Some people care deeply about cable management, with nary a cord to be seen in their computer setups. Others couldn’t care less about it, leaving wire-spaghetti all over the place. And folks in the middle want to do it right, but meh, maybe next week, and maybe only somewhat.
Today’s featured MacBook Pro and iPad Pro setup stakes out much of the ground described above. Cable management is in play, but it’s done in a way that drove some neatniks crazy while others applauded the controlled mayhem.
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Clean rig’s ‘tower of power’ cable high-rise suits some people, bothers others
Redditor PlaZma64 (“Plaz”) showed of the clean-yet-sorta-messy setup in a post entitled, “*Insert Creative Setup Title Here*.”
The setup’s heavy on Apple gear. First, there’s a 2017 MacBook Pro — proudly specified as “non Touch Bar” — sitting on a Rosey Home laptop stand (couldn’t find the stand for sale, but maybe you can). Then there’s a 2020 11-inch iPad Pro with Magic Keyboard and Pencil 2.
And all the main input devices also hail from Apple, in the forms of a Magic Keyboard, Magic Mouse and Magic Trackpad.
And what do we hear in the audio department but more of Cupertino’s wares. For sound between the ears, Plaz sports Sky Blue AirPods Max on a generic stand and a set of AirPods 2 in their charging case. And for sound in the room, a space gray HomePod mini sits toward the left edge of the desk.
But the cables … the cables … the cables …
Photo: PlaZma64@Reddit.com
But what drew the vast majority of the action in the post’s comments section? Check out the power-strip tower and surge protector in the corner of the desk behind the HomePod mini. It’s festooned with adapters and wires, some connected with the Anker USB-C hub attached to the MacBook Pro.
In a sense, the tower is almost an elegant solution, as it provides one place for all power to come from. But that’s just not going to fly with cable-management mavens (who may or may not have full-on panic attacks over visible wires in other people’s setups).
“Bar the cables, a nice setup. Is there a choice to run the cables under the desk, then run the cables through the desk, left side?” asked a commenter. But it was more of a suggestion.
“Thanks, sadly not,” replied Plaz. “The massive tall power strip won’t fit on top of the drawers under the desk.”
But the commenter wasn’t giving up that easy.
“A shame. Also a shame it cannot lay on its side, under the desk,” they said. “If I could, I’d move the large monitor in front of the power bank/stip. Thus, ‘hiding’ the cables. Sorry, cable management is a big thing for me. If only you could see my desk – LOL.”
Another cable-management suggestion covered familiar ground — the ol’ under-desk tray or shelf should serve well as a hiding place.
“That’s a lot of visible wires and wires are fugly. I’d suggest placing all the wires under your desk. You can buy a under-desk wire-management tray and simply hide all of it,” the Redditor said.
But others admired the setup and pretty much saluted the tower as it stands.
“In a world where we try to hide cables, one man wants to watch it burn by using a cable tower,” declared one of them.
Advice on keeping foam noise dampeners on the wall
In the photographs, you can see some acoustic foam panels mounted on the wall. Those are for dampening noise. You often see them in music studios, podcasting setups and the like.
“How do you get those noise foams to stick to the wall well?” one person asked. “Mine always falls down, I used double-sided tape.”
Maybe glue will do the trick where tape won’t, Plaz implied.
“I used pieces of paper with spray glue on both sides and they’ve stuck really well,” he said.
And if you like the desktop wallpaper showing on the 40-inch Samsung TV, you can get it here. Check out the setup’s gear in the list below.
Photo: PlaZma64@Reddit.com
Shop these items now:
Computers and accessories:
- 13-inch MacBook Pro (non-Touch Bar)
- Anker USB-C hub
- 11-inch 2020 iPad Pro with Apple Pencil 2 and Magic Keyboard Case
- Power strip tower and surge protector
External display:
Input devices:
Audio:
Furniture and accessories:
- Herman Miller Sayl Chair
- Rosey Home laptop stand
If you would like to see your setup featured on Cult of Mac, send some high-res pictures to info+setups@cultofmac.com. Please provide a detailed list of your equipment. Tell us what you like or dislike about your setup, and fill us in on any special touches or challenges.
