Lee Carnihan – How to Create the Perfect Home Studio on a Budget

The rise of social media as a shop window has been a blessing for countless numbers of student performers across the country. Finding a new band member by watching their YouTube videos is much easier than putting flyers out across campus. Building an online audience is great for demonstrating your popularity which will help with getting gigs and who knows, if the right person sees your video, fame and fortune could be waiting for you.

But let’s not get carried away. If you are keen to start recording music rather than just playing a few requests at parties, you are going to need a home studio. It might sound like a challenge to set up a studio in the bedroom of your student house, but don’t let limited space and budget stop you.

While the development of home recording technology has been remarkable, the cost of assembling a professional standard studio can still be prohibitive. Using this simple guide, you can join in with the fun, defy your budget and make a slick, professional sounding track at a fraction of the cost of renting a studio.

Of course, your style of music will have a huge effect on what equipment you will need. Recording a full band as live would demand a plethora of microphones as well as space and sound proofing, meaning it isn’t suited to a budget environment.

However, if your passion is electronic music or you play solo, you will be sure to get a great sound from this type of setup. Likewise, if you are prepared to spend the time, this studio is ideal for multitracking and experimentation.

Vocal microphones

If there is one area of your home studio that you will need to spend money on, it is the microphones. If you have the best equipment in the world and a cheap microphone, your final mix will only ever be as good as that weakest link. Senior theatre sound technician Robert Hearn explains, “Great results are about investment ultimately. Buy cheap and it won’t last. It is far better to invest at the signal end with a better mic and high-quality cables. Not only will your recordings benefit, but the equipment will last for years to come.”

To find a balance between quality and keeping costs low, a USB microphone is the obvious choice for vocals. Most offer good quality and, as it can connect directly to a computer, it doesn’t require an elaborate audio interface, saving you a huge amount of money. 

Recording instruments

With the vocals dealt with, a simple USB interface will allow you to record your guitar or piano with ease. A basic device can connect a guitar and a microphone to your laptop, cost less than £100 and still offer incredible results.

Electric instruments can be plugged in directly and you might think it is as simple as that, but when you listen back to your blistering solo, it might sound rather flat. Adding a microphone to capture the sound in the room will restore the vibrancy and character that you heard while you were playing.

You could pay thousands for an elaborate room microphone, but as home recording grows in popularity, there are now plenty of high-quality microphones that are designed for smaller budgets. They might still be expensive, but as long as you do your research, you should be able to get something perfect for your setup.

Soundproofing

Let’s be honest, without a dedicated studio to record in, most of your time will be spent in a part of the house that is probably not designed for creating musical masterpieces.

It might seem like an elaborate step, but soundproofing can be as simple of fitting foam panels to the walls, or having them stand free. They can make a huge difference as Duncan Geddes, Joint Managing Director of Technical Foam Services, explains, “By using a range of high performance polyurethane foam and melamine foam tiles, sound waves are absorbed, reducing reverberations and echo on recordings, making a real difference to the quality of the sounds you can achieve from a home studio setup. The tiles can be cut to a variety of surface profiles, such as pyramid, egg-box etc., which further improves the absorbance of the sound and also makes the acoustic tiles more aesthetically pleasing.”

MIDI

I know I said that you wouldn’t be able to record drums but that doesn’t mean they can’t be on your track. Toontrack’s EZ drummer series offers hundreds of virtual kits that you can edit on your laptop. All of the individual drum hits have been professionally recorded so, while the drummer might be virtual, the sounds are all real.

Putting together a drum track can be a laborious task, but with a little determination, the result will be as good as having someone playing in the room, with the added bonus of not having to spend time with a drummer or annoy your house mates or neighbours!

This is just the tip of the iceberg. There is a secret lurking behind slick productions people have made in their rooms: a lot of the instruments aren’t real. MIDI instruments are entirely software and offer everyone the chance to add sweeping strings, mournful horns, or even choirs to their acoustic guitar strumming. Like the drums, this can be mapped onscreen but if you control it with a simple MIDI keyboard, you can “play” the strings with a few basic chords.

