Furniture?! What is furniture doing on ElectronicHouse.com, whose 95-percent male audience loves their manly amplifiers, speakers and big screens?

Consumers can become so preoccupied with the aesthetics of A/V furniture that they forget about the high-tech features that make them an integral part of an entertainment system.

That’s something that EH editors Julie Jacobson and Lisa Montgomery forgot when they bought their own media consoles on the merits of style (next page). Before you buy, make sure to consider these furniture features. And for the best results, consult with an A/V professional—many traditional furniture stores may not be up to snuff on their technology.

A/V Pros can:
- Give you the depth and height of A/V components, so they can ensure your stuff will fit in a particular console.
- Advise you on component placement within your media console, and suggest ways to wire the gear most effectively.
- Enlighten you on the ins and outs of power management and thermal dynamics, and advise you on optimal furniture set-up.
- Factor in power protection and the placement of related gear.
- Estimate how much heat your gear will generate, and suggest ways to dissipate it through ventilation and possibly active cooling.
- Guide you in the placement of loudspeakers, for example, whether to place them inside a cabinet or atop a console.

Had Julie and Lisa consulted an A/V pro, they might have settled on the contemporary and traditional furniture featured in our slideshow (and we’ve included their own homes, to boot).