apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Wheeee!! Do I really get to christen the AT:HT OT?

I would love some input on where to put my TV in an irregularly-shaped room. Here's a floor plan of my living room:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/31892704@N00/423115280/

I have a sofa along the wall at the very bottom, an ottoman/coffee table and an armchair facing it. Question: where to put the TV, and in what kind of furniture, so that it's comfortable to watch from the sofa but doesn't smack you in the face (visually) as soon as you walk in the apartment? I thought about an openish room divider positioned right where the angled wall meets the window wall, or a media unit along the angled wall, perhaps with a cart that would roll out to bring the TV closer to the sofa. Any thoughts? The TV is a 32" flat-screen.

Here's a photo of the living room with the previous owner's furniture arrangement (which I'm not crazy about):

http://www.flickr.com/photos/31892704@N00/414575288/

Make two zones in the room, one for entertaining (like your current sofa setup) and one for TV watching.

You could put the TV on the wall with the doubledoors, away from the sofa. Or you could put the TV in the middle of the room in a separate zone buy using a low credenza with a bookcase or console behind it to conceal the back of the TV.

If it were me (I'm not sure how large the couch is) I'd have the couch perpedicular the the fireplace, floating in the middle of the room, facing the 9ft4 wall. Put the TV on or against that wall and put the chairs facing the fireplace. That way you keep the left side with all the doors free for traffic. Then use the space behind the couch with the angled walls for something else, maybe more conversational type seating or reading nook or office or something. Of course this all depends on the size of your furniture.....

Thanks for your comments!

Sorry for the confusion--that's a window facing the french doors, not a fireplace. There's a radiator in front of the window.

I could definitely try that arrangement, though. The chair would go in the corner, or it would block the french doors (which lead to the kitchen). My furniture is not tiny. :)

Didn't think about having a separate TV zone. That could also work if I get another chair for that space.

Hmmm, lots of ideas to try!

I'm with DaveD, but like he said, it depends on the size and type of furniture. Good luck!

Wow, that's a tough space! (even tougher than mine)

I'd say mount the LCD to the wall with the three doors (sorry if that's vague). I'd personally mount it to the right of the double doors. That way you have enough space to arrange furniture and you won't have to worry about reflection from the sun as much as the other end of the room.

Good luck!

hey, can anyone recommend a great usb hub for pc? i'm in the market (sick of plugging/unplugging) and i just want one that's small, short-corded, doesn't get burning hot, and won't crap out. i've been reading mixed reviews on belkin and linksys, so wanted to check in with y'all ;)

thx in advance!

I was flipping through the new Topdeq catalog: they have a really nice looking cableworm. Does anyone have experience with either the vertical one or the horizontal? At $49 each I would appreciate ATers yeah or nay.

Howdy,
I have a little nook where I would like to set up my components (satellite receiver, bose dvd surround sound). I would like to keep them inside of a cabinet with a glass door. I'm trying to figure out what kind of remote accessory I'm going to need to be able to get the signal to the box. The nook is already kind of in a corner where I have to bend my arm around to reach with the remote. Will an IR type device work if the compenents are behind a glass door or will the signal just reflect off of that? Or is there a reasonably priced radio frequency device that could both "wrap around a corner" and find its way through the glass door? Just not that familiar with either of these devices.

I was in a large airport the other day and was using my laptop - plugged into an unsecure wireless connection. I was flying thru the links and sites. Now I'm home and my computer is full of sludge. It moves like a snail WHEN it moves. Most of the time I get "not responding". My conclusion is that it must be my ISP. Can someone tell me what's going on here. Should I change ISPs? I'm ready to throw this laptop over the balcony if I get one more "not responding"!!

Art, use can get an IR repeater which would extend the IR signal of your components outside the enclosed case or you could get a remote with an RF repeater, like the new Harmony remotes.

Do any ATers Twitter? I love twittering and have made several friends. Let me know if you twitter.

http://twitter.com/public_timeline

noah,

how do the new harmony remotes work? could I put my stuff in an enclosed cabinet?