Ideas for Hiding Studio Equipment/Gear

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GraysonPeddie
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Ideas for Hiding Studio Equipment/Gear

Post by GraysonPeddie »

Hi everyone. I have been doing some research regarding hiding studio equipment when using a room as a home office. Basically, I do not want any studio equipment/gear to be visible all the time when giving a home office a clean, minimalistic look.

I did a search for rackmount enclosure; however, the enclosures that have doors have some kind of glass or a mesh look and I want my rackmount equipment to have a "closed" look with a solid door. Plus, when it comes to desktop modules that are not rack-mountable, such as ASM Hydrasynth, I would want any non-rack-mountable equipment to be closed off when not in use.

Here's the rack-mount enclosure I have searched for, but unfortunately the door is not solid instead of glass or mesh.
https://www.amazon.com/Sysracks-Server- ... 08YDJ4X32/

I've also found a sliding tray, but I don't know if there are any eurorack cases out there that will fit in that tray.
https://www.amazon.com/Penn-Elcom-R1290 ... 0006MZMGY/

If I'm going to go with an open frame rack and an open shelf instead, then perhaps I should take a DIY approach and build a big enclosure with a shade that opens and closes vertically. Closing the shade will hide all the equipment when I want a nice clean look when not in use. Has anyone done something like that?

While unrelated to the topic, my desktop computer will be in a server closet next to a home office in the future. I have written about this in my blog here. That way, the computer will get plenty of cooling without it being closed off (the door to the server will remain closed when not in the server room and there will be a vent for air conditioning).
https://graysonpeddie.com/my-dream-home ... e-theater/

The idea with making use of Ethernet-based USB extender is that the desktop computer can be treated as a mainframe and the monitor, keyboard, and mouse can be treated like a dumb terminal.
https://www.amazon.com/AV-Access-Extend ... =pd_sbs_2/

HDMI will travel separately as the USB extender is not a KVM. If you read my blog, a fiber optical HDMI cable will be used as there aren't any HDMI 2.1-capable Ethernet-based KVM devices out in the market. If you have a desktop computer sitting right next to your monitor, keyboard, and mouse with tempered glass side panel(s) and RGB lighting, this is the reason why I want to keep my computer out of sight, out of mind. Besides, I'll be looking at my monitor and not my computer. Even without RGB lighting, a computer case with glass side panel is still considered a distraction. Basically, I plan to go with mainframe/dumb terminal approach in the future.

The reason why I covered this that is not related to hiding studio equipment behind a closed door/shade is I might get questions about hiding a computer in there. Hopefully I can cover all the bases when necessary.
Last edited by GraysonPeddie on Wed Sep 22, 2021 12:40 pm, edited 4 times in total.
--Grayson Peddie

Music Interest: New Age w/ a mix of modern smooth jazz, light techno/trance & downtempo -- something Epcot Future World/Tomorrowland-flavored.
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Re: Ideas for Hiding Studio Equipment/Gear

Post by raboof »

(I removed some offtopic joking around here, let's get back on topic)
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Re: Ideas for Hiding Studio Equipment/Gear

Post by bmarkham »

Have you considered building a custom piece of furniture for this?

The dimensions needed are standard. You can build it with 2x4s, some 1x2s and some plywood. Get some hinge hardware, some stain and some poly and -- shazam, you have exactly what you need.

You can use 1x2s to make rails for sliding in your gear, put your non-rack stuff on shelving, leave plenty of room in back for audio and midi cables, and make some nice closing doors to hide it all.

I know not everyone has the interest/skills for this, but I think this is something a high beginner wood shop guy can do.
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Re: Ideas for Hiding Studio Equipment/Gear

Post by GraysonPeddie »

That will require me a dedicated room for woodworking unless I plan to build a two-car garage in the future.

Thanks.
--Grayson Peddie

Music Interest: New Age w/ a mix of modern smooth jazz, light techno/trance & downtempo -- something Epcot Future World/Tomorrowland-flavored.
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Re: Ideas for Hiding Studio Equipment/Gear

Post by glowrak guy »

Have some back-up drives stored off-site.

A twin of you main computer would be good luck

Verify with your insurance agent, how to prove your various ownerships, and get them on
the record.

A fancy car or two in the driveway attracts the rats to your cheese. Nice older cars, not so much,
Be disciplined about garaging them.

