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Show me your desk

The problem isn’t the laws of physics, it’s that you believe the desk has to be the same height as a standard desk!

Please look at the pictures I posted in this thread (page 3). The concept really does work.

Glass rather than 3/4” wood would save you maybe 1/3” in desktop height. I’m not a huge fan of the look, but it would work.

Also, I’m happy to help anyone with their design, in addition to being open for business.
 
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The problem isn’t the laws of physics, it’s that you believe the desk has to be the same height as a standard desk!

Please look at the pictures I posted in this thread (page 3). The concept really does work.

Glass rather than 3/4” wood would save you maybe 1/3” in desktop height. I’m not a huge fan of the look, but it would work.

Also, I’m happy to help anyone with their design, in addition to being open for business.

I will check it out.
Thank you.
 
How are you finding the legroom (and how tall are you :grin:)?

Yes.
Same question here.

I'm 6'1" and 240 lbs. I use an Aeron chair so when I had my desk up on blocks, even with the chair at the highest setting, my arms were still at maybe a 20 degree angle going up to the desk top. Not good for ergonomics.
 
Yes.
Same question here.

I'm 6'1" and 240 lbs. I use an Aeron chair so when I had my desk up on blocks, even with the chair at the highest setting, my arms were still at maybe a 20 degree angle going up to the desk top. Not good for ergonomics.

You can get larger casters for the Aeron to raise it.

I'm about the same size as you, and I had to do that when I cut out a section of carpet where my chair sits.

(Long story short: a drain pipe leaked under the floor and screwed up just this section of carpet. So rather than replacing the whole carpet, I cut out the soaked section and put in parquet tiles. Far preferable to sitting in floating turds. :) )
 
By the way, my elbows (on the Aeron arms) are about 1-1/2" below the desktop surface. Perfect for me.

Also, you do want to make the distance between the bottom of the keyboard shelf and surface of the desk as small as possible. But the typical 6" or so is just fine.

Normally I design them so the top of the white keys is 29" or 29-1/2" above the floor, just like a piano. The keyboard sits on 3/4" thick wood, although we did build one for an extremely tall guy with a metal keyboard shelf to make it thin so his knees wouldn't hit.

But I'm just under 6'1" with proportionally long legs, and the 3/4" under the keyboard isn't a consideration for me.
 
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I've finished my table!
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Top is slideable back

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Very nice. A couple of questions if I may?
Is the keyboard shelf two separate pieces, or a single shelf with a cutout for your legs?
How's the M-Audio 88? I've heard good things..
 
Very nice. A couple of questions if I may?
Is the keyboard shelf two separate pieces, or a single shelf with a cutout for your legs?
How's the M-Audio 88? I've heard good things..

Thanks! Sure: The M-Audio 88 is very nice to play @Farkle has the same one. Great feel, good action. If you don't need a ton of control knobs and stuff, it's great.

Yes, the Keyboard lies on two separate pieces of wood to give my legs maximum possible room. Underneath is a steel frame so nothing goes anywhere - the M-Audio is very Sturdy, so it doesn't "hang through" at all.

Here for illustration:
 
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Thanks! Sure: The M-Audio 88 is very nice to play @Farkle has the same one. Great feel, good action. If you don't need a ton of control knobs and stuff, it's great.

Yes, the Keyboard lies on two separate pieces of wood to give my legs maximum possible room. Underneath is a steel fram so nothing goes anywhere - the M-Audio is very Sturdy, so it doesn't "hang through" at all.

Here for illustration:
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Ah, clever stuff. Thanks for taking the time to share!
 
Yes, the Keyboard lies on two separate pieces of wood to give my legs maximum possible room. Underneath is a steel frame so nothing goes anywhere

That works for you, so there are no issues.

But for people worried about leg space under the keyboard, just a 3/4" plywood shelf without any steel frame is more than strong enough to hold even the heaviest keyboard being played really hard. It's going to be somewhere around 56" x 14" deep.
 
I gave up trying to get my Roland RD2000 under the desk I have and still maintain a proper desk height and yet have the keyboard under the desk and not hit my thighs. Last experiment had the desk, an oak monster that weighs about 150lbs, up on blocks to raise it high enough to slide the Roland on a square stand underneath... It was a total kludge. I even tried those "slide easily" pads they sell on infomercials. Still a kludge. I finally gave up and have the Roland on my right side at a right angle to the desk. And not a minute too soon because as I was moving things around, the desk fell off the blocks and had this happened when the Roland was under it, I would have had a smashed keyboard.

I'm convinced there is no way to get a full sized 88 key keyboard under a desk while maintaining proper ergonomic desk height, no interference with legs and not having to reach across the desk to use the mouse/typing keyboard.

Any suggestions?
Maybe a separate monitor at the keyboard?
I dunno.
Help!

My approach was to have the computer keyboard and mouse in front of the music keyboard. On the one desk.

I had to drop the desk height a little so that my arms were more or less at 90 degrees when typing / mousing. My Aeron chair has forward tilt when I’m playing piano which helps.

It’s not perfect but my rationale is that it’s more important to get the ergonomics correct for the thing I’m doing most of the time. For me, I’d spend at 10% of my time playing the piano, and 90% of my time using the mouse and keyboard programming. If I had the positions reversed I would be either leaning forward to the mouse and keyboard most of the time or, if I had the mouse and keyboard on a sliding tray that I could bring forward, would have my hands too high with my wrist resting on the edge of the desk.

Works for me.

For now...
 
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