Buying 1st home - what should I look for in regards to building home studio?

[M|\tt]

Hello, everyone.

I come to these boards seeking assistance with a major life event: buying my first home.

I'm a bedroom musician, who does everything 'in the box' as far as recording goes. I want to make sure I get everything I need in a home purchase that will allow me to expand my operation to having dedicated, respectable space for recording.

I'm not looking to spend more than $200k on the house (to give you an idea of the resources I have to work with--that plus, I want to pay off the house ASAP).

To be honest, I am overwhelmed with my lack of acoustics/studio-needs knowledge in addition to the expected amount of overload that a first-time home buyer typically faces. I can handle everything else related to the home stuff, but considering that one of my major reasons for buying a home is to have my own quality studio setup, I want to make sure I know what to look for in a home--because I don't see myself relocating to another for a good while.

Here are a few of my assumed topics that I might need information on:

- I would think I would need to know something about acoustics?
- room wall thickness and insulation?
- should I look for a dedicated studio room to be located in any particular place in a home for any particular reason (for example: the basement, the 1st floor, 2nd floor, etc)?
- Is there a certain sophistication of wiring that I'll want to ensure a home is capable of powering?
- venting (air and heat)?
- I understand that I might have to have certain factors built after I purchase (reinforced walls for sound isolation?), but with that in mind, are there certain things I should look for in regards to being able to have that work done?

I don't plan on building my dream studio overnight, but it is very important to me that I have everything in place for me to build it up as I go along. Again, having the perfect studio for my personal needs (mostly just me, and possible a few other people to occupy at the same time) is the real reason I want to buy a house in the first place. I'd hate to buy a home only to find out that I wished I had done so differently!

Phew, thanks for reading. I'm really not sure where to start looking/reading. I would absolutely adore any tips, leads, life lessons and/or guides that could help me out. I know this is WAY broad of a topic to post here, but I hope my anxiety on the subject can be appreciated!

Thanks so much!

 

[AtoDeficient]

- I would think I would need to know something about acoustics?
- room wall thickness and insulation?
- should I look for a dedicated studio room to be located in any particular place in a home for any particular reason (for example: the basement, the 1st floor, 2nd floor, etc)?
- Is there a certain sophistication of wiring that I'll want to ensure a home is capable of powering?
- venting (air and heat)?
- I understand that I might have to have certain factors built after I purchase (reinforced walls for sound isolation?), but with that in mind, are there certain things I should look for in regards to being able to have that work done?

Wall thickness? . . . Older homes are better for that.

Basement room? Older homes are worse for that- Basements of older homes were never designed to be finished. They were utility access and maybe storage, but they are usually damp, and the remedies for that can be expensive. .

Electrical?. . . 200 Amp Service is standard today, I think. . . I had mine upped to 200 amp when I bought my home, and had the fuse boxes replaced with a circuit breaker panel. . Expansion or dedicated lines can be added easily enough by a PROFESSIONAL.

Heating?. . I would avoid any forced-air heating system. . It blows dust around through the house (and dust is bad), and it only heats the air. . . When it turns off, there is no heat. . I have hot water cast iron baseboards. . When the furnace turns off, they stay hot . . .

Sound isolation ?. . . Buy a large piece of property in the country, and I'm not making a joke. . . Privacy is the best isolation. . .

Just my two cents. .

 

[miroslav]

Honestly...I would focus on buying the house for living, and then just look for one that also has the right space/size room(s) that will become your studio.
I don't think it's going to matter much about the constructing of the house, since most houses are not built with studios in mind, so no matter what, you're going be doing some work to turn it into a studio. Of course, real old houses probably have more issues with electric, plumbing, etc...but that's going to be an issue for living too, not just studio needs.

You can take most decent spaces and turn them into some kind of studio space. A lot depends on what your dream studio is going to be used for....personal project space or full-tilt commercial recording? Both will require decent acoustics, but usually, for a personal recording space, you don't need to try and meet someone else's expectations (paying public)...it's just your space.
Also...while having a studio built from the ground up will always end up being the best option....people have done recording in all kinds of spaces and gotten great results...so in the end, it comes down to your budget and your goals.

I would focus on buying a nice house in a nice area...and then look for one that has the extra room(s) for your studio.

 

[chronicle]

what should I look for in regards to building home studio?

1. A local cheap studio. Buy close to it.
2. A wife who doesn't control the checkbook or is rich and generous
3. Deaf neighbors
4. No neighbors
5 Concrete or brick construction
6 Community of vain and financially endowed musicians
7 A bottomless pit of patience
8. A new hobby
9. see #1

 

[AtoDeficient]

. . . having the perfect studio for my personal needs (mostly just me, and possible a few other people to occupy at the same time) is the real reason I want to buy a house in the first place. . . . . I hope my anxiety on the subject can be appreciated!

It most certainly can be. . . I too had a studio space very high on my list when I was home shopping. . . And there's nothing wrong with that. The advice about buying a house to live in first makes sense, but if your hobby was cars, you'd want a garage, and if it were dogs, you'd maybe want a large fenced yard. . So find a house with suitable finished rooms and/or a large, clean, dry, high-ceiling basement and build a home studio that suits your OWN needs. . . make YOURSELF happy, regardless of the many opinions (mine included) that you'll get on boards like this one and others. . . The sarcasm you may get is largely because many of us have dropped ALOT of money on the project, and in that sense, it is not for the faint of heart, light of wallet, or all thumbs with power tools. . . They mean well, it's just a big project that always seems to get bigger as you go, but satisfying and worthwhile if you're serious about recording.