All musicians, all users (or users) of home studios dream of having more equipment. And everyone loves gifts that go in that direction.
However, whether you are looking for ideas to give something to someone recording their music in a home studio or for yourself, making a choice can sometimes be more difficult than it seems.
It’s true, there are so many things that one could buy, but at the same time, you can’t have it all! 🙂
On the occasion of the upcoming Christmas, I thought I would prepare a little “seasonal” article with a list of nice equipment, which should satisfy both beginners and connoisseurs…
If you are more of a beginner…
Interfaces, speakers… some equipment really forms the basis of any home studio. I discuss this in detail in my equipment guide.
So, if you are missing something, a gift can be a good opportunity to fill that gap and move “up a gear” in your studio.
A (new) audio interface
Having a good audio interface is really important in a home studio. It is through it that your audio signal passes, so it’s better to invest in good equipment.
There are of course many different brands, but if you are just starting out, I can only recommend the Scarlett series from Focusrite, especially the 2i2 shown in the photo above, which is an excellent entry-level model. The preamps are good, and the latency is too.
Objectively, if you simply want to record your guitar and your voice, this is exactly what you need.
If you already have an interface of this type, it would then be quite interesting to move up to a higher model, for example, the 18i20 which will give you many more inputs (handy for recording a drum set, for example) and features.
Official site: www.focusrite.com
See the price of the 2i2 on: Thomann Woodbrass Amazon
See the price of the 18i20 on: Thomann Woodbrass Amazon
A RØDE NT1-A Microphone Kit
The NT1-A from RØDE is probably one of the most used microphones in home studios, and especially for singing. Indeed, it has a double advantage that generally makes it a nice Christmas or birthday gift:
- first of all, it is a studio microphone of very good quality. Sure, it’s not a Neumann at €1500, but it will undoubtedly allow you to record in excellent conditions.
- furthermore, it comes “in a kit” with a specific shock mount, a pop filter, an XLR cable — not to mention the very appreciated 10-year warranty.
This makes it a bit of an “all-in-one” package that will suit beginners very well (but not only…)!
For a slightly more “professional” microphone but also a bit more expensive, keep reading 😉
See the current price on : Thomann Woodbrass Amazon
Yamaha HS Series Speakers
When it comes to studio monitoring speakers, a gift can also be a good way to upgrade to slightly more professional equipment.
We all or almost all have mixed on Logitech PC speakers, but at some point we realize that it’s not enough because their frequency response is absolutely not balanced.
If your budget is not unlimited but you want to invest in something quality that will be useful for many years, I recommend looking into Yamaha’s HS series which offers excellent value for money, provided of course that your speakers are well positioned.
If you mix your music in a small room, which is often the case in a home studio, the HS5 (5-inch speakers) will be more than sufficient and will help you hear the details of your mixes better.
See the current price on : Woodbrass Thomann
A Good Mixing Headphone (AKG K240 mkII)
In the absence of or in addition to speakers, it is completely possible to use a monitoring headphone to mix your music.
While closed headphones will be very good for monitoring, for mixing I recommend leaning towards open or semi-open headphones, which will be more realistic in terms of stereo imaging even if the bass will generally be less present.
I often use the K240 mkII from AKG which is very good and available at an affordable price. It has good definition and will be ideal for beginners who want to own a mixing headphone without spending 300 euros.
Finally, its relatively low impedance (55 ohms) means it will be easily driven, even by entry-level interfaces or by your phone’s preamp. So, no worries about using it for listening from time to time…
See the current price on : Thomann Woodbrass Amazon
Effect Plugins
Everyone loves plugins, right?
Whether it’s equalizers, compressors, reverbs… there’s always (or almost) a use for a new plugin.
What I recommend is to first check out the ongoing promotions on Plugin Boutique. It’s a particularly reliable site where I regularly purchase myself, and it continuously offers all kinds of discounts.
You will likely find something interesting there.
If you don’t find anything, a small plugin made by a quality brand will always be interesting: Fuse Audio Labs, FabFilter, Kush Audio, Pulsar Audio… the list is long! Don’t hesitate to check out my latest reviews, in particular.
