DIY network had a show (Home Transformations - Music Room) on building a studio into your home last night on cable. Here is a link to the story about the show.. All kinds of good stuff in there. Staggered stud wall with the mass loaded vinyl laced inside, control room window construction, floating floor, etc.


Part 1
http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/shows_dhtr/episode/0,2046,DIY_19141_42465,00.html

Part 2
http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/shows_dhtr/episode/0,2046,DIY_19141_42466,00.html

Your points are all well received. I have some clients, but not enough to be considered a commercial facility. My wife and I have talked about me going to 1/2 time in a few years when I have more clients, but who knows how that will pan out.

Looks like I’ll have to rethink the project.

We have also talked about using a couple of our spare bedrooms for the studio, but that may prevent late night recording sessions if we have kids.

Back to square 1…

as in kevin bottrell?

markus

No, markus, Kevin Gilbert. Bill Bottrell (one of my favorite producers) worked with Kevin on "The Shaming of the True" and Kevin's Toy Matinee projects. While I credit Kevin with an immense amount of talent, I still say it was Bill Bottrell that made those records sound so great. He also co-engineered and produced Thom Dolby's "Aliens Ate My Buick" which I still use to test monitors with. Sonically impeccable.

ORIGINAL: yorolpal

No, markus, Kevin Gilbert. Bill Bottrell (one of my favorite producers) worked with Kevin on "The Shaming of the True" and Kevin's Toy Matinee projects. While I credit Kevin with an immense amount of talent, I still say it was Bill Bottrell that made those records sound so great. He also co-engineered and produced Thom Dolby's "Aliens Ate My Buick" which I still use to test monitors with. Sonically impeccable.

Yes ! Aliens Ate My Buick is a fantastic CD (IMHO Dolby's best work ever) and sadly out of print. However, I've been able to buy them on e-bay for friends.

I didn't get a chance to read the whole thread so if this is a repeat sorry, but this is an awesome site for Studio design

ORIGINAL: cAPSLOCK

...Sometimes I think folks get so wrapped up in the ideals they forget that the whole idea we are talking about is just a place to record music...

And sometimes, folks are now able to fulfill a lifelong "dream". They want, and can afford, to do so starting from scratch so that, in bringing the dream to fruition, they can feel reasonably confident that they won't have any regrets about their efforts in the future.

I realize that some great records have been produced on tour buses, in hotel rooms, in dressing rooms, in bedrooms, etc.,...But that isn't the issue here. Barthowk seems to want a decent studio facility (and he has his wife's approval! -- How the hell did he manage that? ) in which he can record drums and have an iso booth and separate control room, so I never considered advising him to ditch that idea and simply convert a closet into a control room and another closet into an iso booth and run mic lines to his dining room for recording drums (after, of course, convincing his wife that all the stuff in the dining room will have to be moved whenever a drummer comes in), etc., etc.,...

This isn't about forgetting the "creative" reason behind why we do this...It's about creating a comfortable and functioning environment in which to do so...Frankly, and I mean no offense to anyone, I don't want "just a place to record music"...

The technological advances (in software, mics, preamps, etc.,) have made studio quality recording accessible to more people than ever before...Settling for "just a place..." is really defeating the purpose of purchasing those tools...Why not just set up a couple of room mics and hit the record button on a cassette deck? Yeah, I know that's kinda simplifying things but my opinion is to take things a little more seriously if you really want to make good recordings...

Just my 2¢ worth...

ORIGINAL: papa2004

ORIGINAL: cAPSLOCK

...Sometimes I think folks get so wrapped up in the ideals they forget that the whole idea we are talking about is just a place to record music...

And sometimes, folks are now able to fulfill a lifelong "dream". They want, and can afford, to do so starting from scratch so that, in bringing the dream to fruition, they can feel reasonably confident that they won't have any regrets about their efforts in the future.

I realize that some great records have been produced on tour buses, in hotel rooms, in dressing rooms, in bedrooms, etc.,...But that isn't the issue here. Barthowk seems to want a decent studio facility (and he has his wife's approval! -- How the hell did he manage that? ) in which he can record drums and have an iso booth and separate control room, so I never considered advising him to ditch that idea and simply convert a closet into a control room and another closet into an iso booth and run mic lines to his dining room for recording drums (after, of course, convincing his wife that all the stuff in the dining room will have to be moved whenever a drummer comes in), etc., etc.,...

This isn't about forgetting the "creative" reason behind why we do this...It's about creating a comfortable and functioning environment in which to do so...Frankly, and I mean no offense to anyone, I don't want "just a place to record music"...

The technological advances (in software, mics, preamps, etc.,) have made studio quality recording accessible to more people than ever before...Settling for "just a place..." is really defeating the purpose of purchasing those tools...Why not just set up a couple of room mics and hit the record button on a cassette deck? Yeah, I know that's kinda simplifying things but my opinion is to take things a little more seriously if you really want to make good recordings...

Just my 2¢ worth...

AMEN! Preach it brothA!

Barthowk:

Last night I was talking to my partner about your dilemna, and it got me to thinking... what recording equipment do you currently own? If you're already set up with a fairly nice set of gear, just building the space shouldn't be all that bad... we built our space (admittedly, in an existing building) for about $10-15k, after sitting down and doing the estimates last night. We already owned a nice mic kit, most of the cabling, some sound treatment materials, the board and our recording unit, plus a half dozen computers that could handle a varying amount of computing. If you're in that situation, it really shouldn't be that bad.

I still think you should consider the parking area as a "main tracking area" if you're going the 2-story garage route. Heck, here's a Menards building that would probably make a fantastic studio/garage, at least as a starting point:

http://www.menards.com/featuredProjects.do?sortBy=title&page=0&type=Specialty&totalPages=1&dispatch=showOneGarage&code=1954605

If you went this route and followed the instructions on this page for reducing sound transmission:

http://www.controlnoise.com/common_wall_noise.html

You'd probably have a great start, and still have $5k or more to outfit other things about your studio.

Just throwing it out there... lots of options for you to look into. I hope you find a way to make it happen, man! I spent the last three nights in the basement recording two different projects, and it was so much fun.

Corey

Gee what am I? Mr. Gloom & Doom? Oh well. The Menard bldg that Corey mentions above looks good. Looks good. But pre-fab kits are just that...kits for YOU to build out. And many times their specs and contents are not up to snuff. In fact here's what they themselves say regarding this unit: *You may buy all the materials or any part at low cash and carry prices. Because of the wide variables in codes, Menards cannot guarantee the material list will meet your code requirements. These are suggested designs and material lists only. Some items may vary from those pictured. We do not guarantee the completeness or prices of these garages. Labor, concrete floor/foundation, steel beams, paint, electrical, heating, plumbing and delivery not included. Please inquire at the building materials desk. Some special order truss sizes must be jobsite delivered. Delivery is extra* In short, you pay roughly $15,000 for the kit and then you still need elec. plumbing, concrete etc....and all LABOR (your single biggest cost). And this kit will be for what is know in the trade as "builders grade" materials. Which might sound good but which actually means lowest grade that will pass code. And this kit will be delivered (extra cost) all at one time. But you don't need the materials all at one time so you'll have to protect them from theft, weather, etc... until they roll up on the build schedule. The space alone to store the materials could well be problematic. Please don't get me wrong, Corey's idea might be just what you're looking for. But if I recall you are not a "handy man", right? And any contractor/crew you hire to "assemble" your kit will almost certainly want to choose their own materials. There is a pretty big difference in rehabing (as Corey and I have both done recently) an existing building and building one from scratch.