DAW

Using a computer to record, mix and produce requires some serious software. The range of digital audio workstations (DAW) available is vast and, frankly confusing with lots of technical terms that can baffle anyone. Depending on how much budget is left, there are really two options.

Avid Pro Tools is the industry standard for recording and editing. It is an intimidating piece of software and requires a fairly powerful computer setup, but if you aren’t intimidated it can do almost anything you will need – if you are prepared to put the time in to learn. While the basic package is expensive, there are often student discounts or monthly plans available, making top end software much more attainable than it might have seemed at first.

By this point you might be running low on budget. A more stripped back option for digital editing is Audacity, a free alternative which has most of the key features you might need including multitrack recording. It’s not as flashy but, it makes it easier to get your home studio up and running. After all, you can always upgrade later.

So, that’s the recording done. You’ve got all of your track in the DAW and it just needs some spit and polish for the final mix. This can be done in Pro Tools, but for a more economical alternative Goldwave is an outstanding piece of software. From clearing hiss and pops, to adding noise gates and effects, you can make sure that your final track is gleaming.

Blood, sweat and sound

Congratulations, you’ve done it! Hours of sweating about that slightly off-beat cymbal and countless takes to fix that duff note nobody else will ever notice, you’ve got your studio up and running and you’ve made your first track. Now go forth and conquer YouTube with your own brand of techno-funk, orchestral metal or Ed Sheeran covers.

 

 

Is Work Experience During Uni Actually Essential? | Beth Pembrook – Guest Writer

If we’re all honest, work experience is often viewed as a bit of a waste of time by a lot of students. A simple tick of the CV rather than an actually life developing experience or gaining career insights. A week or two spent making cups of tea and sorting out filing cabinets that make young people dread working life rather than look forward to it!

A big question that hangs over the whole ‘work experience’ notion is, is it actually worth it? A tick on the CV and potentially improved job prospects aside, many students don’t actually think that they will gain much from in terms on knowledge while they are on placements.

Many of us heading into work experience placements tend to assume that we won’t be given particularly important jobs to do, or worry that we might be over-loaded with boring, mundane tasks.

However, work experience is definitely worthwhile in the current climate. Gone are the days of being sat for 8 hours a day sealing envelopes or fetching someone’s lunch for them! In recent years companies have started to use work experience placements to their advantage, meaning they now allow work experience candidates to do some real worthwhile tasks. This means that most placements will actually throw you in at the deep end and get you fully involved.

If you are not completely sure about what career path you want to take, then work experience is something that should definitely be considered. For a start, if nothing else, a work experience placement will give you a taste of what a standard working day is like. You’re likely to be treated like a temporarily employee in a professional environment and be given assignments just as if you were a fully-fledged employee there.

Also work experience gives you the opportunity to meet people in the field your studying in. You can ask them any burning questions you may have about your potential future job, and they can give you some top tips about how to get into a competitive job.

Placements aren’t just there to encourage you to do a job, but also to learn if a job isn’t for you. One of my friends at uni went on a hospital work experience placement in South East Asia and realised that her life-long dream on being a Doctor actually wasn’t for her when she started feeling increasingly nauseous around any blood! While she was gutted, and did enjoy here placement abroad, it saved her 8 years of training and studying for the wrong job. By the same token, another friend of mine undertook a work placement at a PR firm because it was the only one that accepted her. Despite being in an IT course at uni, she loved the work experience so much she decided to pursue a career in it!

You should be open to all opportunities that come your way at Uni. Sadly, having a degree doesn’t just been that you’ll get a job – you need to stand out from the crowd. If you do end up having a placement somewhere that is pointless – aka: glorified tea make – then so be it. It will still look good on your CV and you can just take another placement somewhere else!

Lee Carnihan – 5 Ways To Make Your Student House A Home…

… without breaking the bank.

