How to Buy an Entertainment Center

Entertainment centers combine a number of features and components in one unit so that they can accommodate a television along with an assortment of equipment. Most types of TV furniture come with adjustable shelving and can be adapted to your existing or future entertainment needs. Since they are available in a variety of sizes and configurations, you will be sure to find one that will fit even a smaller-sized living room, media room or home theater. An entertainment center is not only handy for storing all of your video and/or audio devices in one place, but it will also help you to declutter the room.

Size and Location of Your Entertainment Center

Decide where you would like the entertainment center to go. The room you are buying the TV entertainment center for will determine the size of television furniture you’ll choose.

Measure the television. Determine the number of other components you want your TV furniture to hold.

Measure the area where you plan to place the entertainment center. TV cabinets come in compact units that fit tidily into a corner of the room to ones that easily fill an entire wall.

Style and Finish of Your Entertainment Set

The ideal scenario is to buy your entertainment center or entertainment center set at the same time as the other furniture in your living room, den, family room or home theater.

But many people furnish a room in stages or they might not realize at the time they are purchasing their living room furniture that they want or need an entertainment center. If this is your scenario, it’s important to match the style and finish of your new entertainment center set with the other furnishings already in the space.

A quick decorating tip to keep in mind is traditional and transitional styles typically have medium to dark wood finishes that can range from highly polished to distressed. Contemporary, country and modern styles tend to have lighter finishes.

Entertainment Center Features

Entertainment centers and entertainment centers for flat screen TVs combine a number of features in a variety of combinations so that they can accommodate an assortment of media and multimedia equipment. Do you want TV Stands that can be adapted as your existing entertainment needs change and evolve? Then carefully consider exactly what features you would like your entertainment center to have. Popular entertainment center features include:

• TV cabinets with adjustable shelves
• TV cabinets with mesh “remote friendly” doors
• Wire management system of some kind to hide cords/cables from sight
• Sliding doors instead of doors that open outward
• Media pull-out trays
• Media/multi-purpose drawers