Home Theater BEST TV MEDIA CABINET!! BDI Octave Media Console Review

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

★ *GET YOURS HERE: bit.ly/392U6sW • bit.ly/BDIMEDIA ★ *Looking for something in the video? You'll find it in the description above* ★ *COMMENT RULES: No outside URLs, KZbin links or email addresses. Please stay on topic and keep it civil.*

[@dednside5229]

Bang and Olfsen Vintage cabinets Retrofitted with modern electronics and vintage amps

[@andrewplatt2185]

My favorite piece is a 1954 record player/radio cabinet. I hold my records inside and use the top for my speakers (I have weenie Edifier bookshelf speakers) and my rookie-esque Audio Technica player. It’s fun to think about this being the centerpiece of someone’s home 75 years ago.

[@KristiWright]

Andrew Platt My grandmother had one of those cabinets. I have such fond memories of it. 😊

[@KristiWright]

Jeremy Whittler we’d love to do something like that. Might need more space to make it happen but love where your head is at.

[@andrewplatt2185]

Kristi Wright it’s a true blue pleasure getting a response from someone I’m pretty sure is kicking ass on an hourly basis

[@rafacq]

Andrew, watching this video over the last few years, I finally bought the BDI Octave cabinet. Wow! More beautiful in person. Definitely a solid piece. Moving my system and reconnecting all the wires and setting it up makes me appreciate all the hard work you do as you connect/disconnect every amp/receiver, moving speakers, hiding cables, and putting the final touches so you can start evaluating the system of the week/day! Kudos to you and Kristi for all your hard work. Best regards.

[@markzelinsky6533]

When I pulled the trigger on my purchase of a Rotel RMB-1585 (79lbs) and RSP-1582 (26lbs) I knew I had a furniture problem... I stumbled across the BDI Corridor 8179 Entertainment Console, which is essentially the same, but with different doors. As an engineer I immediately appreciated the design that would keep my gear well ventilated, acoustically transparent doors and its accommodating ability to house boat load of gear and to manage the requisite wad of wiring that comes with being an audiophile. I created three horizontal tiers. Bottom is AC infrastructure. Middle is for data CAT6. Top is audio. I augmented the build with tie wrap nylon cleats every 8" . Using XLR cabling I now have the quietest setup I ever owned. As tweaks and adjustments are required I can easily pull it away from wall, and deal with what would be normally dreadful. Living with this set up for the past 4 months, I have to say that my gear is happy, and can't think of a better solution. Great review!

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Really appreciate your personal insight and am glad to hear things are working well! Thank you for watching.

[@bdifurniture]

Thanks, Mark! We're so glad that you're pleased with your Corridor 8179, it's one of our most popular designs, and was a great choice for your needs. :)

[@jameslester6785]

I've had a BDI console for 12 years and I completely agree with your assessment. It is gorgeous to look at, functional, and built like a tank.

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

12 years! That’s awesome! Good to know.

[@PopcornandVinyl]

Another great video. Glad to see complementary topics being covered. Not a lot of audio focused channels talk about real people living with the audio products in a real home and dare I say having some sense of style. The reality is a significant other may not love an Easter island-like display of monolithic speakers or electronics everywhere. Lots of well thought out features. The casters alone are a huge selling point. Definitely going to look at one of these for my upcoming house.

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Thank you so much!!!

[@estebanmedaglia4506]

I LOVE the fact that you are now reviewing AV furniture, an oftentimes ignored yet crucial aspect of our hobby. More of this would be welcome! Would love to see reviews of lounge chairs as well.

[@KristiWright]

This makes me so happy to see! Thank you so much for supporting the channel as we try new things.

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Chairs are coming, for they're a big component in any system and we're going to get into it. Thank you for watching!

[@frankpratt529]

I would love to see reviews of some home theatre seating that doesn't look like some overstuffed Barcalounger. I've done no extensive searching, but everything I've seen is just fugly and it's so wide that it puts most viewers that much farther from the MLP. Something that's a little more contemporary looking would be nice.

[@TorontoJon]

It's so true that it's a real challenge to find decent media cabinets that actually accommodate stereo equipment properly. I was looking for years and found most cabinets out there to not be deep enough. For the time-being, I settled for an IKEA Besta media cabinet without doors, but as it turned out, I had to remove the backing that came with the cabinet because although the 15 inch shelves were deep enough for the components, they were NOT deep enough for their plugs or audio/video cables sticking out. So, yes, one can see cables here and there, but it was an economical solution to accommodate my newly-purchased 75 inch LG 4k TV and my vintage stereo components, but that BDI Octave Media Cabinet you've featured is definitely a thing of beauty, a practical solution for housing one's treasured stereo equipment, a piece of furniture that elevates the decor in any room, and serves as a great conversation piece. :)

[@winchells]

Your BDI console cabinet plus the minimalist interior design is the first thing that caught my attention in your videos and of course the way you present your reviews.