If you’re looking for something more original
Perhaps you already have all the equipment mentioned above, and you are looking for something a bit less ordinary, for example for more advanced use.
In that case, here are a few more ideas…
A microphone to measure the acoustics of your room
The importance of properly treating the acoustics of a home studio is often underestimated. Indeed, we often think that buying new amplifiers or new plugins is the only way to improve our mixes.
However, whether for obtaining better recordings or for having a balanced listening experience from the sound coming out of your speakers, having acoustic treatment is inevitable.
But it is also necessary to place it where it is most effective, rather than completely covering the walls with foam. For that, you need a suitable microphone with a flat and reliable response for this type of measurements.
You can find them at all prices, but the one that stands out for me is the ECM8000 from Behringer, which is both very inexpensive and of sufficiently high quality to measure the acoustics of a home studio. For just over sixty euros, you will have a reliable and well-made tool.
In terms of software, you can use it in conjunction with Room EQ Wizard, which is free and will provide you with all the necessary information.
To learn more, feel free to check out my tutorial article on using REW.
See the current price on: Thomann Woodbrass Amazon
An Aston Origin microphone
Depending on the recorded source (type of voice, type of instrument…), the same microphone may or may not be suitable. In other words, depending on the person being recorded, some mics will sound better than others. A good excuse to buy several and gradually expand your “mic locker“.
One of my favorites is the Origin from the English brand Aston Microphones, which, in addition to having a distinctive design, is also an excellent mic that will be useful for both vocal recordings and for recording guitar amps or acoustic instruments.
The sound of the Origin indeed has very good definition while remaining overall very natural, with soft but clear highs. For example, check out this nice video of an acoustic guitar recording — you will be quickly convinced… 😉
See the current price on: Thomann Woodbrass Amazon
An Avantone MixCube
Well, you already have speakers, but do you have a Mixcube?
The MixCubes are somewhat special speakers developed by the brand Avantone and inspired by the famous Auratone 5C from the 70s/80s.
They are quite specific monitoring speakers that will complement the ones you already have.
Indeed, if you look at their technical specifications, you will notice that their frequency range goes from 90 Hz to 19kHz. A bit light, one might think at first glance.
In reality, the idea behind the MixCubes is to have speakers that allow you to focus on the mids. In other words, they will be very analytical on the mid frequencies, while being less useful on the lows or the upper part of the highs.
And that is their strength, and the reason why I recommend you get one: for me, as a second listen, there is nothing better than the MixCubes because they will truly provide you with a new way to hear your mixes.
Finally, I didn’t write “ONE Avantone MixCube” in the title of this paragraph by chance. My advice is indeed to buy only one. That way, you can combine the utility of the MixCubes in terms of frequencies with the ability to check your mixing in mono very simply.
See the current price on: Thomann Woodbrass Amazon
A preamp with color, the WA12
If you’re looking to add a bit of color, a bit of warmth to your recordings, then beyond plugins, a good preamp can provide you with additional sound quality.
To give more life to your tracks, one of my favorite mic preamps in the “home studio” price range is the WA12 mkII from Warm Audio.
Designed solidly and with very good quality components (Cinemag transformers made in the USA), it will allow you to level up if until now you have only been using, for example, the preamps integrated into your Focusrite or PreSonus audio interface, which, while not bad, also do not tend to enhance the sound.
Equipped with a number of useful features (pad to attenuate volume, input impedance adjustment via the “Tone” button for more sound options), the WA12 also has an output level control, which will allow you to push the preamp into saturation without any problem.
Very good equipment at a still accessible price, which I highly recommend!
See the current price on: Thomann Woodbrass Amazon
A digital recorder, to step out of the studio
Do you want to go a little further than “classic” production and mixing?
Why not invest in a portable recorder to capture sounds that you can reuse in your tracks, whether they are field recordings to create an atmosphere or more precise sounds that you will rework on your software to achieve unique tones?
You can do this, for example:
A Zoom H4N Pro can already allow you to do a lot of interesting things – I myself use an older version of this recorder, which I highly recommend.
See the current price at: Thomann Woodbrass Amazon
And you?
What are your gift ideas? What equipment or musical instrument do you want to give or receive :)?