Jon - The Home Recording Studio

03May 2021 by Jon

Can you make money selling Stock Music?

Can you make money selling Stock Music? If you are a musician hoping to make a living from music right now it’s a pretty tough marketplace. Digital streaming platforms provide poor revenue from selling music. Landing a record deal is harder than ever. Fan funding is difficult. And finally, the pandemic has put a stop to live music, removing the only decent revenue stream left for some bands. So, what other ways can you make money from music? One option for musicians and composers is to try writing for stock music libraries. For the last six months, I've explored the subject: Can you make money selling Stock Music? Here are my findings so far. What is Stock MusicStock Music LibrariesWhat makes a good Stock Music Track?Is it possible to make…

19Mar 2021 by Jon

Home Recording Studio Essentials: What You Actually Need to Get Started

Blog, Home Recording Blogs, Microphones, Podcast, Pro Tools, Recording & Mixing, Techniques

Setting up a home recording studio doesn’t have to be complicated — or expensive. In fact, you only need four core components to start recording, editing, mixing, and playing back audio at home. In this guide, we’ll look at the Home Recording Studio Essentials, explain what each piece does, and help you make sensible choices without getting overwhelmed by gear options. The 4 Essential Components of Any Home Recording Studio Every functional home studio needs these four things: A computer with DAW software An audio interface A microphone Monitoring (headphones or speakers) With just these, you can: Record sound Edit and arrange audio Add effects Mix and export finished tracks Let’s break each one down. 1. Computer – Mac or PC? Your computer is the heart of your studio. It…

10Feb 2021 by Jon

Using AudioMovers for high-quality audio streaming

Audio Streaming, Blog, Home Recording Blogs, Sound Design, Sound Effects, Techniques

Introduction Recently I had to deliver my first online teaching session. The subject was sound design and I wanted the students to hear the audio at the same quality I was hearing in my home studio. For this I needed high-quality audio streaming. I knew what I wanted to achieve with the live stream, but I wasn’t exactly clear how to do it. My goal was to share my screen, while demonstrating Adobe Audition, through the Zoom conferencing App. I needed to route audio from my microphone and also route audio from Adobe Audition and possibly from other apps or my web browser. I also wanted to keep the audio quality as high as possible. So, this blog post is all about how I achieved High-Quality Audio Streaming alongside Zoom.…

31Dec 2020 by Jon

How to Add Audio Watermarks to Your Tracks

Blog, Pro Tools, Recording & Mixing, Sound Design, Sound Effects

In today’s post, we’re diving into audio watermarks — what they are, why you need them, and the easiest ways to add them to your music or audio files. What is an Audio Watermark? An audio watermark is a short, repeated sound placed over a piece of music or an audio recording to indicate that it’s a preview. Unlike digital watermarks (which are hidden and undetectable), audio watermarks are meant to be clearly heard. They serve two main purposes: Letting clients preview your work without giving away the final product. Protecting your work from illegal copying. Why You Should Use Audio Watermarks If you’re sending samples to potential clients — like mixing, mastering, or production demos — adding a watermark protects you from unauthorized use. After payment, you can send…

04Dec 2020 by Jon

Top 10 Home Recording Resources (Blogs, Podcasts & Communities)

Blog, Field Recording, Home Recording Blogs, Podcast, Pro Tools, Recording & Mixing, Sound Design, Sound Effects

If you want to improve your home recording skills, it can be hard to know where to start — and who to trust. The Home Recording Studio blog exists to help, but no single site has all the answers. Over the years, I’ve built up a short list of reliable, high-quality home recording resources that I return to again and again for learning, inspiration, and staying up to date with the audio world. This updated list focuses on resources that are still active, relevant, and genuinely useful in 2026 — including blogs, podcasts, YouTube channels, and communities. 1. Sound On Sound Sound on Sound is a true classic. It was one of the very first recording magazines I read when I was starting out, and decades later it’s still one…

18Sep 2020 by Jon

5 Things that have improved my recording & mixing

Blog, Composing, Mixing, Recording, Recording & Mixing, Techniques

Lately I’ve been thinking about what has made the biggest difference to my home recording and mixing. Here, I’ve come up with a list of 5 things that I think have improved my recording and mixing at home and taken me to the next level. Audio InterfacePreampsMonitoringMicrophonesPlugins 1. Audio Interface. A few years ago, I decided to make an investment in a good quality audio interface. I had a budget interface but some technical issues with this interface, which almost ruined a recording session I was doing for a band, prompted me to reconsider. So, I wanted something that wouldn’t let me down. I also needed at least 8 inputs and the ability to connect my Focusrite Octopre ADAT interface to give me 16 inputs in total. This is a…

10Sep 2020 by Jon

Hello world!

Blog

Welcome to the Home Recording Studio Blog! This is my first post and I wanted to discuss why I started this blog and what I want to write about in future posts. I’ve been recording at home since the mid 90’s. I started in my parent’s house, in my bedroom and loft, when I was about 19. I bought a Tascam Portastudio, 4 track cassette- tape machine, second-hand, and began recording my guitar and vocals with just a Shure SM58. Soon after this I begin using computers to make music, with MIDI at first and then as the software and hardware improved, recording audio as well. This all seems like ancient history now and I can only imagine what it must be like for teenagers that have access to far…

Author: Jon