Garrett Norvell
New member
Hi all!
long-time lurker, first-time poster. I've been mucking about as a hobby composer for almost 20 years and finally have the opportunity to build a proper home studio in my new basement. Attached are 1. the current basement layout, 2. my initial box-within-a-box studio, 3. a coffin-within-a-box studio, and 4. pics of the space. My biggest sources of noise are the furnace/water heaters (we're in ohio now, so those will be on pretty much non-stop for the next 6 months) and my family walking around on the ceiling above. It is a poured concrete walls/floor, 8'8" to the bottom of the 12" wood joists; there is currently no insulation anywhere to be seen. It is a raw space, but has a lot of potential (I think).
Use: I will almost exclusively be recording my own vocals (rarely live drums or amped bass) so having a recording/mixing desk with a good listening position and a good mic'ing position in the same room is crucial. VERY unlikely to ever need to record a full band.
Goals: record clean pop vocals with fairly even frequency response; approach ZERO leakage of sound into or out of the recording/mixing space.
Space: about a third of the basement can be dedicated to a combined recording/mixing room, keeping a large chunk for storage and bar/lounge.
Questions
1. Should I bother BUILDING a studio? Or should I stick with my ClearSonic vocal booth, throw some acoustic foam and traps on the cement walls, and just be done with it?
2. IF building, is this the best part of the basement to use?
3. Should I bother making the coffin-shape? Or stick to a rectangle 19'x15.5'? Do I NEED it to be as wide as possible (or is the 19' length the important factor?) Any utility in making it more narrow??
4. If coffin, is there an optimal angle for the walls?
5. Am I even in the right ballpark for a diy build with a $10k budget? (I don't expect to ever MAKE money on my music)
Thanks in advance! If you'd like some LOL's follow along as I try to build this thing (o;
cheers n' blessings,
Garrett
long-time lurker, first-time poster. I've been mucking about as a hobby composer for almost 20 years and finally have the opportunity to build a proper home studio in my new basement. Attached are 1. the current basement layout, 2. my initial box-within-a-box studio, 3. a coffin-within-a-box studio, and 4. pics of the space. My biggest sources of noise are the furnace/water heaters (we're in ohio now, so those will be on pretty much non-stop for the next 6 months) and my family walking around on the ceiling above. It is a poured concrete walls/floor, 8'8" to the bottom of the 12" wood joists; there is currently no insulation anywhere to be seen. It is a raw space, but has a lot of potential (I think).
Use: I will almost exclusively be recording my own vocals (rarely live drums or amped bass) so having a recording/mixing desk with a good listening position and a good mic'ing position in the same room is crucial. VERY unlikely to ever need to record a full band.
Goals: record clean pop vocals with fairly even frequency response; approach ZERO leakage of sound into or out of the recording/mixing space.
Space: about a third of the basement can be dedicated to a combined recording/mixing room, keeping a large chunk for storage and bar/lounge.
Questions
1. Should I bother BUILDING a studio? Or should I stick with my ClearSonic vocal booth, throw some acoustic foam and traps on the cement walls, and just be done with it?
2. IF building, is this the best part of the basement to use?
3. Should I bother making the coffin-shape? Or stick to a rectangle 19'x15.5'? Do I NEED it to be as wide as possible (or is the 19' length the important factor?) Any utility in making it more narrow??
4. If coffin, is there an optimal angle for the walls?
5. Am I even in the right ballpark for a diy build with a $10k budget? (I don't expect to ever MAKE money on my music)
Thanks in advance! If you'd like some LOL's follow along as I try to build this thing (o;
cheers n' blessings,
Garrett