Archive for February, 2009
What to look for in a new TV Stand
Much excitement follows the purchase of a new television. Euphoria floods the household when it arrives. It changes the look and feel of the room it enters. Hours of research and thought are put into that decision. But often, not near enough thought is put into the stand it sits on. So here are few tips on what to look for when shopping for tv stands.
Corner vs Flat Wall
One of the first things to consider when searching for a TV stand is the location. Where you intend to place the television is important to determine before you get to the store. For instance, are you going to go with a corner stand or place the tv against a flat wall? Choosing a corner for the television could save you valuable space in the living room. However, if you have a large flat panel screen, putting it against a large empty wall may be ideal. Think through your intended location for the television and imagine…
Set Depth
Another important point you’ll want to take into account during your shopping excursion is the set depth. The modern trend for plasma and LCD television sets is to make them as thin as possible. If you intend to purchase one of these sets, you do not need a stand with much depth at all. In fact, you might want to go with a slim stand which protrudes only a few inches from the wall. Your living room may look unbalanced otherwise. However, if your set still uses a large tube to project the image onto the screen, it is necessary to get a good idea of the set depth before heading to the store. Be sure the leave an inch or two for cables or cords when calculating your measurements.
Weight Requirements
Just as important as set depth and your intended location is the weight of the set. All TV stands are not constructed the same. And all do not hold the same weight. Determine how heavy your television is and make sure the set you go with can handle that amount of weight. It would be unfortunate to come home from a long day at work ready for a weekend of college football on the tube only to find you’re new HDTV shattered into several pieces amongst the heap of plywood which used to be your tv stand.
External Units
Now this is an important one. Make sure you take into account all of the other devices that you intend to attach to your television now and in the future. Will you need space for game systems, DVD or Blue-Ray players, stereo equipment, external speakers, or laptops? Do you need just a stand or an entertainment center? Make sure you think ahead. If your children aren’t yet old enough to play video games, they soon will be, and they will certainly want to plug them into the “big TV” from time to time.
Accessibility
Cords, cables, antennas, inputs, - will you be able to get to them? Nothing is more frustrating than when you have your television on its stand pushed back against the wall in the perfect place - and then you need to get behind it to plug something in. In many cases, you end up struggling either to pull that heavy set out from the wall or to stuff your hand behind it at just the right angle to get the cables into the appropriate position. This can easily be remedied by purchasing a TV stand with enough room for easy access to the rear panels.
Term of Use
Also vital is the estimated term of use for the stand itself. If you wish to keep this television stand around for several years, it is important to pay attention to the construction. A cheap stand is fine if you only intend to use for a short time. Maybe you want to mount the tv on the wall next year when you have some time. If however, you want to pass this stand down to your children one day, a furniture quality stand may be a better fit than composite wood or aluminum TV stand.
Why do Plasma TV Stands cost so much?
If you’re in the market for a tv stand for your newly purchased plasma screen tv (which you got a great deal on, I hope), then you have no doubt run across the exorbitantly high prices they tend to garner. Many of them cost $200 on up to $1000 plus. Does it seem to anyone that we may be getting hosed? Well, if you answered a resounding “YES”, then you may proceed with the rest of the article.
So the question remains then: why do these low-quality, cheaply-made, snap-together tv stands cost an arm and a leg and maybe even a big toe? The answer, my friend, is the same as it is in real estate: location, location, location.
Consider the situation: You just bought your shiny new Samsung 50-Inch Plasma HDTV, and your about to wet yourself with excitement. You somehow get that thing home, thanks to your brother-in-law who curses the day he ever bought that F350 longbed. You break your back and his trying to get that acward yet massive box into your house, uncrate it, and regret sincerely that you didn’t just pay the guy at Best Buy to deliver it. So, your starting down at it and then up at the wall you’ve set aside - it will be the center-piece of your entire world. And then it sinks in. How are you ever going to hang that beast on your pristine living room wall? You look over at your brother-in-law to ask his advice, but he has already checked out (he can read the tea leaves, oh yeah). So, you decide after much internal debate - that you might just be better off for the time being to get yourself a nice, cheap tv stand. Nothing fancy, just something to put the tv on, after all who’s going to be staring at the tv stand when you have a 50-Inch Plasma HDTV directly above it? So, you return to Best Buy (or whatever electronics store you bought the plasma from). They have two stands that may hold your tv. One is perfect, and it is $800. The other is of questionable quality and may collapse under the weight of your collosal television, but it only costs $650 so you go it. On the way home, you are either praying that your tv survives once you set it on top or you are calling your brother-in-law again to return for another back-breaker.
Now, what have we learned from this? Brothers-In-Law are useful in some cases? Yes. Always pay for the delivery? No doubt. Never buy a tv stand from an electronics store? Now you’re catching on.
Electronics stores do not specilize in furnature, so your best prices are not going to be there. In addition, they have a captive audience. You just bought a freakin’ huge tv from them. Why not just get the stand while you’re there. Finally, since they aren’t primarily selling tv stands, they are only going to have room for a few of them, leaving your selection minimal at best.
Bottom line: Forget buying a tv stand at an electronics store or general retailer. You will get the best prices at a store who specilizes in furnature or online (watch the shipping).
Building a Custom TV Stand: What You Should Know
So you finally have your brand new flat screen sitting eagerly in your living room, waiting for an occasion to display its color depth and image quality. Your wife says you can’t leave it sitting on the floor like that. What to do? You could buy a stand for it - nope, you’ve already spent enough money on that thing as is. You could mount it on the wall - nah, you’re wife is 8-months pregnant and all of your buddies are out of town this weekend, who would help you get it up there? Well, I guess you could always build one - I mean, you are pretty handy right?
Before you get out that circular saw and duct tape, here are a few things to consider when building your own TV stand.
1. Start with a Guide
Often the instinct is to start measuring and create a design from the measurements. This is problematic in many ways, but suffice it to say that you would be better off starting with a some sort of template or guide. If you have schematics for the TV stand you want to build, perfect. If not, find a set of plans that are close to what you want to build. Then measure and make modifications to those plans based on the measurements of your specific media system. Sites like buildeasy.com and diynetwork.com have free plans of commonly built items, as well as tips on how best to approach the project.
2. Purchase, Rent, or Borrow the Correct Equipment
Having the right equipment can make a project easy or extremely difficult. Consider trying to tighten your bicycle wheels without a torque wrench - it may well be impossible depending on the type of bike you have. For instance, trying to cut wood planks evenly with a hand saw is much more difficult than when using a circular table saw. And trying to paint without using an appropriate grade of sand paper first will leave you with less than stellar results. Do a bit of research online or at your local hardware store to find out what tools are needed for your project. If you cannot purchase them outright, inquire about renting them or ask your brother-in-law to borrow his. Attempting to build a custom TV stand with just a hammer, nails, and few two-by-fours could leave you frustrated and less a few hours of your life.
3. Ask for Help
Don’t be a hero. In projects like this, where something of value is being built that will be a visible element of the family home, pride is always involved. Often the builder hopes to work in secret, under cover of night, to construct a masterpiece to be unveiled at a ceremonial time of his choosing. Well, you can certainly do that, but you risk much. Especially if this is one of your first construction projects, seeking advice or assistance from others more experienced at this type of work could pay off significantly. Another hand for steadying a wood beam - another eye for ensuring a proper cut - these are indispensable in emerging with piece of furniture you can be proud of. And even with the help, people will still know who thought of it 