What can I use to hang my headphones off my desk?

Question

These are my headphones. They're wireless, but can be used while their charging cable is plugged in.

My desk is wood, ~3/4" thick, with a square edge (not tapered).

I want to be able to hang my headphones under or off of the edge of my desk, and additionally be able to store the tip of the charging cable on that hook when I'm wearing the headphones. But the cable needs to be able to come out of its trap, so I can charge the headphones while wearing them.

In short, here are the three requirements:

1. Is robust enough to support the headphones
2. Has a trap for the headphone cable (a standard micro USB cable)
3. Releases the cable easily without fiddling

I attempted to create a hook solution out of sugru, but the texture was all wrong. (I wish I had a photo, but I've since removed it. It was essentially a wedge with a slit down the middle so I could stick the cable in.) I couldn't get it to cure at the right angle, so the hook part was too horizontal and that combined with the smooth texture made the headphones fall off too easily.

I've thought about the binder clip trick, and that might work well for my headphone cable (except for the part where I need to remove it from its trap easily), but even a large binder clip is too small (or not hook-y enough) to secure my headphones. I've seen IKEA hacks like this one, but they only solve the headphones part, not the cable management part.

What can I use to create a headphone hanger and cable manager?

Answer 1

Are you against putting holes in the edge of your desk?

Two finishing/trim nails could work. Hammer them in close together (horizontally spaced) so the cable just fits between the nail heads. Most (micro) USB connectors shouldn't be able to slip through, and the cable will just dangle there. I recommend finishing nails because they have thin heads, but any nails that you can put close together (while keeping a small space between the heads) should work.

The headphones simply hang from the nails themselves. If they are prone to slipping off, you could angle the nails a bit upward to create more of a "hook".

If you're not sure what finishing nails look like:

Answer 2

Have you got a wire coathanger?

You can break off the top (the part in the circle) and bend the rest into an headphone stand.

Here is one I built (first try):

I added some soft material on the part where the headband rests (the yellow stuff in the picture) and tied with some wire/hair ties the two the top part and close to the base. I'm guessing you can experiment with shapes/pieces to hold it together according to your needs.

It works pretty well, but is a bit light, I'm probably gonna add some weights to the base so that it does not tip when hitting it when nothing is on it.

Answer 3

If you are not afraid to drill a hole and use a saw I got a suggestion for you: Build your own headphone stand out of a piece of wood and drill a hole for the charging cable. Attach under your desk. Here is an image with the top view and side view of my suggestion:

Building instructions and/or description of stand:

• Use a suitable piece of wood (brown in image), and drill holes for the screws on the left hand side (black circles)
• Drill a hole (white circle) just on the outside of where it will attach to desk the size of your charging cable, but not larger than the head of the cable
• Use a saw to finish the split into towards the hole. The cable should easily slide in through the slit
• Optional: Make a little recess at the end of the slit, so that the head of the charging cable (green) could slip a little beyond the top of your wood piece so as not to slide out
• Optional: If don't like the sharp edges where you hang your headphone you could taper or round off the edges in that area
• Attach underneath the desk, and hang your headphone and/or charging cable to the stand

Answer 4

I would recommend a handbag/purse hanger and a paper clip.

Basically just place the unfolded hanger onto the table’s edge, hang up your headphones. No holes, no damage, can be moved as needed.

You can slip a paper clip on the hook part and use it to hold the cable. It can easily be bent a bit so that it prevents the cable from dropping and still be removable, if needed.

Answer 5

As far as hanging your headphones under your desk, check out the hooks at:

https://www.amazon.com/Adhesive-Transparent-Reusable-Seamless-Waterproof/dp/B08NHG8MGC/

for holding your charging wire(s), look at:

https://www.amazon.com/OHill-Organizer-Management-Organizing-Adhesive/dp/B071FXZBMV/

Both of these are adhesive and should function fine under your desk without annoying your employer with anything permanent.