How do you set up your working space? Any special furniture?

Discuss your workplace, instruments, amps, and any other gear.

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fcahoon
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How do you set up your working space? Any special furniture?

Post by fcahoon »

I'm trying to come up with a working space where I can actually use the equipment I've acquired over the years. In particular, I have a Fatar 88-key weighted controller keyboard that's pretty much in disuse because I can't easily use my computer with it. I'm thinking about buying or building a studio desk of some sort to solve this problem, but my space is pretty tight. I'm hoping to see how others have solved this issue. Please, post pictures if you have a good solution!
rango
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Re: How do you set up your working space? Any special furnit

Post by rango »

Real studio furniture looks great (I've never had any). My experience is hobby level home use. If you are wood-working enabled you can probably make something that will be best for you. I've cobbled together U-shaped arrangements, pushed racks (back in the days of hardware effects!) over by the table, but it can be hard to not make the whole room a tripping hazard.

It also depends on what you are doing. My main use has become using Ardour, so my concern has been trying to get half-way decent monitoring, and ease of use. My keyboards are all on one wall, guitars/amps are on another. I use Ardroid on a junk laptop with Android installed. It provides basic transport control, no more hitting record and running! If you've got a bunch of keyboards a patchbay can reduce wire clutter.

I started out monitoring/mixing on home stereo amp/speakers. The result sounded good often, but never sounded good everywhere. One of the best investments I have made are half-decent near-field monitors with a real monitor amp. Near-field reduces the need for extensive room treatment, which is a whole can of worms in itself. I played with foam for a long time, but since I could set up the room 'long-ways' the best thing for me was Ethan Winer's advice about the "38% rule". Bass traps in the corners, a little foam on the side walls.

Now my furniture is a basic computer desk with a raised shelf that will hold two monitors, monitor amp fits below it in easy reach. Best of all, I can walk to it without tripping over wires!
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Re: How do you set up your working space? Any special furnit

Post by English Guy »

I do not have the luxury of a dedicated workspace, I am however careful to pack my gear into 'kits' so that it is easy to find and get out the gear I need and pack it away afterwards.
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Re: How do you set up your working space? Any special furnit

Post by ssj71 »

I don't have the image of my setup anywhere I can post it right now, but I have a casio 88 key weighted keyboard and originally set it up behind my computer keyboard, but it ended up being too bulky to keep on the desk. I found a smaller midi keyboard (actually the keytar from the rockband game that I found $3 second hand) that I keep on the desk and the piano goes on the side of the room. When I want to play piano I use it, otherwise for simple midi entry the little keytar is fine. If I had more space I'd place it right or left of my chair on a keyboard stand s (u-shape) o I could swivel back and forth from computer to piano. Side of the room is a couple steps away but close enough for now.

For wiring my secret is just zip tie cables to furniture legs and a big cable cover on the floor. everything goes to that side of the room then through that cover to my desk in the middle. With lots of gear if you keep it connected you'll probably have a lot more cables than I. I only have power, ethernet, a usb cable, and a midi cable. Perhaps a 2" high false floor behind your desk and run everything along the walls to there.
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Re: How do you set up your working space? Any special furnit

Post by GMaq »

Hi,

Recently I got away from using a desk and bought a laptop stand (my main recording PC is a laptop) and I really like it, it saves space and can be easily tucked into a corner when not in use. If I'm tracking guitars and/or vocals I can set the laptop up to standing height and have it handy for punching in and out, If I want to sit I can adjust it down just as easily. I also had a machinist friend fab me up a little bracket so I could add a small metal shelf for my USB recording interface so I can keep it all together on one little stand.. The stand has an included slide out mousepad but it's a little cramped for a full size mouse so I bought a small retractable optical mouse and it works well.

Here is the stand: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/6 ... ripod.html
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