[@thehonestman26]

I've had a BDI cabinet for approximately six years now. I originally had my eye on it because of it's style, but as I took a moment to look closer, I realized how nice of a cabinet it really was. I also noticed how shallow other cabinets from Ikea and others were and knew there was no way they would house my equipment. The price is what put me off, originally, as it was more than I wanted to spend. But once you compare it to other media cabinets, especially from Ikea, you quickly realize that there is no comparison. Absolutely none. This cabinet is far and away better than any other cabinet I had looked at. It seems really well thought out for the Audio/Video enthusiasts looking for a quality piece of furniture. I was lucky and found a clean display unit at a Hifi shop that was relocating. I knew they probably had no interest in moving it, so I made them an offer, and they accepted. Six years later, it's still one of the best purchase I've made.

[@gregclarke6835]

Enjoyed the video Andrew! Your experience with music being your gateway to design mirrors my own path to graphic design and illustration. I too recently purchased a BDI media console (was torn between the Octave, the Corridor, and Elements models before settling on the latter). Yes-love the functionality and especially the cord management. Keep up the great work!

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Thank you and glad to hear you're enjoying your BDI furniture!

[@jaysworld5378]

Hi Andrew, the BDI looks nice but oh boy, the price. Might be out of reach for many. I just bought the Besta Media Cabinet (70" Long), around $330, from IKEA in white. It's about 3 columns all together giving me about 9 spaces. You are right about one thing, some components may not fit, like my Yamaha AV receiver pokes out the back on one of the bottom shelves. I already knew that would happen and so already had a plan in place. I did not use the backboard that comes with the cabinet and Yes I know it is supposed to add to the structural rigidity of the cabinet. So to reinforce it, added some L-Brackets on the back. For a cover, I added a white vinyl fabric on the whole back of the cabinet and that allows me to cut slits where I need to pass cables through. For the Yamaha, I simply cut out the the vinyl for that space so that the rear of the receiver can stick out a bit. Overall looks quite nice and the frosted glass doors allow remote signals to pass through.

[@KristiWright]

Thanks for sharing what works for you, Jay. We appreciate you watching!

[@polarisflyer]

Andrew, you nailed it!!!! With only 15" of depth on the Ikea Besta cabinets, I was almost at the point of having my contractor build a bump-out for my floating cabinets, with the back of the cabinets cut out to allow my Aventage A8A to stick out the back into the wall. Now you have given me a new direction to consider! Thank you!!!

[@detailsmove]

never thought I'd fall in love with a media cabinet

[@jasonk8311]

I purchased this based on his recommendation that the doors are transparent. I have a centered tweeter and the impact is huge. -10 dB above 1 KHz. The metal may be transparent but the wooden door frame blocks the tweeter, it is very noticeable. A huge oversight in the door design.

[@felixr6307]

Yeah I saw that at 7:28. You can view these tv consoles in person at BDI authorized resellers. Best Buy’s with Magnolia Design centers should have a at least of dozen BDI consoles sitting around.

[@darrenhaken]

I'm considering cutting some of the wood off the door where they join together on the top shelf. What did you do in the end?

[@jasonk8311]

@@darrenhaken Darren, I did cut the vertical piece out of the door in the middle. It cleaned up the frequency response well. Perhaps there is some base reinforcement having the center in the hutch but it's hard to hear . I'm using Anthem room eq btw. I suspect I could do a better job adding a different support piece to add rigidity to the doors but if you are not rough with it I think it seems fine as it is.

[@i2eef]

Would the BDI corridor be a better choice in this regard? Thanks for your input.

[@darrenhaken]

@@i2eef I think this is a style preference to be honest. BDI say the mesh is a better acoustic material than the wood as well - debatable by how much

[@itaiazerad5595]

Love this new twist on the channel. BDI have certainly done a good job stylistically and functionally (cable-management and casters!). Great review as always.

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Thank you so much, I appreciate it and thank you for watching!!!

[@nico3641]

Thank you for introducing me to BDI. Love their design.

[@KristiWright]

Thank you for watching!

[@joshuatravis5678]

Hi Andrew, just literally saw this episode today as of May 5, 2020. Ironically the girlfriend and I are in the process of redoing our living room (floors, paint, and etc.). Needless to say, we wanted a new entertainment stand and I showed her this video. Well buddy, you cost me a little over 2K. But in all seriousness, I know its worth the money. I love your videos and keep up the good work.

