What I'm really looking to turn it into is a decent-sounding tracking, mixing, and practicing environment. The basement is and as far as I can tell has always been dry, so that is not an issue. The size is pretty okay, and while you can't see it from the pictures, there is a decent size utility room on the right side of the room which I could probably cut into and make a small iso space if I had to, as well as an unfinished closet to the left that could probably be finished easily, and the basement walks to a 2 car garage, so if for some reason I really needed more isolation, I could put someone in there.
What I want to decide on is if I should leave it an "open" room, or if it is worth trying to make a control room also (or if that will eat up too much space, budget). I personally think I'd be fine with the open environment for now and don't think that'd be an issue. Also, right now the floor is frieze carpet...brand new actually, would it make sense to rip this out and replace it with something else, or is it not worth it? What would I replace it with? The walls currently are that cheapo paneling that's really thin....I'm definitely planning on replacing that, as I was kind of hoping to be able to hang guitars/shelves on the walls, and its definitely not sturdy enough for that. The ceiling isn't all that high, probably 7 feet. When I take down the wall paneling I will probably want to run some cables in the walls so there isn't a huge mess of wires everywhere...
So I guess then what should I consider acoustically in this room? I do have to operate on some kind of budget, but I am willing to put some money into it...though I'd rather avoid doing too many things that wouldn't add to the resale value of the house, I'm not planning on selling the house in the next 5 years or so probably, but that doesn't mean I won't 10 years down the line. I'd really like to be able to track drums/other instruments down here decently, maybe not a full band at once space considering.
Things to consider... I'm not a commercial engineer at this point, but would like to at least be able to offer some kind of recording services in my home rather than the added expense of going to a pro room... Still, most of this investment is for my personal use only, I don't expect to make a huge return on it or make a day job out of it. I can probably do most of the construction myself or I can get help if I need it...so labor will be free. I would like to remain value conscious in the investment into the room...would like to DIY everything that's reasonably possible, and only focus on the major issues rather than the small details. And I'd like to keep the room pseudo-useful if I sold the house, as in, a room that would be able to still serve other purposes.
Thanks for any insight any of you folks may offer...
