Stop looking at Pinterest for a second. Seriously. Those perfectly staged photos of built in bookshelves around tv setups are often a lie, or at least a very expensive mistake waiting to happen. You see a seamless wall of oak and a flush-mounted screen and think, "Yeah, I want that." But then you realize the designer forgot about the heat vents. Or the fact that TVs get bigger every three years. Or the absolute nightmare of cable management when you decide to add a soundbar six months later.
Custom cabinetry isn't just about storage. It's about architecture. When you commit to a full-wall unit, you’re changing the footprint of your home. It’s a marriage between your tech and your furniture, and like any marriage, it requires some serious compromise. If you don't plan for the "what ifs," you end up with a very expensive piece of drywall-and-plywood regret that doesn't fit your next OLED.
The Depth Dilemma Most Homeowners Ignore
Here is the thing. Standard bookshelves are usually 11 to 12 inches deep. That is perfect for a copy of The Great Gatsby or a ceramic vase. But your media console? That needs 18 to 22 inches to breathe. If you make the entire wall 20 inches deep, you lose a massive chunk of your living room square footage. It feels claustrophobic. It’s a cave.
Most people don't realize you should vary the depth. You want the bottom cabinets—the "base"—to be deep enough for a receiver or a PlayStation 5. Then, you step the bookshelves back. This creates a mantle-like ledge. It looks intentional. It feels lighter. More importantly, it prevents the TV from looking like it's buried in a dark hole.
I've seen DIYers try to build these out of IKEA Billy bookcases. Honestly? It's a gamble. While the "IKEA hack" is a staple of budget design, those units are made of particle board. They sag. They bow under the weight of real books. If you are going for built in bookshelves around tv, you really need to consider solid wood or high-quality plywood for the spans.
Heat, Wires, and the Death of Electronics
Let’s talk about air. Electronics hate being hot. If you encase your TV too tightly in a wooden "niche," you are basically putting it in a slow cooker. You need a minimum of two inches of clearance on all sides for passive airflow. Professional installers, like those at Magnolia or high-end custom shops, often insist on integrated fans or at least "breathable" back panels if the components are hidden behind doors.
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And cables? They’re the bane of a clean aesthetic.
Don't just drill one hole. You need a "smurf tube"—that blue flexible conduit—running behind the drywall from the TV cavity down to the base cabinets. This allows you to fish new HDMI cables or fiber optic lines through the wall without tearing the whole thing down. You'll thank me when 12K resolution becomes a thing and your current cables are obsolete.
Lighting Changes Everything
You can spend $10,000 on cabinetry and it will look like a flat wall of wood if you don't light it right.
- Puck lights are classic, but they create "hot spots" on the top shelf.
- LED strips hidden behind a face frame create a soft, ethereal glow.
- Art lights mounted on the header of the built-in give it that "library" feel.
If you’re doing built in bookshelves around tv, please, for the love of all things holy, put these on a dimmer. You do not want a bright white light glaring off your screen while you're trying to watch a moody thriller.
The "Forever TV" Myth
Designers like Shea McGee often talk about "future-proofing." It sounds like a buzzword, but it’s a necessity here. In 2010, a 50-inch TV was huge. Today, 75-inch and 85-inch screens are standard. If you build your bookshelves tightly around a 55-inch TV today, you are locking yourself out of the future.
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The smartest way to handle this is the "floating" approach. Instead of a tight box, leave a wide, open horizontal area. You can fill the extra space with artwork or small sconces now, and as TVs grow, you just move the art. Flexibility is the ultimate luxury.
Choosing Your Material: MDF vs. Solid Wood
There is a weird snobbery about MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard). People think it’s "cheap." In reality, for painted built-ins, MDF is often superior to solid wood. Why? Because it doesn't shrink or expand with the seasons. If you build a massive wall unit out of solid poplar and paint it white, come winter, you’re going to see "witness lines" where the joints have pulled apart.
MDF stays dead flat. It takes paint like a dream.
However, if you want that natural wood grain—the warmth of walnut or the ruggedness of white oak—you have to go with the real deal. Just be prepared for the price tag. A custom-built, floor-to-ceiling white oak unit with integrated TV mounting can easily run between $15,000 and $30,000 depending on your zip code and the complexity of the trim.
Symmetry is Overrated
We have this instinct to make everything perfectly symmetrical. Four shelves on the left, four shelves on the right. It’s boring. It looks like a hotel lobby.
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Try asymmetrical shelving. Maybe the left side has tall vertical cubbies for oversized art books, while the right side has smaller squares for a collection of vintage cameras. It draws the eye. It makes the built in bookshelves around tv feel like a piece of curated furniture rather than a storage locker.
Also, consider the "blackout" trick. If you paint the back of the TV niche a dark color—charcoal, navy, or black—the TV disappears when it's off. It stops being a giant black plastic rectangle and blends into the architecture.
Real World Maintenance and Durability
Books are heavy. A linear foot of books can weigh 20 to 30 pounds. If your shelves are longer than 30 inches, they will bow over time unless they are at least 1.5 inches thick or reinforced with a solid wood "nosing."
And dust? Oh, the dust.
If you hate cleaning, don't do open shelving all the way to the floor. Use closed cabinetry for the bottom 30 inches. It hides the messy stuff—board games, old DVDs, tangled chargers—and keeps the dust bunnies at bay. Plus, it gives the whole unit a visual "anchor."
Actionable Steps for Your Project
If you are ready to pull the trigger on this project, don't just call a carpenter. Do these things first:
- Inventory your gear. Measure your receiver, your gaming consoles, and your center-channel speaker. Don't forget the depth of the plugs sticking out the back.
- Tape it out. Use blue painter's tape on your wall to mark exactly where the shelves and the TV will go. Leave this up for three days. Walk past it. See if it feels too big for the room.
- Plan the power. You will likely need to move electrical outlets. Standard outlets sit 12 inches off the floor; you’ll need one directly behind the TV and several inside the base cabinets.
- Think about the "The Frame." If you use a TV like the Samsung Frame, you need a specific spot for the "One Connect" box. It’s a bulky brick that connects to the TV via a single thin wire. You have to hide that brick somewhere accessible but invisible.
- Consult a pro for the load. If you are mounting a 100-pound TV to a back panel, that panel needs to be structurally sound and tied into the wall studs. Don't trust 1/4-inch plywood backing to hold your $2,000 investment.
A well-executed set of built in bookshelves around tv is more than just a place to put your stuff. It’s the centerpiece of the home. It’s where you’ll spend your Friday nights and your Sunday mornings. Take the time to get the dimensions right, ignore the "perfect" Pinterest trends that aren't functional, and build something that actually works for how you live.