San Antonio, TX (August 19, 2026)—In November 1936, Robert Johnson recorded 16 tracks in a hotel room inside San Antonio’s Gunter Hotel—and became a legend. The three-day session with producer Don Law in Room 414 marked the first time an artist recorded in the historic building, now 117 years old, but it won’t be the last, as the Gunter Hotel has just opened a brand-new, modern recording studio as part of a $57 million renovation.
The Gunter Studio, designed by producer/musician Michael Ramos and acoustician Steve Durr, will be offered by the hotel as a resource for regional musicians, artists visiting the hotel, and both students and nonprofits in the community.
Located on the hotel’s second floor, Gunter Studio sports a live room and control room, the latter based around a Neve Genesys Black 48-channel hybrid mixing console. A credenza nearby features a curated selection of outboard gear from Universal Audio, Neve, Manley and Pultec, and monitoring is handed via Focal Trio studio monitors. An in-house engineer handles every booking and the hotel expects to host groups of six to eight people per session.
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Recognizing that some visiting musicians may want to play in the fabled space where Johnson made history, Room 414 can be recorded in remotely, with audio sent downstairs to Gunter Studio
“We wanted to make sure this studio has everything a professional recording facility should have,” said Ramos. “We worked to configure a layout that maximizes the acoustic properties of the space. Recording at the Gunter is more than a standard session; it’s an opportunity to leave your mark on a place rich with musical history.”
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The hotel is launching the studio with public showings starting tonight, and continuing August 26, September 2, and September 9, each time open from 6-7 p.m. prior to its Singer Songwriter Series, taking place in the adjacent Studio Lounge bar.
