studio design/ builder

hello, this is my first post, though i've been checkin out the site for a while now. . . i haven't heard talk of anyone hiring a studio designer/ builder. mostly i need someone to help me design a basement studio and get me started building (i have a few workers) in my new house. i have all my gear, but don't know much about building. i was wondering if there is anyone out there that i can hire to help me with this. thanks, mike i'm looking to have a CR, live/tracking room, vox booth, and 1 or 2 iso booths depending on space. . .in just over 600 square ft. and just under 8' ceilings. i'm in NJ an hour west of NYC.

Most of us here do our designing and building ourselves, mainly because of budget restrictions. As far as building goes, many of us know just enough about construction to be really, really dangerous. You can hire a regular home-builder to do the studio construction, but you need to make sure you can trust his work and his opinion, and you have to make it clear to him that all the weird stuff you want him to do is for a reason. Most guys in the builder's field have never built a recording studio, so when you tell 'em you need double-walls and 2 or 3 layers of drywall on each side their eyes start to glaze over. We'll help with your design if you need it- there's already a whole mess of simple layouts floating around, so give us a rough size of how much space you have and we'll get you started...

The trouble with personally hiring a contractor or carpenter to build everything from YOUR plans, he is working from a standard building practices point of view. On the other hand, IF he is performing work that an ARCHITECT designs, then he can't say a WORD. He either does it to the specifications or it gets torn out. AT THE CONTRACTORS expense. If the contractor has to rely on just your words, or a simple plan, OWNER BEWARE. Unless YOU can draw every little detail, your asking for trouble. A contractor will cut corners every time they can, and with studio construction, this can be a catastrophy. This is why I keep advocating the use of a professional designer, who is knowledgeable in studio and acoustical concepts, practices and materials, and can detail a set of plans that will COMPLY with local building codes. If he agrees to do the documentation and submittal portion of the permitting process, then you are guaranteed that it will get through compliance approval, and if he also agrees to oversee the contract bid and inspection process, you are then guaranteed it will get built correctly too. However, these are additional fees usually. But WELL worth it, as being your own general contractor, with OUT expertise in the construction process and legal bidding process, can lead to a bunch of headaches and possibly a studio that DOESN"T work like it is supposed to. I know most people that visit here do not have the luxury of a budget that affords the use of a studio designer or professional oversight of their project. And that is why they come here. And some simply enjoy DIY projects. However, if you have NO experience with construction or design, you run the risk of wasting a lot of money and time, as EVEN getting a permit requires COMPLIANCE with local codes and the Building Inspection Dept will require a set of plans to verify if your design indeed complys. If you do build it WITHOUT a permit, should anything happen like a fire, you run the risk of insurance cancellation, or the voiding of it should it be discovered there was no permit to build issued. So weigh your options carefully. A lot more is at stake than a budget constraint. Well, thats my .02 anyway. fitZ

In terms of hiring a designer - hire John to do a few phone calls. He does them by the hour and they are invaluable. I bought 3 hours (when the US dollar was stronger :)) and used them up over 12 months - two at the start and one around 12 months later - I couldn't have built my studio without those 3 hours. There is only so much you can read without getting confused, but you can really discuss a lot in an hour call.