Gennett Records operated a studio whose reception room and engineering office occupied a 20 by 30 foot space, with a small waiting room leading to the studio entrance, a railroad siding just outside the door serving the factory complex, a work bench along the east wall where blank recording masters were prepared, and the recording engineer's desk against the west wall where master recordings were entered in the log book by title, artist, and number. A doorway on the left side of the north wall led into the recording studio, and a nearby window allowed the engineer to watch performers such as Hoagy Carmichael, Louis Armstrong, and others recording. The 20 by 30 foot studio housed an original acoustic-powered recording lathe, a turntable driven by a heavy suspended weight mechanism rather than electricity. During recording sessions, performers gathered before a large horn and were positioned according to their individual loudness, a method used until 1927, when electric recording replaced it. Heavy black drapes covered the studio walls, and an Oriental rug from the Gennett Mansion helped deaden sound, while the wax-carbon recording masters required a studio temperature of 85 degrees, making fans necessary.