Desk
IKEA MITTZON cable-managed PC + work setup | Only 2 cables leave the desk
I recently rebuilt my desk setup and thought I'd share it, as I spent quite a while looking at options like the Secretlab Magnus.
I really liked the idea of the Magnus, especially the integrated cable management, but once I started adding up the desk and accessories, the price was getting pretty ridiculous.
So I decided to see if I could get a similar clean result using an IKEA MITTZON 160 × 80 cm**,** some aftermarket parts and a few things reused from my previous desk.
The main objective was simple:
Only TWO cables should leave the desk: one power cable and one Ethernet cable.
Everything else, including the PC, monitors, laptop, power supplies, USB devices and chargers, needed to be contained within the desk setup.
What I bought
IKEA
MITTZON 160 × 80 cm desk, oak veneer/white: £190
KOPPLA 3-way socket with 2 USB ports: £15
Aftermarket
Montek under-desk PC mount: £45.99
Dual monitor arms: £74
Cable trunking: £11
Brennenstuhl Premium-Line 12-way power strip
USB switch with remote button
Various replacement cables in specific lengths
So the desk + KOPPLA + PC mount + monitor arms + trunking came to:
£335.99
That's before the Brennenstuhl power strip, USB switch and cables, and I reused some parts from my old desk.
Desktop PC + work laptop
One requirement was being able to use the same setup with both my desktop PC and my work laptop without constantly messing around with cables.
For that I added a USB switch with a remote button.
My peripherals can stay permanently connected and I just hit the button to switch them between the desktop and laptop.
Cable management
This probably took the most planning.
Rather than buying loads of 2m/3m cables and then trying to hide all the excess, I worked out roughly how long every individual cable actually needed to be.
A surprisingly useful trick:
Use string.
I ran a piece of string along the exact route that each cable would eventually take, measured it, wrote the measurement down and then added about 15% extra length as contingency.
For the monitors, I measured with the arms extended so there would still be enough slack for the monitors to move without putting tension on the DisplayPort/HDMI/power cables.
Then I ordered cables as close as possible to those measurements.
It takes more planning upfront, but it massively reduces the amount of excess cable you have to hide afterwards.
A warning about monitor arms and the MITTZON
If anyone is thinking about doing something similar, CHECK YOUR CLAMP DIMENSIONS AND CLEARANCES BEFORE BUYING YOUR MONITOR ARMS.
Mine only just fit.
There's limited space between the wooden sections around the MITTZON's rear cable-management area.
Fortunately, the arms I bought fit between them and I didn't have to cut or modify the wooden access hatch itself.
However, I did have to cut into the felt cable-management shroud underneath to make enough room for the monitor-arm clamps.
It worked out nicely, but another monitor arm with a slightly larger mounting mechanism might not fit without more substantial modification.
So measure first!
Power
For power distribution I'm using a Brennenstuhl Premium-Line 12-way power strip underneath the desk.
The idea was to create one central power point for everything associated with the setup rather than having multiple extension leads and power cables leaving the desk.
Combined with the MITTZON's built-in cable-management area and the additional trunking, almost everything can disappear underneath.
The end result is what I originally wanted:
1 × mains power cable 1 × Ethernet cable
That's essentially all that needs to leave the desk.
Things I'd still improve
It's definitely not completely finished.
The biggest thing bothering me at the moment is the rear of the PC. I'd like to find or make a white cable shield so that when you look behind the setup you don't see the cables coming out of the back of the PC.
Longer term I'm also thinking about:
White/grey/black wireless keyboard and mouse
White monitor arms
White key lights
Better shielding around the rear PC cables
But overall I'm extremely happy with how it turned out.
I basically wanted to find out:
"Can I get the clean, integrated cable-management look I liked about the Secretlab setup without spending Secretlab money?"
For around £336 for the core desk and mounting/cable-management hardware, plus the additional power/USB/cabling bits, I think it came out pretty well.
If you have the ability to scoot the PC back a little bit I would recommend.
I had my PC on an under desk mount at the front and noticed some asymmetrical wear on the desk after a few years because the weight of the PC being at the far side and far front.
If you can scoot it back to center its weight more over center of the supporting leg it would help
I am going to do something similar as soon as my mittzon arrived. I plan to leave my pc tower on the ground though, i feel like if i mount it, it might make the table sag. Same worries with monitor arm, i plan to use the stand for now to see if i can find a suitable arm later.
Yours look great though, kudos to your planning 🎉
It's actually pretty stable. The weight is distributed quite evenly because of the two support arms coming out from the centre spine, and that spine itself is surprisingly rigid.
I had the same concern about mounting the PC off to one side, especially as it's probably the heaviest thing I've added, but the clamp on the PC mount is pretty substantial and spreads the load over a decent area.
One thing I wouldn't recommend is using a PC mount that screws directly into the underside of the desktop. From what I can tell, the MITTZON top isn't solid wood, so I'd be wary of relying on screws to hold that much weight long term. That's one of the reasons I specifically went with a clamp-mounted solution.
Same goes for the monitor arm. I'd definitely stick with a clamp and just pay close attention to the clearance around the rear cable-management section.
does anyone know if i am able to place items right above the power strip cover? im thinking of getting the 120 x 60 but afraid it might not be deep enough
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u/akinomeroglu 2d ago
Great! Thanks for sharing. I have mittzon series table with adjustable height. Very inspiring.