Small Camper For Music Studio | VW Caddy / Mazda Bongo ???

[LDN]

I have been playing with the idea of a small music production studio on wheels for some time. I ran professional recording studios in the past and now live between the UK and France with home studio environments in both.

But I’ve had a scratch for some time... here in the UK for example, I fancy a drive into the deepest depths of the Peak District and to have a music production environment. I could be in a different place each day.

I’d like a smallish footprint and something nice to drive; something car like ideally, to drive; rather than van like.

What sort of things should I be like looking for? I’m trying to learn about insulation, different layouts, etc.

I see the Mazda Bongo has somewhat of a cult following - what about the VW caddy as a day van / small camper? Any other suggestions?

I wonder about buying a blank canvas vehicle and having a conversion done to my own spec. Who are the ‘go to’ people around Cheshire / Manchester / the north?

Thanks for any tips, experience or advice!

[Jonboy_t]

I’ve been looking at a similar thing as a potential business for ages, but am hitting a few issues that you may find too;

- sound insulation will be so thick you’ll lose 1/3rd of the internal space (unless you spend an utter fortune!).
- power generation. For using a Mac/laptop only for production, you’ll live off a leisure battery for a while but you need to consider charging that pretty regularly to rely on it. Solar would keep it full enough for just a single computer but wouldn’t be man enough when you get to winter and need to fire up something to keep warm. If you’re looking at recording anything that needs power to function, it’ll chew through a battery pretty sharpish.
- insurance. You may find that most vehicle insurers will not cover a large value of gear in something as simple to break into as a van. Bolster your home insurance for taking stuff away maybe? Not sure!
- ventilation - you’d need either air con or vents everywhere to lose the heat created by a large amount of electrical gear, comes back to power generation to solve that one!
- motion damage. Very easy to fk up a screen when you hit a pot hole!

If the above aren’t issues, I’d be looking at a Transit for it. Plenty of load space and very easily converted into something very nice. They’re quickly becoming the go to for converting to camper vans for people who don’t want to go down the the VW scene and, IMO, rightly so - strong as an ox engine, readily available everything, cheaper conversion costs for a bigger unit, nicer looking (subjective!) and cheaper to buy generally.

[E31Shrew]

We've had a Bongo V6 Petrol Auto for 10 years. Its a 98 model converted with rock n roll bed, sink , cooker and Fridge. Superb for use as an everyday car or for the odd camping trip for 2. Aircon and all gadgets still working
Big advantage is the electric roof which gives standing room in the back.
If you're keen check the rear wheel arches as they always rust badly and if going for a diesel I understand they are prone to overheating
Bongo Fury www.igmaynard.co.uk is a good source of info
Currently on a road trip in sunny Scotland in the hands of one of my daughters...grief

[LDN]

Thanks for the replies. Interesting you were thinking of something similar Jonboy. Taking on board what you’ve, rightly, said about losing space to insulation / sound deadening; I may indeed look at Transit / Tranpsorter size now.

Looking at who’s good up north, I see AJC Conversions in Glossop get a lot of good reviews. So when the time comes; I’ll probably speak with them!

Edit to add; love that Bongo!

[ph9]

I'm also thinking about something similar, but less of a full music production 'room' and more of a place I can sit back and groove/record.

I'm thinking more along the lines of a small caravan than a motorhome. Caravans tend to have a bit more space, and might be a little comfier.

I'm a guitarist, so I'd want to take my guitar along, and for recording I'd use a small, decent quality interface with a laptop. I currently use a Prism with a desktop computer, but I'd probably look at a USB or battery powered unit (maybe a Sound Devices or RME Babyface) for a laptop.

I've got a few boxes which give me a good direct guitar sound, so I don't need much outboard, but I thought about building a small cabinet (or converting a cupboard) to house 19" rack units, and some pedals etc.

For monitoring I'd use a good headphone/amp rig, and maybe a small monitor system.

I'd be a bit worried about security, but hopefully insurance would cover things in the event of theft or accident damage etc.

I use a small home office for recording, so I'm used to working in a small space, and my recording/monitoring gear has been selected for that environment, so I'm sure I could get some good results (for me!) when out on the road and relaxing/enjoying the scenery.

Things would be different if you wanted a 'live room' and studio level monitoring, but you'd probably need an artic (or a 7.5 tonner) for a BBC type rig.

[52classic]

This would make a cracking sound studio...... www.car-from-uk.com/sale.php?id=235459&country...

Also, in a previous life, the pre-digital age! I built a sound studio (with help) into an FX4 taxi. The passenger compartment was soundproof with rigged mics etc. The 'op' sat in the driver's seat with the desk to his left in the luggage bay and there was a rack of batteries in the boot to stabilise the power supply from a generator which was towed behind. Happy days.

Edited by 52classic on Wednesday 22 August 17:46

Edited by 52classic on Wednesday 22 August 17:46

[LDN]

Wow! Great to hear the stories of people who’ve actually done stuff similar - or are thinking of it.

Certain equipment; I think, will not be happy living in a vehicle; not because of security but because of temperatures and related issues; certain microphones, sensitive monitors / speakers, etc.

So I’m thinking of a robust setup with certain elements that I can lift in, on a tray for instance. So I have a powerful laptop rig that can go in and out; I seemed to have amassed a collection of my favourite old premium mobile interfaces; that being the Apogee Mini-Me; then maybe an Mbox and some decent speakers - I planned on making some stands with screw down vice like grips that would hold speakers down; and so different speakers could be used and the vice grip would hold anything I threw in there. Using a dynamic mic like an SM7 would get rid of any real issues with sound / unwanted noise etc. But I did think a pop top camper with space to stand up and perhaps a mic setup; in that space could be good.

The trade off is between space; for equipment and maybe even collaborators; a space to work with other people... VS a vehicle to just jump in and go; so a smaller size camper like a VW Caddy. It comes down to knowing what it’ll be used for... so if I think I’ll be taking it across Europe, for example, then I’d get a larger vehicle. But for shooting off for the day, a smaller size is quite attractive! The other issue is, I want an auto, which limits the choice.

[Some Guy]

Also worth looking at the Delica.
Slightly bigger, but no pop top.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MITSUBISHI-DELICA-CHAMO...