Outbuilding

House → Studio

Getting Internet From Your House to a Studio

Art, music, or recording — enough throughput for cloud backups and collab sessions.

A home studio — art, music, recording, photography — usually needs more upstream than most outbuildings. Uploading a 40 GB photo shoot to client review, pushing a session stem pack to Dropbox, or live-streaming a mix to a collaborator all want real bandwidth in both directions.

For most studios, a buried ethernet run is the right call. It's fast, reliable, and when you're working on deadline the last thing you want is a flaky wireless link cutting out during an export.

If trenching isn't practical, a UniFi NanoStation pair delivers ~300–450 Mbps both directions, which is plenty for most studio work. Add a wired drop to the workstation itself — don't trust Wi-Fi for the session files.

What you'll typically use it for

  • Art / photo studio with large file uploads
  • Music / recording studio with cloud session backup
  • Podcast or video production
  • Live streaming or collab sessions

What to think about

  • Prioritize upstream bandwidth — studio work is upload-heavy
  • Hardwire the workstation, even if you put an AP in the studio for mobile devices
  • Large monitors and audio gear are RF-noisy — wired is more reliable
  • Add a UPS so you don't lose a session to a 3-second power flicker

Best solutions for this scenario

Ranked by typical best-fit for this kind of building and distance.

  1. 1
    Direct-Burial Ethernet
    Run outdoor-rated Cat6 in conduit. Simple, rock solid, limited to 328 ft (100 m) without a switch.
  2. 2
    Point-to-Point Wireless Bridge
    A pair of directional radios, one on each building. The default answer for distances where running a cable is impractical.
  3. 3
    MoCA Over Existing Coax
    If a coax cable already runs between the two buildings, a pair of MoCA adapters gives you gigabit+ ethernet over it.

Gear commonly recommended here

Affiliate disclosure. As an Amazon Associate, Outbuilding Internet earns from qualifying purchases. Product links in this guide may earn us a commission — at no extra cost to you.
trueCABLECable~$160

trueCABLE Cat6 Direct-Burial Bulk Ethernet, Gel-Filled, 500 ft

UV-resistant, gel-filled ethernet for outdoor runs and underground conduit.

Use outdoor-rated cable for anything that leaves the house — even if it's only running up the wall to a radio on the eaves. Gel-filled / direct-burial rating is required for unprotected underground runs. 500 ft spool is the right size for most home installs.

Best for: Any cable run exposed to sun, weather, or underground conduit.

  • UV + moisture resistant
  • Gel-filled for direct burial
  • 23 AWG solid copper
  • PoE++ rated
  • Stiffer than indoor cable
  • Terminations take practice
Rating
Cat6 Direct Burial
Length
500 ft
AWG
23 solid bare copper
UbiquitiPtp Radio~$180

Ubiquiti NanoStation 5AC Loco (NS-5ACL), 2-Pack

The default UniFi point-to-point pick. One box, both ends.

The most-installed outdoor PtP radio in the world. Two of them create a dedicated wireless bridge between buildings. Small, weatherproof, 24V passive PoE. Real-world throughput ~300–450 Mbps with clear line of sight. The 2-pack ships with both ends, mounts, and injectors.

Best for: Most house-to-barn / house-to-shop installs under 1500 ft.

  • Proven, huge install base, tons of community support
  • airMAX config is well-documented
  • Both units + mounts + PoE injectors in one box
  • Requires clear line of sight
  • 24V passive PoE (not 802.3af)
Band
5 GHz
Gain
13 dBi
Range
Up to 1.5 km
PoE
24V passive (included)
UbiquitiWifi Ap~$99

Ubiquiti UniFi 6 Lite Access Point (U6-Lite)

Default UniFi AP for inside the barn.

Standard 802.3af PoE Wi-Fi 6 access point. Once your bridge brings ethernet into the barn, plug this into a PoE switch or injector and you have fast Wi-Fi over the whole building. Manage via any UniFi controller (Cloud Gateway, UDR, Self-Hosted).

Best for: Indoor Wi-Fi coverage in the destination building.

  • Wi-Fi 6
  • Standard 802.3af PoE
  • UniFi controller (free) for config
  • Not outdoor-rated
  • PoE injector sold separately
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi 6 (AX)
PoE
802.3af
Ports
1x GbE