How do you organise the cables behind your plasma stand?

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R13...

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The back of my plasma stand looks like an unholy web of wires & cables:(. And I still have to connect 3 more speakers, only have the fronts & sub connected. The problem is everything goes in a different direction, I have a 2x4 multiswitch with xtraview to a bedroom, so there's cable everywhere & I think it's time to organise.

How do you guys do it? I need a solution that allows various cables to be grouped together because one cable way won't work & I don't want to have to drill or use cable racks.
 
I need a solution too.
Too many wires. Too much confusion.
 
I moved everything to HDMI... next up is replacing my LNB with that LNB where you only need one cable.

Also, I've found using a upright stand much easier to manage than the flat long ones... so I've moved mine to the side wall.
 
Bought those cable binders at Crazy Store for R10 a bag. Looks like 20mm water hose cut spirally, 1.5m in length - works like a charm.
 
With care, love and difficulty. Someone said HDMI then add wireless speakers!
 
Get cable zip or whatever it's called. Tidies up painful cabling in no time. I swear by it - Living room, study, bedroom.
 
I used trunking on the floor level for the speaker cables, and up to my LCD on the wall. But behind & Under my HET cabinet is a birds nest of wires! As long as I dont see them, thats fine with me! List of my wires:

Speaker wires = 6.2 surround so thats 12 wires for the 6 speakers + 2 more for subs
LNB = 2 X 6 splitter so thats 8 cables
HDMI = 3 (one input from HTPC to Amp + 1 from HDPVR to amp, then 1 from Amp to LCD)
Coax = 3 (heartbeat cable for SD & HD PVR), 2 out for normal TV's
Fiber Optic = 2 one from HTPC & one from HDPVR
4 X power supplies / cable for each component
Remote blaster (receiver side)
IR for HTPC Remote
DVD Player (disconnected - use HTPC now)
so thats about 38 odd cables....

EDIT: forgot about the PS2 & Wii that must be like another 4 wires at least.... eish!
 
Last edited:
Nerfherder said:
You have a stand made out of plasma ??!!!??

Flippen hardcore
Click to expand...
Funny.
Thanks for the suggestions, and yes I too am moving to HDMI, the monitor (LCD) is HDMI as is the PVR and I am getting a PS3 next week & all of them go through a receiver. I will at least be able to get rid of the DVD player & wii with playstation move to be ordered next week.
 
Cable ties FTW, in my Media / TV cabinet in my lounge I have 40 something odd cables (I did I could the last time I re-did everything) and I still find that the best way is:
1. Go to builders whorehouse or any fabric shop
2. Go look for the double sided velcro strips
3. Get a glue gun
4. Dap a drop of glu in the middle of a 20cm (more or less depending how many cables you are hiding in each roll) and plonk it onto the back of your cabinet, nice and high up preferably so that it's not visible
5. Roll up the excess cable into a simple roll and use the double sided velcro to "tape" it up against the abck of your cabinet...
6. And probably the most important step of all - crack open a beer to celebrate how you dominated those dam cables and claim major brownie points from the missus caus that **** really doesn't happen often :P
 
Cable ties sound like a go. Here at work they have these nice cable ways for PCs but those only work if you all the cables going to more or less the same area (like a PC box).
 
IRG said:
Nice trick there Enigma!! I've used those velcro strips before, very handy!
Click to expand...

Yeah thanks IRG, it works like a charm!

I must admit i've a few other tricks, I'm a bit of a DIY nutter so I made my own skirting boards with cable ducts built in behind them, that works like a champion and then conduit for the rest. This weekend I am hoping too lay some conduit under my tiles (to get past a doorway) to further hide more cables away. Lets see if time (and budgets) permit.

My cables are as follows:
- 5.2 speaker speaker setup - 7 cables + 2 sub power cables
- 6 chanel analog input from PC to amp - 3 x stereo to RCA cables
- SPDIF input to amp from PC - 1
- SPDIF input to amp from PS3 - 1
- DSTV analogue sound input to amp - 1
- DSTV co-ax sound input to PC - 1
- DSTV video input to amp and PC - 3 (RCA splitter + 2 cables)
- PS3 HDMI into amp - 1
- Power cable for DSTV, PS3, AMP, CD player, Monitor, UPS and harmony remote charger - 7
- Analogue input from CD player to amp - 1
- VGA to monitor from PC - 1
- DVI to HDMI output from PC to Amp - 1
- HDMI to projector from amp - 1
- DSTV LNB in - 1
- Wireless KB and mouse receiver in PC - 1
- Wireless network receiver in PC - 1
- USB hub for PC - 2 (1 to PC and power cables)
- IR receiver for media centre in PC - 1
- USB cable to logitech Harmony 1000 - 1
- USB charger cables off the USB hub for 2 x PS3 controllers - 2
- Rock band controllers (2 x wireless receivers and 1 x mic cable) - 3

Total - 43

Of course none of this is taking into account the actual computer I built into the cabinet either as that would add a whole lot more!

Also, I did build in a motorised screen lift so the monitor would motorise out of the top of the cabinet but it wasn't working as well as I wanted too so I binned that a month or two back.
 
ye.. velcro FTW.


Cable ties are cool but it always seems to happen that the moment you tie every thing up you need to change a cable... then you have to cut the bloody lot an start again.
 
Agreed, cable ties are nice, but a problem when you need to adjust things.

Corsair have these lekker cable tie type things that come with their PSUs. Adjustable of course. Will add a pic soon.
 
PostmanPot said:
Agreed, cable ties are nice, but a problem when you need to adjust things.

Corsair have these lekker cable tie type things that come with their PSUs. Adjustable of course. Will add a pic soon.
Click to expand...

That'd be nice (the pic), and do you guys label especially speakers.
 
Nerfherder said:
ye.. velcro FTW.


Cable ties are cool but it always seems to happen that the moment you tie every thing up you need to change a cable... then you have to cut the bloody lot an start again.
Click to expand...

Thats so true

Theres a product that came out a month or 2, a reusable cable tie, called RAPSTRAP
Costs +-twice the of a normal cable tie depends where you get them
 
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