System organization

[extrarice]

In setting up my room of doom in my new house, I'm running into a problem - how to have all my consoles set up so I don't have to fish around for cables in any number of unmarked drawers before I can play.
I have 10 consoles I want to have out and available :shock: but I am running out of shelf space to put them.
Have any of you come across a shelving system that worked great for all the consoles and mess of wires?

[Xerone]

I've been looking for a solution too. Though I only have 6 consoles...

[RadarScope1]

Sounds like a good problem to have!  

Man, that's tough. Have you tried some of those strips that allow you to plug several AV inputs into it and it lets you toggle between? If you use that with a TV that has 2 or 3 other AV inputs you could maybe sqeeze it all in.

As for shelf space ... hmm. There are some really cheap and simple (yet sturdy) shelving soloutions at places like Lowe's and Home Depot. Many of these allow for multiple individual units to fit together seamlessly. You might want to see if there are a few small shelves that you could stack or fit together into a configuration what works for your consoles. I put together two shoe racks to make a big one for my wife shoes (she has a lot). Let us all know what works best for ya.

[Xerone]

Mmm... I've heard of the AV-Strip things, I wonder how much they cost though... I'll keep thinking on the console problem...

[RedWolf]

In setting up my room of doom in my new house, I'm running into a problem - how to have all my consoles set up so I don't have to fish around for cables in any number of unmarked drawers before I can play.
I have 10 consoles I want to have out and available :shock: but I am running out of shelf space to put them.
Have any of you come across a shelving system that worked great for all the consoles and mess of wires?

I've always had the same problem.  Still not sure of the solution.  Are you saying you want to have all the systems hooked up (A/V and Power-wise) at once?  Or are you willing to swap cables?  Target has some cool, cheap plastic drawer sets you can buy for your cables / whatever, then you can label the outside with a labelmaker so you know what's in each.  Target also has lots of cool cheap shelving (plastic, wood, and metal) that you could probably set up for your situation.

I just bought about six huge metal shelves from Target a few days ago to hold computers in the garage.  5-tier black metal shelves are only $39.99.  Too big for your needs, but great stuff nonetheless.

If you don't want to swap cables, I think that Pelican makes an 8-connector AV selector box.  I still need to get one of those.

[Xatranaz]

This is what i use for my consoles.  


And yes most consoles fit in each square including the massive Xbox, and all wires can go through the back.  :wink:
That is if your still looking for a suitable shelving unit for your consoles only.

[Edited by RedWolf to shorten link]

[RedWolf]

This is what i use for my consoles.  


And yes most consoles fit in each square including the massive Xbox, and all wires can go through the back.  :wink:
That is if your still looking for a suitable shelving unit for your consoles only.

Wow, that's pretty cool.. I definitely need one of those.  I wonder how much it is in the US.  I suppose I'll investigate.

By the way, welcome to the forum, Xatranaz!

[Xatranaz]

Well here is the American link for you guys.  Seems one of the most popular storage devices at the moment here in the UK, in their Glasgow store they almost have a full section devoted to this one.

http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?topcategoryId=15561&catalogId=10103&storeId=12&langId=-1&parentCats=15561*15639*15651&categoryId=17066&productId=11499&chosenPartNumber=40047675

And thanks Redwolf hope this forum stays alive as it seems like a great place to discuss to others about retro gaming.  

[Edited by RedWolf to shorten link]

[RedWolf]

Well here is the American link for you guys.  Seems one of the most popular storage devices at the moment here in the UK, in their Glasgow store they almost have a full section devoted to this one.

http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?topcategoryId=15561&catalogId=10103&storeId=12&langId=-1&parentCats=15561*15639*15651&categoryId=17066&productId=11499&chosenPartNumber=40047675

And thanks Redwolf hope this forum stays alive as it seems like a great place to discuss to others about retro gaming.  

[Edited by RedWolf to shorten link]

That's cool, man.  I should get one of those.  Do you actually have your systems hooked up while sitting in that shelf, or do you just use it for storage?

No, thank you.  Hopefully thanks to you and everyone else, this forum will stay alive.  I'm glad there are still some people left who check it frequently.

[Xatranaz]

At the very moment, they are there just for storage but am hopefully going to have them all connected up to the TV once i get a job & can save up for a nice Plasma screen

However you will need extention cables & a couple of multi-socket adapters for like half the consoles so that all can be plugged in at the same time if you can't be arsed changing the connections all the time.

[RedWolf]

However you will need extention cables & a couple of multi-socket adapters for like half the consoles so that all can be plugged in at the same time if you can't be arsed changing the connections all the time.

Ay, there's the rub.

Gets me every time.

[Xatranaz]

Well depending how close you will put your telly to the actual shelving unit you might just make it.  If the TV is right next to it i would say they will probably all fit into it although try and swap your consoles around as there are different cable lengths for different consoles i assume.

[Konata]

Emulation.


Seriously though, I bulit my own storage center in ag class...

[RedWolf]

Well depending how close you will put your telly to the actual shelving unit you might just make it.  If the TV is right next to it i would say they will probably all fit into it although try and swap your consoles around as there are different cable lengths for different consoles i assume.

I still really need something like a twenty plug A/V switch.  And five or six power strips in one spot, which always makes me nervous even though it probably shouldn't since nothing would really be drawing high current...except maybe an XBOX!

Has anybody else noticed that Xbox's pump out heat like they're designed for the task?  Good for the winter, but in summer, they're hell.

[Konata]

[quote="Xatranaz"

Has anybody else noticed that Xbox's pump out heat like they're designed for the task?  Good for the winter, but in summer, they're hell.

Gamecubes are also really good "space heaters".