Most of the descriptions we give to music can equally apply to lighting—dark, dim, dreamy, uplifting. So, as much as you’re so focused on getting the right music recording gear, don’t forget about music studio lighting; it’s the single most crucial element that triggers creativity.
If you’ve spent hours fine-tuning your sound, adjusting EQs, and layering tracks, but haven’t given even two seconds thought to your lighting, you need to change that. We get it that lighting might feel like the last item on your mind when you’re trying to make the music of your life.
Why The Right Studio Lighting Matters
The right lighting can also impact the quality of the recording. Wondering how it’s even possible when the two are not even related? Well, lighting can create a calm, relaxing space that lets artists focus on the mic and the task at hand. With that, their vocal cords will create the perfect sound, letting you compile the track with fewer retakes.
One of the core concepts of lighting is colour temperature. You can choose either warm or cold. Warm light has a slightly yellowish hue, and cold light appears more whitish, leaning to blue. While these definitions are not precise when viewed from a technical perspective, they serve a functional purpose. When you want to create a certain ambience that matches the creative process and mood, pick either warm or cold colour.
Generally, music studio lighting is the cornerstone of creating a beautiful ambience that inspires creativity, both when listening to and recording music.
15 Brilliant Music Studio Lighting Ideas to Ignite Your Creative Flow
Here at Oasis Neon Signs, we’re passionate about creating a beautiful ambience through lighting. That’s why we’ve curated the following awe-inspiring lighting ideas for music studios to get creativity and tunes flowing.
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Go All in With Neon Signs. Vibe First, Mix Later
Let’s start strong, yeah? Neon signs aren’t just for dive bars and vintage cafés. In a music studio, they’re a declaration. A vibe. A pulse. Whether it’s your artist name blazing in pink or a glowing musical note hanging behind your synth setup, neons turn an ordinary box room into your personal sonic kingdom.
We had one customer, a bedroom DJ from Brighton, who whacked up a custom “Drop the Beat” sign over his decks. Said it made him feel like he was about to headline Glastonbury. Even if it was just for his odd TikTok stream, the neon certainly changed his DJing game.
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Choose Passive Lighting for Studio Control Room
In a typical studio setup, the artist performs in some sort of cabin with a glass wall partition through which they interact with the producer and production crew. This setup gives them conducive space with less interruptions so they can focus on doing their thing. With passive lighting installed in the control room, the artist can feel relaxed and concentrate fully on performing.
Passive lighting, if you’re wondering, is lighting system with subtle and tender brilliance without distractions. When the control room lighting is slightly dimmer than the artist’s cabin, you create a calming ambience to trigger creativity.
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Dimmable Ceiling Lights for your Home Studio
For your home music studio lighting, choose a dimmable lighting setup because overhead lighting has a bad rap; it’s too harsh, they say. Dimmable lights give you more flexibility. Switch to full brightness when you’re sorting cables and untangling that spaghetti mess of wires. Then turn it right down low when you’re vibing out to a new loop at 2am.
More importantly, stick to warm white because cool white can make your studio look like a dentist’s office.
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Go with Low-Heat Lights
The temperature in this studio also contributes to the level of comfort of the artists and recording crew. So, go with lighting fixtures that produce less or no heat, and that’s where laser lights come in. They generate narrow beams, which reduces energy loss and consequently heat emission.
Choosing laser lights keeps your entire lighting setup cool and enhances energy efficiency while providing ample brightness needed for functionality.
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Smart LED Strips to Paint with Light
LED strips are gaining more popularity in these times when neon signs have popped up as staple décor elements in modern creative lighting. They’re Easy to slap behind desks, shelves, wall panels, you name it. If you opt for the smart variants with controls via app or voice assistant, you can switch between moody purple and energising orange with ease.
Sometime back, we had one bloke from Manchester buy this Live Music with Guitar neon sign. In our little chit-chats, he said that he changes the light colours of his home studio depending on the music track he’s working on. He would chuck in soft greens or blues for the ambient stuff, and red for drill tracks. Big energy, obviously.
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Use Accent Lighting on Instruments
Another music studio lighting trick that gets your spirits high is to use accent lighting on your instruments. How does this work? If you have guitars hanging on the walls, a vintage keyboard, or a mic you bought from an antique shop, just light them up.
Small directional spotlights or puck lights are ideal here. It’s a subtle flex but loud when it comes to showing your visitors how seriously you take your music.
