Non WW HDTV gloat, with a WW request

[Tim Morton]

After months's of agonizing the recent price drops pushed me to buy a new TV. Its a 50" screen and i am looking for ideas for a base. Has anyone built a TV stand for there HDTV that they would be wiling to share pics of? I am thinking simple with an opening for a CC and maybe four slots for components.

[Ted Baca]

Tim, congrats on the TV I wanting to upgrade in 07, to flatpanel. I am an A/V nut and when looking at TV and Audio cabinet design ideas I like to look at differnt furniture websites. You can look at stereophile.com and look at "links" and there is a section on furniture. You can get a lot of ideas there.

[Jim Becker]

Congratulations on your new HDTV, Tim. You'll really enjoy it.

One of the nice things about the newer generation of viewing devices is that they take up a heck of a lot less room than the older big-screen solutions. That means your cabinetry can be made with less depth...you only need enough for any components you may want in the same support structure. My suggestion would be for you to consider something "buffet" like, with adjustments for the height you prefer. There is a thread in the Design forum with a lot of very nice examples of larger ET systems, but I happen to prefer "simpler" when it comes to this kind of thing. Our 30" LCD is on a simple bench-like construction with one shelf underneath for components. (I'm planning a larger screen in the addition and frankly, am going to hang it on the wall and put components in a cabinet elsewhere in the room) If I recall, there are a few nice ideas in the Pottery Barn catalog, too.

[Bruce Page]

Tim, is it a flat screen or rear projection?
16:9 or 4:3

I ditched the traditional entertainment center when we got our new flat screen a few weeks ago. I went with what they call a “Low Boy”. I really like the look.

[Tim Morton]

Tim, is it a flat screen or rear projection?
16:9 or 4:3

I ditched the traditional entertainment center when we got our new flat screen a few weeks ago. I went with what they call a “Low Boy”. I really like the look.

That looks like it would work nice!! Its a Samsung DLP whihc makes its rear projection 19:9. The size is 45wide by 32 high x15 deep.
http://www.samsung.com/Products/TV/DLPTV/HLS5087WXXAA.asp

I am going to go look at potterybarn as well. LOML has an idea to place it on a "dresser" we have in our living room. But that is 36" high which besides messing up the viewing and the "look" of the room, I think it poses a huge risk if it tipped over. I want to be around 22" high.

[Bruce Page]

Tim, I should've included a link.
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-cUPU5MnAEF5/cgi-bin/prodview.asp?i=051WFV66C

It comes with both glass and wood panels for the right & left doors. The center door has a cloth panel for your center channel speaker. It would have been a fun project to build but I simply didn’t have the time…
Delivery from Crutchfield took less than a week.

[Dick Latshaw]

Here's what I did for our flat screen TV. Of course we don't have a bunch of components to manage. (You can tell from the open door that we're in Florida. The ashes in the fireplace are from last week when it was really cold.)

51034

51035

51036

[Tim Morton]

Here's what I did for our flat screen TV. Of course we don't have a bunch of components to manage. (You can tell from the open door that we're in Florida. The ashes in the fireplace are from last week when it was really cold.)

51034

51035

51036

that has an "Ikea" look to it, and I have spent the last half hour looking on ikea for something like that. I think if I can find something I will order it since most things from ikea are under $100 bucks. When I told the wife i was going to build something for the new TV she kind of "bristled" ..i have to know when to shut it!!!!:D :D

[Tim Morton]

Holy CRAP!!! I found something that would work:

http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?topcategoryId=10104&catalogId=10101&storeId=12&productId=11149&langId=-1&categoryId=10489&chosenPartNumber=30024863

I would just maybe stain it and remove the casters and maybe build some doors....but it cost $99 to buy it and almost $300 just for shipping.:mad: :mad: :mad:

[Jim Becker]

'Cost you less to drive to Stoughton MA (http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/IkeaNearYouView?storeId=12&langId=-1&catalogId=10103&StoreName=stoughton) to visit Ikea directly!

Staining it would be tough...it's thin veneer over particle board. But that piece is nice...I remember looking at it on my last visit to Ikea.

[Robyn Horton]

This one that I made similar to the Panasonic stands in the stores. It is made from Solid Maple and Maple Plywood. http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q233/monte_ss00/DSC02506.jpghttp://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q233/monte_ss00/DSC02492.jpg

[Dan Drager]

I built this one to highlight the beautiful figured walnut and spalted / birdseye maple. I also think it is the right size, not swallowed up by the size of the screen.

[Tim Morton]

I have a plan to use an old bookcase here at the house, one that my wife really likes the wood on. I am going to turn it on its side and take out the shelves and rebuild them going in the right direction. It may be a stop gap....but I am up for this challenge. Plus it makes her happy and I do not think it will hurt the picture quality:D :D

BTW..Robyn, that is a work of art...very nice work!!!!

[Tim Morton]

I built this one to highlight the beautiful figured walnut and spalted / birdseye maple. I also think it is the right size, not swallowed up by the size of the screen.

NIce!! and it reminds me...I am going to build it to house a row of small baskets on the bottom to throw all the junk into..definitely country vermonty. But with a big old flat screen on top to watch the red sox!!!!!:D

[Joe Jensen]

Here's what I built. It's 24" deep with 5 full extention drawers and a space for the center channel speaker.

[Chris Merriam]

I have the same need for a new TV stand. My problem is I have giant Klipsch speakers, and my 40-50LB center channel is too big to fit in most center compartments. I'm going to modify a Salamander design for mine. I really like their stuff, it's what Magnolia (in Best Buy) uses for lots of their displays. They have really cool (literally!) pierced metal walls that allow your gear to keep cool. I want to add drawers to hold my movies right below the table surface too.

