Life hacks – Top tips on how to keep your cables clean throughout your home theatre system
May 14th, 2015
At Appliances Online we have a huge catalogue of home theatre products, each of which can be put together to create the perfect home entertainment experience.
You can simulate a grandstand with surround sound, or create a home movie den with the latest visual technology.
But this can all come with the downside of knotted cables, cords and plugs.
Not matter how nice your setup is, the spaghetti-like tangle of wires that protrudes out the back of your products can be stressful, disorganised, and can make modifying or upgrading difficult.
Luckily for you, we have compiled some simple tips to get all of this in order…
Power Strips/Surge Protectors
Power strips are a great way to keep all your power cables together, and many surge protectors come in this kind of multi power outlet configuration.
Considering how many valuable AV and/or IT equipment parts the average home theatre has connected up, it pays to protect them from spikes and surges of electricity. Keeping all the power in one place is a bonus too.
Tie your cords down
There are countless kinds of cable ties, clamps and hooks on the market to help keep your cords in order, but you can even use things you may already have around the house.
Bread and butterfly clips both make great cable ties and holders. Try to organise cords in categories such as audio, visual, and power, to better sort the unsightly cable clutter.
Label
No matter how well organised your collection of cords may be, there is always going to be a time where two or more wires will look exactly the same.
Labelled tape works a treat to help determine the difference between cables, and colour coding can also be used to remind yourself what cords correspond to what parts of your setup.
A Cable Box
The idea is simple – put all your cables in a small and unassuming box.
It really doesn’t matter how messy it is inside because it’ll hide away the sea of cables from the back of the cabinet. It can even blend in with your receivers and players.
These boxes can be made simply from an old shoe box with a cut out section from both sides. All you need to do is pack it full of cables and close it up.
Go Wireless
Ok, this kind of sounds like we’re cheating here, but this is a great consideration.
Instead of cabling under carpets or through walls and wrestling to get them in some sort of order, a simple solution is to look out for the wireless alternatives.
Although power cords will always need to exist “for now”, the latest wireless technology means speakers, and even players, can often support wireless transmitting straight to/from your TV.
And often cables can be chucked away with the simple purchase of something like a wireless adapter to connect your TV to the internet, as opposed to old school Ethernet cables.
So if you’re in the market for a new home theatre setup, or just want to get a grip on your current one, try out these simple tips to untangle that un-cordly mess.
Leave a Reply