SERVICES
At Theta Sound Studio, service and technical expertise go hand-in-hand. We provide a comfortable work environment that allows you to do your best, regardless of the project (large or small). With that in mind, here is a description of our major services:
ALBUM PROJECTS
Over 100 projects in various genres: Jazz, Pop, R&B, Classical, Hip Hop, Country, Ragtime, Gospel, Ballet, Alternative and Spoken Word, have been recorded and mastered to CD here in just the past few years. Theta Sound is a comfortable, low-pressure place to track and mix. And we love Live-to-Stereo projects that capture the spontaneity and magic of the moment.
Some projects that have received airplay include: The Doors: Myth & Reality (Ray Manzarek), 4 JAZ C ME (Yve Evans), The Mystery's Gone (Tommy Scherer), Facets (Lisa Bell), First Gear (Five Wheel Drive) and Winter's Turning (Robin Williamson).
SCORING / MUSIC EDITING
For the times when a small ensemble or band is right for a project, why pay top dollar for too large a space? Theta Sound is just right for such projects, with its main room, drum booth and vocal/iso booth. Our Yamaha C5 Conservatory Grand Piano is a favorite of many composers and music supervisors.

ARRANGEMENT / PRODUCTION
Artists and songwriters need a place where they can take their ideas to the next level. This is where our production and arrangement expertise comes into play. Whether you have a lyric and/or melody in need of addtional elements to complete the picture, or you need co-writing to finish the work, our resident composer / songwriter / producer, Randall Michael Tobin, can provide all the necessary creative parts. In just the past few years, Randy has written or co-written over 25 compositions/songs for and with clients. Additionally, for songwriters with completed material in need of production, Randy has acted as producer, assembling musicians, arranging the charts, tracking and editing the vocals, as well as mixing and mastering. The results adorn the walls in our facility!
BACKING TRACKS / SOURCE MUSIC / RE-CREATIONS
One of our specialties over the years has been recreating songs from scratch without the vocals so that singers and comedians could use these in live performances or for demo tapes. For television and film, if you need background or foreground music to sound like a particular artist but that hefty sync license is out of the budget, we can create sound-alike tracks for a reasonable fee.
AUDIO RESTORATION
Do you have vintage records or tapes that you wish to transfer to CD? Audio restoration processing reduces and/or removes noise, pops, clicks, crackle, hiss and hum, from those recordings. We then master the result to CD. If you have any photographs or album artwork from the original, we can scan those and make all the packaging elements for your finished CD as well.


CD MASTERING
At Theta Sound, we take a slightly different approach to mastering than the status quo. Like recording and mixing, mastering should be monitored on speakers representative of the typical home or car system rather than a system only mastering studios can afford (who's buying your CDs anyway?). If it sounds great here, it will sound great out there (and it will sound even better on an expensive system, too!). Our CD mastering capabilities include Multi-band Compression, Normalization, Precision Equalization, Stereo De-essing, Volume Matching, Indexing, Track Arrangement and Crossfades. The finished product is a fully compliant Red Book Audio master ready for the Glass Master process. Of course, it takes an experienced ear to hear exactly what is needed in the mastering process and fortunately, Randy has two of them!
DIGITAL EDITING
With plenty of of CD-quality digital editing tracks we have the capability to create composite music / voice tracks with speed and accuracy. This is suited particularly well for Music Production, Voice-over Demo CDs, Music Samplers, Radio Ads, Live Performance Tracks, Dance Remixes and Audio Sales Aids. We use samplitude producer 6 and we know it inside and out!
SWEETENING
When it comes to adding music, voice and/or sound effects to video/film footage, Theta Sound not only has the facilities, we also have our resident composer/producer with years of experience in scoring industrials, trailers, and themes. We have an extensive sound effects library and can also create sounds and ambiences as needed.
AUTOMATIC DIALOGUE REPLACEMENT
ADR is a precision and time-intensive process. At Theta Sound, all systems are locked to picture and the dialogue can be laid to DAT, DA-88 or Hard Disk Recorder. Beeps can be set in advance from your cue list to maximize on-line session time. Our six-foot screen and state-of-the-art projector provide an accurate visual reference for the producer and voice talent.
CD / DVD / CASSETTE / DAT / DUPLICATION
We can produce limited run CDs/DVDs with custom graphics in-house, or we can create your CD/DVD master and graphic inserts and have our CD/DVD duplication partners manufacture the larger quantities. We also have three DAT units and eight cassette bays for high-quality real-time duplication. Our chrome cassettes include typeset labels and Norelco cases.
VOCAL REDUCTION
This process is designed to reduce the lead vocal from a stereo CD, leaving a track which can be used for putting a new vocal on or for practice. The success of this technique varies with the material, especially how much reverb, echo and effects have been applied to the vocal. The more instruments on the track, the better the chance of success. Background vocals usually remain unchanged.

VIDEO PRODUCTION / EDITING / DVD AUTHORING
We have broadcast-quality video production and editing capabilities with our Matrox RT.X100 Digital Editing System and Randy Tobin who has over 1200 hours of use and experience with the system. Now in its fourth generation, this system has enabled us to produce captivating projects in both short and long form. And with our focus equally on the audio as well as the video, we can create the total video experience and output to DVD, videotape, CD, and streaming and/or static web files. (see CLIENTS for video sample.) DVD Authoring is a cutting-edge technology that requires equal parts artistic and technical skill. Motion menus, special features and user navigation options are all addressed during the DVD authoring phase.
ART DEPARTMENT / GRAPHICS
Parallel to our growth in the audio sector has been our art department. Originally created to offer custom cassette labels, Theta Sound's graphics services now encompass complete packaging design, film and printing for your CDs and DVDs. Whether it's limited run black & white or color inserts which we do on the premises, or film mechanicals for commercial packaging, we do it all. We also build custom Web sites including graphics and sounds.
MARKETING & PROMOTION
Although creating one's own recording projects may seem a monumental task, the marketing and promotion of your project is the part that requires the most time and effort. We're proud to be associated with Derek Sivers and his independent CD distribution web site, CDBaby.com. Not only is this a great site to sell your CD, it's a great place to get all the marketing and promotion advice you'll need to make your CD a success! We've reprinted his initial Marketing and Promotion letter here.
TOUR GEAR CLIENTS STAFF SOUNDS EVENTS

Theta Sound Studio 818•9•555•888 by appointment