Here are the services offered at SWS. Each session has its own unique requirements, but I want to be as transparent as I can with the rates so you have some idea of what it will cost. Rates will be reduced for larger projects and/or multiple services. If you recommend SWS to someone else and they book a session with SWS, I will discount your session 50 percent! Please call or send me a message and we can discuss your project!
Click on each of the services below for more information:
Before a mic is plugged in and before any notes are played or sung, the first step is to have a pre-production meeting. This is where we get to know each other and share our mutual interest in music. We will create the roadmap for the rest of the project. We will discuss dates and times, number of musicians, establish the playlist, keys, tempo, instruments played, number of vocals/background vocals, and pricing. If anyone plans to bring their own mic(s) or the drummer wants to bring their own kit, this will also be discussed. Any other questions can be addressed at this time so you feel comfortable and there are no surprises. Having the information up front will help make the rest of the process more productive and enjoyable. We can all spend more time making music! This can be done remotely or ideally in person. There is no charge for this service.
You (and your band) are all practiced up and ready to lay down some tracks. Based on the pre-production meeting, the recording session has been scheduled and the studio is ready for tracking. This is where you make some noise! If you have in ear monitors, headphones and/or mics you prefer to use, please bring them to the studio. Recording is $50/hour or $300/day. Final rate may be discounted depending on the total time needed for the project. Studio setup will be done before your arrival and you will not be charged for the time.
Congrats, your work is done! Now it’s time to take the raw tracks and organize them into a mixing session. SWS will typically EQ and compress each track as needed, tune the vocals (again, as needed), adjust relative levels of the tracks, and add various other effects (reverb, delay, saturation, distortion) to enhance the song(s). At the end of the mixing session you will receive rough mixes of the song(s). Once you have approved the final mix, you will receive the song(s) in various formats as discussed in the pre-production meeting. Rates are $100-150 per song, depending on the number and complexity of the songs. There is no charge for mix revisions. SWS want you to be totally satisfied with the results.
Now we’re ready to add the final polish, mastering. This is where final adjustments are made to the stereo track of the songs (various types of EQ, compression, imaging, limiting and others) so they all have a cohesiveness as a group and are “radio ready”. Once the songs are mastered and you have approved the final mastered mix, there are many choices for next steps. They are ready to publish, distribute for CDs, albums, upload to your favorite streaming platform, or just play for your friends and family. Of course you may also wish to have the songs mastered at a specific mastering studio. Either way is fine and totally up to you. Rates are $50-100 per song, depending on the number of songs.
Got that old reel to reel tape you found in the attic? Or a cassette or album from your childhood? Let SWS transfer it to digital media and restore it to its original sound. Rates start at $20 per song, depending on the number of songs and condition of the original(s).