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Thank you for watching and glad we could help!

[@omarjimenez8895]

I'm not an expert on audio nor am I an expert on interior design but I am still someone with an active interest in both and would love to continue seeing more videos on furniture, design and nice looking gear

[@ReferenceHomeTheater]

One thing I wish that BDI would do, which Salamander does, is offer a rack-mount version of the cabinet. Most people will opt for the standard version I'm sure, but having one where you can cleanly rack mount gear inside, like with the discontinued Sanus Credenza, can make optimizing that space even better.

[@shamarlawrence9429]

BDI is phenomenal, I own BDI Ola 8137 white & BDI Cavo 8168 graphite, both are amazing products, BDI is everything you mentioned, functional, excellent craftsmanship, you did an excellent, thorough review of BDI Octave, I highly recommend BDI, its worth the money, thank you for a great review!!👍🏿👍🏿💯

[@marc1al90]

My new favorite audiophile channel.

[@TheCranberrySource]

I’ve just gone through looking for a media cabinet which fits AV equipment and I had to modify an old Besta unit and remove the back (with brackets to keep its integrity). Good to know there are companies like BDI that are addressing this need (I’ll look into them). Hopefully other furniture companies will move with the times and also make deeper cabinets. Thanks for the review!

[@KristiWright]

paulisdead Thank you for watching!

[@bdifurniture]

Thanks for giving us a look! Here are our current AV and media cabinet offerings: www.bdiusa.com/living/entertainment-storage/modern-tv-stands-entertainment-centers

[@emmanuelferguson]

That is one outstanding piece or furniture, but until I'm out of college, I'll stick with hand-me-down free stuff for now. Eventually I'd like to adopt something like that though. Great video as always, you're one of the most intelligent and humble audio channels out there, I love it.

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Thank you so much Emmanuel! I appreciate it! And I totally understand being a broke college student. My college media center furniture was made from cinder blocks and plywood, so don't sweat it.

[@KristiWright]

Thanks for watching!!

[@stevenwex8966]

I've had the same TV cabinet for 20 years, only the TV has changed, it's one I restored myself and still proved of it. Restored from an old bathroom cabinet, old paint stripped off, flip over so the space that was between the floor and the bottom of the cabinet is how where the DVD/Console/Setup Box would going, new feet added to the top that's now the bottom, new top was from a table top that was full of nail holes and other markets, ply sides removed and replaced with mesh (window fly screen). 100mm wide, 400mm deep and 830mm, TV 47 Inch 4K.

[@adamburke8117]

Another great review. You’re doing a super job here, keep them coming (equipment & furniture). Loved the laugh track at the end. Excellent video work (& editing) Kristi. 👍

[@KristiWright]

Thanks so much for watching!

[@Miguelcortes87]

Love this! and cant wait to see your new content coming up! me being a photographer, I would love more photography related videos from you guys!

[@KristiWright]

Miguel Cortes always good to meet a fellow photographer! We’d love to introduce more photo related content here. I’m guessing we’ll rile up the inmates if we do. 😂

[@allenholdway8683]

WOW, that’s a great piece of furniture. I like your little out takes.

[@KristiWright]

Thank you for watching, Allen. The outtakes make this fun for us. We put a lot of time and effort into production and sometimes laughing at ourselves keeps us sane.

[@thomaslinden5570]

Good review. IKEA kallax units are ideal for storing records but I get your point about other units not being the right dimensions for AV equipment. As such I have struggled to find anything that suits my purpose. I have never liked the unit that I'm actually using but it will do till I get something better

[@Dani-C71]

Really nice furniture you got. Ikea furniture is not deep enough for integrated amps. I bought Technics SU G-700 after you talked so warm about that amp. Could not find anything else then ikea for my solution. It ended with open space in middle for amp (no door). Works fine and amp is also good looking :D

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Glad to hear you're enjoying your Technics and that you found a solution that worked for you (and it). Thanks for watching and for being a subscriber.

[@dougg1075]

How do you like it?

[@olsfield]

Been looking for something just like that. Thanks Andrew and Kristy

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Thank you for watching.

