add to my small collection as time goes by but I just want to show how anyone can build a decent laptop recording studio for an affordable price. Prices will vary for everyone but many will not even need half of what I listed so the cost may be even lower.

Hopefully now you have an idea of what you will need to start your laptop recording studio today.

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