Dear Unplggd readers,
Yes it's me, your Unplggd editor, Soniaz. I need your help. I've recently moved my TV into a small closet that fits my TV perfectly and my components, well, almost perfectly (still dealing with those wires). The one problem I'm having is, I have no idea where to put my speakers. I don't want to leave them on the floor. I was thinking of mounting them on the wall, on either side of the closet, but I'm not sure if they'll stick out way too much. Have any suggestions?
Thanks,
Soniaz
I was considering getting Ikea's wooden planter stands and placing them on either side of the TV, where my speakers currently are, and simply placing my speakers on them. I know it won't give me any floor space, but at least it will get them off the ground and looking a bit more purposeful. 
I was also thinking of installing small ledges on the inner wall of the closet and placing my speakers there. 
Thought these Pottery Barn shelves in white may do the trick. They're about two inches smaller than my speaker base though. 
Got a better idea? Lets do some brainstorming together!
photos: soniaz, ikea, pottery barn
Tina Wilson's Striking Style 
30 DIY Projects for the 3-Day Weekend
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Hunter Bennie Garde...
Make Chocolate Magic Shell Ice Cream Topping with Only 2 Ingredients
Magic One-Ingredient Ice Cream 5 Ways: Peanut Butter, Nutella, and More
Comments (7)
i'm not a fan of the planter stand idea...because you've tucked the tv into the closet nook for a reason! saving space and having it, um, tucked away! ;)
i'd make the speakers into a sort of table to replace that cute green cube. then, put your peripherals on top of the speakers. or put one above and one below the tv.
when we renovated our place, we snaked speaker wire through the walls for surround sound. the first movie we watched was LOTR :) it was such perfection. if you watch a lot of movies, maybe consider snaking those speakers farther away from the tv/stereo system.
hey, i forgot to mention...i think the tv looks great in the closet! know what else i'd do? hang floor to ceiling white drapes from one end of that wall to the other. :)
have fun!
oh, and one more thing:::
KITTEH!!!
I'm assuming getting a new flatscreen TV, speakers, and relocating everything out of the closet is not an option. If so, then you are probably willing to accept less-than-optimal acoustics for a neater appearance, especially since there is no mention of surround speakers or even a subwoofer.
My recommendation is to extend the closet shelf above the TV, which should be easy since you can simply place an appropriately sized board along the support beams on the sides. Then you can place both speakers above the TV. On the shelf, they will look much neater and won't stick out like a sore thumb (like on the ledge), nor will you trip over them (like on the stands). You are not going to get good stereo separation but you weren't going to get decent separation from the stands and ledges anyways. The next option is to place them together underneath the TV but the sound may not fill the room if it is large, which I can't tell from the photo.
http://picasaweb.google.com/thestallion/HousePicsApril208/photo#5196624708734217442
I know it's not the best pic to illustrate my example but it's all I have available right now. Look in the top right at my rear channel speaker. I picked up two sets of these simple, unobtrusive shelf brackets at Home Depot (I think - but it could have been Lowes - one of the two) they were cheap and fit my speakers great. I use two per speaker. Didn't even make a platform - just put the speaker directly on them. They are white plastic with a metal bracket inside. You mount the bracket and then slip the white plastic sleeve over it. I'm sure they'd hold your Athena bookshelf speaks as they are about the same size as my Klipsch bookshelf that are sitting on those brackets - I actually own a pair of those Athenas you got there though!
If it were me and I wasn't getting new speakers or any new equipment, I'd put them under or over the TV -- that doesn't require much installation. Otherwise, I'd hang them up on the wall. My ideal workaround would be to give those away and get some smaller ones to mount on the wall.
If putting small holes through the wall isn't an issue, I would recommend installing a shelf like this one
http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=144210-46958-0194160&detail=cr&lpage=none
and setting the speakers on the shelf with a simple decorative element in between, such as a vase or potted plant. Drill small holes through the sheetrock or plaster to inside the closet and feed their wires through the holes and tack them down inside the closet for a clean look. Lowe's carries variations on that shelf; this is the only online link their site offers though.
Turn the speakers so they lie down lengthwise rather than stand up. This lowers their profile. Putting them on the shelf above the door also lifts the sound, spreading the speakers apart enough so you get good sound quality and keeps them out of underfoot.
But I agree with other posters that you should upgrade to a more compact set just for the sake of profile. And tiny speakers these days sound amazing if you buy the right ones.
Hmmm. Looks like the closet sticks out from the back wall already. Could you mount shelves on the outside of the closet, on each little protruding closet sidewall segment, and place the speakers there? That way the front of them could be flush with the front of the closet itself, instead of sticking out into the room.