[@RonWillemsen]

Looks great ;) It's not advertisement, but a tip if people are interested; I personally have AV furniture from the German brand Spectral (for instance the Brick. A Black wooden, Grey colored glass AV cabinet. With Grey glass on top, and fronts that you can open) in the living room. I'm using furniture from them for almost 20 years now, and will continue to use them, in the future. The prices can go up in price very quickly. Although you pay for what you get (quality, beauty and functionallity). No matter if you want a CD rack, a open glass / steel AV rack or more like a closed cabinet with steel perforated doors, build in soundbar / speaker or just a glass table in any color you want .. it's your choice. Want something custom made, or a piece of furniture with custom sizes, as I did, you can. Want a piece of furniture that you don't wanna use for AV, you can. One thing though; if your curious ..... I live in Europe (Netherlands), and I don't know for sure if Spectral is also available outside it. Is it worth it; every penny, or Euro ;)

[@jojoalien]

Tall hair Andrew ;D Ikea's media cabinets are really shallow as you said, and if you tried to do any modification on them, you will find the huge tolerance gaps and the corners they cut are... very scary. BDI is expensive but as a designer myself, you can easily "see" the quality even just in video and on their website (A compliment to the production quality for sure.) And so many new stuff in the video, can't wait for the future work from you and Kristi ;)

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Yeah, need a hair cut. That white cabinet we had is all cut up in the back and no longer structurally sound to say the least. The BDI is definitely quality and worth the asking price. Thanks for watching!

[@KristiWright]

You know what the say...the higher the hair...:) Appreciate you watching!

[@jojoalien]

@@KristiWright Closer to heaven and easier to diffuse the echo.

[@KristiWright]

@@jojoalien :)

[@mrector23]

We ran into this as well, we ended up finding something we liked at an Amish furniture store and had them customize it so the proportions were right for AV equipment.

[@frankpratt529]

Just had a look at their website & they have many beautiful choices. Nice stuff.

[@KristiWright]

Thanks for watching and for checking them out.

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Very nice. I do think their design team is among the best in this kind of market.

[@gainstage4497]

BDI and Salamander are my go to’s! Cheers

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Salamander is a brand I actually haven't heard much from in recent years. Will have to circle back and check them out. Thanks for watching!

[@williemclean3224]

It’s now 3,079. Still very nice.

[@crimsonghost6454]

Nice video. I dig that cabinet and I think it's cool you did a video about it. Its audio related so it fits in. Keep up the good work

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Thank you so much for watching.

[@Breakinlife007]

Andrew, I used to use one from Arhaus furniture and then started modifying it to use active fan systems etc. Finally I got tired of no one making something higher end so I used some of my engineer employees and we designed a new one in Solid Works and then used all solid hard woods with CNC. After weeks of work we finally decided to move it into the spray booth and found we needed a forklift. Weighing in at 491lbs it is now placed and absolutely perfect. Full active cooling, isolated feet and adjustable shelves able to hold 300lbs each. Thank you for the great videos. Love them all.

[@Noah-Lach]

Do you have a picture or a video? I'd love to see this.

[@Breakinlife007]

@theLiquidPixel Yes I will work on doing a KZbin video walking through my setup and stand.

[@macbec3021]

I purchased model Corridor from BDI few years ago, and I still love it, very handy, components have space and air to refreh them. I love it because, it is very easy to move when i need to play with connections. Good looking in walnut . A

[@number1pappy]

This media console looks awesome. I especially like the doors being remote compliant. It definitely has a 60s vibe,style wise. It's funny how style and fashions go thru cycles. I'm a little afraid to even look up the price as most furniture nowadays is ridiculously priced. One of many reasons IKEA is so popular. I used to tell my wife when we were first starting out that "we will know we are successful in life when we are able to afford furniture that we dont have to put together with an allen wrench"! Lol! Funny thing about life as well is now that I can afford most things i want ,I'm actually tighter or cheaper with my money than i used to be. Lol!

[@KristiWright]

Retired at 49 I once went 12 years with the same sofa. When I finally replaced it, I could not believe that I waited so long. Fine design makes me happy so it’s worth the extra spend.

[@georgealvarez8967]

Another insightful review. Exactly the issue I am presently dealing with. I have a rack for my 2 channel system but jeez finding a "nice" stand for the AVR/center channel is, well difficult. Personally I would rather build a custom stand for that kind of money but knowing it's available is a good option too. Best to you guys and thanks again.

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Thank you for watching! Appreciate it!

[@gokaicontracting9889]

thank you for the information, just left comments on how good your console looks! beautiful and minimalistic!!

[@TheKb117]

Hi Fi cabinet with speaker grills as doors... Noice!!! ... Also, you mentioned dog, which I noticed from previous vids as a husky, you can include him/her in your vids anytime, even in B rolls. Everyone knows pets increase viewership. IMHO :D Keep it coming!

[@KristiWright]

We can definitely oblige this request! 😀

[@andrewthain5050]

I just bought one having seen it first on your channel. I love it. It looks great, the thoughtful design is excellent for neat wiring obsessives like myself and the quality of construction is also great. Thank you for this great review.

