Help me doing a better layout...

[jumpingflash]

Hi !

I am building my "studio", that would be my "studio-in-a-room" type of thing...

I attach two renderings to this post just to show you how i decided to do it...

The back of the room is empty because i need to have the possibility to sit someone in the back (like a guitarist and a bass player) when we rehearse, and there is a V-drum set on one corner ( i guess the bottom right).

On the bottom left corner there is the door, that I did not render...

You can turn things around and give me a better layout, just keep in mind the door and the people that should be sitting around.

Oh the grey long thing is the 76 key keyboard...

[jumpingflash]

And here's the top view...

[jumpingflash]

Oh.. the green things are my rack mount things, and the shelf in front of the keyboard (on top of some racks and the mixer's meter bridge) is for the screen and monitors...

[John Sayers]

jumpingflash - the rendering is a gas gas gas.

First off - I'd put the console in the center of the desk so you get a symetrical listening position around your speakers which I assume will be in the center of the desk. Your keyboard could then be on one side at an angle maybe??

cheers
john

[jumpingflash]

But i am mostly a keyboardist, so i would be sitting in front of my keyboard composing most of the times... SO i need to have a good view of everything AND a good listening position from the keyboard...

COuld anybody tell ma what is the best way to build that wooden desk ? how to make the joins, and the like ? PLEASE, i have this week free and i would love to do it now...

Thanx again, and thank John for your time and advice...

[jumpingflash]

53 views and one post...

I really need some help, so please leave a comment...

[Track Rat]

My old setup was simular to what you have drawn. My biggest complaint was access to the rear of the racks. You'd have to put a flashlight in your teeth and crawl back there to do anything.

[jumpingflash]

I was thinking of putting the racks on wheels, and then push them inside the hole...

[jumpingflash]

... housing them in a smaller box like this...

[Track Rat]

That looks like it might be OK. Just my opinion but not only does your setup need to be handy and intuitive to make music on but WHEN something quits working in the middle of a session (and it will) the setup itself needs to be easy to get into to see what went wrong.

[jumpingflash]

That's very true...

Any hint on where to look to get an idea of the construction side of it ?

I mean...how to make all that solid and working.... any book/site.. anything...

[Track Rat]

I can send you a drawing of the racks I built for myself tonight when I get home (I don't have them with me here at work). If you haven't seen them yet, they're at John's Studios Under Construction site.
http://johnlsayers.com/Studio/Pages/Human.htm

[jumpingflash]

That would be GREAT !

Thanx for your help...

[DDev]

This is a follow-up suggestion on John's comment about getting centered. I saw a setup (I think it was an Omnirax console) where they made the desk a bit deeper, which allowed the keyboard to sit on a lower recessed shelf (kind of like a computer keyboard shelf below the desk) and then had space for the mixer above it. The mixer could slide out above the keyboard or be pushed back to allow access to the keyboard. This way, you could center your primary working position on the wall and have a better balance with your monitors.

Darryl.....

[jumpingflash]

This is a Great idea...

Let me draw it so to see if i got it right...

I will post it in a minute.

[jumpingflash]

Something like this, so i can put my V-Drums in the left corner there that is empty now...

What do u think ?

[jumpingflash]

Anyone ?

[John Sayers]

yeah that's it - now center them both.

Here is a cool layout attached

cheers
john

[jumpingflash]

Center them ?

Center them in the room u mean ?

I need some space for my vdrums somewhere... and for a couple of people (sitting) if i want to record bass and guitar....

[Track Rat]

Check in this thread. I attached a drawing of some racks I built.
http://homerecording.com/bbs/showthr...threadid=81984

[jumpingflash]

Great help--- Thanx !

[jumpingflash]

ANd how to fix the big desk (where i have the mixer and the keyboard) to make it solid ?

I would like to make the mixer sliding back and forth, and the keyboard to be inset in the desk... (if my english is not too bad to understand what i mean )...

[DDev]

I didn't have a chance yesterday to get back to this thread, but you're on the right track, for sure. (John - That's the picture of the console I was thinking of.)

There are numerous ways you could make a sliding shelf for the mixer. The cheap way is to just build the recessed area for the keyboard with a lip that is flush with the bottom side of the desktop. Then you would just set the board on the lip and put the mixer on top. This would allow the board and mixer to be slid back and forth above the keyboard as desired.

Another option would be to recess some drawer slides that the shelf would attach to and provide a nice, low friction option.

When John talks about getting centered he's referring to being centered on the wall where you are mixing.

As far as making your desk solid goes, try to make the lower sections nice and square, use glue and screws to attach the pieces, and use a piece of plywood or MDF on the back. The back piece will make a flimsy feeling frame into a rock solid cabinet. Then you just attach the top. On the back side, also make sure if you use plywood or MDF to cut some large holes to feed in cabling for your rack gear and provide airflow for cooling.

It seems like a lot of work when you plan it out, but once you finish it, the time spent will be well worth it. You have a great start to what will become the heart of your studio, so have fun with it.

Darryl.....

[jumpingflash]

I cannot figure out how to make it slide out anyway...

If i put drawer slides then the mixer would "lean out" and it weights some !...

And where to put the slides ? They should be on the sides, but i either have a piece of wood underneath the mixer that is my "drawer" sliding thing (and to do this i would have to have no real table in the middle of my desk, just the two side towers for the rack units to wich i attach the sliding panel)...

OR i could have a fuxed surface that i cut to inset my keyboard, and then my mixer slides ON TOP of it, like on rails...

Is this possible ?

[jumpingflash]

This is the final layout, the one i am gonna build...

See what u think of it...

Behind the mixer there is some space for a couch or place to sit a guitarist or bass player that wants to add some lines....