John Sayers' Recording Studio Design Forum Archive

Where should I put my computer?
I keep changing my mind to the best spot - under my desk in a "sound proof" cupboard or in my rack witch is located behnd me.

1) DESK- cable run in conduit would be
Firewire for protools
L and R mains sends
Talkback mic

2) Rack- in prpose built shelf
L and R mains
Cat 5
2 x VGA
Mouse and keyboard
Talkback mic
BNC -

Comments?

Decisions, decisions!

Tough call. I see pros and cons either way. Putting it in the rack keeps it with all the other equipment, and frees up space under the desk. Plus, how well can you "soundproof" the enclosure? I assume you are going to "soundproof" the entire rack anyway, so why build two enclosures, when one will do?

On the other hand, you'll probably need good KVM extenders to get all your signals from the rack to the desk. = Money, more things to go wrong, etc. Plus, if the computer it is under your desk, you can get to the CD drive and the "reset" button more easily. And if Windows is your operating system, chances are you'll need that reset button every now and then!!

I can't tell you what to do, but coming form the old-school professional video world, I would mount it in the rack and bite the bullet on good quality extenders. Everything goes in the racks in pro video installations: if they could figure out how to mount the operators and talent in racks, you can bet they would be in there too!

My $0.02


- Stuart -

PC's
Macs all the way baby.
Hmmm I wonder how Apples wireless mouse and keyboard go?
But the dual VGA is the real worry, I hope I've got enough space in the conduit.

Macs all the way baby.

O dear! poor you....!!!

- Stuart -

haha

PC, MAC... windows/mac-os/linux/linux/hp-ux/whatever!
As long as we can get online (to this forum), use sketch-up and record our stuff!

I'd go for a soundproofcabinet close/underneath your desk if you got the space. Else you need long keyboard/mouse and vga cables. Sure its an option. sigh, indeed. decisions...

Ro wrote:haha

PC, MAC... windows/mac-os/linux/linux/hp-ux/whatever!
As long as we can get online (to this forum), use sketch-up and record our stuff!

I'd go for a soundproofcabinet close/underneath your desk if you got the space. Else you need long keyboard/mouse and vga cables. Sure its an option. sigh, indeed. decisions...

i'm with this decision. it probably wouldn't be too difficult to build a cabinet of some kind that would handle all of the sound that would be made by your computer and couple it with a couple of intake and outgoing fans with silencers in the air path to make them even quieter.

the bonus of doing it this way is that you wouldn't even need a full case for the machine in question in theory; you would just need to have a method of mounting the motherboard to the side of the cabinet and then have more free-flowing air over your components. you might want to have some kind of dust filter on your fans but otherwise you'd be golden that way, could run at cooler temperatures, and generate less noise.

i saw this done in a studio out in this area and have been dying to build something similar.

-= george =-

???
Hmmm I could pull the guts out of my G5, put it in a PC case. Then I'd really be cool
Case closed(pun) I'll keep it under the desk.

Soundman2020 wrote: On the other hand, you'll probably need good KVM extenders to get all your signals from the rack to the desk. = Money, more things to go wrong, etc. Plus, if the computer it is under your desk, you can get to the CD drive and the "reset" button more easily. And if Windows is your operating system, chances are you'll need that reset button every now and then!!

How common is it that people remote control their 2nd computer with some sort of VNC protocol?

Not sure why but I might even trust that^ more than any KVM I've ever used. In terms of latency, etc.

Yes that has been discuss here... but doesn't solve my problem.
Adding another computer to the CR will just add noise

Here's a solution for isolating studio equipment without needing to build a machine room. I like to have everything nearby, but the noise is driving me crazy.

http://www.custom-consoles.com/isobox.php

I'm not sure I'd shell out the money for one of these boxes, but the amateur carpenter in me is mulling it over.

must be spam

here a good thread on the subject

http://www.johnlsayers.com/phpBB2/viewt ... mputer+box