Keeping your home theater (or “living room” as my wife calls it,) clean and uncluttered can be a real pain if you have a decent sound system. Sure, there’s the obvious “run the wires under the floor” trick, but what do you do with the elephant subwoofer in the corner? It’s big, it’s ugly, and it’s absolutely necessary for a decent system.
So here’s a few ideas on how to set things up so it won’t be quite so obtrusive. To some custom installers, this will be old hat but to mere mortals like myself. The suggestions actually come from Sound And Vision magazine, and they sound (if you’ll pardon the pun) quite reasonable.
They suggest either downsizing the woofer (since technology makes it not quite so necessary to have a 20inch woofer in your house anymore), or installing it in the floor, ceiling, or under the couch. There’s also the option of custom cabinetry, if you are feeling really ambitious. Someone needing a really large bass system may decide to go with the ‘false wall’ method, which involves using fabric to conceal the subwoofer at the front of the room. If you’re at that point, though, you’re probably a bit more hardcore than someone who’d be turning to a magazine for DIY tips.