Niehoff was born in Leeuwarden and served as an apprentice to pipe organ builder Jan van Covelen (c. 1470–1532).
After Van Covelen's death, Niehoff established his shop in 's-Hertogenbosch to continue building new and upgrading organs throughout the Netherlands and in major Hanseatic cities and is considered one of the most significant organ builders in northwestern Europe in the middle third of the 16th century.
The pipes in Niehoff's organs use an alloy of over 98% lead, with only about 1.3% tin and minimal amounts of antimony, copper and bismuth.
Pipes made of this alloy are noted for producing sounds with the "vocale" characteristic of the organs of the high Renaissance–early Baroque period.
This instrument also uses vertical pallets in its ruckpositive windchest, a method that was normal in Niehoff's organs but seldom found anytime since.