Whether you’re already building a home recording studio, or you’re just toying with the idea, having the essentials on hand is important to creating it the best it can be.

Although some of the extras are luxuries, some are super-essential to any home studio. After you’ve chosen where you want to have it in your home, and have gone through the work of installing all the acoustic treatment, you’re well on your way. Next, you’ve picked an interface, have the software loaded, and you’re ready to go.

But have you gotten everything you need? You might think so, but if you’re missing these top four essentials, get yourself back to the store.

Headphones
Chances are, you’re soon to be recording multitracks. If so, then it is a good idea to be isolated from all other noises around you. A good pair of headphones will do the trick, and luckily, they aren’t all very expensive. Most good headphones run around $100, whereas higher-end in-ear varieties can be upwards to a few hundred.

A Pop Filter
Pop filters can reduce and eliminate the sounds you don’t want to hear. Microphones will pick up “p” sounds and “sh” sounds in a vibrant manner, which is something you definitely don’t want to hear.  A pop filter is acoustically transparent material that works to block these types of noises from hitting your microphone.

Extra Microphone Stands
You probably already have a couple, but here’s the thing: you can never have too many. Something might break, you might need a second one, or you may have more people coming into record. Reglardless of the reason,  having a load on hand is an excellent idea. In fact, you can often buy these for cheap (about $20), with easy foldable storage.

External Hard Drive
External hard drives always go sale, are cheap, and can save your life. Backing up your projects is essential… Especially if you are backing up those of musicians hiring you to record. A Terabyte (TB) can cost less than $100, giving you more than enough room. Have enough to at least mirror your entire computer, and if you have a Mac, use Time Machine frequently.