I’ll cover everything I chose to add to my setup, including my standing desk, office chair, IKEA stool, wall shelf and frame, this potted plant, and all of the accessories. I’m gonna tell you where I’ve got it from and how much it cost and even how I was able to hide most of the cables. Also, everything that I’ll show you in today’s video is linked in the description along with the timestamps and prices.

Standup Desk

Let me start with the desk that I’m using. I found this FlexiSpot Standing Desk on Amazon for around $300 back in 2017. I went for the option without a tabletop, because I wanted to use my own. Putting it together was very easy by screwing legs to the central bar and plug-in all cables to the control box in the middle.

After that, you just need to find the right spot where to put the control panel. The panel has two holes for the screws but because I didn’t want to make holes in my new tabletop instead I used these Scotch Double-Sided Mounting Squares and they worked great, even after unsticking it and sticking it back multiple times.

The control panel lets you adjust the height of the desk. So just by pressing and holding the arrow keys you can adjust it manually. But once you’ve figured out the best sitting and standing height you can just save these settings within any of the three numbers.

So for example I have number one set as my standing height, I have number two set for my IKEA stool and number three is set for my sitting height and so when I need to change the height I just tap the number twice, first time to activate the panel and it will then move to that selected height right away, no need to hold the arrow buttons.

I need to mention the legs are really heavy and solid so there’s very little wobble at all, especially when moving the desk up and down and even when I’m shaking the whole desk at standing height. As for the motor’s noise, they are not too loud. After 5 years the desk is still working as new.

Tabletop and Wall Shelf

On the top of the base, I’ve got 5 feet long 30” deep countertop from Lowe’s for $140. I choose this countertop because of the size. I think for desktop the minimum depth should be at least 30” to be able to have enough space to fit all of the accessories. Also, that’s why I didn’t go for a countertop from IKEA. I think this is a good deal the only thing is it requires some additional work.

Because it’s unfinished wood it needed to be sealed with something like wood wax or polyurethane within 48 hours after removing the seal wrap.

Before applying the sealant I applied a wood stain called Warm Walnut. I gave it two coats then I applied a coat of Clear Satin Poly to protect it. For some curious reasons, the color of the finish came out reddish. First I wanted to sand down and apply another stain but then I realized it will match my wall frame and Mars wallpaper on my iMac so I decided to keep it. I did the same thing to the shelf from Ikea as you can see on the wall.

So yea it was my first time doing something like this, my advice to you would be to try different stains on the backside of the table before choosing one. And use wood wax instead because it dries faster and it doesn’t smell toxic.

iMac Pro

Moving to my tech. As my main machine, I’ve got an iMac Pro which I’ve been using for the last 2 years. It’s got a 5k display, 8 core 3.2 GHz Intel Xeon CPU, 32 Gb of ****ram, and 1 Tb of SSD, as for graphics It’s got Radeon Vega 56 with 8Gb of memory which means this is the cheapest iMac Pro Model. And to save even more I’ve got it preowned from eBay for around $3000. It’s definitely a powerhouse for an average user, I’ve never had a situation where I feel like it’s not quick enough or it’s struggling with anything that I throw at it. Honestly, it’s absolutely perfect for what I need, like editing videos and pictures.

My favorite part of it, it’s a display, the colors the brightness of the screen is really impressive, it’s still one of the best displays for professional photographers or videographers who need accurate color. And as an occasional gamer, I can still run Bootcamp on it compared to M1 Mac. On the downside, it does look a little outdated with these thick bezels and of cause this chin. But overall I’m still happy with it and I’m not planning to upgrade it anytime soon.

Keyboard and Mouse

Looking at the Keyboard and Mouse. I’m using Logitech MX Keys and MX Master 3 Mouse and it seems to be one of the most popular combos on youtube right now and there’s a good reason for that.

The first thing you notice when you look at the keyboard, it looks absolutely solid, the slim design and brushed aluminum body give that nice modern look, also the keys are crafted for the shape of your fingertips to enhance typing experience. When it comes to features Logitech did some cool stuff for example If you bring your hands to close, the sensors detect your hands, illuminating the keyboard the moment your fingers approach, something I found quite useful when I work in the evenings.

Typing on the keyboard feels softer and quieter compare to typing on a magic keyboard. So for anyone who prefers to type on a low-profile laptop keyboard like me it won’t take any time to get used to it. If you happened to use multiple machines like windows and mac you are in luck, you can switch and control up to three devices using these three buttons. So yea, It’s really well-built keyboard it’s about the same size but heavier than Magic Keyboard that came with the iMac which works well for me, holding my Desk Pad in place.

Like the keyboard, MX Master 3 Mouse also retails for $100, more expensive than my previous G602 Logitech Mouse. So what do you get for this price? First of all the shape of the mouse allows your entire palm to hold it while you’re using it. The new thumbwheel allows you to scroll horizontally and depending on the app that you’re using will have different functions.

I’m able to scroll left and right on the timeline without having to actually drag the mouse itself and the same applies to say Davinci Resolve. It also has something called electromagnetic scrolling that makes scrolling is nearly silent.