Multiple steel security doors between thieves and synths is good. Speed matters to thieves.

A stash room with flat eyelevel and ankle-level deadbolts, peaking through a hole in a slab of
fastened plywood, on a door that swings out, protects the entry from sledghammer assaults.
Reinforce the interior jamb with a custom lag-bolted full length striker plate, so a kick-in wont be easy

If a trip out of town means taking out the garbage early, and or leaving the empty out past
the time every one else tales theirs in, make arrangements for someone to hide the fact
that your normal routine has changed.

Flowering thorn bushes by windows are good luck, as are interior barred windows,
with easy release locks in case of fire.

If a George Soros funded prosecutor has been elected where you live, moving to the next county
lacking one, would be lucky.

I screenshot online purchases, and save them with textfiles of serial numbers, and
related urls, copied to all drives.
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Re: Ideas for Hiding Studio Equipment/Gear

Post by Michael Willis »

A few years ago I wanted to arrange my space to be more about the music and less about the computer. I bought the BRUSALI Corner desk from Ikea. There is a lot of room to hide equipment under and behind the desk. If you are willing to drill some holes and have some small-ish components that you want access to (like a small sound interface or hardware effects module), you could tuck them away on the shelves and wire them through the back.

This is how it turned out:

Image
Last edited by Michael Willis on Sun Sep 26, 2021 1:50 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Ideas for Hiding Studio Equipment/Gear

Post by glowrak guy »

Nice setup for stress-free recording! I think I would flip the drumkit,
so I could rotate the rolling chair for quick beat auditions, but maybe the corner
space saving is more important for an actual drummer, who knows what they are doing.
Are the video monitors identical? What desktop interface is in use?
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Re: Ideas for Hiding Studio Equipment/Gear

Post by GraysonPeddie »

Michael Willis wrote: Fri Sep 24, 2021 7:01 pm A few years ago I wanted to arrange my space to be more about the music and less about the computer. I bought the BRUSALI Corner desk from Ikea. There is a lot of room to hide equipment under and behind the desk. If you are willing to drill some holes and have some small-ish components that you want access to (like a small sound interface or hardware effects module), you could tuck them away on the shelves and wire them through the back.
Interesting. I don't think I see a computer case in the picture (either custom-built or prebuilt).

I could see myself buying an electronic drum kit that can be disassembled, put in a bag, and hide it when I'm not using them.
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Re: Ideas for Hiding Studio Equipment/Gear

Post by Michael Willis »

GraysonPeddie wrote: Fri Sep 24, 2021 10:31 pm Interesting. I don't think I see a computer case in the picture (either custom-built or prebuilt).
That's the idea. The case is hidden behind the desk. It's by the right side of the curtains.
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Re: Ideas for Hiding Studio Equipment/Gear

Post by Michael Willis »

glowrak guy wrote: Fri Sep 24, 2021 8:17 pm Nice setup for stress-free recording!
Thanks! After years of collecting audio equipment and living in a few different places that didn't have a good space for it, I finally set up this recording space in 2021.
glowrak guy wrote: Fri Sep 24, 2021 8:17 pm I think I would flip the drumkit,
so I could rotate the rolling chair for quick beat auditions
Oh, that's a good idea. I was thinking that I would like to give the percussionist eye contact with other musicians, but with the pandemic and the general difficulty of coordination time with musicians, I haven't actually gotten an experienced percussionist in the room yet. Maybe I'll try it flipped around. It's pretty lightweight, so it wouldn't be hard to reverse it if I ever get a band to join me.

I don't have much experience on the percussion kit. I arranged the kit that way so that if I get an experienced percussionist in the room, they can make eye contact with other musicians. You do have a good point that it would be easier to get to if I turn it around, I might try that.
glowrak guy wrote: Fri Sep 24, 2021 8:17 pmAre the video monitors identical? What desktop interface is in use?
Yes, those monitors are a matching set. I'm surprised at how affordable monitors are these days (compared to in the twenty-aughts decade). I found an inexpensive monitor on newegg and bought two.

I'm using a Focusrite scarlett 18i20. It's way more than needed for individual work, but I'm hoping to get a group of jazz musicians together with individual mics.

P.S. I think it is possible that I might like the color red; that's probably the real reason that I bought the focusrite device instead of some other brand.
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