Ok. Here's the issue i have with some of these recommendations:
My personall recommendation is as follows:
Get a Cable Raceway that goes under your desk like this one
Use double sided tape to affix the transformer to the bottom of your desk or the wall behind it
Get yourself a cable raceway, here's a link to a nice and affordable one on Amazon.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002DNM42O/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It attaches to the back of your desk via adhesive. Just route all those dangling cables through it and off to one side and you're golden. You may have to cut it to size, but it's just made of thin PVC. If you don't have a saw handy then a kitchen knife could honestly probably work in a pinch.
stick one of these on the back. Beyond that you'll just have to get creative. Search "cable management" on amazon. bunch of handy stuff on there..
I have a plastic cable runner, which I got off Amazon. Got to say I am really impressed at how much it holds and how well it hides everything. I could have done better prepping and mapping out the cable layout, but honestly just shoving all the cables in there works just fine.
What about something like this to keep the cables off of the floor?
Might suggest Zip Ties instead, much faster and easier to cut off.
But honestly.... I really don't see a problem with how it is right now.
If you're super Anal you could buy a cable raceway like this and just 3M or Screw it straight into the back of the desk and then zip tie the bulk down to the actual PC but I don't think it's necessary.
I recommend buying a channel raceway for your wires to be hidden behind your desk,then Velcro strap those wires down the back of the desk legs to keep tidy and from being seen.
Is it possible to move the router and cable modem to another location? If you have another room already wired with coax and power, and you can run a single network cable out to your office, then you could mount a port switch under your desk and split up the network cables from there. Of course, they wouldn't be on the UPS any more, which may be a problem depending on your requirements. Then you'd be down to the power stuff. The power strip shouldn't need too much ventilation, so it could be mounted under your desk as well, and you'd be down to one cable.
If none of that seems feasible, then maybe buy a couple of adhesive cable raceways (like this one) and try to corral as much as possible.
Velcro together any cables that are going between the same place, e.g. monitor cables going between monitors and PC. For peripherals, if one of your monitors has a USB hub, you can plug all of your USB stuff there.
For the hanging excess cable, wrap them up and tie them with zip ties. You can also get a cable organizer and route stuff there.
Zipties are your best friend, you could even go a little extreme and drill some holes into your desk to fit the cables into comfortably. Or... you could just get a nice rail under your desk:
Really nice setup by the way! You don't see a lotta setups with multiple colors, pretty unique in my opinion.
To answer original question: I thought I needed an optical drive when I built my PC... due mostly to nostalgia. However, I've inserted a single DVD movie since I built it 3 months ago. Absolutely not necessary.
I used this to tidy the cables under my desk: cable management
It comes with double-sided tape to secure it, but I drilled pilot holes through it and my desk and secured it with wood screws and washers anyway.
This cable raceway would help dramatically if you were willing to install this under one of your flat surfaces.
Guys, best thing I ever purchased
Get a raceway if your desk can support it. WORTH IT.
Hey there,
What are those gold ring things around the tubes to your CPU heatsink and GPU power?
Also, are you using this behind your desk?
I have one of these on the back of my desk and it makes everything look much cleaner. You have to jam the thicker cables in but it works. I opted to screw it into my desk though because every cable management adhesive product I've used has failed.
Here ya go! I love it, was a bit pricey but as you can see it cleans it up and does miracles!
I was looking at something like This, would it be useful for a backless desk or are they clunky to use?
Little bit late, but I used this on this inner bottom of my desk, right against the bottom of the desktop. It's awesome and super easy. Just peel and stick adhesive on the back and it holds a bunch of cables. It would work the same along the backside of a desk as well.
I'ts not too bad, link. I utilized these from amazon: cable track and ties
Buy a cable race way and cable covers that stick to walls.
Electriduct Large J Channel Cable Raceway Self Adhesive Desk Cord Organizer and Wire Manager for Computer, Gaming and Entertainment Centers - Black - 48" (4 Feet) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002DNM42O/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_9WR15ZG6Z8TJEF376FTW
Cord Cover Raceway Kit, 157in Cable Cover Channel, Paintable Cord Concealer System Cable Hider, Cord Wires, Hiding Wall Mount TV Powers Cords in Home Office, 10X L15.7in X W0.95in X H0.55in, White https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GPFDL1K/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_1P8EAXTYZY50G6NR22S0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
I'd actually disagree with this. There is no best item for cable management. Imo cable management is a system which must encompass multiple strategies to be effective. There are multiple best items but all for different reasons.
J Channel Raceways are a very very useful tool for routing wires behind a desk for example in (or any route really). I personally use this as the main channel raceway along the back of my desk which hides most wires.
