Anyone stacking two screens vertically as opposed to side by side?
 

I miss having two 24" Dell screens but side by side was getting in the way of my studio monitors and causing a sonic footprint.

So I had the idea as I already have a suitable VESA arm of stacking them vertically instead.

I'm thinking I gate the dual screen real estate but not the negative sonic footprint (well no worse than 1 screen) .... crazy idea?

Does anyone else have vertically stacked computers screens instead of side by side.

I actually think it makes more sense having one vertical and one horizontal for music production so you can see more channels while arranging.

but here i am sitting in front of an ultrawide mezed



I'm not a big fan of 2x screens. Much prefer 1x ultrawide, but my dream setup would be 1x Pro Display XDR with the stupid expensive stand so I can flip between vertical and horizontal really quickly and have a clean look. Such a setup would deliver the focus and versatility that would suit my workflow, but I'm not paying $6k for a screen


if your screen is getting in the way of the monitor that tells me either your desk is too shallow and thus your screen is too close, or your monitors are too close together and not forming an equilateral triangle.

I've been using this setup for a while. Works great for me.

2x 24 inch screens low on your desk side by side should ley you place your monitors on stands/shelf above them thereby making the sonic imprint negligible.


here's the perfect example

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-dP...ColtCapperrune




M

I’ve got a couple of 22 (or 23?) inch monitors stacked one above the other and it works OK. I have the upper screen angled downwards slightly. If I had the desk space I’d have them side by side, but I don’t, so...

The opposite is my issue.

I have my K&H 0300's in a perfect 65" equilateral triangle, in a perfectly treated room, with my position in the perfect place - my monitoring system is extremely accurate.

The compromise is placing my screen!

I have the constraint of "old man's" long sighted eyes, I have glasses that work best with a focal length of 1 metre meaning I am limited by the resolution I can use for a given screen size - it's complex stuff.

4K or even QHD is too small unless the screen size increases to the point it causes too much sonic foot print.

The final option is a 55" screen at 4k but pushed back in line with my 0300's putting it approx 2.5M back from me but here the issue is I now have to take off my glasses completely and everything in my near field vision is blurry!

It's a very tricky thing for my set up and eye sight constraints - thus my thoughts of stacked 24" HD screens.

Great thanks for the photo - looks like the perfect solution to me.

kfhkh

kfhkh

Angled down slightly - yes, great idea - thanks for that.

I think I might try this.

Mmmh, thanks nb

That's very cool and not an idea I'd considered.

I'm a touch concerned that this solution breaks the rule of keeping the top of screens at eye height as according to official PC Workstation standards for professional users.

I'd also have to change the position of my desktop grot boxes (not a huge issue)
certainly food for thought - thanks.

I have two 24" screens vertically to save table top area. My audio monitoring is not conventional studio setup and I'm sure not ideal either but this is what I can do at the moment. I have one passive pair in front of me a bit too high and one active pair behind me even higher.

this is awful screen positioning and will lead to forward head posture in the long run.

nerd neck

I've been an amateur road racing cyclist for 30 years you should see the position my head is in most of the time :lol: Tilting my head a few degrees downwards doesn't seem like much of an issue to me, in fact of offsets the head tilted completely back when riding position I'm normally in peachh



My mastering engineer who works 6 days a week and 12 ours a day has his monitor like this and has for 25 years and has no issues.


M

nothing wrong with vertical arrangement. proper computer ergonomics cautions against they eyes having to look substantially higher than horizontal for extended periods of time. the recommended optimal viewing angle is straight ahead or slightly downward. looking sideways is better ergonomically than looking up.

you could use the high monitor as a subordinate screen that you only occasionally look at, and use the lower screen for most of your work. that would work from an ergonomics standpoint.

The studio at Webster University has stacked monitors and I think it works well.  I've only done short sessions there for conferences. It would be interesting to do a couple days in a row in more normal session to see if I still liked it.  

Yes. Two 27in. One above the other. Cant work side by side anymore...feels weird.

one opinion...

https://ergo-plus.com/office-ergonom...puter-monitor/

4. Place the top line of the screen at or slightly (0-30 degrees) below eye level.
According to ergonomics expert and professor Dr. Alan Hedge, “When you are seated comfortably, a user’s eyes should be in line with a point on the screen about 2-3″ below the top of the monitor casing (not the screen). Sit back in your chair at an angle of around 100-110 degrees (i.e. slight recline) and hold your right arm out horizontally, your middle finger should almost touch the center of the screen. From that starting position you can then make minor changes to screen height and angle to suit. Research shows the center of the monitor should be about 17-18 degrees below horizontal for optimal viewing, and this is where it will be if you follow the simple arm extension/finger pointing tip. You actually see more visual field below the horizon than above this (look down a corridor and you’ll see more of the floor than the ceiling), so at this position the user should comfortably be able to see more of the screen. If the monitor is too low, you will crane their neck forwards, if it’s too high you’ll tilt their head backwards and end up with neck/shoulder pain.”

fwiw, i use a 24" screen vertically over my main 32" monitor. the 24" is mostly for plugins. i sit back at about 15 degrees from vertical with the screen at a slightly less angle toward me. i have a high backed chair that comfortably supports my head and neck.

Been doing it for about 1.5 years. It makes sense when time to mix, but is somewhat annoying during tracking / editing.

I know someone who took the idea a step further, he cut a hole in his desk and has the monitors actually recessed. So they would be even bit lower at an even steeper angle, and also closer to him than the guy in the video.

the setup in the video looks like some of the sound from his speakers may still be catching on the back of the screens.

One of the things I love about Pro Tools is that there are only two windows, mix and edit, and it takes a split second to go from one to the other. It takes about the same amount of time to go command + = as it would to tilt my head to a different screen. I never feel the need for a second screen

Why is it annoying during tracking?

I think the sonic footprint will always be a compromise. In the most pure form, you would go the route of Bob Katz.

I have 2 34-inch LG ultra-wides. Both of these are relatively low to the ground pointing up. Sorry the attached pic doesn't really show the vertical angle very much but they really are pointed upwards because I insist the Mackie Monitors must sit at ear level, which is about 3 feet behind the monitors in order to create my sweet spot. (disregard the EV monitors used as a cue speaker)

Yes, there is some reflection, and I could even lower the monitors and point them upwards more, however I feel the compromise works.

There is another 17 inch not powered to the left and a 28-inch ultra wide above the DAW controller.

The sweet spot is a triangle...plus maybe 3 inches, and Reference 4 is in use due to the shape of the walls.