hiding those wires...

[dean_martin]

I could use some suggestions for hiding or dressing up my cables. We just remodeled the family room with the main a/v system. We went from a huge instrusive entertainment system w/large cabinets to open racks on both sides of the tv. The cabinets hid all the wires. The racks are sleeker and free up space, but power cables, interconnects, tv cable, s-video cable, speaker cable, etc. are all exposed and look like a rat's nest. The racks we're using weren't designed specifically for a/v gear so they don't have any kind of cable organizing or hiding system. Your suggestion may save a marriage!

[Beckman]

Nylon cable ties available at Walmart, Kmart, Home Depot, etc. Also if you want to dress up your cables you can use flex conduit (about $30 to $40 for 100 ft.). You can also get wire covers at Home Depot or any home improvement store. These are simple, easy to use plastic covers made for covering exposed wiring on walls.

I would think that using nylan cable ties (available in black or white) would be sufficient.

[CyberStoic]

I could use some suggestions for hiding or dressing up my cables. We just remodeled the family room with the main a/v system. We went from a huge instrusive entertainment system w/large cabinets to open racks on both sides of the tv. The cabinets hid all the wires. The racks are sleeker and free up space, but power cables, interconnects, tv cable, s-video cable, speaker cable, etc. are all exposed and look like a rat's nest. The racks we're using weren't designed specifically for a/v gear so they don't have any kind of cable organizing or hiding system. Your suggestion may save a marriage!

Oh have I been there, had a similar problem after my wife bought this lovely Walter E. Smythe furniture tv stand thingy and replaced the stand we had. I used several stategies....

At home depot they sell corrugated tubing with a slit down it's length. It comes in two diameters. I used a section of the large one to contain all the interconnects. Since it is slit, they easily go in. Then I used electrical tape to hold them securely and used a push pin to pin the plastic of the tube to the back of the stand out of the way. Careful positioning made it disappear. I also did this, as was possible with another tube for the power wires, and another for the speaker wires. Essentially there were now three flexible tubes in the back, containing all the wires and they were more easily hid.

The speaker wires were hid along the baseboards. My neighbour, the retired carpenter, used some round oak and made slightly oversized 1/4 round trim and routed a groove in the back. The wire goes under and they are placed on the wall with carpet tape from the back. That holds them secure enough, but lets me get to the wire if needed. I didn't nail them for fear of hitting a wire. But the quarter round sits against the oak trim and flush to the floor and the wife thinks they look great.

Hope that helps.

[Bryan]

I take it a $5 - $10 black bed sheet or shower curtain would be out of the question? Perhaps another darker color that matches the wall color.

[dean_martin]

Thanks for the suggestions. I will get to work right away!

[kexodusc]

Yeah, I have about 20 different cables running every which way in my HT sysem...clever hidden behind my old ugly cabinet.
I'd love a new, open one, but that cable mess would run me dangerously close to kick-booted out status on the WAF scale.
Should buy some cable ties and clean all that up. In my apartment I found it easiest to start with speaker wire, then interconnects, then digital signal cables (coax, optical) so that they're not all mixed and tangled at different layers. Depending on the input layout on your receiver, this might or might not help.
I really feel that's where receiver manufacturer's have got to concentrate their efforts next. I need 2 feet of wall clearance back there, looks like the friggin' Hoover Dam.