Best Way To Tackle TV display?

[securespark]

Hello

Still procrastinating about the best way to set up flat screen TV and peripherals.

I was going to bury cables in conduit, but there are so many it would be a PIA.

Decided on an Ikea Besta unit, plus a sheet of MFC mounted directly above it on battens.

May also stick an LED tape round the battens.

What would be the best way to attach the MFC to the battens so that the fixings were concealed?

Onto this I will fix the TV bracket and all cables will drop down the void between the wall and the MFC.

How much wider than the TV would you make the MFC? and which way would you have the "grain" go?

I got a price for a cut piece of 1.2 x 1.8m, edged all round 18mm MFC for £80 plus the dreaded.

Does that sound reasonable or dear?

The TV is 93 x 54cm and if it were changed in the future, it would not go bigger than 108 x 63cm (a 50" Samsung).

Cheers guys!

 

[Ihavenojob]

Where is your tv now? The thing to watch out for is reflections, which can be pretty bad.I know it sounds daft, but could you not try it in different locations (oooh err missus) to see what the glare is like? As for cables, there is probably a solution on the net, I prefer the "rats nest" approach stuffed down the back, no wall mounts for me.

 

[securespark]

Sadly, there is only really one possible 20.

Wall-mounting the TV and hiding the cables kid-proofs it quite a bit, stopping the TV from being knocked and cable yanked.

 

[DaveHerns]

Try the Audio Visual section.

 

[securespark]

Cheers!

 

[Doggit]

If I've understood you correctly, (and by MFC, you mean melamine faced chipboard) then you want to mount the TV on the mfc as well.

I would be inclined to use 2 pieces of MFC the top one to hold the TV, and the bottom one to hide the cables. You can fit the battens, fit the bottom piece using concealed magnetic fittings so that it can be pulled away, then hold up the top piece of MFC, and work out your TV bracket possition, and drill through it into the wall, and then fit rawlplugs to take extra long screws you'd want extra battens behid where the bracket will go so there's no deflection of the board.

You can get iron on edging strips for the ends of the MFC so that it's neat, and if you could use this on the battens to make them look the same; or you'd get a couple of thin fillets of the mdf if the battens are deep ones.

 

[Brigadier]

Is this the sort of thing you're aiming for, SS?
(Only, with the TV wall-mounted above, of course).

 

[securespark]

Yes, that's it more or less!

Thanks for your thoughts, guys!

 

[Brigadier]

Bit late on the party, but here goes anyway:

I'd have the mfc slightly narrower and shorter than the sides and top of the telly: the telly is meant to look like the feature:
I'd batten some 2 x 2 vertically, at the same width as the fixing holes on the TV wall mount backplate:
Fix the mfc with a couple of screws to said battens, just to hold it in place:
Screw the backplate into the battens (through the mfc):
Drill a 3" diameter hole through the mfc, just above the top edge of the backplate:
Hang the telly:
Drop cabling through core hole:
Connect it all up.


Having the mfc apparently free floating around all edges, you can then stick the Leds on its reverse, so they light the wall.

 

[securespark]

Cheers, Brigadier!

 

[Doggit]

Brigadeers suggested a 2x2 batten, but as the cables for the TV are going to be fairly minimal, a 2x1 batten should suffice. And he's suggested making the MFC smaller than the TV, but I'd make it the same width as the BESTA unit, then it'd seem to be part of the unit itself. Screwing through the MFC means that you've then got to cover the screw holes, but if you're good with your hands, then I'd position the battens on the back of the MFC and hold them in place with clamps, and then drill from the back to take dowels. This way, having got the battens on the wall, you can then push (assuming you do a two part back piece) the top piece onto the battens, and then it's held in place by the TV wall bracket. You'd only need to take out a small piece of the lower panel to route the cables through, and with the magnetic catches through, you can then get at the cable easily.

If you're going to use LEDs down the side of the battens, then you'll need to route the cables up the back, with the driver on the floor, so you'll need reasonable access.

 

[securespark]

Some great ideas, guys, thank you all.