My triple screen office rig: 46" 55" 46" Tv lift & Carbon fiber Dashboard + GS-4 Seat

  • Thread starter HoiHman
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HoiHman

HoiHman

1,166
Netherlands
The Netherlands
HoiHman
HoiHman
Always loved sim racing, but never had the room for a big racing setup.
The only place where it is possible to race is in my business office, which is located at my home.

This small office has to be representable during business hours, so i had to create something that is easy to set up and easy to put away.

The solution came two years ago when i bought a tv lift which i place behind my office desk. This gave me a 46" LCD.

0V8ok97.jpg



But still i wanted more. :)

I discovered Eyeinfinity and used the two monitors on my office desk as side screens.
They added a lot to the immersion, but it was still far from perfect.

cTz3a20.jpg


Last year i bought a Samsung 55" lcd D7000.
This was a big improvement but it also made the side screens (24" and 30") look smaller and smaller.

I kept the 46" Samsung and it was still lying in the trunk of a car for about 6-8 months.

Somewhere in December last year, i suddenly came up the idea of using this 46" screen for a side screen.
I found out that Samsung has a zoom feature which allows me to change the screen size of the 46" to match that of the 55"

I had the same 46" hanging in my living room. I only needed to buy a new living room LCD to get a cool triple screen setup.

So about two months ago i started to redecorate my office, with triple screen setup in mind. A lot of cable management, especially with the TV lift.

Z6UEtw8.jpg.jpg


This is the result during the day
OPBynnv.jpg


This is my office in " race mode "

dsc01000jn.jpg


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The two side screens are stored under the office desk on my left side. It takes about 7-8 minutes to set everything up and about five min to put everything back, so i can use my office during the day.

Under my desk i have my club sports which are hard mounted with bolts in the floor.

dsc01007x.jpg


I made a special support for my office chair, so it stays fixed when racing. It even feels like a kind of race seat.

I am still blown away by the immersion of the setup.

Currently I am only using the triple screens for PC racing. For now i will play GT5 and Forza 4 only on the middle 55" screen. In the near future will probably buy two extra PS3's or Xbox 360's. (the cables for those already under my desk)


I made a YouTube video showing you "My Office Race Rig" hope you guys enjoy it.




Sorry about the crappy audio on the F1 part

Made some improvements over the last couple of months here's the final version:

image00002kb.jpg


I also made a video about setting everthing up from office desk to race rig




Here's a video of the button box :

 
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Very nice! I like how you've made the most of the space you've got, I tried to do the same but got lazy and ended up using a 360 pad because I couldn't be bothered to keep clamping and unclamping my wheel to the desk and all that.

Edit: just read the bit about having cables for two more PS3's and/or 360's already installed, it's just a matter of time!
 
neema_t
Very nice! I like how you've made the most of the space you've got, I tried to do the same but got lazy and ended up using a 360 pad because I couldn't be bothered to keep clamping and unclamping my wheel to the desk and all that.

Edit: just read the bit about having cables for two more PS3's and/or 360's already installed, it's just a matter of time!
Click to expand...

Thanks, you're right about the consoles.

Beside having a regular PS3 for GT5 (only) i also have a jailbreaked one which i hardly use. So in the end i only have to update that one and buy only one new PS3.

Stay tuned for the youtube video which is coming up in the next hour, i think you'll like it.

Edit: Do you know by any change how to insert a youtube video in the forum post so you can see the video it self and not just the link?
 
Nice work. Looks like an expensive make-over you did. Then adding more consoles that might get replaced soon by the newer generation ones. Wish I had that kind of money to put in this hobby. :P
But it looks very clean and quite immersion you got going on there as well. *cut/edit - remove question* .... whooops, I should read to and not just look at the purdy pictures. :dopey:

ps. Looking at your pedal setup there it seems you've got bigger feet then I have. lol
 
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Nice setup, wish I had the space and money to do something like that myself, but for now I'll have stick with a single screen
 
HoiHman
Thanks, you're right about the consoles.

Beside having a regular PS3 for GT5 (only) i also have a jailbreaked one which i hardly use. So in the end i only have to update that one and buy only one new PS3.