Your hard work has paid off and you’re on your way to university. While your social life is going to improve and you are sure to get an excellent education, living away from your parents for the first time could easily see a dip in other areas.

Up until now you have enjoyed creature comforts, cooking and laundry service that come with living in the family home. Suddenly you are on your own and you may well feel like you are out of your depth. When you arrive at your new digs, chances are the walls will be magnolia, the worn carpets will be showing the spills and scuffs of years of use.

The landlord is not there to make this an attractive place to live, that’s your job. Brand new carpets and curtains might be out of your budget and you may well be lacking the flair and inspiration of an interior designer, but don’t panic! Help is at hand.

Here are five ways to create a home from home on a small budget:

1. A burst of colour

It is amazing what a transformative effect a splash of colour can have on a room. Simply repainting a single bedroom wall can create a fresh feeling that makes an otherwise cold space feel warm and homely. It is also quick, easy and much cheaper than redecorating the whole house.

As with any big changes to the house, it’s always worth getting in touch with the landlord first. Most will not object if your colour choices are tasteful. An added bonus is that a lick of paint will hide any marks or nail holes left in the walls by previous residents.

Feeling creative? Painting a section of wall with whiteboard paint is a great use of space for leaving notes memos and messages for yourself and your more forgetful housemates.

2. Keep it in the family

If you have a lot of pictures from home, there is a very simple way to display them without taking up precious surface spaces. By looping a stretch of hessian cord around your walls and pegging up some photos, you can display all those pictures of your pets, friends and family very quickly and easily. If it is just a few very special photos you could arrange them on your wall or, if you prefer to avoid manual labour completely, simply allocate them a space on your desk.

3. Pristine plants

Having plants in the home is always a good option. They bring colour and energy to any room and are a simple way to add style to a busy house. However, in a busy house it is not unusual for them to become neglected. If you don’t have the time for watering, pruning and re-potting between lectures, essays and parties, it might be worth considering another option.

Pick up some affordable artificial plants and you will be amazed by the number of people who can’t tell the difference. They look great all year round and only require quick dusting now and then to maintain their no so natural beauty.

4. Create your own style

Another great way to fill in bare walls are posters and pictures. Quicker and easier than painting, it will hide any blemishes just as effectively. Canvases, framed pictures and even postcards dotted around will instantly bring personality to any space with minimal effort.

A very cost effective way to construct an interesting display is to collect some wallpaper samples with attractive designs and frame them, giving you a quirky take on a feature wall at a fraction of the cost. Samples can also be used to bring tired furniture back to life.

Wall transfers have become increasingly popular way to decorate a student house. A quick search on Pinterest will turn up all kinds of ideas and very soon your room could be encircled by a forest or city skyline. The best thing about transfers is they are easy to remove so committing to one design is never an issue.

5. Hide what you can’t fix

Chances are the chairs and sofa in your new student digs will be older than you are. It’s not worth worrying about what they have gone through to earn those tatty corners and worn out covers. After giving it a quick clean, all your sofa will need is a charming throw and a few cushions to restore its former glory.

Similarly, threadbare carpets merely need a colourful rug strategically placed over the worst parts and you can spare your guests the horror of what lies beneath.

You really don’t need to spend a lot of money to turn your student accommodation into a home. With a few simple purchases and some creative thinking, you can transform the whole house and hide those well-worn blemishes.

Lee Carnihan | Secret Santa for Cash-Strapped Students

By the time Christmas comes around you will have spent months away from home and settled into the strange dynamic of sharing your living space with several similarly hungover and poor house mates. There are so many great things about being a student but Christmas is right at the top. It’s a great excuse to let go, relax and throw a series of spontaneous parties with your house mates.

Sure, this group aren’t perfect but they are your new family. Working with them to decorate the house on a shoestring budget is sure to be a great laugh. Well, until you come home with a box of faulty fairy lights from the pound shop.