Singular Cable clamps are also immensely useful for routing cables in specific areas. For example most of my wires that plug into my PC are routed through the raceway but I also have power bricks that are velcro'd to the underside of my desk. I can't use a raceway for all of those cables to many of them I route in a circular fashion under my desk so they remain hidden yet held in place in certain areas by the clamps.
Mesh cable sleeves are more of an aestetic choice but also does serve a purpose whereas double sides velcro you are very much locked into your initial configuration, if you add a peripheral you must undo multiple velcro's along the wire route (which can be especially annoying if you have a particularly long route) to do nothing but add a single wire then you must re-velcro them all (rinse and repeat if you get another peripheral!). So with this, aside from generally being more attractive than multiple cables tied together by presenting a singular cable look, I can add and remove cables at will without much work. This can also be especially useful for VR as some variants of these offer EMI isolation which some headsets are prone to experiencing.
Other things include powered and unpowered USB hubs. Double sided and single sided velcro tape as you mentioned. Cable hide-away boxes, etc. All in all - cable management is a system. Not a singular tool that is the 'best' to be used.
There are a few options available. For hiding cables under or behind the desk you can use something like a J Channel or a Signum from Ikea. To have a cleaner look for the cables coming from the PC you could simply bundle them. Something like a Cable Flex wrap or cable sleeve you may find helpful. Hope that helps.
maybe try to run the cables under the desk all the way to the right with a cable rack or something like this
and then run down with a sleeve
and put the pc and router on a small shelf
Cable raceways to stick behind or under your desk for cables.
Cable sleeve for those cables coming out behind your PC and behind your monitor.
Monitor mounts actually help a lot too, it's not really obvious at first but a secondary utility of monitor mounts is you can snake the cables to the mount to make it look cleaner instead of it hanging about.
Here are some things you can buy:
Consider drilling holes through your desk to route cables. You can mount your surge protector to the bottom or side of your desk.
I can give more detailed ideas if you upload pictures.
Thank you! My biggest helper was velcro zip ties and a cable raceway
Thanks. Out of all the colors the strip offers, the Red was subtle enough for this.
For cable management I used a combination of things. The main piece cleaning up the wires was this. It is a J channel cable Raceway.
Then I used a combination of reuseable/one time use zip tips and cable tie mounts. Took some time figuring out where to put everything but it helped out alot. The power cables by my feet are the only cables you really see.
I used a long power strip and a cable raceway.
https://www.amazon.com/Channel-Cable-Raceway-Black-Length/dp/B002DNM42O
and
my desk is about 60" wide...so i ran this across the back end to organize the cables: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002DNM42O/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I used a cable raceway (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002DNM42O/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_7rhKzb6SPRBHE) Attached to the bottom of the desk.
That's what I was going for. Cheap and upgrade-able later on. I'd look at all the legs and tops; this sub definitely believes in picking out all your own parts.
Sidenote: If you go cheap like mine, find a good cable holder to add on. Ikea has this one for $12 but I went with this becuse it was lower profile.
Just a simple cable raceway.
Here is a [link] for the anti-kink coils I used for the tubes. Please keep in mind the diameter of your tubes!
And you're correct. [Link] to the cable raceway I used. If you need less than 48 inches, you're going to need to find a bandsaw or something similar, because you won't be able to cut these with regular ol' kitchen scissors
For those who are curious :
Amazon Links to the Cable Management stuff:
And then I just grabbed some 3M double sided adhesive for my power bricks and such
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
I use this, mounted to the rear of my desk, to handle cables that run the length of the table top. Cables all exit on the right side of the desk and run down one leg: http://www.amazon.com/Channel-Cable-Raceway-Black-Length/dp/B002DNM42O
I use this to handle cables that run across my floor (live in apartment, can't build them into the wall): http://www.amazon.com/Rubber-Duct-Floor-Cord-Cover/dp/B00EJO0A1C
I used this to wrap/bundle my cables when they are too long: http://www.amazon.com/VELCRO-Brand-ONE-WRAP-Management-Self-Gripping/dp/B001E1Y5O6
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30200253/
all of these are gud starts for cable management
Tons of different options.
The search term you're looking for is "cable trays." There are hundreds of variants, but something like this might work for you. Lifehacker also has a tag for DIY cable management. You want a cable tray that can sit between the two tables.
Or if you really just want to keep the tables with a half inch gap or so between them and have the cables drop down to the floor (but please, for the love of all that is holy, put in a decent cable management system instead), you could stick some shims (or even cheaper) pointy end down between the two tables on each end.