Designs for an "open studio"?

I realise this topic might be seen as blasphemy here, but I'll ask anyway. :D I'm interested to see if anyone has built or designed a control-room-less studio. There is a certain vibe that is gained when you don't have "the glass" separating the musician(s) from the engineer(s). I'm in the very beginning stages of planning a new studio catering to rock bands and this is one of the design options we have thought about. I think we would have drums in the big room with the engineer, mixer, etc and have the guitars iso'd (or not, depending on the band and what they want.) We're looking at getting something in the 1500 to 2000 sq ft area. Any thoughts and advice are appreciated! -mtw

The all-in-one solution happens all the time. That's what I'm doing now, althought I'd prefer to have a separate control room. It's all about what works best for you. If you go this route, it may be a good idea to have an iso booth for vocals (and guitar cabs when you're laying drum tracks, etc) and invest in a really good set of headphones for listening to while you place your microphones. Good luck!

Kase, thanks for the reply. Do you find that you have to work harder at mixes because you don't have a CR? My two main concerns are exposure to high SPLs while the drums are tracking and getting accurate mixes. How do you tackle these two issues?

Well, you're not going to be mixing while the drummer is playing, so that's not a big deal. The main challenge will be to listen to the mics as you're placing them. Good headphones that have good isolation from the outside are the best tool for you. Once you lay down the drums, check the way they sound to make sure everything is how you want it. From that perspective, it may work to your advantage to have no control room- you won't have to run next door to listen to the monitors every time you shift your mics around.