Farm Factory Studios

REHEARSALS - RECORDING - MUSIC ACADEMY

About Farm Factory Studios image
Established in 1991 Farm Factory is  Hertfordshire’s leading rehearsal and recording facility. A fully equipped complex with the best sounds, acoustics and sound proofing around, Farm Factory has been the “go to” destination for musicians of all levels for almost three decades.

Under new ownership (since April 2015) we are dedicated to maintaining our industry-standard facilities and great customer service.

We have seven rehearsal studios. All rooms are fully fitted with professional sound proofing to give you the best sounds and acoustics possible. All our Rehearsal Studios are equipped with a P.A. system and Vocal Microphones.

Drum kits, Guitar Combos, Heads and Cabs, Bass amps and Cabs, Guitars & Bass Guitars are available to hire.

Click Here for rehearsal prices


As of August 2021, we took over operations for GuitarStrings&Things - an online musical accessory business. Therefore, we keep in stock, a large range of guitar and bass strings, electric, acoustic, twelve string and singles. Also we stock Pro-Mark drum sticks, spare Remo snare heads, plectrums, ear plugs etc.

CLICK HERE TO ORDER ONLINE

We have a wide range of refrigerated drinks, coffee, tea, chocolate bars and crisps available.

Click Here for more information about recording at Farm Factory
Culture creates jobs, supports livelihoods, and brings joy to everyone. The UK leads the world in the creative industries and we can all feel pride in that.

Now, in these challenging times, it’s everybody’s turn to show our support for culture. With an unprecedented investment through the Culture Recovery Fund, the government is #HereForCulture so it can continue to weather the storm of coronavirus and come back stronger.

And we are #HereForCulture too.

#HereForCulture is a movement that unites the public, government and cultural organisations in support of our fantastic cinemas, theatres, music venues, museums, galleries and heritage.

By being #HereForCulture, we aren’t just supporting the people in the industry, we’re also supporting communities across the country.

ALL WEEKDAY EVENING REHEARSALS ARE NOW BOOKED ONLINE:
CLICK HERE TO BOOK

PLEASE NOTE: Daytime, Friday evening & weekend bookings are not bookable online. Please email info@farmfactorystudios.com or call 01707 392030 to book.

Cancellations can be made up to 48 hours before the start of the booking

CLICK HERE TO BOOK ONLINE

If you wish to book more than 4 hours, or you want to make a single musician booking, please email us or call us on 01707 392030


Room 6

Room 6

Larger Room Ideal For Showcases 450 sq. ft.

Read More  

New Prices effective from 1st December 2023


  Studios 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 7
  2 Hours
  3 Hours
  4 Hours
  5 Hours or more
  Without Equipment Hire
  £32
  £45
  £51
  £12.50 per hour





  With Equipment Hire
  + £8
  + £9
  + £11
  + £2.50 per hour


  Room 6 
  2 Hours
  3 Hours
  4 Hours
  5 Hours
  Without Equipment Hire
  £38
  £50
  £60
  £14 per hour





  With Equipment Hire
 + £8
  + £9
  + £11
  + £2.50 per hour



Single Musician rate: £12 per hour
Does not include equipment hire. Only Bookable 24 Hours in advance and is subject to availability.


  Instrument Hire (in-house use only)
  Price per hour

  Electric Guitar
  £4
  Please book in advance if required



  Bass Guitar
  £4
  Please book in advance if required

Please Note: Cancellations must be made via the online booking system with at least 48 hours notice from the start of the booking. 

NO EQUIPMENT HIRE: Room, PA, Mics & Stands Included.



WITH EQUIPMENT HIRE: Room, PA, Mics & Stands, Up to ANY 3 Hire Items Included.i.e. Drum Kit, Bass Amp, Guitar Amp. Extra hire equipment available from £4 per hour (minimum 2 hours).



To avoid disappointment, please book your backline in advance. Backline includes: Drums (not cymbals), guitar combos, head & cabs, bass amps & cabs



BACKLINE AVAILABLE
: AMPEG SVT350 BASS HEADS, AMPEG SVT350 8x10 BASS CABS, MARSHALL HEADS & CABS, MARSHALL COMBOS, CRATE HEADS & CABS, CRATE COMBOS. PEARL DRUM KITS, YAMAHA DRUM KITS & MORE

Opening Times image
OPENING TIMES
These times are intended as a guide to availability and are effectice until further notice:

Monday to Friday: 10am - 11.00pm

Saturday: 11am - 5pm

Sunday: 11am - 7pm

Bank Holidays: Subject to bookings & prior arrangement

CANCELLATION POLICY
Please Note: Cancellations must be made using the online booking system with 48 hours notice from the start of the booking. 

