Warwick Hall is an old warehouse planted at the back of Whitchurch Road. You'll have to go down a…read morecouple of back alleys to find it, and there's very little room for cars to park, drive or turn around, but somehow they've managed to turn this place into a serviceable recording studio and rehearsal space for the bands of Cardiff. It's run by two brothers who have managed to make it into one of the more known rehearsal studios in the area by offering very reasonable rates for the time and by catering to the many local car-less student bands that spring up during university terms. The recording facilities are cheap too, but they give a fair sound for what you'll end up paying, mixing and mastering the recording being thrown in with the price. The inside is a little bit grubby, looking a bit like a recording studio from a Dickens' novel. If you can get past that though, this place has everything you need for your burgeoning band to get started.

I like Manic Studios a lot. Having played in various bands for the last 9 years I've been to many a…read moregrubby rehearsal room, charging high rates because they know you don't have too much choice if you need a space to jam. Manic is fairly new and they've got some of the best equipment available to rent that I've seen in a rehearsal space. Normally rehearsal rooms provide the musical equivalent of the spare PE kit at school but Manic have decent equipment. The rooms are large, with big fans in to keep you cool if you're of a more energetic ilk. The guys who work here are decent and they will make the bands tea and coffee free of charge just for practising there. The prices vary between £7 and £10 per hour depending on what time of day and which day of the week you need. I've never recorded there but there are samples of the quality on their website if you're looking.

Nigel and the team are excellent. The studios are clean well kept with excellent equipment. It is…read morethe best rehearsal studio set up Special Brew have used and the cups of tea that regularly turn up during the sessions are very much appreciated. Highly recommended

Great rehearsal space. Jonny's very welcoming and a great laugh. Very reasonably priced, especially…read morewith gear hire being £3 per item for the whole session, rather than being hourly. Can't recommend Green Rooms enough.

If you happen to wander past The Friary Centre of an evening (which would be very impressive,…read morebecause it's down a back alleyway behind all the main shops on Queens Street) you might hear music drifting on the air. That's because 4 orchestra, 3 choirs, 6 brass bands, 3 percussion groups and many other people besides practise here on a regular basis. This is where the Cardiff County Vale of Glamorgan Music Service (CCVG) has all their rehearsals for their under 18 county music groups. So you might, if you were walking past, also suddenly be engulfed by teenagers carrying instrument cases. It's dangerous down that alley! The Friary Centre has 10 floors of office space, with several large halls suitable to large ensembles. There was once a small cafe type thing on the 10th floor, but that might not exist any more. It's been a little while.

This is a fantastic facility to have just outside of Cardiff. As part of the Media Center, housing…read moreITV Wales and other major media names, the studio is just right for small, musical endeavors. Run by a BAFTA award winning composer and arranger and his partner in crime, a well qualified and experienced sound technician, there is a wealth of expertise available. And what is best is that as much as it is run by specialists, it is a really friendly and down to earth environment. I've never seen so much shiny equipment, and there are facilities for recording, mixing and syncing with film and video. The main studio is fully equipped with some state of the art instruments, as well as some fantastic vintage gear. If you're looking for somewhere to record you next album then this would be a great place to start your search!

John Rea runs this fantastic recording studio out in the business park wilderness that is Culvers…read moreCross. Situated in the ITV Wales building, it shares its corridor space with the movers and groovers of the media scene. If you're a band, and you want to rehearse and record an EP, then John will be able to help you out for a reasonable fee. You can feel safe in the knowledge that you are in good hands here, as John is a BAFTA award winning composer. I don't know a lot about musical instruments, so am not going to pretend I do. What I saw was all very pretty and shiny, some of it was massively funky looking, in fact I feel a sudden urge to learn piano....

I recorded an EP here not long ago and found the service here to be top notch. We recorded with the…read moreengineer here - Lyn Price and we got a decent price for the 3 days recording time we had. I've found that often, recording studios want to get as much money out of you as possible but we never felt that here and we crammed alot of work into the 3 days. There's good equipment there if you need a different sound for a particular song and the software used to record was amazing. I'd highly recommend Red Rock Studios because they made me sound good, and that's not easy!

Sound Space Studios is the new practice space and recording studio for bands in Splott…read more Before Richie, the daddy of Sound Space, set up his new studios he rented out a static caravan to bands in the wilds of Lamby way, and I have to say that I loved that rickety old thing. So I was slightly cynical about coming to practice in his new shiny studio. However my desire to play in a space with a bit of personality was satisfied when I approached the new studios, having passed seven juggernauts with a sleeping giant in each cabin, bellies out and tasselled curtains half closed... The practice spaces themselves were bigger than the caravan, not massive, but big enough to fit us seven dwarfs in. There were two rooms available when we visited, but a third has now been finished. The PA and equipment did the job, but have used better. Richie and his mate, who's name has currently escaped me are both musicians themselves so they were very understanding of our needs and always on hand to help if was is a problem. A great space run by a couple of nice guys - try it! Equipment hire for rehearsals Standard Drum kit (without Snare + Kick pedal) - £1 per hour Snare - £1 per hour Kick pedal - £1 per hour Guitar amp - £1 per hour Bass amp - £1 per hour

Predominantly a shop which sells guitars and harps. The lady who runs this store is incredibly…read moreknowledgeable on her stock (particularly when it comes to the harps). They do however, also have a good selection of music books and sheet paper, Including many scores from popular films, TV shows and Musicals. My younger sister particularly liked this store as she was delighted to discover that they had a Glee music book, which she has now been practicing continuously!

When it comes to musical instrument shops, there's a lot to be said for service. In the more…read morepopular, wider-known stores such as Cranes, there's an unfortunate tendency for snootiness to set in amongst the staff. That distasteful though that goes "we are the instrument masters, and you people want to come and get your grubby fingers all over them? Eugh! Peasants!" And Cranes has that particular element of snobbishness all over them. And in stores such as Gamlin's, there is so much choice, and so many people asking you questions about what you're looking for that there is a small element of intimidation. That's not their fault; it's a symptom of their dedication to their field. In Pencerdd Cyf though, you have the perfect balance. The reverence for the instruments and the knowledgability that comes with it is there, but there's no sense of "us insiders, you outsiders". Instead, there's an atmosphere of community in the store; an atmosphere that fosters musicianship. If I could combine the service here with the stock of Cranes, you might just have the perfect music store.