One of the most necessary things you have to be is musically tight which means that you have rehearsed quite regularly - at least twice a week, are familiar with the songs and can stay in key and keep the right timing. As well as being well-rehearsed make sure you pick a studio, which will offer a creative environment as opposed to somewhere, which just looks impressive. This is the element, which will give the band a recording, which people will really want to listen to/buy.

You need to be aware of your instruments, guitars especially.You should not put new strings on your guitars just before an actual session: this should not be done less than two weeks before. This will give the strings time to run, but still sound sharp and bright.

You must have some form of guitar tuner. This is important as it saves time tuning and retuning should the guitars go flat or sharp.

The drummer should not bring a massive, over the top kit unless the songs actually require it. Also all the skins must be checked to make sure none of them buzz or have any rattling. The base pedal especially and the hi-hat stand need to be oiled so there is no squeaking. Any such noises will be picked up on the recording.

Going into a recording studio is a totally different environment to playing live, therefore loads of volume and going mad as on a live gig is not the sort of thing which will be captured in the studio. What usually happens is that bands go back and enhance certain things they've done to give that live feel as opposed to thrashing it out and going mad in the studio. The volume does not have to be high in the studio to get the similar sound you would achieve live.

You must know how long each song will last. Also someone in the band needs to list exactly how the instruments are going down on the multi track machine. This saves a lot of time when remixing if you know what track's gone where.

The band should take away a rough cassette tape of the finished live recording of the first days sessions so that you get a full picture when you come back down for remixing, and you appoint only one or two members of the band to pull together the bands view of the recording. Have a realistic plan of how each track is to be mixed. Also bear in mind that you cannot mix a track well which has been badly played, all studios can do is add to the crap or enhance the beauty..

Probably the most important point is to find out exactly what you're getting for your money i.e. is it an 8 or 10 hour day, find out the hourly rate if you decide not to book a full day, work out exactly what all the costs will be before you go in to the studio. This way you'll know exactly what you'll be paying out at the end of a session.

If you like to indulge in drugs or alcohol, bear in mind that these things do not enhance performance but actually hinder performance.If you indulge in such things before a session the end result could be far worse than you imagined. The celebrations should start once you've listened to your work with a clear head and are happy with good results.

Try to visit the studio to get a feel for the size of the place and meet the people running the studio.This will ensure that by the time you book the studio you will feel comfortable in the surroundings, relaxed and able to perform at your best.

Remember to bring food, drinks etc. for sustenance during the session.Try to remember that if you've booked an 8 or 10 hour day you will not be recording all of that time and if you have brought snacks then these can be had during breaks, rather than having to go out possibly disrupting a session just when you've achieved a good vibe.

Have an aim and objective as to what it is you're going into the studio to do i.e. what will the tapes be used for at the end of the recording, will it be to get you work, are you planning to put out a CD, or are you just doing a demo to see how you've progressed.Your aims will give a clear idea of how serious you need to be.

Try to bear in mind that there is no such thing as a cheap recording you get what you pay for. If you go into a very cheap studio your recording will reflect this, a middle of the road studio will give you a fairly good sound, whilst a top of the range studio will give you a very, very good sound.

Make sure you have all the lyrics for your songs written down, verse, chorus, and changes. This saves a lot of time if nerves take over and a band member just needs to check the structure of the song.

As a band you will have ideas about production and sound.However, it is very important to understand how the sound spectrum works. At this stage, it's extremely important that you trust the engineer they have experience of listening to lots and lots of bands and they will have an all-round idea of what your sound should be like.

If you'd like to bring with you your own engineer/producer who has some good ideas and it's agreeable with the engineer running the studio, then bring him/her along. It'll make things easier and probably help the band to be more at ease.

Book the studio giving yourself plenty of time