DIY Open entertainment center plan (w/ 3D rendered pics) (1 Viewer)

[Phil_La]

I can't for the life of me find a TV stand or entertainment center that will suit my needs, so I'm taking it into my own hands.

I got the general plan down and modelled it with 3D Canvas (not bad for free software). Here are the images:

mywebpage.netscape.com/tehpressman/hta.jpg
mywebpage.netscape.com/tehpressman/htb.jpg

The black poles are rectangular fiberglass tubing. There will be side pieces at the tops and bottoms going from front to back for reinforcement. They aren't in the pictures because I'm not sure how I want to do that yet.

dimensions are:
-57" high, side shelves are 46" high
-The middle shelves are 36" wide shown in the picture, but will probably be 38-40" for more TV room. The side shelves are 18" wide.
-23" deep (may change to 24")

The left/top shelf will hold the DVD player. The shelves below it will hold DVDs. I got lazy and didn't do the shelves on the right, but they will hold a SACD player on top and 4 CD storage shelves below it.

The middle/bottom shelf is for the receiver, and the one above it is for a Gamecube and/or PS2.

The speakers shown are Axiom M3Ti's and VP150.

This will be in my bedroom, which is about 15x10.5 ft. Like I said, I can't find any furniture at all that interests me. I've never built anything like this, so any comments would be appreciated. I don't know a whole lot about speaker placement, so one thing I wanted comments on is the bookshelf speaker placement. I was originally going to buy stands for them, but I was wondering if they would be okay up there since it isn't closed off.

Let me know what you think.
Thanks, Phil.

 

[JeffTodd]

Phil,

Looks pretty slick. The best thing about making it yourself is that you are sure it will fit your needs.

I might give that software a try as well. Do you think it's pretty self explanatory to someone who doesn't know much about 3d software?

 

[David Preston]

Very nice design. Make sure you show us the pics when you're done.

 

[Phil_La]

Jeff, I don't have much experience with 3D software and I didn't find it very hard to use. It doesn't have an overwhelming amount of features. There are also some tutorials for it, but I didn't read them. I just tinkered around with it for a few minutes until I figured out how to resize shapes and drag them into place, then I found some wood textures on the software's website. All I wanted to do was get a fairly accurate idea of what the furniture will look like, so I think it did a good job of that. You can find the software at download.com (or google it).

 

[sean_pecor]

Nice work! I like the open style. How are you going to be handling wire management?

I also found that modeling a furniture design in 3D really helped flesh out the project. For our entertainment center my goal is to hide everything when the TV isn't being used (which is quite often, especially during the summer).

For giggles, here is an evolution of my design, in pictures:

Version 1:
http://extranet.digitalspinner.com/ht/ecenter1.jpg

Version 2:
http://extranet.digitalspinner.com/ht/ecenter3.jpg

Version 3:
http://extranet.digitalspinner.com/ht/ecenter7.jpg

Version 4:
http://extranet.digitalspinner.com/ht/ecenter13.jpg

Version 5: (final)
http://extranet.digitalspinner.com/ht/ecenter.jpg

Version 5 met the WAF so it's a go. I may make the side shelves taller/shorter to break up the lines a bit.

Sean.

 

[Dave Poehlman]

The black poles are rectangular fiberglass tubing.

Phil, have you considered just going with a flexy rack system? The end result would be pretty similar in look.

And since everyone else is posting their ideas, I'll post mine rendered with good ol' MSPAINT:
http://mywebpage.netscape.com/skipjack3001/entctr.jpg

I have to comission my dad to build it, though.. I don't have the time or the tools to pull it off and make it look good.

 

[Phil_La]

Dave, where can I get information about flexy racks?

I have more than enough of the fiberglass in my garage, it just needs to be cut. All I have to buy is wood & paint.

 

[Dave Poehlman]

Phil, do a search in the DIY forum for flexy and you'll get an idea of what it is.

Here's a thread off the top of my head:

http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...ighlight=flexy

Basically it's a bunch of threaded rods with nuts and some horizontal shelving... the term "flexy" comes from the fact that the whole thing is adjustable.

However, if you've already got all of the fiberglass in your garage...

 

[Phil_La]

Nice work! I like the open style. How are you going to be handling wire management?

one thing I'm considering right now is drilling holes in the fiberglass to run the audio cables to the dvd and sacd players, and speaker wire to the front l/r speakers. The dvd component cable can go directly to the TV.

here's a new render:
mywebpage.netscape.com/tehpressman/htc.jpg (copy/paste in browser again, sorry)

digital coax and 5.1 RCAs from A to C
right speaker wire from A to E
digital optical cable from B to D
left speaker wire from B to F

I think I should be able to get away with all of the a/v cables in 6 ft. I think the DVD and SACD players will have 6 ft. power cables, so I'm not sure if they would be able to reach the isobar (surge protector). I might move that up to the same shelf as the PS2.

 

[Humphrey]

I wouldn't be putting my speaker that high up. Assuming that's roughly a 36" tv that would put it pretty high. I've always preferred them directly under the tv. Of course I've never particularly liked the open rack designs either as the cable mess from a bigger system is too much. That's just my 2 pennies worth though.

Humphrey

w/Amp, 2 PVR's, SVHS, DVD, LaserDisc and 2 Satellite receivers in one short enclosed network rack.

 

[Chuck Paskovics]

Here's my project. I finished it earlier this year. Like most people I couldnt find an entertainment center that suited all of my needs, so I built a custom one! For my wire mess I made all of the shelves 2 inches shorter than the rest of the cabinent so that I can put the back on over the wires. I used clips to route all the wires, then I put the back on over them. I also created a false wall on my bottom storage cabinent where I put my surge protector and all my plugs. Keeps every thing very clean and tidy. I also installed a fan to my receiver that vents the heat out of the top. The only thing I've not been able to find yet is a good plaque or wooden vented design to place at the top to cover the fan. I'm still looking for that.

http://home.insightbb.com/~rogue3ky/hometheater/

I also made a dvd rack, center speaker rack and subwoofer endtable all to match.