the home studio

Do you have a Mac or a PC? What software are you already using to grab the audio from the minidisc?

Does your minidisc have a digital out?

nah that's the biggest problem with the minidisc, i can (as far as i can tell) only deal directly with its files through the specific software, which doesn't seem to run on windows 7. and even if i could get the software to run, it seems that converting the files out of the sony format is still a pain. so atm i just have a shoddy line out direct to laptop, recording it in audacity. though i also have ableton, i assume that could be a better option.

ogmor, i record pretty much every sound i bother to make! lots of lo-fi loop pedal noodling here https://soundcloud.com/eeeeeein

For micing a guitar cab you'll want something like an SM57, which really needs a pre-amp/USB interface to connect it to the computer. For that I use one of these http://tascam.com/product/us-144mkii/

oh and a mic stand of course

that's useful, thanks. The SM57 is famously useful for micing anything you'd ever want to mic, right? And would a mixer with USB output do the job of the Tascam thing? Something like http://www.gear4music.com/PA-DJ-and-Lighting/MIX02AU-6-Channel-Mini-Mixer-with-USB-by-Gear4music/K82 but less rubbish than that particular one probably is?

The 57 is versatile, definitely can be used for guitar cabs, drums. For acoustic guitar it's reasonable but not great. I use mine for vocals as well (with an external pop shield), but I'm a fairly basic singer so a more expensive mic would be a waste for me. The stereo Sony mic you mentioned earlier would probably be better for acoustic guitar. But I don't know how you'd connect it directly to a PC - through the line in perhaps? Maybe someone else can confirm that. I use a Zoom H1 (micro SD card recorder) for acoustic guitar anyway. I mix in the box, and I've never owned a mixer with a USB output, so I don't know how that might work out.

Talk to me about sound-blocking/sound-absorbing curtains -- I want to hang one over each of three doorways (one to the garage, one to the crawlspace, one to the main floor of my house) and another one over the basement stairway. Primary goal is to reduce sound leakage out of the basement so as not to bother my family/neighbors, but dampening some of the reverberation within the basement would be nice as well. Eventually intend to take additional acoustical measures but this is the first step. What kind of curtains/sheets/blankets whatever should I use?