Why preparation saves studio time
In the booth, every minute counts: sessions are billed by the hour or in blocks. If lyrics are still changing, the backing track is at the wrong tempo or your voice is tired from a short night, you spend creative energy on fixes. Solid prep lets you and our engineer focus on emotion, pitch and timing instead of filenames.
Our vocal and speech recording begins with a short intake: genre, dynamics, references. The clearer you are, the faster we choose mic, headphone mix and routing. See FAQ on booking and cancellation if your date is not fixed yet.
Days ahead: lyrics and arrangement
Freeze lyrics at least a week before the session. Changes in the booth are fine, but rewriting a whole verse between takes rarely costs less than half an hour. Print or export lyrics with breath marks and notes for breaks, ad-libs and doubles. Know your instrumental: tempo, key, intro length and where the drop hits.
When possible, send a demo or rough mix to [email protected] or mention it in the contact form. That tells us whether you rap close to the mic or sing softly, and which pop-filter distance fits. For voice-over, supply the script with pronunciation notes and target file length.
Rest and vocal health
Sleep is the cheapest vocal upgrade. Avoid shouting in noisy venues, long phone calls without breaks and smoking right before the session. Alcohol dries mucous membranes; spicy food affects some singers. This is not medical advice — if hoarseness or pain persists, postpone and see a doctor or speech therapist.
On the day: room-temperature water, no large milkshake just before a take. Eat lightly about two hours ahead — an empty stomach makes you fragile, a heavy meal limits breath. Cycling through the Jordaan to Goudsbloemstraat 73 is fine; confirm at least 1 business day ahead so we hold your slot.
Warm up at home or in the hallway
Start with shoulders, jaw and tongue. Breathe out slowly on a long ssss or fffff, then lip trills or ng sirens in a comfortable range. Build gradually toward the song’s tessitura; do not open with the highest chorus. For rap, run articulation drills slowly, then at tempo. Ten to fifteen minutes is enough — over-warming can stiffen the voice.
At our studio you can warm up in the hallway while we load the session. The booth is isolated; you do not need to hold back. Ask for short breaks between blocks — that is healthier than pushing until the voice cracks.
What to bring
- Lyrics on paper or offline on your phone (notifications off).
- Instrumental as WAV or AIFF at the agreed sample rate — we routinely work up to 96 kHz where the project allows.
- Reference track as a separate file, not embedded in your mix.
- Your own headphones only if you are used to them; we provide studio phones with a personal mix.
- Water, optionally throat lozenges without menthol.
Route: Tram 13 or 17 to Westermarkt; about seven minutes on foot via Bloemgracht toward Goudsbloemstraat. From Amsterdam Centraal, bus 18 toward Slotervaart, get off at Haarlemmer Houttuinen, then five minutes walking.. Tram and bus from Westermarkt or Centraal. Parking in the centre is scarce; allow extra travel time.
In the booth: mic, mix and takes
Let us set your headphone mix first. Too loud and you sing quieter; too quiet and you push. Many vocalists leave one earcup half off to hear themselves in the room — say so and we balance to keep bleed out of the mic.
Keep distance steady: about a hand between mouth and pop filter, slightly farther on loud passages. We mark takes and comp regions as you go so you do not have to remember everything. Full passes plus punch-ins are normal; a living first take often beats the twentieth.
Time and rates
Plan realistically: setup, warm-up, recording, listening and small edits share the same clock. One chorus can be quick; a full EP of vocals may need several hours or a half day. Guide rates for vocal and speech recording: €112 per hour, €395 for four hours, €745 for eight hours — all incl. 21% VAT.
Booking requires a 30% deposit; free rescheduling applies up to 7 days before the session under our terms and conditions. Unused hours from a day may be carried forward under conditions (48 hours, up to 6 months) — useful if you add a title later.
After the session and next steps
We deliver recordings as agreed; raw files are kept for a limited time (see privacy policy and 12 months archive retention). Mix and master are separate via mixing and mastering — if you hand off to another mixer, see deliver stems for mix.
Planning with a full band? Read band studio budget. Questions on loudness after mix? loudness for streaming. Reach us via contact or 020 737 0284 — we usually reply within 1 business day.
