As our homes become increasingly tech-focused, finding ways to blend devices seamlessly into our spaces is essential. A soundbar can transform your TV’s sound, but, of course, it’s another device that needs a place in your living room.
As transformative as they can be when watching TV, it's fair to say, even some of the best soundbars don't look the best, with many of us looking into more creative ways to integrate them into the design of our living room, helping the space to look less cluttered and more streamlined.
So, to find the best solutions, I spoke with three trusted tech and interior design experts. They shared two simple ways to hide your soundbar (no custom renovations or bespoke cabinetry required).
Two Ways to Hide Your Soundbar, to Create a Cohesive Living Room
'The soundbar, when mixed with the interior of the living room, contributes to eliminating the presence of visual clutter in the room, which makes the room look bigger and more balanced,' shares Allen Liu, tech expert and content specialist at FreSound.
'Once the technology is not in control of the room, visitors and relatives can pay attention to the design features, including paintings, bookshelves, or furniture collections, which reflect their own style.'
Here are the two simple ways you can hide your soundbar in your living room, to make the room feel more expensive and cohesive, without compromising the soundbar's powerful audio.
1. Hide Inside a Cabinet
When exploring living room TV ideas, the best solution when hiding your soundbar is to keep it inside a cabinet – but this can affect the sound quality if not done right.
'Soundbars can be hidden inside of custom built-ins or credenzas if you use a mesh substrate on the from the cabinet door to let the sound through,' explains Chad Hogan, interior designer and co-founder of Chandler Farms.
Now, while a mesh substrate might not be the most stylish choice we'd recommend for a TV cabinet, Chad's point about letting sound through is key. Hiding a soundbar behind cabinet doors – even if they are paneled, louvered, or have holes – means that precious soundwaves are bouncing back into the cabinet, and not into your living room or movie room.
But there are easy ways around this soundbar placement mistake. A wide cabinet with a sliding door is perfect: It's large enough to accommodate any future soundbar upgrades (our favorite soundbar the Sonos Arc Ultra is 46 inches wide, for example), and you can open the cabinet doors to make sure you never compromise on sound quality.
This Burrow Opera Media Console is perfect. Available in walnut, oak, or blackened oak finishes, the TV cabinet has sliding doors that open to reveal a 70-inch-wide shelf that will fit any soundbar, with two shelves underneath for subwoofers, extra speakers, or anything else you'd need living room storage for.
Or, this Arcadia Media Console at Pottery Barn has a shelf designed specifically for soundbars. It won't be completely hidden, but you won't have to think about opening the cabinet doors each time you're watching something, and your soundbar will have undisturbed sound from neatly tucked beneath your TV, straight to your ears. It also has a hole at the back of the cabinet for your soundbar's power cords, along with drawers for extra storage underneath.
The Everly Quinn Camylle TV Stand at Wayfair is a more affordable option, with an open shelf that fits ultra-wide soundbars.
When storing your soundbar inside a TV cabinet, make sure to remember to push it outwards as far as possible so that up-firing speakers (needed for Dolby Atmos and surround sound) can still project soundwaves up and around your head.
This TV cabinet is the perfect solution to hide your soundbar when not in use (along with other living room essentials), with doors that open wide enough to not compromise sound quality, large enough to fit 55-75'' TVs and any soundbar you can buy.
A subtle but effective pairing of storage and sound design, this TV cabinet has a dedicated shelf so that soundwaves can travel freely into your living room. It fits soundbars up to 56 inches and TVs up to 64 inches.
Available in different colors from walnut to green to blush pink, this TV stand has an open shelf at the top that can fit soundbars up to 60 inches wide while keeping it out of plain view. It fits TVs up to 70 inches.
2. Mount Below Your TV and Hide The Wires
The other option is to mount the soundbar below the TV using brackets, such as the best-selling Mounting Dream Soundbar Mount at Amazon, or with a floating shelf, such as this inPlace shelf at Home Depot that's wide enough for a soundbar and any extra speakers.
This way, your soundbar won't take up any space on or inside a TV cabinet, and will look like your TV and soundbar are part of one home entertainment setup.
'The best way to hide a soundbar is to mount it directly under the TV. This prevents it from taking up more space and makes the TV and soundbar look cohesive,' shares Tanner Fischbeck, technology consultant at Automated Environments, a team that installs home theater systems across the US.
It won't be completely hidden this way, and it involves drilling a mount into your walls. But if you're able to do so, your soundbar will take up no space at all, floating above the surfaces in your living room.
Tech expert Allen Liu agrees, 'Brackets or floating shelves provide a clean appearance and prevent the use of cords that are not very attractive, particularly when cable management tools are used in combination.'
If your TV and soundbar are mounted together, it'll blend seamlessly into your space. There are plenty of media wall alternatives if you want yours to look a little more interesting, too.
To look for mounts and floating shelves that will fit the size of your soundbar and TV, you'll find the best selections at Home Depot, Walmart, and Best Buy.
If mounting your soundbar and TV, you'll want an in-wall cable organizer so that wires aren't on show. This top-rated kit includes everything you need to do it safely.
Next, learn how to organize a music room, and how to soundproof a room to enjoy booming entertainment all the time.
