Beatsmith - I totally agree that the space(s) are more important than gear... I'd definitely put money toward a space before 'extra' gear if the budget wasn't ideal, and it never is
I'm just trying to be hypothetical here about getting money in the first place.
Lifted - Heh, business is alright, but I definitely don't own anywhere near the gear I'm talking about. BUT, without giving too much away, I see a pretty strong potential for a certain kind of studio out here. There are lots of home and project studios, only a handful of professional ones. But coming up with the capital to make my idea happen... well... that's part of the reason I started this post: to see how others had done it.