Please note that the opening times listed above are intended as a guide to availability. During quiet periods (usually daytimes), the office / reception may not be staffed. If this is the case when you call, please leave a message and we will endeavour to call you back and deal with your enquiry as soon as possible. Alternatively, please email info@farmfactorystudios.com

We highly recommend that you use the online booking system as this will be the quickest way of booking the time slot that you want.

Farm Factory Limited staff endeavour to open up a minimum 5 minutes before the first booking of the day. If you arrive early and there are already rehearsals in progress / the facility is already open, you will be permitted to load in early. This is subject to your room being clear / available and is at the discretion of the studio manager on duty.

Please click here to read our rehearsal terms and conditions in full.



Cancellation Policy
No exceptions to the rule, the Farm Factory Limited cancellation policy will apply barring an act of God / force majeure.

General Bookings
Please note all cancellations (except block bookings) within 48 hours of the rehearsal will be charged in full, this also applies to any hire equipment booked.

We do not accept provisional bookings. All bookings are definite and can only be cancelled with a minimum of 48 hours notice.

All Cancellations can be notified via the online booking system, by calling 01707 392030 (please leave a message if you get through to the answerphone) or by email

Recording studio avilable with or without Engineer

Due to the changing needs for recording facilities we have set up an option for 'do-it-yourself' recording sessions or you can book with an Engineer included as you always have in the past.

If you take the option of engineering the session yourselves, we will supply all the studio equipment (not instruments) required to record your session, including a powerful iMac loaded with Cubase 7.5 and also Logic 9.18.

If you wish, you can take the session home to carry on working, bring in a portable hard drive, large memory USB stick etc.

You also have the option of bringing in your own PC / Mac, simply connect to our Motu interface, USB or Firewire.

If you need an Engineer, just call us and we will supply one, obviously the price will reflect their services.

Bringing in Your Own Studio Equipment

For sessons lasting at least 8 hours or more, if you would like to bring in your own powered monitors, interface or even your line mixer as a preference we should be able to plug them up via our patch bays. Your own microphones are welcome also.

Booking Times

Booking times are available the same as the opening & closing times of the Rehearsal Studios

Booking Terms

To make a booking, call us on 01707 392030 or email us at info@farmfactory studios.com. Alternatively, you can make a provisional booking using this online form.

Please don't be offended if we ask you for a deposit to secure the booking (we probably won't if we know you). This is a non-refundable deposit, unless you cancel your booking within 7 days of the first hour booked, the deposit will be subtracted from your final amount due.
A card security deposit may be required for new customers before your session begins, regardless of the amount of time booked. This will be returned in full or can be used as payment at the end of the booked time, providing all the equipment is in working, present and undamaged condition.
Any equipment broken or stolen will be charged at replacement value.

A brief run-down of the recording equipment available:
 
  • Separated Sound Treated Control & Live Room    
  • 27" Imac with Cubase 7.5 or Logic 9.18  
  • More plug ins than we can possibly list    
  • Motu 896 mkIII Hybrid Interface - USB & Firewire    
  • Focurite Octopre II Dynamic Mic Pream    
  • Eve 307 Studio Monitors   
  • Yamaha HS5 Stusio Monitors
  • Mackie Big Knob Studio Control Box    
  • Samson S Phone 4 Headphone Amplifier
  • HP 24" Monitor Screen (2nd screen)
  • Sound Control Total Isolation Headphones
  • AKG Headphones
  • Microphones: Rode K2, Shure SM57s, Shure Beta 52A, AKG D112, 
  • AKG D40 Drum Mics, AKG C1000s, Lewitt Drum Mics, SE-X1    
  • Drum Mic Clips, Mic Stands
  • Assortment of Wiring Looms, Digital Cables, Patch Cables    
  • Comfy Sofas!
Available 11am - 11pm 7 days a week by prior arrangement

PRICES UP TO AND INCLUDING 31ST NOVEMBER 2023


Without an Engineer: £20 per hour

With an Engineer: £35 per hour

NEW PRICES FROM 1ST DECEMBER 2023

Without an Engineer: £25 per hour

With an Engineer: £40 per hour

To make a booking, call us on 01707 392030 or email us at info@farmfactorystudios.com.
Alternatively, you can make a provisional booking using our online form.