[@Torgeirtrap]

FINALLY a video about this beauty of a media console! Now, how am i going to afford one, and do we get them in Europe…? (Also, a big YES to more furniture/interior design videos! :-D )

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

So glad you're down for some new topics! Thanks for watching!

[@Torgeirtrap]

@@andrewrobinsonreviews I’ve been hoping that you would include topics like these, so now I have even more reasons to watch the (great) content you put out! By the way, in that old setup you had - were the white shelves in the background storing the records also Ikea?

[@KristiWright]

@@Torgeirtrap If you are talking about the vinyl record storage, then yes, that's IKEA. Thanks for watching! Really happy to see there are people interested in a more design bend because that's where we want to go!

[@KristiWright]

We looked to see if BDI has dealers in Europe but we didn't see any. Sorry about that. We do (hopefully) have a really cool piece coming our way that should be available to all markets. Stay tuned.

[@Torgeirtrap]

@@KristiWright Thanks for the replies, Kristi! :-) Too bad about the BDI console; maybe some time in the future it will be available over here as well (thank you for looking if there were any dealers). Can’t wait to see that other piece though! In the meantime I will be checking out Ikea for that record storage - could do with one of those.

[@bynahelemaal]

I like open concept (no back, no doors) media consoles, so I bought 2, medium dark type of oak, open cabinets (with 3 internal storage squares each), attached them and kinda DIY-ed them by removing 1 panel to fit my avr, added ikea glass shelves to hold my blu ray player etc. and made a 2,4m wide (8 ft?) console. Looks way better than anything ikea has to offer!

[@herbward5240]

Andrew, I had a Lee jacket, naturally time worn like yours in high school. My first AV cabinet with a TT well was teak, lots of LP storage , and a place for Tuna , Amp and Cass deck . In regards to your class A amp in the cabinet comment. Nope, no way. I examined many Nak PA-5, and PA-7 kept in well ventilated cabinets. All became toast. Nice idea on the doors. The perforated metal on Salamander doors better for cooling .

[@markaochoa2017]

I don’t know if you would be into this, or if anyone asks, but it would be cool to do an overview of your record collection. I always like to see things like that too. Great review!

[@KristiWright]

We're brainstorming ideas that would include our music collection into videos. Thank you for watching!

[@KristiWright]

Or perhaps bring back Andrew's My History in Vinyl...maybe people would be more into that now. I know he enjoyed doing those.

[@markaochoa2017]

Kristi Wright whatever y’all do, it will be great I’m sure! Howdy from a fellow Texan.

[@fredlamando7275]

Thanks for the great review of your BDI cabinet! I too like all the features of it. Well built with a design for audio. Earlier this year BDI had a sale and I ordered the Elements 8777, Wheat doors (3) in Walnut, from Best Buy. Well worth the money. I wanted to post a picture of it, with you on the TV, but I don't think I can.

[@theredon2]

It’s is a nice looking stand and the depth it’s great for my emotiva XPA amplifier it’s been hard to find a nice looking stand with that dimensions.

[@KristiWright]

We've been able to put so much gear into this cabinet. It really makes me wonder how we used the IKEA piece for so long. It was such a pain to use. Thank you for watching!

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

We put some very heavy amps inside this cabinet. Not everything we've tested inside this console was shown in the video. Suffice to say, if it fits it likely will sit ;).

[@theredon2]

Andrew Robinson I used to have a Ashley Trinell tv stand and also fits the Emotiva xpa amplifier and my B&W HTM61 center which it’s in the big side

[@IKnewMickey]

Nice cabinet. Really nice pioneer receiver!

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Thanks!

[@MsDonna]

the toasted oak is nice! your viewers should appreciate your unbiased review when making their buying decision.

[@samgjdavies]

Andrew, are you saying that you didn't notice any sonic changes at all by putting your speakers inside the cabinet? No increase in bass response? Not internal reflections affecting a loss of soundstage? Nothing? I would be open to doing this in a general listening environment but definitely not for critical listening and evaluations. It's not the grills that are the problem, it would be the internal reflections distorting the natural sound of the speaker. Thoughts?

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

There was some minor boosting of bass, but with how I positioned the speaker inside (practically up against the doors when closed) there was no real loss in soundstage detail or scale. Now, the XTZ bookshelf speakers are excellent performers when it comes to their dispersion so I cannot say that EVERY loudspeaker is going to perform equally as well, but in my experience it worked out and worked well. Also, the speakers almost "filled" the top portion of the cabinet so there wasn't a lot of room for sound to build up and I did experiment with foam filling all the gaps but in the end opted not to stick with it (foam) because I didn't notice that big of a difference if any in sound quality. But I did run Audyssey via my Marantz receiver in that configuration and it did clean up any minor anomalies. I did test the SPL of the speakers doors open and then closed and there wasn't a noticeable difference (less than a single dB). Would I do serious critical listening this way, no, maybe not, but for day-to-day living it was AWESOME!

