Soundman2020 - Studio Design Forum

Something I sketched up had made a few weeks ago. It worked out well so thought I would pass on the design. Stuart, if this isn't the correct forum for "studio furniture" feel free to move elsewhere.

I've accumulated many mic stands of all sizes, from kick mics to orchestral overheads. Where to store them? I had them stashed in a corner of room 2, but they took up a lot of space, looked terrible and it was a nightmare to get the stand you want if it was at the bottom of the pile. There are many quick to make DIY storage methods, and it is possible to buy a large & expensive flightcase. But none of them was suitable for the room.

The room is a live room and has knee walls and sloped ceiling/walls in the corners. I had the notion of building a box to fit in the corner with a slope at the same angle of the ceiling, filled with pipes to store the mic stands. My wife came up with the idea of also cutting the faces of the pipes at an angle like a pipe organ.

There are eight 1 metre long pipes cut to size. Just standard plastic duct, inner diameter 125mm. That's another reason for the custom build, most of the commercial stores have pipes of inner diameter 100mm, not wide enough for some of my mic stands.

The box is made from plywood. Local manufacturing joiner Derek McLaren built it from my drawings and I think he did an amazing job to millimetre accuracy. The pipes fitted perfectly - and I mean perfect. My only regret is not asking him to cut the pipes as well. They were too wide for my mitre saw so I cut them with a hacksaw. Not the most precise of cuts but at least they are hidden out of sight
The box sits on felt feet and can be easily slid out the corner for access to the tallest stands. It looks simple but working out the dimensions was pretty tricky with all that interlocking pipe geometry. I've attached the drawing for anyone who'd like to make it or something similar.

Eagle eyed observers might notice the error I made in cutting the pipes: I calculated the cuts based on them being stacked directly in front of each other, not offset. So there is a small step in height between each row of pipes rather than a smooth slope all the way.

Cheers!
Jennifer

Greetings Jennifer,

Brilliant! This is a great adaptation of a merchandising design that can be seen in art supply stores (brushes) and museum shops (posters). Obviously, those merchandisers lack either size (art supply) or weight capacity (museum shops).

Well done indeed!

All the best,

Paul

Wow! That's a really cool idea, Jennifer! I love it. Great concept, and great execution too.

Stuart, if this isn't the correct forum for "studio furniture" feel free to move elsewhere.

Good point! Maybe I should create another area on the forum for studio furniture. Not a bad idea at all! I hadn't thought of that, but I like it.

- Stuart -

I am intending to copy this idea I spotted in the June Audio studio build over on Gearslutz. It has castor wheels so the whole lot can be wheeled into the studio. Yours, jennifer, looks like a scaled down and more neatly presented version, giving me further ideas.

Greetings Starlight,

Agreed, Jennifer's version is far more aesthetically pleasing. The photo you shared looks like a sculpture titled "Mic Stands Enroute to a Funeral."

All the best,

Paul

Great design Jennifer! I could see it working for cymbal stands and other drum gear as well. I would love to add a top to it somehow so I could stack things on top of it but then have a way to roll out the stands when I need them. Food for thought.

howiedrum wrote:Source of the post Great design Jennifer! I could see it working for cymbal stands and other drum gear as well. I would love to add a top to it somehow so I could stack things on top of it but then have a way to roll out the stands when I need them. Food for thought.

Now you've gone and done it, Howie! You gave Jennifer a challenge! She might just take that up, and design something that you'll have to build...


- Stuart -
(PS. I just saw your PM you sent about a week ago!! I missed that for some inexplicable reason ... I'll get back to you on that shortly!)

Well look at that! Jennifer's mic storage design now has the grand honor of becoming the inaugural member of the brand new "Recording Studio Furniture" section!
A very fitting honor, actually.


- Stuart -

SoWhat wrote:Source of the postBrilliant! This is a great adaptation of a merchandising design that can be seen in art supply stores (brushes) and museum shops (posters). Obviously, those merchandisers lack either size (art supply) or weight capacity (museum shops).

Thank you. That form of unconscious inspiration makes total sense

Starlight, the trolley idea is well good too. These things can get very, very heavy. Wooden dollys are available cheap as chips that would make a more visually pleasing starting point. I imagine replacing the wood with your own if desired would be no problem. I'd be looking for one with locking wheels for sure.

I might yet put the box on casters. I can pull the box in and out the corner no problem, but someone less fit might struggle. I'll wait and see if that becomes a requirement.

Howie, Stuart is correct, you got me thinking right away. If the mic stand unit rolled out like a drawer on rails I think it would be prone to tipping over. My current inspiration is this;
The frame would be extended upwards to hold a box above the mic stand holder (drum). The mic stand section would be on a similar pivot. Easy to rotate due to counterbalancing effect, and the centre of gravity stays pretty much in the centre of the unit. It wouldn't have to rotate much, just enough to let you access the mic stands at the back. End stops and a way to lock the mic stand section at any given angle would be ideal. Frame as class or utilitarian as you like

Nice to be part of this new furniture form, cheers Stuart. I have more of this kind of thing, will post at next opportunity.

Cheers!
Jennifer

Jennifer never ceases to amaze! I must admit, I had never considered that a cement mixer could be an inspiration for recording studio design. But that's a really clever idea, actually!

- Stuart -