Booking Terms & Conditions
Please don't be offended if we ask you for a deposit to secure the booking (we probably won't if we know you). This is a non-refundable deposit, unless you cancel your booking within 7 days of the first hour booked, the deposit will be subtracted from your final amount due.

A card security deposit may be required for new customers before your session begins, regardless of the amount of time booked. This will be returned in full or can be used as payment at the end of the booked time, providing all the equipment is in working, present and undamaged condition.

Any equipment broken or stolen will be charged at replacement value.




To make a booking, call us on 01707 392030 or email us at info@farmfactorystudios.com. Alternatively, you can make an enquiry using this online form.

Please don't be offended if we ask you for a deposit to secure the booking (we probably won't if we know you). This is a non-refundable deposit, unless you cancel your booking within 7 days of the first hour booked, the deposit will be subtracted from your final amount due.

A card security deposit may be required for new customers before your session begins, regardless of the amount of time booked. This will be returned in full or can be used as payment at the end of the booked time, providing all the equipment is in working, present and undamaged condition.

Any equipment broken or stolen will be charged at replacement value.
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Live / Rehearsal Recording at Farm Factory Studios

Here at Farm Factory Studios, we have recently brought back our popular live recording service. This consists of up to 8 channel simultaneous recording through our digital interface, recorded into Logic Pro 9.
At the end of the session you can take away a CD of the recording or if you are taking away the stems to work on later, or mix yourself, a USB stick or external hard drive will be required so we can drop the Logic session or stems onto it (depending on if you are using Logic or another DAW at home).

WHO IS IT FOR?

Live / Rehearsal recordings can be a great tool for any band. Maybe you need to send venues a demo CD? Or you need some good quality Live takes on your social media?
A Live / Rehearsal recording is a great way to achieve this.
They can be used as a reference recording to see how you sound with some clarity, which is usually not possible if you have recorded onto a mobile phone etc. Some bands use it for pre-production purposes, before they go into the studio to record properly and others as just a record of the session or for fun.

Click here to listen to some examples on our Sound Cloud page: https://soundcloud.com/farm-factory-studios

HOW IT WORKS

Rehearsal recordings will take place in room 2, where you and your band will setup as normal for a rehearsal. Our engineer will then come in and place microphones around the room in suitable places to capture the best sound. A quick test to check levels, and you are good to go.
The engineer will press record and leave the session running until you want to stop. Because of the nature of the recording you will be unable to correct parts or record overdubs as this is purely designed to capture a live session.

WHATS NEXT?

At the end of the session, we will either then burn the audio to a disc (which is unedited), or give you the session files so you can mix the audio yourself. A separate mixing service is available if required.

WHEN IS IT AVAILABLE?

Our Live / Rehearsal recording is available on Mondays (daytime and evening), Wednesday (evenings), Friday (evenings), Sunday (daytime).

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST? 

Using Farm Factory Studios Live Recording service is a cheaper option than booking a session in the studio (along with an engineer). Prices for live recording vary depending on requirements and the length of the session .

To find out more send us an email or call us on 01707 392030

CLICK HERE TO BOOK A FREE TRIAL LESSON

The Musiclab Academy is a progressive and innovative music school . We have academies located within Farm Factory Studios, and a school in Hoddesdon. We teach drums, guitar, vocals, bass and keyboards to students of all ages and abilities.

Starting in September 2007 with just 15 drum students, The Musiclab has now grown to teach many pupils of all ages and abilities on guitar, drums, vocals, bass and keyboards.

We're really passionate about music and dedicated to providing quality, high-energy tuition within a safe, friendly and relaxed environment. Our tuition style is very much geared towards developing the student's creativity.

Classes are social and fun and designed to not only develop the student's skills on their chosen instrument, but to encourage interaction with other students and to build self-confidence. All students are encouraged to take part in our regular student gigs, where they get to showcase their skills to an enthusiastic audience of family and friends.