Under the thumb where your thumb rests you’ve got something new called the gesture button. To perform a gesture all you need is to hold ****down the gesture button while moving the mouse left, right, up, or down, you can assign up to five different actions to this button. Mostly I use it to swipe between 3 of my virtual desktops.

Both keyboard and mouse are wireless and come with USB-C to USB-C charging cable. I have to say how much this combo matches the color of my space gray iMac Pro, which is ideal for me. So yeah I think it’s an awesome keyboard and mouse it’s definitely something I enjoy using every day.

Pad

Both Keyboard and Mouse are resting on Dark Gray Felt Desk Pad from Grovemade which I think a nice addition to my setup. It’s a lot more expensive than an average desk pad but I really like the size. It’s not too deep so it allows me to bring iMac closer when I need to and it’s wide enough for my tabletop size.

Speakers

On the left and right side of the iMac, I’ve got Walnut Kanto YU2 Speakers sitting on these inclined stands. I know iMac has a good set of speakers build-in but I really like the look and how much they match my tabletop’s finish. Just to compare I’m going to switch output from iMac speakers to Kanto.

Mic

Hanging over the desk on Blue Compass Arm, I’ve got a Shure MV7 microphone that I’m using right now to record my voice. It’s a decent microphone for the price of $220 and I really like how clean it looks and sounds especially after I’ve replaced the Pop Filter.

LED

As an ambiance light behind my iMac, I use this White MediaLight LED Strip. I never consider any color but white so it’s perfect for me. And according to science 6400k light temperature is ideal for minimizing eye strain and it also helps to get a better balance when color grading. I like that they are powered by USB that way I don’t have to switch them every time I turn on or shut down my iMac.

Shelf

Also behind iMac on the wall, I’ve got an IKEA shelf called Stoedstorp. The shelf is made of solid wood and it almost matches my tabletop after I applied the wood stain. For now, I just keep some empty boxes from Keyboard and Mouse until I find something better.

Picture

Hanging on my left-hand side, soon going up to the Orbit is SpaceX Starship. As you can see I’m a big fan of SpaceX and what Elon Musk is doing. I got this picture frame from Hobby Lobby, it’s actually called shadow box then I download pictures from the SpaceX Flickr account and order the print from Costco for $11.

Chair

Let’s talk about the Chair. After long consideration, I went for Staples Hyken Chair, because It’s a comfortable inexpensive chair that just needs some improvement. Here’s what I did to it. First of all, I improved the headrest by setting back by about 2.5 inches because it was pushing my head forward too much. I used these long bolts from Home Depot inside this plastic pep pipe.

All I had to do it’s to cut two pieces of the pipe, paint it black and use it as spacers for the bolts.

Also because I have carpet I replaced wheels with these Stationary Castors. It doesn’t slide as smooth but it’s definitely cheaper than buying a hard office mat.

Stool

To make my setup even more ergonomic I’ve got this $100 Ikea’s Lidkullen stool. It’s really well-made stool. It allows me quickly to take a break from standing by perching on it. Just another option to reduce fatigue and increase movement at your standing desk.

Footrest

Under the desk, I’ve got this footrest from IKEA called Övning for less than $20, If I’m not mistaken it’s from the kid’s room department. It’s perfect when I want to lean back and rest my feet on something firm and ergonomic. Plus it’s matching my Standing Desk’s color.

Artificial Potted Plant

Another item I picked up from IKEA was this artificial plant called FEJKA inside a black pot called Gradvis. I think it looks nice with my dark theme setup and most important it relaxes my eyes when I stare at the display too much. Maybe one day when I learn how to take care of it I’ll get a real plant but for now, I’ll just keep this one.

Cable Management

Looking at the cables well there are not so many as you can notice, thanks to my obsession with cable management. This was the most satisfying part of the setup. I’ve used these self-adhesive clips I bought from amazon so what I did I’ve stuck them to the bottom of the table and that allowed me to run cables through it.

As you can see instead of running all cables down to the floor, I’ve actually fitted a power socket under the desk itself using these Double-Sided Mounting Squares. So I’ve got only a single power cable hanging under the stand-up desk.

I know you might ask if I need to change or add something. For the hard drives I used velcro sticky strips just in case I need to unstick them quickly and for the clips, you can just pull the clip slowly and stick it back to another place. The adhesive is still good enough, I tried it myself. Now when looking at the desk you can’t really see any cables even when the desk moves up or down, it looks very clean.

Conclusion

So yeah this is my 2022 Desk Setup, this is where I spent 5 to 8 hours a day. Now I feel it’s got everything I needed to get stuff done. I can stay more focused and less distracted, I can switch from sitting to standing with a press of a button. Somewhere I can just chill, play a video game, or listen to music.

So what’s next for the setup? Well to be honest I have no plans. Maybe something more meaningful on the shelf instead of these mouse and keyboard boxes. What do you think? Is there anything you would change or add to my desk setup? any ideas suggestions or improvements please drop those in the comments. I’d be glad to hear from you.