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Floor Lamps with Colour Control
What’s a better way to add height and drama to your studio than with a tall, adjustable floor lamp equipped with colour-changing bulbs? Stick it in a corner, point it upwards, and wash the wall with colour. Or you can let it cast a gentle halo around your studio gear.
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Choosing the Right Colour Temperature
We’ve briefly talked about colour temperature before, but it doesn’t hurt to put more emphasis. Generally, the mind is highly receptive to light colour temperature. Cool (blue) light stimulates hormones that increase attentiveness, while darker colours are important in sleep.
If you like to stay up late in your home music studio, we recommend installing cool lights. These will help you stay alert as you work through those projects with approaching deadlines. But for regular work hours, it’s totally fine to go with warm lights. Generally, warm temperatures (2700 to 3500K) are recommended, but if in doubt, work with a lighting expert to find what best suits your space.
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Backlit Wall Panels For That Sci-Fi Studio Look
We all have our childhood fantasies that have refused to let us live in peace. If you were a fan of Star Wars and still are, you can modify your home studio aesthetics to look like you’re recording in a spaceship. Choose wall panels with built-in LED backlighting.
To enhance the look further, add hexagonal shapes, textured finishes and RGB everything. These will create an attractive finish behind your desk setup and double up as acoustic treatment if you’re clever about your choices.
However, they’re not that cheap. But if your objective is to impress artists and other clients, or yourself, consider money well spent.
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Add Desk Lamps. Low-Key But Essential
Sometimes you just need a beam to shine on your MIDI keyboard or lyric notebook, when an inspiration kicks in at silly hours. A desk lamp can help you illuminate just the work area. For this, choose one with adjustable arms and a dimmer; you don’t want glare in your eyes while mixing, as this is a recipe for headaches.
A desk lamp is just unavoidable, especially if you have the rest of the studio up in colour.
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More Personalisation with Neon Signs
Are you a fan of do-it-yourself and have a music studio lighting DIY idea to enhance the appeal of your studio? One way to make it stand out and feel truly yours is to use a neon sign with a personal phrase or message that only you can relate to.
When it comes to DIYs, there’s no right or wrong way of doing it. You could pick a pink neon customised with your artist name, like “Dave’s Music Studio”, or an inspiring phrase like “Where Killer Music Is Made.” As long as this new décor piece inspires you, makes you feel creative, your lighting is perfectly okay.
If you already have a neon sign idea, use this free custom neon design tool with a live preview to customise it to your preference.
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Install Gobo Projector If You’re Feeling Extra
Want to take your music studio lighting a notch higher? Throw in a gobo projector. These décor piece casts patterns and shapes on the ceiling, wall or floor, like a galaxy swirl, city skyline, or even a fake window if you’ve set up the studio in a basement.
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Sound-Reactive Lights
These are a crowd-pleaser. Lights that flash, pulse, or change colour in response to your music. But be cautious with how you use them because they can easily turn into a distraction than an inspiration. For instance, use the sound-reactive lights when just enjoying your final recording after hours or days of working on it. They’re more about mood than precision.
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Blacklight Corners—Unexpected but Beautiful
Blacklight in a music studio sounds strange, right? However, if you have neon posters or a specific text or art on the wall that you want to glow, blacklight can bring a mysterious, almost rebellious edge. It works great in EDM or hip-hop-focused studio spaces.
Use it sparingly, though, unless you want your music studio to have a bowling alley look.
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Ambient Wall Washers
Walls washers make excellent music studio lighting, especially when you don’t want visible fixtures but still want that soft, ambient light flooding your walls. They add warmth, dimension, and can even make a squeezed studio seem more spacious. This can be particularly helpful in cramped bedroom corners turned music caves.
Wrapping It Up
When lighting up your music studio, whether it’s in the basement, a nook in your bedroom, or a full-fledge professional studio, think beyond light types. Factor in layers, combine ambient light, task light, and accent light to create a space that works for you and looks good too.
And always, we like to advise folks to test their music studio lighting in the actual spaces. What looks so magical in theory might cast shadows or blind artists during a take. If you’re not sure, just start small with a good music neon sign and a few LED strips. Then slowly build your way up as your studio evolves.
Let Oasis Neon Signs help you build custom lighting that can transform your space into an artistic haven. From pre-made to custom neon signs, we have the tools to transform your home studio into something that looks as good as it sounds.