Studio Desks, yes seriously

[redroomrecordings]

I could never find one i liked so i just built my own...overall im pretty happy with it, but there are definately some things i would change if i were to do it again.

pictures arnt the greatest...mind the dust ....and i definately need to take a day to clean up that mess or cable.

[RobotHeroes]

Nice. You gave me an idea the way your monitor shelf looks flat for the monitor but slanted in the front for your "viri". My audio interface could go in the gap under them and maybe a patchbay too.

Good thinking on that monitor/module shelf man.

[redroomrecordings]

Nice. You gave me an idea the way your monitor shelf looks flat for the monitor but slanted in the front for your "viri". My audio interface could go in the gap under them and maybe a patchbay too.

Good thinking on that monitor/module shelf man.

yea, the virus shelf was an afterthought...just added it about a month ago (built the desk almost two years ago)...

the nice thing is that this desk is all modular, it comes apart into 7 pieces for easy moving, and everything snaps or rests into place without screws or nails. even the desk surface sits on the two lower towers which just fit into grooves on the underside of the desk.

[pangmaster]

That desk does look cool! From the angle it sort of looks like you could remove the drawers and turn them into racks. It might just be the angle though and the drawers might not be wide enough. The silver frame and those black drawers look pretty ace. Are they made of metal? The black racks match the drawers too.

Thanks... 8) When I saw it I knew it was the desk for me, because at one point I was very close to buying one of these and that would have cost me a pretty penny. This solution only cost a few hundred for the desk and the racks, and I get just about the same workspace. I don't really care to have a keyboard controller at the computer, which is about the only thing I'm missing. All my boards are behind me.

The black drawers are made of metal and the entire drawer enclosures are easily removable, so I could probably use the space for more racks if I wanted to fabricate something to fit. The legs and crossbar are 1/2" thick solid steel and very heavy duty.

[redroomrecordings]

this will give you a better view of what's goin on with the virus shelf...it's actually a seperate unit from the monitor shelf so i can move it off if i ever change stuff around.

[RobotHeroes]

...I found a desk on CL. It was free but in need of some work. I was looking for more like the office desks with metal lets but none were really coming up and then I saw that one and thought I would check it out. Pretty big so lots of surface area that I have been wanting.

I already removed the drawers from it(they didn't look great), sanded it, stained it and will be doing the polyurethane this week. Since I don't have rack gear it's just a big desk for now. I will probably add some sort of shelving on the sides(probly for MS synths/space echo) and a slide out keyboard shelf. I am glad to get this project moving.

[chordmemories]

Revive!

I think this is the main problem I am having with starting my studio. The one desk that is perfect for me runs towards $700 and I don't think I can swing that given my current budget and the fact that I don't have any damn synths yet.

I am looking for something with 8RU under a shelf for a monitor and keyboard but mostly everything is too big. Minimum width for me has to be 46" but I can't really go past 54" comfortable. Room is 96" wide, and the desk needs to be centered so I can open the door on one side and have a KB rack on the other.

I am digging through Omnirax, Middle Atlantic, Studio RTA and Quik-Lok's websites, but I was wondering if anyone could think of anything else.

Thanks!

[otto]

I wouldn’t be so quick to shame Ikea. You can get solid wood desk tops and with some creativity you can really do a lot as far as designing a custom desk with various ikea components. I’m sure many of you have seen the 19” studio racks people have made with a bed-side table. I am going to finish most of my basement in the upcoming months and part of the will be my personal office/studio/man-cave/whatever. I plan to take full advantage of ikea to design a good “studio” desk to hold all of my synths, computer and rack gear so I can get rid of my ugly 3-tier stand.

[Solderman]

What I want to know is, where the f**k do you peeps with a s**t ton of gear put your 8 bus console?

Also, looking at that picture in the thread starter, if that really is an Andromeda A6 on a thin sliding rack, considering the synth weighs 47 pounds, I'm wondering how long it will stay there before crashing down directly onto your toes.

I'm happy just putting some tables together and scrunching up the whole setup in a U.

[hyphen nation]

I wouldn’t be so quick to shame Ikea. You can get solid wood desk tops and with some creativity you can really do a lot as far as designing a custom desk with various ikea components. I’m sure many of you have seen the 19” studio racks people have made with a bed-side table. I am going to finish most of my basement in the upcoming months and part of the will be my personal office/studio/man-cave/whatever. I plan to take full advantage of ikea to design a good “studio” desk to hold all of my synths, computer and rack gear so I can get rid of my ugly 3-tier stand.

Yeah, there is one particular Ikea desk, that I think is the Fredrick, that I had and traded to a friend of mine when we moved. I just went to their website, and it looks like the exterior shelves are no longer included, but maybe you can find them. When I got mine, I also got some shelves on swivels that were perfect for holding things like monitors and drum machines, and I mounted them on the outside of the vertical frame. It is all modular, so you can set the shelves to what ever configuration you want...

[killedaway]

[quote="hyphen nation"
Yeah, there is one particular Ikea desk, that I think is the Fredrick, that I had and traded to a friend of mine when we moved.[/quote]

the Fredrick is sort of the junior version of the j**k, which (in the US, anyway) will be mourned for dying off way too young. i think Ikea just figured out that the j**k was one of the few borderline professional products they sold and decided the profit margin wasn't high enough. i got mine just before they stopped selling them here, and it's awesome. i missed out on buyin any of the accessories, so i'm always scouring CL for any, but of course, people only want to sell them along with the desk, and thus far i don't need two behemoth desks in my studio. i can barely fit the one.

anyway, j**k can be found on CL for under 100 bucks (often much less). heavy, solid, and built like a stone wall, either model would make a great choice from which to start your studio desk.

[chordmemories]

IKEA seems to be doing the same thing with the Frederik. There used to be three sizes and now there is only one.

As for my own search, I think I am going to have to go with a rack on the side instead of mounting in desk. I am saving myself a lot of cash ($675 for desk + $480 for nice rolling rack = $1115 vs $170 for desk + $200 for rack = $370) but I don't know what I will do with all of those modules that are below knee level! I guess everyone has to deal with it.

[mung]

Today I started working on building a new desk for my keyboards.

It's going to be an l-desk, and today I started on one of the outer desks (not the corner piece.

Plans:



After my friend and I cut all the wood:



Without the shelving:


We're going to paint it when it's finished, but I'm still not sure what color would look best.

[Ashe37]

I've got some MDF sitting around from building a set piece that i may make a custom desk from...

[RobotHeroes]

Well I still am not done with the desk. I did sand, stain and satin clear coated it. I am on it right now actually and it has been in my room for quite a while now.

Summary of what has happened thus far:

*Sold old small glass desk
*Found desk on CL
--Removed drawers
--Reinforced desk after removal of said drawers
--Sanded, Stained, Sealed

Now I need to buy, most likely build, an off-desk shelf. Not sure if an undershelf keyboard slide shelf would fit perhaps though it can. That would be good enough for now since I don't have a need for racks right now. The desk is big at 72 inches by 36 inches. Def lots of desk surface that I didn't have before.