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scape
03-05-2009, 08:48 AM
I recently moves and ended up with a new placement for my center channel instead of hanging it above my tv. I got a board from hardware store and propped up my tv ontop of it, with glass bricks underneath for support. It works brilliantly actually, and now I will not have holes in the wall and can adjust the position without issue. I tested the strength by standing on it, my tv weights less than half of me, so I figured all is well. Unfortunately the glass bricks were only about 8 in height and I have the 340 under there so I cannot angle the speaker upwards, but it still sounds good from my ear position to be honest.
Anyways, with all that said: I wanted to sheath the whole setup in a black screen or cloth (maybe a tightly stapled sheet even). Is this possible without affecting the audio? Do I need special speaker grill screen material? Will a cloth sheet work, which is pretty ideal since I can swing by a local store and just pick that up for a few dollars.
Here's a terrible picture from my cellphone, hopefully you can get an idea of what I'm talking about- lol

Oh yeah, I plan on building some stands for my 170's, but that comes later

drewface
03-05-2009, 05:21 PM
nice, i actually looked into doing something similar to that when i moved to my current residence. i was looking at stone bricks instead of glass, though, and they were all 7.5 inches or so (even though they are "8 inch" bricks) it looks like those glass ones are much closer to actually being 8 inches... i'll have to look into that as i am on month 8 of not having my center channel hooked up :(

scape
03-06-2009, 05:13 AM
well it actually started with me going to build a half-boxto lift up my tv, but the wood sizes and stability was a bit of my concern, as was getting my hand on a saw anytime soon. I looked at the bricks idea, which is cheaper and maybe even more sturdy, but the unevenness and unpredictability of sizing was what lead me away. I also couldn't find anything in the 8-10 in range. check out lowes (local hardware store), if your area has one, and see the glass bricks. They also won't scratch any surfaces they are on, which is nice incase I ever move again and decide to hang my tv, my console won't be all scratched up on top. the only downside is i cannot angle the speaker in any fashion, it's just a 1/4 in or so under that wood panel; and I couldn't find any blocks larger than 8". homedepot might have them.
do you know about the screen idea? figured I'd try and make it look a bit more sleek than it is now, haha

drewface
03-07-2009, 08:14 AM
personally i think if you could stain the piece of wood you used for the shelf to match the tv stand it would look pretty good without the screen. if you mount the 170s on the wall or put them on stands on either side of the screen, it would look even cleaner.

what thickness is the wood you are using for the shelf, and does it show any sag from the weight of the tv?

scape
03-09-2009, 05:49 AM
well it is a 30 year old apartment that has never been spackled, so there were hundreds of holes all over the walls-- after I fixed them all and painted the walls, I realized I don't want to hang anything on them haha. so yea I need to build stands for the 170's, they are way too close together and a bit too low; I think that might be my upcomming weekend project.
for the tv stand the wood choices were pretty varied at the hardware store, some flexed some did not. this is a ply like wood, which I thought might be less sturdy but it ended up being more sturdy than any of the solid woods. my console table has a bit of a flex after sitting my tv on it for a few months, but this board has zero flex, which is shocking--I stood on it for a test and even then it did not bend under my weight. using the glass blocks I am able to redistribute the tv's weight wider which I think will be good for the console table, as the weight now falls on where the legs meet the table. I thought about staining it, maybe I'll go that route as it will help protect the wood from humidity.