Did You Forget Something? The Basic Recording Setup List

Proper planning before you buy is not optional — it is the difference between a studio that works on day one and one that sits half-built while you wait for the cable or headphone amp you forgot to order.

Something as simple as forgetting multiple headphone sets can change your budget by a thousand dollars. That is not a small oversight.

Here is a complete parent list of everything you may need when building a basic studio setup:

• Computer — Pre-built Digital Audio Workstation
• Recording Software
• Plugins and Virtual Instruments
• Mastering Software
• Audio Interface — or separate AD/DA Converters and Preamps
• Mixing Console or Monitor Controller
• Microphone Preamps
• Microphones
• Signal Processors
• Headphones and Headphone Amp
• Studio Monitors
• Pop Filters and Mic Stands
• Cables
• Control Surface
• Direct Boxes and Specialty Boxes

The decision that changes everything else

The single most important decision in this entire list is the monitor controller — and most engineers treat it as an afterthought.

If you choose a mixing console, many of the signal processing and preamp decisions are made for you — they are built in. If you go mixerless, the monitor controller becomes the heart of the studio. Every piece of gear that connects to it has specific input and output requirements. Get the controller wrong and your cabling requirements change completely when you try to swap it out later.

The right process: make a list of every piece of gear that will connect directly to the monitor controller. Then identify exactly what inputs, outputs, and routing capabilities the controller must have. Then find the controller that meets those requirements — not the other way around.

Jim walks through the basic studio setup overview in this video:

Watch: Basic Recording Studio Setup Overview →

Browse studio setup gear at Pure Wave Audio → purewaveaudio.com