[@dednside5229]

Cabinet's (themsleves ) Are actually responsible for the resurgence in 2 channel - And also Vinyl .... People loved the Aesthetic of mid century So they put complimentary period correct components back inside with modern speakers An unexpected side effect was them realizing the sq advantage held by the vintage electronics - I'm under constant attack for this opinion all I wanted was a nuforce and LS-50 Until I started putting the old amps I had back in ..... It was about showcasing the records until I realized it was the records themselves once under a high quality MC cartridge I never bothered chasing digital just the hybridization of modern speakers and choice vintage like Sony n902/Kenwood L08M and pre's like my TA-E7B which replaced all my digital marantz . It's the speakers, Mainly Magnepan LSR The old amps are outstanding, Your going to figure it out , soon enough-

[@samgjdavies]

@@andrewrobinsonreviews Great work Andrew. Thanks for clarifying and sharing your experimentations. Love your videos, keep em coming! And btw, I hope you'll be doing something on home theater soon! Especially how you could go from JBL 3677's and a full home theater, to two XTZ's in a TV unit!? Your early vids on the 3677's helped me with my decision to buy and utilize (and love) the 3677's in my own dedicated home theater room to this day. You must miss it right? Anyways, thanks for your content, and great producer work Kristi! Keep him under control. Kind regards, Sam.

[@conkerman01]

I have a SKOVBY 773 with a built in IR repeater system. My Yamaha 1067 just fits in. That BDI looks great! Loving the removable panels and wheels. Nice touches.

[@beitie]

While I'm not in the market for this yet, I was very impressed with this review, and it has very much peaked my interest. Cool stuff! That silver faced Pioneer looks so gorgeous in there.

[@hushpuppykl]

This is great. Hifi furniture review!

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Thank you. More on the way.

[@nl_2652]

Yay!! More bloopers!

[@KristiWright]

Truly my favorite part of the editing process!

[@FRL2000]

Great review Andrew! Did you test a center channel speaker in the cabinet? Do you think it would be possible to run (hide) a sub in the cabinet if you removed the shelves?

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

I did not use a center but did put a pair of stereo speakers on either side and it worked great! You could use a sub I suppose provided you isolated it well enough.

[@sinclabs]

I do like this cabinet. Thanks for sharing... Bandwidth review coming soon?

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

It's in the works. Thanks for watching!

[@CP-rm7rz]

i have four Salamander Design cabinets . After many years , still love them. Also have a StudioTech tower is solid as well

[@FRMCBlack]

do you think you could hide a sub in it? or do you think that would sound weird? maybe a sealed one not ported?

[@matthewraymond3845]

I second this question :)

[@cardamoncommon]

Wouldn’t a center channel speaker be affected if placed with a tweeter centerline? Looks like the doors would overlap at that critical spot. Thanks.

[@jasonk8311]

See my comment I just posted.

[@timvonr2802]

Nice furniture, I love the mesh idea. If seen some real expansive boards with infrared transparent tainted glass and some with fabric, but the mesh idea is great. Matches with the warmth of wood. You mentioned cables and equipment depth, some of my friend and i are always in struggle with this because some AvRs come with like 60cm (sorry German and not relay familiar with the inch system) if you add your cable connects and the volume Nob... Also I always have some kind of spacer at the back to protect the cables and connects from being pushed against the back... I’d love to have some ideas solving it. At the moment i builded myself some type of Second wall, that gives me extra space (again in Germany most walls are brick walls and not hollow)...

[@ZaxPozega]

That console was the first thing I noticed in your beautifully produced videos. ;)

[@buzzcrushtrendkill]

I love the look. Gives some great ideas. (that room looks like it would benefit from some acoustical treatment 😉)

[@charleskatz2606]

Nice I like old (1960) B&O racks .Rosewood Rocks!!!!

[@J0N_]

You could have a lot of fun with the slight transparency of the doors with lights and meters. Also, if I had that sweet vintage Pioneer receiver, I would display it as functional art, the same way those film cameras are on display. They kinda fit the whole mid century modern thing in a way.

[@Glock_4717]

Another entertaining video thanks Andrew cheers

[@KristiWright]

Thank you for watching, Lennon.