Once the decorations are up and lectures are coming to an end there is the difficult situation of deciding who will get presents begins. It’s too expensive to buy for everyone but it could make things difficult if you just buy for your closest friends and leave someone out, so why not instigate a house Secret Santa? This way there is a set budget, everyone gets a present and you only need to buy one! Perfect!

Of course, in any group there will be some people you like more than others. At this time of year, you can get away with practical jokes in the name of Christmas spirit, so why not take this chance to get your own back on anyone who has wronged you with a joke gift? Just don’t forget to record it so you and the rest of your house mates can laugh at their shocked expression over and over again!

Secret Santa may sound like a cheap way to buy gifts for everyone but it can add up very quickly. By keeping these simple pointers in mind, you will be able to dazzle your house mates with amazing gifts and still have some cash left for New Year’s Eve.

Try not to go crazy

Set a price limit that everyone can afford. A fiver? A tenner? Whatever it is, make sure you’re all ok with that. Yes, it might be the season of goodwill, but you don’t have Bill Gate’s fortune to plunder.

Always re-gift if you get the opportunity

At some point in your life, you’ve probably received a present that you’ve never liked or used, which is why the art of re-wrapping is so handy. As long as the present is in a really good condition (preferably unused) you’re good to go.

So the only thing you’ll have to buy is the wrapping paper, and a card if you’re feeling generous. Just make sure you don’t give the re-wrapped present to the same person who gave it to you originally! That would be awkward, especially if you gave it to the awkward person you don’t get on with.

Give everyone a chance

Get everyone in the house involved, even if it is that one housemate who never seems to leave their room. Knock on their door, introduce yourself (just in case they’ve forgotten who you are even though you’ve been living together for three months) and say; “Hi, I know we haven’t officially met – I think we may have bumped into each other at one point going to the bathroom – but did you want to play Secret Santa?”

Even if they don’t want to play, at least you’ve finally met the ‘other’ house mate. Congrats! Your housemates will be proud of your bravery. Getting everyone involved makes the game much more interesting, and you’ll avoid feeling bad if anyone were accidentally (or on purpose) left out.

Keep it simple

Some people are against buying generic gifts like a pack of scented shower gels or a mix and match makeup kit, but for a student it’s perfectly acceptable. You can never go wrong with buying gifts like these, and not only are they an easy purchase, they’re also worth the money and you can find some cracking bargains.

If you want to get something just a little bit different but still practical, grab a bar of luxury hand-made organic soap. They smell delicious and can even make a subtle point to the person in the house who doesn’t always like to wash as frequently as everyone else!

Never leave it late

Try not to forget about actually buying a gift, otherwise you’ll find yourself in a moment of panic, frantically trying to find something last minute to give them. Giving them a packet of crisps or a pack of jam donuts might seem like a great and useful “gift” but frankly, it’s a bit rubbish and thoughtless. You might be skint and this might be Secret Santa, but there are limits to how low you can go! So don’t leave it until the last minute (you’ve probably heard that from your lecturer plenty of times).

The more the merrier

You may have had a great time with your house mates but don’t forget to include your actual family. They may have been in the background recently but they are just as important to buy for, especially if you aren’t seeing very much of them, so make sure to save some space in your budget to get them something nice. It can also work in your favour; it softens the blow if you have a gift in one hand when you return home with bag of dirty washing in the other. If you have enough money spare, buying one final Secret Santa gift for dad is a great idea. It can be silly and funny or useful from somewhere like Hawkin’s Bazaar and it doesn’t have to be especially expensive. Meanwhile, a simple box of chocolates, some flowers or a bottle of wine will keep mum very happy.

Top Tips Every Student Should Know When Buying A Car – Lee Carnihan (Guest Writer)

Getting to uni is one thing, getting around is another entirely. Wherever uni is for you, you’ll need to get from home to uni, to the supermarket, to the pub, to the gym and all manner of other places during term time.

