New "studio" from scratch?

Okay. First off I'd like to introduce myself. I live in the US. I'm a pretty decent live sound engineer and I sing and play keyboard/piano. In all honesty, I don't know a lot about recording. My buddy has one of these things in his basement, but its a weird shaped room, sorta just a hobby. So, if you have any really basic threads to refer me to first, please do, and I apologize in advance for my ignorance. My goal: Have a small "studio" where I can make demo cd's or do small multi-track recording. In our basement we have three bedrooms. I'd like to convert one to a home recording studio. It's small, roughly about...8 X 12. Theres a door on the 8' side towards one corner. Theres a single window on the wall opposite the door wall. I'd like to slit the room into two, for a live room and control room. The walls are 2X4 walls, all unfinished inside. The backsides have Sheetrock on them, finished on the opposite side of the walls. I'd really like to keep my budget in the 2-3 thousand range, (but I really have NO idea) seeing I still have to buy equipment. My dad is in construction, and I know how to build walls and stuff like that, I just don't know how to soundproof, or what measures need to be taken to soundproof. Like I mentioned, its in a basement, concrete slab floor. So my questions: What am I getting myself into, first of all? Where should I start as far as finishing the room? How to acoustically treat the room? How to soundproof (goes with the last question too)? Anything else that might be relevant, please let me know. Again sorry for my ignorance.

Welcome to the forum! First off, there is a ton if info on this forum about soundproofing, so a search should help. You want to look for Mass-Air-Mass discussions. A good start would be to get a hold of Rod Gervais' book: "Home Recording Studio Build it Like the Pros" By Rod Gervais ISBN: 1-59863-034-2 Amazon Link for Rod's book Also, looking at your available dimensions, I would probably not split the room. You are going to end up with 2 rooms that are too small to be of use, and it will be very difficult to get a good sound out of them. (6' X 12") Best of luck, and all I can say is to take your time, get and read Rod's book, and do a lot of studying before you jump in... it will save you a ton of headaches in the long run.