Stay tuned for the youtube video which is coming up in the next hour, i think you'll like it.

Edit: Do you know by any change how to insert a youtube video in the forum post so you can see the video it self and not just the link?
Click to expand...

Very nice, I'm thinking of doing something like this, probably won't bolt the pedals into the floor, getting a good enough stand would probably mitigate that, I currently use one 23.5 inch monitor for GT5, and I have a DFGT which I clamp onto my wooden desk.

I 'was' thinking of getting two more 23.5 inch monitors (same model as I currently have), and some how linking them up to the PS3, but from what I hear it doesn't sound possible? If it is, what's stopping you man? This looks like it'd be just as great for the GT5 set up, as it is for your PC simulations (btw which ones do you use? I have a pretty good gaming PC and wouldn't mind using my wheel for more than one game).
 
HoiHman
Do you know by any change how to insert a youtube video in the forum post so you can see the video it self and not just the link?
Click to expand...

Right click on the video and copy the URL, you should be good to go.

Now if i had some date-rape drug to give my wife, no sex involved just her waking up to a set up like that in the house. lol
 
BobbyBRAKEaNek
Right click on the video and copy the URL, you should be good to go.

Now if i had some date-rape drug to give my wife, no sex involved just her waking up to a set up like that in the house. lol
Click to expand...

I can tell you one thing: my wife was not pleased when i told her that we NEED a new TV in the living room so i can use the "old" one for my race rig lol :)
 
Timppaq
YEah, just noticed the video. 👍 That raising TV is amazing! :lol:
Click to expand...

Thanks, my first idea was to make three TV lifts, so the whole triple screen setup would raise. This was too expensive and technically almost inpossible.

The nice thing about this setup is that if someone comes into my office during the day, they really have no idea, how the office is transformed at night.
 
Maybe it's too late now (and maybe even wouldnt have been possible), but did you consider the option of fixed center screen (the bigger one) and raising side screens? Would have eliminated most of the work that is needed changing the "mode".
 
Timppaq
Maybe it's too late now (and maybe even wouldnt have been possible), but did you consider the option of fixed center screen (the bigger one) and raising side screens? Would have eliminated most of the work that is needed changing the "mode".
Click to expand...

It's not an option. During the day this a business office, so a 55" would look out of place. Also behind the middle screen is a window, so there's no way to put a screen there.

But i'm happy with my setup just like it is:)
 
HoiHman
It's not an option. During the day this a business office, so a 55" would look out of place. Also behind the middle screen is a window, so there's no way to put a screen there.

But i'm happy with my setup just like it is:)
Click to expand...

It's an amazing setup, don't get me wrong 👍

Just a theoretical question out of interest. :cheers:

edit,

I also have one of those old 20" 4:3 DELL screens here :P Paid 50€ for it with a central unit. Was a steal I think :D (actually I'm typing from that PC atm, might be 6 years old or whatever but still going strong :lol: )
 
Triple screens. Looks delicious to my eyes. Thanks for the movie.
Unfortunately I have a single GTX480. Getting another one will be a for triple monitor support. So i'll stick to a single screen for a while longer. At least until this card is at its end. Which can take a while as the game devs don't seem to be pushing it much yet.
 
I accidentally stumbled into triple screen:

A leaking cpu cooler of my watercooling system fried my hd4870x2, so i bought a new hd6970.

Never even thought about triple screen. I just bought a new 46" lcd and at that time it was big enough.

After a couple of weeks, i hooked up my 24" and 30" as side screens.

Just for fun, to try it out. :)

That was the day that i was happy that my old video card was fried :D
 
Thanks, MrLatte.

I've doing a lot of thinking to get this huge triple screen setup into my small office, without turning it into a permanent gameroom.:)

Made the first step to "multi console gaming" today by connecting 2 xbox 360's to my setup:


image00001eeg.jpg


Third one xbox already ordered, will probably arrive tommorow.
 
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FM4 and GT5 both feel like different games with the extra screens. Well certainly from an entertainment perspective.

Look forward on your progress...
 
