Since Mr. i-5 broached the subject of backless chairs, here's another option:

IKEA TRAKTOR

I promise I'm not an IKEA affiliate or fanboy (altough they do have a great deal on breakfast at their cafeteria...)

I only mention it because it's kind of a cross between the SNILLE and the drum throne. The anatomically-molded seat could be a help or a hindrance, depending on your particular state of being. But this is basically a throne with wheels. I find the wheels to be a big help when I'm at any workstation, be it a computer desk or a lab bench. I think the reason is that the wheels encourage you to move and change position continuously & slightly, which helps to avoid repetitive strain (something I have suffered from but now am better, thank God).

Maybe it would be perfect if s=you could get the TRAKTOR with an anatomically padded seat, or a nice drum throne with wheels!

Hi Dean-

Although I don't feel like an expert on many of the things that pass through the forums, I've go t to tell you that as a guy who suffers from three degenerative discs and two bulgers, I know chairs.

The Herman Millers are awesome, but if you don't want to spend 8-bills, I understand completely. Stay away from the office stores, and consult the back-pain stores. I'm not sure where you live, but most metro-areas have back pain stores. Here in Colorado, we have Better Back Stores. A good place to start is Spine Universe (spineuniverse.com). They have links to different retailers. The retailer here has at least 30 different models of chairs from $200 - $2000.

Personally, I have a great wheeled office chair that was $399 (worth every penny), and one of those kneeling chairs that is also on wheels. The kneeling chair is awesome fro recording guitar and mixing and tweaking all at the same time. It also promotes playing with the guitar on a strap as when standing. My back is so thankful for this. I used to always sit in traditional chairs and play sitting down hunched over. This was bad for my back, and not the best for mastering the instrument for live use.

So, again, I suggest going to one of the back stores. They should have a superior high-grade inventory to try. Also, ours allows you to take a chair and try it for a few weeks, allowing for returns when a chair is not sufficient.

Good luck, and remember that sitting in your chair will have long-term influence on your body in ways that you won't realize when you're tracking or mixing your next hit.

Good luck with your purchase.

Just wanted to pass along this great chair and bargain I found (I never made to IKEA, yet, loseguy).

http://tgiblackfriday.com/Staples/Staples-Quickset-QS10-Luxura-Managers-Chair-deal

It normally sells for $150. But I found this expired coupon on line (from Thanksgiving!). I printed it out and they honored it! So I got it for $60. And the chair is really comfy too.
It's got memory foam . Not too adjustable tough. But awesome for $60.

ORIGINAL: losguy
I should also mention that I was running errands over lunch and I ran across this chair:

http://www.officemax.com/omax/catalog/sku.jsp?skuId=21101941&displayBreadCrumb=null&_requestid=3253252

It was the first mesh-backed chair that either didn't feel cheap, make noise, or cost an arm and a leg.

I have this chair, and have shortish legs. It's comfortable for me for VERY long periods of time (I've done 36 hours in it over a 48 hour period), and has acceptable Lumbar and Neck support adjustments.

Corey

ORIGINAL: marcos69

I have to use 2 chairs. One without arms so I can be comfortable sitting recording guitars. The other with arms so I can rest my arms while mixing. Keep that in mind.

I ended up getting something for around $100 from Office Depot and then left the right arm rest *off*. Sure, it *looks* a little goofy, but it gives you something to lean on *and* gives the guitar somewhere to go when you're playing it.

While we are on subject of back issues, I thought I'd pass along this link:

http://acapella.harmony-central.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1846085


It's from Craig Anderton's forum. Some really great advice.