My 2 PC setup
How I setup my 2 computers for maximum comfort and minimum clutter using KVM and USB-C hub for 60$
If you like me, and you got a personal rig for your games, Netflix or university and you also got a job, when COVID hit you probably started to work from home most of the time, either using your peripherals or using one for each device like i did
but well the problem with that is that you need to keep plug and unplug your screen, and you need to keep both keyboards close to you so it will be somewhat easy to switch between devices.
For me it was my screen, keyboard and mouse for each PC and my camera that I use for my YouTube content and for work meetings, and thats a lot of stuff I need to plug each day, or to keep in place where it will be easy for me to reach.
What I did
KVM
I started looking for a KVM — if you don’t familiar with that its a device where you can connect your peripherals as a input and chose to which PC you want to output your devices, it was an hard task to find something good and cheap, because it can easily cost more than 50$ for something basic, 4 USB connections and a USB-C output for maximum speed and I found this KVM that also comes with a “remote” so its really easy to hide the box under the desk, I bought this one from aliexpress — AIMOS 2 In 1 4K USB HDMI KVM Switch Box which have HDMI and type-C output for each PC, and 4 USB-A inputs for my peripherals, and it cost only 24$ at the time that I’m writing this article, I glued it using 3M tape under my desk and route all my USB cable to it, and used 2 USB-C to USB-A cables to connect the KVM to my computers.
USB-C HUB
For the USB-C hub i needed it to have at least 2 HDMI ports, 1 USB-A, Power Delivery support , RJ45 for internet connection and well, it should work with my Macbook Pro 16" inch,
I’m very familiar with BlitzWolf products because they cheap but high quality, I chose the BlitzWolf BW-TH11 11-in-1 USB C HUB USB to Multi HDMI USB 3.0 RJ45 because it checks all the boxes and well, it costs only 34$ at the time that I’m writing this article, but, if you want BlitzWolf also have those models which are similar but have less connections:
- BlitzWolf BW-TH10 which only comes with 1 HDMI output and no SD-card reader, for 31$
- BlitzWolf BW-TH5 which only comes with 1 HDMI output and no RJ45 input, for 27$
now I can connect my mac to the internet and not relay on WiFi connection, to my monitor, to my charger and most important I can connect the KVM to it using USB-C (KVM end) to USB-A (the hub), and only one cable to my mac!
Now, the next part is just because I want to also hide the USB-C hub, and it seems like no USB-C hub comes with long cable, I also purchased this USB-C extension cable from UGREEN, its pretty short, only 0.5m, but it does the job, I’m hiding the USB-C hub behind my monitor and have only the extension cable run to my mac, and it support charging and data transfer
So that all I did in order to connect my mac and PC to the same keyboard, camera and mic, I got the KVM remote on my desk under the monitor for easy switch between the computers, when I game or work!
all the links are affiliate links, but it is my daily setup as you can see from the photos
Like this post?
You can follow me on my YouTube Channel
You can also follow me on Twitter
