Great Low Media Consoles: BDDW, Sussex, Lack & 7 Others
Many a living room has a television screen in it, and if it has to be, then it should be done well. I favor a long low credenza or media cabinet to hide all your junk and which won’t push the screen too high on the wall. It should be eye level as you sit and not tower over your room. The credenzas I’ve chosen here all have a lovely low design that will flatter the long wall in your living room. The Lake Low, above, is a very special piece with hand carved ebony handles, blackened steel base, bronze feet and oxidized maple. Others to tempt you are below.
Great Low Media Consoles
- Sussex Media Unit – $2,868.75
A member of the Sussex family by Terence Woodgate, the media unit came out in 2008 and is a great smaller scale solution. “The Sussex has cord escapes and soft-closure doors that flip up and slide into pockets in the frame. The richly grained wood veneer is carefully chosen by hand for consistency from controlled and sustainably farmed forests.”
The Right Height
Audio-visual experts THX recommend a vertical placement for the screen ensuring viewers don’t have to look up more than 15° from eye level. A room with a modern low-style sofa (and a lower than average seat height) might find an ideal screen height centered around 40 inches. Depending on the size of the screen, that leaves a slim 18 to 24 inches below the screen for a media cabinet or TV stand.
Measure your space and see what’s comfortable for your household, then use this list as a jumping off point to start your media console shopping. Armed with a measuring tape and a laptop, anyone can find a proper media cabinet for even the most slender space.
- Line Media Console 70 – $2,197
Designed by Nathan Yong for DWR, what I like about this console is its stylish louvered doors that accentuate it’s long form, while allowing controllers to signal to your machines. “At Salone del Mobile, the annual furniture fair in Milan, Yong showed his Line Media Console (2010), inspired by ‘the fluid streamlined forms of 1960s stereo components.'”
- Lack Hack & TV Unit – $49.99
The Lack just crushes it in this space, but hacking it up is pretty good too. The top pic is a hack of an old Lack shelving unit, which could be done to the new bottom TV unit as well. The Lack TV unit comes in three, count ’em, colors. 🙂
From the Vancouver based furniture design team of Jerad Mack and Shane Pawluk, comes this beautiful and enormous low credenza. “This low slung cabinet is complete with a solid wood top – American black walnut or white oak – and doors/drawer front featuring full-width ventilation and cord access. Sled-style legs give Visualizm a floating appearance.”
A great ETSY find, this console by STORNewYork is “made with solid poplar, doors and legs solid walnut. No particleboard, MDF or plywood, this piece is made with solid wood all around.” I believe them, and they’ve got some other cute designs as well.
- Hudson Media Cabinet – $2,599
Beautifully made and customizable by Room & Board, the Hudson is shown here in solid walnut with a steel base. You can get this in three different sizes, five different woods, three different bases and countless knobs.
- Soft Modern Credenza – $324.99
A very handsome budget pick, this Sauder credenza could not boast solid wood or high quality hardware, but it’s the nicest thing at this price I’ve ever seen.
- Moda Storage Console – $679
Impressively designed and made for Urban Outfitters in solid mahogany, this baby also comes with free shipping.
- PCH Entertainment Shelf – $2,200
Wow, this is a beaut. Made of solid teak, polished aluminum legs, a cast aluminum drawer front and undermount slides, the PCH is 70″ wide and designed by Mash Studios. Horne, where this is sold, has a few really nice solutions