Bedroom workstation
I have a desk in my bedroom that started out life as a slab of GLASHOLM glass held up by a pair of ARTUR trestles, though each trestle was eventually replaced by a sturdy two drawer vertical filing cabinet (like this). It’s not my preferred place to work but sometimes the dogs are there and it just fits, y’know? It doesn’t get higher end stuff the living room workstation gets, but it’s more than usable. It’s kind of a Ship of Theseus situation, pieces get constantly changed out - is it the same workspace?
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How it started (circa 2020) |
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Intermediate setup, with pole mount and 15.4" MacBook Pro |
The chair I settled on is the generally very comfortable and supportive Branch Ergonomic Chair ($370 brand new), to which I added a pair of Aloudy Ergonomic Memory Foam Office Chair Armrest Pads (which don’t work nearly as well on the Branch as they do on the Aeron, but, they’re still more comfortable than the stock arm rests, by far).
There’s no dedicated computer for this setup, though an old MacBook Air Core i7 (2020) seems to have taken up residence.
- I’m using a VIVO Extra Tall Vertically Stacked Dual Monitor Desk Mount Stand with 99 cm Stand-up Pole, Fully Adjustable Extended Arms, Fits 2 Screens up to 27 inches, STAND-V012T ($50 when I got it in 2022, $60 today) to hold everything off the desk surface.
- VIVO Adjustable 11 to 17 inch Laptop Holder hanging off one arm, to hold the laptop ($18 when I got it, $25, today)
- Steel Monitor Mount Reinforcement Plate with USB Port and Type-C Charger Port ($25 in 2023, still $25) (originally a WALI Monitor Mount Reinforcement Plate ($15, now $22), but having the USB ports there was too convenient...)
- Dell U2312HM monitor, atop of which is perched a ColorPanda Monitor Light Bar (like the top-mounted controls, and the extremely thick (up to 2.2") monitors it will expand to fit.
The MacBook Air is connected via USB C to an Anker USB C Hub, 6-in-1 USB to USB-C Adapter, 4K HDMI, 100W PD, 2 10Gbps USB A Ports, SD Card Reader, 3.5mm Audio (I got it for $13 used) (if I was going to do it again I’d probably try this Dockteck 9-in-1 unit, which adds Ethernet, but is $52). The Anker is connected to the monitor, via USB A to the monitor mount reinforcement plate hub, and to a Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 THX Certified Computer Speaker System via the 3.5 mm audio connection (which still sounds incredible 17 years later, after I swapped in a new woofer). Providing power is a 100W Anker charger and its bundled 5' USB C cable ($27).
The plate hub is connected to:
- A passive 4-port Amazon Basics USB 2.0 hub (apparently no longer sold here, but this Sabrent HB-MCRM should be equivalent); I broke the keyboard and mouse off to this hub so they can be easily moved to a Wombat to connect to the ADB port on an Apple IIgs.
- A Tokyo 60 keyboard, black (season 3), with “MKUltra foam, Poron switch pads, lubed/bandaid and holee modded Durock V2's [and] Boba U4T [switches],” to which I added the Drop + MiTo DCX Cyber Keycap Set
- The USB receiver for a Logitech M585 Multi-Device Wireless Mouse, which rests atop a SenseAGE Compact Ergonomic Mouse Pad with Wrist Support.
- A Mayflower ARC Mk 1 (1 watt of power at 32 ohms, $229 new in 2018, I got mine on eBay I think, for less than that) currently running a Philips SHP9600MB headset ($65). (The Mk 2 is the current model; 32 Ohms) : 1W, $285, not sure how compelling it is against the Schiit Gunnr (32 ohms: 1500mW, width/presence controls, $229) (or even, at the lower cost end, the Fulla E (32 ohms: 200mW, $109). The ARC was one of my first headphones hobby purchases, and it works fine...)
- A Satechi 3-Port USB 3.0 HUB with 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet ($30 in 2014!) that I reused from an earlier “build” (but if I hadn’t had it, again, I’d probably have looked for a hub or docking station with Ethernet, and audio, and ..., built in; the drivers for the AXIS AX88179 were kind of a pain to get running under Sonoma, requiring multiple reboots)
- Belkin 7.5W portable charger, because when I got it for $18 in 2023, it was the same price as no-name charger-only MagSafe devices, and I figured, why not; charges my phone while I’m at that desk, working)
Powering everything is a Tripp Lite Home Office Surge Protector with USB Charging ($42), including USB power for the plate hub, for one or two BESKAR USB Small Desk Fans, and for the ColorPanda light.
Below the desk I have hanging an Under Desk Cable Management Tray ($21), holding a 500W Amazon Basics Ceramic Space Heater ($18).
For convenience, both the Klipsch speakers (which can pick up a low buzz when unloaded) and the heater are hanging off of short switched extension cords to allow them to be easily turned on/off without having to dig.
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