Furniture vs. Equipment Stands.

Full Disclosure: cross posted on DJF. Please don't reply to both threads.

So…I'm working with this:

http://www.prism.gatech.edu/~gtg054r...12_small_3.jpg

And I'm trying to incorporate Maschine into my DJ sets (which I used to do when I was on TPro). But there just isn't anywhere to put it. I've stacked up a bunch of stuff off to the side and put Maschine on it…and that kinda works.

So, what do you guys think…go to Ikea (or home depot) and build something like this:

http://www.djtechtools.com/wp-conten...n-tabletop.jpg

Or just buy a couple stands (Crane, Stanton, etc.) that I could also take out if need be. The stand the laptop is on works, but it's weirdly sized…the mixer kind of hangs off the edge of the desk. It's not going to fall, but it's far from ideal.

I think the stands might actually be more expensive…plus I don't really know what to buy because I've never even considered one before.

go down to home depot and cruise the area with the premade shelves and brackets...i think paid less than 5 bucks for a perfect solution...

let me find my camera and take a pic...it aint pretty..because i havent cut the brakets to the correct size...but i still might want to move my shelf higher now that i have the turntable in use...
http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i2...ce73/002-2.jpg
http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i2...ce73/001-2.jpg

PS: cable management hasn't shown up to finish the job...waiting for the x1 to show up...

The problem is that expedit is too narrow so even with stands it will still be awkward. You could just go to ikea and get a table top and some legs for the expedit you have and that will bring the height up and give you more space to work with.

The table top in that pic you posted is a vika amon

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/10071172/

If you want something more sturdy and solid that you can really screw into without worrying there's this but it is more expensive

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/S79847779/

Or cut a piece of plywood to size but I would recommend to be sure you get nice true furniture grade 3/4" plywood or it will warp/ already be warped to some degree (home depot and lowe's don't sell plywood this quality- local hardware/lumber stores may just call).

If you end up getting sheets of wood cut I would still get hardware/legs from Ikea- the Capita brackets are pretty nice.

I re-arranged stuff, and it's okay for now…each TT overhangs the sides by about 1/4", but they're stable.

I'm still debating whether it's worth running Maschine with SSL, since I still kinda just want simple at this point…and this will let me try it in a more realistic setting.

I think in the long run, I'm going to build a table, but I don't even know if it'll be based off this one…might look completely different, cuz I'll want 3 turntables eventually.

The Ikea route is the easiest, but if I could do it all over again I'd measure out all my stuff and build my own. It's more work, but it theoretically should be cheaper, be tailor made to fit your setup, and wouldn't be made of balsa wood. I like the look of my desk, but it won't survive a significant move.

I recently threw away one of my Ikea bookshelves and had to break it down to fit it in the dumpster. It's wasn't so much balsa wood as cardboard with very thing laminate on top of it.

I think I might just need to make a big desk.

I use the Vika Amon tabletop on an Expedit shelf.

couldn't you just put a new top on what you have now?...measure and custom cut a piece of 3/4 MDF and then use some ikea legs to suspend it above what you have now?...it would look pretty good and be pretty cheap to do...

(for this post, "deep" means orthogonal to my chest when I'm mixing)

The problem with what I have now and jojo's desk (which I do really like) is that I think I'm going to want it a bit deeper than those pieces seem. In the long run, I'd kinda like to have 3 Technics (with the 3rd directly behind the mixer). The Vika Amon, according to a quick search, is only 25" and change deep. A 1200 is like 14" deep…so it'd need to be more like 30" deep. Plus, I'm not sure about trusting the overhang to carry that much weight.

I'm thinking that another Expedit, the bracket/legs xone recommended, and one more of my existing Griffin laptop stands would probably end up holding everything…but I'd probably be out of horizontal room for monitors…and there wouldn't be much clearance b/t the console and my bed.

So, it'd be like:

Maschine---TT 3---Laptop
----TT1----Mixer----TT2

The problem is the back row: the 1200 is like 18" wide, plus…say 15" each for Maschine and my laptop for a bit of breathing room (cables on the side of the laptop + having to place Maschine so I could play it without disturbing a record or tonearm)…that leaves ~10" of horizontal space total for 2 monitors on stands.

I suppose that I could continue to just not have my monitors with my DJ setup, but I'd like the option…'cuz I'll probably buy another set of monitors by the time I spend the money on a 3rd 1200 anyway.

Plus…if I end up upgrading to a 19" rotary mixer (which is a serious consideration if I ever have the money) then I'd probably have to throw the whole thing out. There's room…but it'd require extensive modification to the Expedit that might kill whatever stability/robutness the thing has (it's basically made out of cardboard and cheap laminate).

Even with the monitors somewhere else, I'd probably have more room and a more ideal setup than I would in a club, but that's just a matter of getting famous enough for my technical rider to mean something.

Also, for those of you confused…the Expedit is sitting on cinderblocks that raise it to the correct height for playing. I'm neither a midget nor destroying my back when I play. If anything, it's a bit high for scratching. So I'm not sure I want anything that goes too much taller.

I'd really go the custom route. It will most likely be cheaper, and fit your needs perfectly.