[@dennisdales7504]

This is exactly what I've been looking for! Thanks Andrew!

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

You're welcome! Glad to help!

[@NickHeng]

Siiiigh, if only we had something similar to this in Australia. I've been trying to find this type of HiFi furniture for ages.

[@bdifurniture]

Hi Nick, we do have a distributor and authorized retailers in Australia! Here is a couple, but let us know where you live in Australia, and we can let you know who is closest to you. The Retailer Locator on our website is not currently reflecting Australian retail partners, but we do have them. www.bdiaustralia.com.au/ www.cluliving.com.au/search?type=product&q=bdi*

[@maxt7525]

Fantastic! More of this stuff please! From Australia 😃❤️👍🇦🇺🙌

[@goxcpre]

Does anyone know the size of center channel that this can accommodate?

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

The center shelf is adjustable with respect to height and it can fit a full-size soundbar horizontally. But links are in the description for more info.

[@goxcpre]

@@andrewrobinsonreviews Thanks for the reply. I see online that the shelves are adjustable I am just wondering about how much height they can accommodate. Im putting a Elac C5 center in and will probably upgrade to a bigger center down the road.

[@paulthibodeaux1284]

Thanks so much for this video as I've been looking for a solution to the depth issue and audio transparency doors. This furniture meets those needs and is also great looking.

[@carlosoliveira-rc2xt]

Most media cabinets also don't fit even an average sized center channel, if one isn't wall mounting the TV.

[@dustinrilcof2504]

Another great pro tip! Love the cabinet and the jean jacket.

[@dougg1075]

Gotta love the flat plug in panel on the Pioneer. They sound good also:)

[@RonLykins]

Have the BDI Sweep media cabinet, no longer made, and my wife and I love it. I Like that I can easily pull it out to mess with connects etc. and then roll it back. 65” TV on top Martin Logan motion soundbar fits just under the Top and then HiFi components behind smoked glass doors, two cabinets one each side hold media. Would love to share a photo but not sure how

[@MH5tube]

My holy grail piece has to be the Nathan Yong Line Media Console, but I think I'm many years away from affording something like that, or for that matter, this.

[@KristiWright]

Design Within Reach is one of Andrew's favorite furniture shops. Nice pick!

[@TruthFLA]

Thank you for this! I went thru all of this last summer when i got into the hobby.

[@biged2193]

It’s Perfect. Except it’s $2749 now 🥴

[@iosifkovalenko8364]

What are internal cabinet dimensions? Interested in the cabinet but I need to know if I can fit all my goodies in there.

[@larrydaniels6532]

My OCD kicked in on the 5.1 video, the third door from the left is higher than the others. It's hard to tell from the video, but they may need further adjusting to present them as being on a single plane (i.e. if you were looking from directly above you may see a W rather than a straight line, you can check this easily by putting a known straight edge across the face of the doors, the full surface of each door should be flat against this control surface. I do, however, like this cabinet, it's quite functional and very sleek, great design!

[@tjnies]

I have a Sonos Arc soundbar (with Atmos); will placing inside the BDI cabinet reduce its sound or spacial effects?

[@BackToTheGame.98]

Yeah because those types of skins bars have speakers facing in different directions. Normally this is meant for a center channel speaker with the speakers facing forward.

[@Dyejcop]

what about europe, is there any BDI like brands?

[@enigmatwist6548]

Jakub Orlikowski check out Spectral av furniture. A little more contemporary in design but well worth checking out.

[@RobGordon35]

BDI are at Richer Sounds

[@seymourclearly]

Excellent, more stuff like this!

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Will do!

[@charlesludwig9173]

I bought my CWD cabinets back in 1986. Best decision I made; however, needing access to components from rear from time to time, these 700+ pound cabinets needed to be set about 18 inches from wall. If I was doing it again I'd get what you bought although I'm not sure it would integrate with my 18th Century English decor.

[@krisboston692]

I was torn between one of a few BDI or Salamander designs cabinets. But fell in love with the Salamander designs Oslo. I'm sure I would have been just as happy with a BDI. Both seem to be well engineered cabinets well worth the money IMO.

[@SimonDrysdale]

Could I ask why you've stopped using this cabinet in your new videos? Considering purchasing it but wondering why you stopped using it in just a year! Thanks.

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

We still have the BDI. It's a great cabinet and we still use it - just in a different area of our house. When you put out two videos a week / a year, you get tired of seeing the same "set" pieces. Just trying to keep things fresh.

[@SimonDrysdale]

@@andrewrobinsonreviews That makes sense, appreciate you taking the time to answer! All the best.