Their website is salamanderdesigns.com

[Tim Morton]

I have the same need for a new TV stand. My problem is I have giant Klipsch speakers, and my 40-50LB center channel is too big to fit in most center compartments. I'm going to modify a Salamander design for mine. I really like their stuff, it's what Magnolia (in Best Buy) uses for lots of their displays. They have really cool (literally!) pierced metal walls that allow your gear to keep cool. I want to add drawers to hold my movies right below the table surface too.

Their website is salamanderdesigns.com

with those Klipsch boxes you could just run a 2"x12" across the top, then drop a few drywall screws and bolt the CC under the 2x12 and call her done!!!:D :D

I looked at this locally tonight...it seemed nice enough and the price was not bad. I may change my plans and buy this.

http://www.thegrovefurniture.com/747w.html

[Al Willits]

You'll love the 50", I have the hitachi RP LCD and it was quite the improvement over the old 27", enjoy.. :)

One thing to look out for is seating height and how high your screen is.
We had ours a bit high and it got uncomfortable to watch after a bit, ended up wanting the set about 17" off the ground, so I'll be building a low boy style soon...to replace the milk crates were using in the meantime. :)

Al

[Tim Morton]

You'll love the 50", I have the hitachi RP LCD and it was quite the improvement over the old 27", enjoy.. :)

One thing to look out for is seating height and how high your screen is.
We had ours a bit high and it got uncomfortable to watch after a bit, ended up wanting the set about 17" off the ground, so I'll be building a low boy style soon...to replace the milk crates were using in the meantime. :)

Al

yes, I have a piece of foam core cut to the size of the TV and I plan on doing some simulations tonight to figure out the height I want. :cool:

[Jim Becker]

Tim, that last piece you posted about looks nice and still lets you do the finishing thing to make it somewhat "your own". BTW, my "little" 30" LCD is on an 18" tall bench. I'm not sure I'd want it to be too much higher...

[Tim Morton]

Tim, that last piece you posted about looks nice and still lets you do the finishing thing to make it somewhat "your own". BTW, my "little" 30" LCD is on an 18" tall bench. I'm not sure I'd want it to be too much higher...


thats what held me back from buying it today...it is 23" high. I agree that lower is better here.I think I could put a carcass together with some shelves at say 18" just "for now" and then after the holidays start working on something more permanent.

BTW Jim...another gloat here tonight, one I think you will appreciate..loml took delivery on an 07 escape hybrid tonight. That was my xmas gift to her...i did all the wheeling and dealing all she had to do was walk in and pick up the keys....(oh and make the 60 monthly payments...but whos counting):D

[Jim Becker]

A very nice day in the Morton household!

Suggestion. I know it's not asthetically "wonderful", but you might want to consider knocking together some plywood cubes and a flat piece of plywood to support the TV at the height you think it should be...and try it out for awhile. Put an inexpensive color-coordinated table cloth over it to hide the, um...desgn...during your testing. If you find you need it higher or lower, adjust the size of the cubes and live with it some more. (actually build them as rectangles so you only need to do it once and rotate them for different levels) Then...invest in the time to build or the money to buy something appropriate for your needs.

[Robyn Horton]

Thanks for the complement on my stand Tim, Here it is with the TV installed.http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q233/monte_ss00/DSC03145.jpg

[Tim Morton]

A very nice day in the Morton household!

Suggestion. I know it's not asthetically "wonderful", but you might want to consider knocking together some plywood cubes and a flat piece of plywood to support the TV at the height you think it should be...and try it out for awhile. Put an inexpensive color-coordinated table cloth over it to hide the, um...desgn...during your testing. If you find you need it higher or lower, adjust the size of the cubes and live with it some more. (actually build them as rectangles so you only need to do it once and rotate them for different levels) Then...invest in the time to build or the money to buy something appropriate for your needs.

thats what I was thinking...now I just need to figure a way for the kids to "find" this early so I don't have to wait until the 25th *eg*

[Tim Morton]

Thanks for the complement on my stand Tim, Here it is with the TV installed.http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q233/monte_ss00/DSC03145.jpg


very nice....does the TV play the center channel? And is that 16:9 showing black lines top and bottom??:confused:

[chris keen]

Chris' idea is a good one. I did this myself about 3 years ago when I got our first HDTV (50" Hitachi RPTV). I liked the Salamander triples a lot, but not enough to fork over the $$$ they wanted. Besides, the fun was in making it myself. There are great pictures on their website.

As for the aluminum extrusions that they use - look no further than 8020.net and you'll see what you need. The beauty of the extrusions is that it makes assembly and disassembly a snap if you ever needed to so so. It's also going to give you adjustable shelves for your equipment needs. I originally did mine out of birch plywood which I dyed and then put tung oil on. The other great thing about building my own, was that I have a pretty large center channel, and it wouldn't have fit in the normal width of what they offered. Building it myself gave me the flexibility to size the center part to my needs.

I am actually thinking about building a new one, as I'm looking at a different TV here in the next year. The current one will get donated to my dad.

[Tim Morton]

this is how it turned out. Nothing fancy...i just ended up using sme wood I had laying around, and I still need to finish off the top edging...waiting until I ind some wood scraps:D

http://i13.tinypic.com/42ml742.jpg

[Jim Becker]

Very nice, Tim!

(And it's nice to see PSU in the Outback Bowl on your screen, despite the moniker at the bottom indicating another game...)

[Tim Morton]

Very nice, Tim!

(And it's nice to see PSU in the Outback Bowl on your screen, despite the moniker at the bottom indicating another game...)

I think it was right after they missed a field goal....Joe P was non too happy:eek: I am loving HDTV....