You might want to dart back home for a weekend of “mum’s cooking” too, or head off to the beach with your house mates on Bank Holiday Monday. Yes, you can get around by foot, bike, unicycle, pogo-stick, skateboard, tube, tram and bus – but they won’t give you the flexibility a car will.

Having a car basically makes everything much easier. Chief among the benefits is not having to ‘borrow’ trolleys to get the shopping back on a cold, wet, dark and windy night after a long day in the lecture hall. So unless you’re extremely lucky because you live right next to a supermarket, you’re going to need a car.

But money will be tight and you might have no idea about what kind of car to buy for your budget. You’ll want something affordable, but not so cheap it breaks down frequently and costs you even more to fix or leaves you stranded in the car park with six heavy bags of shopping with chilled or frozen food rapidly defrosting.

So here are a few helpful tips to keep in mind when you’re looking to buy a car:

1 Stick with “old reliable”

The newer the car, the more expensive both the car and insurance is likely to be, so you’re better off looking at slightly older cars like an early 2000s Vauxhall Corsa, or a 2008 Fiat 500. Both cars are reliable, great for long distance driving, and fairly cheap.

If you’re a fan of the classics but you’re worried about the general up-keep of the car and insurance, you should go for a relatively newer classic like an Austin Mini. Depending on your definition of a ‘classic car’, classic Minis can range from early 60s to late 90s, so you’ve got a lot of choice.

Surprisingly, these quaint old cars are great for long distance travel, which makes things so much easier when you’re wanting to travel home from Uni for the weekend.

Minis are extremely reliable, and owning a classic car such as this, might mean that you’re eligible for classic car insurance instead of standard car insurance. The way the value of a classic is determined is different, so you might get better value.

2 Inspect the car and ask to drive it 

When you’re viewing a car, always ask if the car has had any major damage or other significant repairs, which should all be detailed in the log book. Look over the general condition of the car for rust, oil leaks, scratches, bumps, dents and differences in paintwork on different parts of the car. Anything like this will put the price down if you ever want to sell the car on.

And if you have absolutely no clue about what you’re looking for, take someone who does! Another perspective is always helpful.

Ask to take a test drive, even if they want to accompany you and your friend: listen out for splutters and chokes and feel the biting point: where the clutch engages and disengages when you change gear. Get out and look at the exhaust too. If it’s black, blue or grey, it could be a sign the engine is burning oil, too much fuel or has some other problem.

If you’re unsure, walk away. There is no shortage of second hand cars out there.

3 Where to buy and how

Choosing where to buy a car can be a bit of a challenge, so here are some pros and cons to help you:

Auctions

Pros: Cheaper than buying from a garage and you may end up with an absolute bargain.

Cons: Cars are sold as seen which means no test drives allowed. You’re not guaranteed a warranty so if you end up purchasing a classic, like a Triumph Herald for example, but it doesn’t start or there is something seriously wrong with it, then too bad. If the car has serious issues and you’re not willing to pay more money to get it fixed, then you’re only option will be to put it back into the auction and hope wholeheartedly that it’ll sell again.

Garages

Pros: One of the safest ways to go about buying a car. This is because any registered noted dealer is required by law to supply the car with a warranty, and the car must be fully road legal. When buying from a garage there is always room for negotiation.

Cons: Usually more expensive than buying from a private seller or buying from an auction.

Private

Pros: Cheaper than buying from a garage. Again, there is always room for negotiation, especially if the seller is eager to sell the car quickly.

Cons: You’re not guaranteed a warranty when dealing with a private seller. So if there is something wrong with the car, you have very little comeback.

Online

Pros: Official online dealers are covered by trading standards, so you’ll be guaranteed a warranty.

Cons: Private online sellers are not covered by trading standards, so you’re not guaranteed a warranty. With all online dealers or sellers, make sure you do some research and ask about warranties.

At the end of the day…

Choose a car with a relatively small engine because they’re cheaper to buy and insure and the running costs are usually lower. If you “do your homework” – sorry if you thought you’d heard the last of that phrase – you’re more likely to get a good car for a fair price.