[@ShellstaTube]

Just a note that there are solutions to solid doors and remote control e.g, IR blasters or RF/IP hub solutions like Control4.

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Sure, but those can be finicky or an added step many don't want to endure. I used to use them and was never a fan. I would think more people may do control over WiFi over relying on blasters or repeaters. Thanks for watching!

[@ShellstaTube]

@@andrewrobinsonreviews Oh - fair points ... and I do like the 'transparent' mesh doors. Blasters are cheap - but work. IP effectively equals WiFi. Additonally - I think there is still a place/peferrence for a 'tactile' remote over (haptic) touch screen (phone/tablet/dedicated).

[@steveearnshaw2216]

Wow! Welcome back to 1960. Magnavox tv/stereo consoles brought hifi (sic) into our parents living rooms, proving history does repeat itself. Wife acceptance factor returns!

[@Celtpjs34stone34]

I have a Bdi Corridor 8179 stand in the charcoal finish- love it! Only thing that sucks are the doors on mine are annoying dust collectors 😂

[@markzelinsky6533]

I'm now realizing the dustv doors as well. Swifter barely fits between slats... I guess a six pack of Corona (beer...) and a box of Qtips...

[@Drackleyrva]

Love those Heresy IVs!!! Cant wait to see that video.

[@KristiWright]

They are amazing!

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

It's coming in a few weeks.

[@tony9554]

Thanks for this Andrew, I've never quite caught the name of this console in other reviews and videos. I like that the Octave is available in 61 " width which would be more appropriate for my needs (and costs less !).

[@cliffordcostley9798]

If only we could bring back the days of CWD...I could finish my collection. However, IKEA's "Stockholm" collection is pretty good.

[@westcoast708]

it's nice however we bought ours at wayfair holds my denon receiver solid wood and lots of storage for 800 $ but its all good keep up the good vedios ..

[@Erowens98]

As an ex professional fine furniture joiner. Have a custom console built. Or do it yourself. You can have it designed to whatever spec you could possibly imagine. I built mine with dedicated speaker stands on the sides with cable management channels, and because I like solid wood, I designed it with a IR signal repeater. So I can have solid wood doors and still use remotes. It also has an in built power bar, so apart from satellite speaker cables, the only cable that runs out of it is 1 HDMI cable and 1 power cord. Despite it containing an AV receiver, HT PC, ps4, and a charging dock. I built multiple vent fans (high end PC fans, dead silent) into the back to keep all the components well cooled as well.

[@firststspeedway-hotwheelsr3545]

And materials probably came to way less than this $2400 console, with the satisfaction of designing and building it yourself. Very good

[@valariethomas8373]

I'd love to see a picture. Sounds neat.

[@Zhiloreznik]

Very sleek and thought out. A bit too big for my need. Satisfied with one from MADE dot com as it has a mesh for remotes as well. But the access made me put the amp on top of it ...

[@KristiWright]

They have some nicely designed cabinets. Sadly, I don't think they ship to the US. Thank you for watching!

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

Appreciate the feedback and will have to check out Made some day. Appreciate you watching!

[@billygray2775]

Andrew, do you still own the BDI unit? I am looking heavily at it right now. Also have you looked at any of the Salamander Designs units? Thanks!

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

No, we opted to not bring it with us when we moved as it wasn't going to fit with the aesthetic of our new house. Still highly recommend and prefer it to the Salamander options.

[@billygray2775]

@@andrewrobinsonreviews Thank you Andrew! I am really leaning toward the Octave. The wheels are a huge selling point for me!

[@BigRed999]

yea - only $3K

[@vfletes1]

I agree great sound is what we all look for but, we all also look at what and where that audio is been placed and coming from.. something that we look at when not in use. It should be an inviting piece that can call you to play thag music we love.

[@jackgalart3608]

I’m curious about the internal dimensions, specifically width. My amplifier is 19” wide. Will the BDI accommodate components that wide?

[@markzelinsky6533]

The left and right sides measure 19 & 1/8". The hinge is around 7/8". A squeaker for sure. If the component isn't too deep you might make it work by pushing component towards rear to clear hinge. But the middle is wide enough, provided you can squeeze in at 9" high. The middle compartment shelve is not adjustable.

[@andrewrobinsonreviews]

The middle shelf IS adjustable.

[@bdifurniture]

Hi Jack, Thanks for your question! You can get full specifications and dimensions on our website under 'Specs & Support,' as well as the owner's manual. www.bdiusa.com/products/octave-8379-gfl-modern-tv-stand-media-console-metal-doors

[@jackgalart3608]

Mark Zelinsky Thanks!

[@jackgalart3608]

Andrew Robinson = Thanks!