We believe the greatest motivation for progressing as a musician is very simple - enjoyment! If the student is enjoying their studies, then motivation will remain high. We also encourage our students to develop and maintain a professional attitude and approach to their studies to ensure that each individual has the best opportunity to achieve their full potential.

We specialise in group classes which offer great value for money and also provide several other key benefits. Our fully equipped music studios are suitable for anyone aged 5 or above.

CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE AND BOOK A FREE TRIAL SESSION
Guitar Strings & Things imageGuitar Strings & Things image
Accessory & Equipment Sales

As of August 2021, we took over operations for Guitar Strings & Things - an online musical accessory business. Therefore, we keep in stock, a large range of guitar and bass strings, electric, acoustic, twelve string and singles. Also we stock Pro-Mark drum sticks, spare Remo snare heads, plectrums, ear plugs etc.

You can place an order online here

Of course you are welcome to buy direct from us at reception. In most cases, we'll be able to offer you a further discount!
  • 5 Woodfield Road, Welwyn Garden City AL7 1JQ, UK

Please fill out the form below and include any potential dates you are looking at for your live streaming event.


  • Professional Live Streaming Service
  • Totally Integrated with Paywall and Ticketing
  • Covid-Secure Broadcasting
  • Studio Quality Sound
  • Multi-Camera Set Up
  • Video Background and Visual Integration
  • Stream Live from our studios in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire
  • In some cases it is possible for us to take the service “mobile”
  • Permissible under current guidelines (for paid work)*

    *The latest assessment of the guidance from the Musician’s Union is:
    Professional Activity: Studios remain open for professional recording, rehearsal, broadcast and streamed performance where the venue is Covid-secure. Professional recording, rehearsing, broadcast and streamed performance can also take place in theatres, concert halls, and outdoors, provided this is done in line with Covid-secure guidance.

One of the most frustrating aspects of the current situation, for us musicians, is the fact that we can’t get out and play to an audience at the moment. We’ve all got everything crossed that we’ll be back out there at some point this year, but until then, we’ve all got to be a bit more creative in trying to reach an audience.

We’ve been putting a lot of thought into it here at Farm Factory and have been busy during the past couple of months setting up our new online streaming gig service. We’re able to accommodate everything from solo acts to full band performances, all shot multi camera with a live mix that is fully integrated with a paywall / ticketing service.

After the stream you get a complete video performance and audio mix of your gig to use for getting yourself some actual gigs when we’re allowed out again! If it sounds like something that might tickle your fancy, head over to farmfactorystudios.com for more info on the services we offer.

If this sounds like something that might tickle your fancy, CLICK HERE and fill out the ENQUIRY FORM

See below for more examples of our Live Streams OR CLICK HERE


The Beatniks - Maggie Mae (streamed from The George III, Hoddesdon):

Stylus - Run To You (streamed from Farm Factory Studios, Welwyn Garden City):

The Beatniks - Help! (streamed from The George III, Hoddesdon):

xcerts - full gig (streamed from Farm Factory Studios, Welwyn Garden City):

xcerts - Full Gig (streamed from Farm Factory Studios, Welwyn Garden City):

Click Here for our cancellation policy and process
Click here to find out more about our rehearsal rooms
Our opening times for rehearsals can be found here

Join Our Newsletter

Stay updated with all of our new features we added to the studio

 
  •  03/10/2019 11:15

Guitar & Drum Lessons at The Musiclab The Musiclab is not only a great place to learn and be involved with music, we are also in two great locations - Hoddesdon and Welwyn Garden City.

Read More
  •  03/09/2019 11:20

Some of the many benefits of learning a musical instrument....

Read More
  •  27/03/2019 14:29

What to expect when you’re booking a rehearsal room.

Read More
  •  14/08/2018 14:52

So you have some songs and want to get them recorded. Hiring a studio and an engineer for a day can be expensive so to get the most from your session, here's out a few things to consider before stepping into the studio:

Read More
  •  04/01/2017 17:22

We were pleased to have Beata along for work experience during March. Here is Beata's blog....

Read More
  •  30/05/2016 17:29

We were very pleased to have Emily Delacy along for a week of work experience at the end of May. Here's Emily's blog on her experiences...

Read More