Thanks for the intrest MrLatte

Made a cosmetic adjustment today:

The bezels of the two samsung B6000 side screens were black with a red glow.

Never realy liked it, also the light shining throught the edges of the tv distracts me.

So i decided to give them a nice carbon fiber look:

image00001xt.jpg


Here you can also see how the two side screens fit perfectly underneath the desk, during the day.

The third xbox is already installed and the totally prepared for racing tonight.

Seems like the buttkickers are finally available this month, still thinking about buying one.

Two things that hold me back from buying one instantly :

A: I realy have no idea how to connect it to my Z5500 and get it working on 6 direct, coax and optical
B: The extra time it would take setting up the buttkicker every night.
 
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OMG! I just realized you are using smaller screens on both sides! I use a 50" plasma and was having trouble finding two more 50" tvs within my budget. Your screens have a 9" difference, so I could use two 42" screens.

Are there any alignment problems when using different sized screens? Your alignment looks spot on.

Edit: Just read the bit about your two 46" screens have a zoom feature. Is that what allowed you to use different sized screens? Do all samsungs have this feature?
 
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Nastradamus87
OMG! I just realized you are using smaller screens on both sides! I use a 50" plasma and was having trouble finding two more 50" tvs within my budget. Your screens have a 9" difference, so I could use two 42" screens.

Are there any alignment problems when using different sized screens? Your alignment looks spot on.

Edit: Just read the bit about your two 46" screens have a zoom feature. Is that what allowed you to use different sized screens? If so, I guess I'll have to look at samsungs for a potential solution.
Click to expand...

The zoom feature allow me too adjust the picture size vertically ONLY.

This means a part off the picture (top en bottom) will fall of the screen, butt since it's a side screen you will hardly notice it.

You can also ajust the vertical position of the picture, so can choose will part you want to see and make a perfHect alinement.

The only draw back is that the image is stretched, but because it's a side i hardly notice it.

If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask.
 
Nice work on the CF detailing...

Ideally of course having 3 identical screens is the best solution. I am very fussy with my alignment and desire to have it just right. Admire your efforts, particularly in such a small workspace and this gives you good experience in what multi-screen offers.

Prices keep dropping and who knows one day you could end up with 3 new matching displays for the optimal configuration. Not only is it good to have them matching the alignment but also in gaining a matching colour/contrast/brightness consistency over all screens. However the one remote can be a pain at times, bringing up all screen menus on all screens.
 
Mr Latte
Nice work on the CF detailing...

Ideally of course having 3 identical screens is the best solution. I am very fussy with my alignment and desire to have it just right. Admire your efforts, particularly in such a small workspace and this gives you good experience in what multi-screen offers.

Prices keep dropping and who knows one day you could end up with 3 new matching displays for the optimal configuration. Not only is it good to have them matching the alignment but also in gaining a matching colour/contrast/brightness consistency over all screens. However the one remote can be a pain at times, bringing up all screen menus on all screens.
Click to expand...

Three 55" LCD's would not fit in my small office. I thought about buying three identical 46" screens, but that would mean i had to replace the 55" screen by a 46" one.

After having the 55" screen for over half a year, going back to a 46" screen would be a big step backwards for anything else than multi screen.

Besides racing, i also use the only middle screen for gaming (non racing), watching movies en tv.

I even tought about buying to extra Dell 3011 monitors to place beside the one i already have, but again this would be a big step back in screen size.

I'am also very picked about my screens alinement and they line up pretty good. Far better than i ever imagined they would.

Still struggeling with the matching colour/contrast and brightness, but i will dive into that later on.

I know what you mean by having three screens and one remote, it's a realy pain in the ass.

The carbon fiber foil solved the issue with the three menu's popping up the same time. I only left a small opening at the receiver on the tv, now you have to hold the remote realy close to the tv to let it react to the ir signal, without the menu's of the other tv's popping up.
 
Three identical TVs isn't going to happen for me, since the one I have cost $1500 last year. Another $2000 on screens is a liiiiiiiiittle out of my budget (way out actually). Unmatching colour and brighness could be an annoyance.
 

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