Designing a Desk Around Workflow, and Gear

One thing that becomes clear very quickly when looking at home studios is that, while many of them share common elements—computers, audio monitors, microphones—no two studios are truly the same. Studios are highly individualized spaces. What inspires one person’s workflow may be completely unusable for someone else.

In my case, my original in-the-box workflow dictated the layout of my original studio space. That approach worked well for years, but it had to change once I started moving toward hardware-based work.

It became important for me to have multiple video monitors alongside my audio monitors, as well as a computer powerful enough—and with enough connections—to handle everything I needed to run the studio. Then there are all the smaller pieces that tend to accumulate over time: USB hubs, external hard drives, audio interfaces, and various accessories. All of this equipment needs a physical home, and ideally one that supports creativity rather than getting in the way of it.

That’s often where the real challenge begins.

When Standard Furniture Isn’t Enough

Finding a place for equipment isn’t always straightforward, because where you want things to live isn’t always possible on a standard desk or shelf. This is something I talk about in this episode, where the focus is on my main studio desk—an IKEA hack.

When I originally came up with this idea, a purpose-built studio desk simply wasn’t in my budget. As I looked more closely at commercially available studio desks, I realized that even though many of them looked fantastic, none of them actually worked for what I needed. Some weren’t large enough. Others weren’t designed with teaching, video work, and studio production all happening in the same space.

No matter what I looked at, nothing fit my needs as well as the IKEA-hacked desk I eventually built.

Why the Desk Works

My main desk is seven feet long and over two feet deep, which gives me exactly the space I need. It allows me to house all of my essential equipment while still functioning as a normal work desk for running the day-to-day side of the studio.

Throughout this video series, you’ll see several IKEA hacks appear. I tend to gravitate toward IKEA furniture because their storage solutions and furniture are relatively easy to modify for home studio use. With some planning, they can be adapted in ways that standard studio furniture often can’t.

That flexibility is one of the reasons this desk became the foundation of the entire studio.

A Word of Caution About Modifying Furniture

That said, modifying furniture always comes with risk.

Any time you alter something to be used in a way it wasn’t originally designed for, it’s critical to read the manufacturer’s weight limits and understand the structure of what you’re working with. Altering furniture can change how weight is distributed, and if that isn’t thought through carefully, the consequences can be expensive—and sudden.

Throughout this series, I try to emphasize the importance of planning these modifications properly. Consider the weight of your gear, the load paths of the furniture, and whether your changes compromise its structural integrity. Taking shortcuts here can easily result in valuable equipment ending up on the floor in a pile of broken electronics.

In my case, the modifications I made to the main desk were carefully thought out and ultimately turned it into the ideal workspace for everything I need to do in the studio.

Understanding Different Types of Studios

Another important consideration when designing any studio is understanding what kind of studio you’re actually building.

There are many types of studios, each with different requirements:

• Project studios are typically multi-use spaces. They often support composition, production, and light recording, usually involving one person at a time.
  
• Recording studios are designed to record multiple musicians, from small bands to full orchestras. These spaces require significantly more room, isolation, and specialized acoustic treatment.
  
• Mixing and mastering studios generally don’t function as recording spaces at all. Their primary focus is on accuracy—both in monitoring and in the tools used to shape sound—rather than accommodating instruments or performers.
  

Because of these differences, every studio ends up being designed around its owner’s workflow and goals. That’s why customization is so common. Whether it’s purpose-built racks, modified furniture, or creative storage solutions, most studios end up adapting what they have to fit the gear they intend to use.

Building a Space That Serves the Work

This entry—and this episode—is less about specific gear and more about mindset. The desk isn’t special because it’s an IKEA hack; it’s special because it supports the way I work.

As this series continues, you’ll see how that philosophy carries through the rest of the studio: adapting spaces, making compromises, and learning—sometimes the hard way—what actually works in practice.