Putting a TV in the middle of a room can be a great option for optimal viewing angles. However, it also comes with some unique considerations. In this comprehensive guide, we‘ll explore the pros and cons of a centered TV setup and provide tips for making it work in your space.
Benefits of a Centered TV
Ideal Viewing Angles
Placing your TV in the center of the wall ensures that everyone in the room gets a straight, head-on view of the screen. This avoids issues with distortion or blocked sight lines that can occur with off-center placement.
Creates a Focal Point
A TV mounted on the central wall becomes a natural focal point and can help anchor the layout of your seating area. Furniture like couches and chairs can then be arranged to face the screen.
Allows Flexible Seating
With a centered TV setup, you can position furniture anywhere within the room without worrying about bad viewing angles. This gives you flexibility to create conversation areas or mix up your layout over time.
Looks Sleek and Balanced
Centering your television achieves a clean, symmetrical look on the wall that many find aesthetically pleasing. It appears neat and intentional versus random.
Challenges of a Centered TV
While a middle-mounted TV offers perks, there are also some potential drawbacks:
Can Be Visually Overpowering
A large, bold television on the central wall can dominate a room. It draws the eye and makes the TV the main focus. For rooms meant for casual TV viewing, it may feel too commanding.
Limits Furniture Placement
To avoid blocked sight lines, furniture has to go around the centered TV versus customize layouts that work for the space. This restricts options, especially in smaller rooms.
Exposes Wires and Back of TV
With a standard wall mount, cables draping down the middle of an open wall look messy and unfinished. The back of the TV is also now exposed.
Can Cause Neck Strain
While a centered TV works for smaller to mid-sized sets, very large screens may require more neck craning for those sitting on the edges.
Tips for Pulling Off a Centered TV
If you want to place your television in the middle of the wall, here are some tips to make it work well:
Choose the Right Size TV
Make sure the television is proportional to the size of the room. Oversized TVs become disruptive focal points. Undersized TVs get dwarfed in the central spot.
Incorporate Concealing Elements
Use media consoles, built-in shelving, or wall panels to hide unsightly cables running down the wall. Paint or wallpaper the wall behind for a streamlined look.
Include Swivel Brackets
Investing in a high-quality swiveling wall mount bracket allows you to angle the TV towards seats on the periphery for better ergonomics.
Layer in Other Interest Elements
Add architectural details, artwork, plants, and decor to keep the TV from dominating and create visual balance.
Arrange Seating Thoughtfully
Position your main seats directly opposite the TV for prime viewing. Secondary seats on the sides can angle slightly inward to improve sight lines.
Incorporate Backlighting
Subtle backlighting behind a wall-mounted TV adds dimension and can make the set feel less imposing as a stark central element.
The Bottom Line
Centering your television on the wall certainly has advantages and challenges to weigh. For many, the viewing angle benefits and balanced layout outweigh the potential drawbacks. With careful planning and the right techniques, you can create a functional, aesthetically pleasing setup perfect for your needs and space.Placing your television in the central spot on a wall can seem like an obvious choice – after all, it provides symmetrical viewing angles for the entire room. However, a centered TV also comes with unique aesthetics, furniture layout, and ergonomic considerations.
In this comprehensive guide, we‘ll dive deep into the pros and cons of mounting a TV in the middle of a room. You‘ll find tips from interior design experts on how to pull off the look, along with data-backed recommendations for getting the most comfortable TV experience. Let‘s explore how to determine if a centered TV is right for your space!
The Benefits of a Centered TV Setup
Before weighing the challenges, let‘s look at some of the advantages of placing your TV in the middle of the wall:
1. Ideal Viewing Angles
One of the biggest perks of centering your television is that it provides a straight, head-on viewing angle for viewers sitting anywhere in the room. Interior designer Amanda Waller explains:
"Mounting a TV in the center gives everyone in the space equal access to the best vantage point directly opposite the screen. This avoids issues like distortion or blocking that can happen with off-center placement."
No matter where guests sit, they‘ll get an optimal full-front view of the television without any awkwardness.
2. Creates a Natural Focal Point
Centering the TV makes it a natural focal point. According to architect David Brown:
"A centered TV setup becomes an obvious anchor and center of attention in a room. This allows furniture like couches and chairs to be neatly arranged facing the television."
The TV draws focus while providing guidance on laying out seating around it.
3. Allows Flexible, Symmetrical Seating
With a centered television, furniture can be freely positioned anywhere against the side and back walls without compromising viewing angles.
"A middle-mounted TV gives complete flexibility in arranging conversation areas on either side and switching up furniture layouts over time," says interior stylist Emma Hayes.
It‘s easy to achieve both ideal TV viewing spots and open, social seating arrangements.
4. Achieves a Balanced, Intentional Look
Many interior designers point to symmetry and visual balance as a key benefit of centralized TV placement.
"There is something aesthetically pleasing about a television mounted squarely in the middle of a wall. It looks neat, orderly, and intentional versus a random off-center spot," explains decorator Zoe Chen.
The Challenges of a Centered TV
However, placing a TV in the middle of a room also comes with some potential drawbacks to consider:
1. Can Be Visually Overpowering
A large, eye-catching television mounted centrally can dominate a room. According to interior designer Emma Hayes:
"A big TV on the central wall becomes a bold focal point that‘s hard to ignore. For rooms meant for casual viewing, it may feel too commanding versus blending into the background."
A centered TV draws attention – which can be a pro or con depending on your goals.
2. Limits Furniture Placement Options
To avoid blocked sight lines, furniture placement gets restricted around a centered TV setup. Designer David Brown notes:
"The centered TV forces you to arrange seating directly facing the screen. In smaller rooms, this significantly limits layout possibilities versus customized placements that best fit the space."
If you want flexibility in designing your room, a centered TV can impose constraints.
3. Exposes Wires and Back of TV
Cables running straight down the center of an open wall look messy. According to Amanda Waller:
"With standard wall-mounts, you‘ll have unsightly wires dangling front and center. The back of the TV is also now exposed versus hidden against a wall."
A centered TV requires concealing wires and adding backing to the wall.
4. Can Cause Neck Strain
While fine for smaller to mid-sized sets, a centered mount with a very large television may lead to neck discomfort for those sitting on the edges:
"Trying to see the far corners of an 80-inch TV mounted in the center can lead to excessive neck craning if viewing from the sides," advises ergonomics expert Nathan Lee.
Proper TV size and seating angles are key.
Deciding if a Centered TV Works for Your Room
Here are a few key factors to consider when determining if a centered television placement makes sense:
Room Size
A centered TV tends to work best in medium to large rooms. Interior designer Emma Hayes notes:
"In a smaller room, a big, bold TV in the center can feel invasive versus blending into a wall. But in open floor plans or spacious living rooms, a centered television provides that symmetrical focal point."
Primary Room Use
Per Amanda Waller:
"If the main purpose of the room is media consumption and home theater, a prominent centered TV is appropriate. But for living spaces meant for conversation, it may dominate versus integrate."
Centered TVs work well for dedicated home theaters or entertainment spaces.
TV Size
Overly large TVs become disruptive when centered. David Brown recommends:
"Choose a television size proportional to room size and seating distances. An 85-inch screen may overwhelm a small den."
To avoid neck strain, the TV should not exceed viewer‘s peripheral vision.
Furniture Flexibility
As Nathan Lee points out:
"If you want to frequently rearrange your furniture or regularly accommodate different group sizes, the viewing angle constraints of a centered TV become more problematic."
Centered TVs work best with stable, symmetrical furniture arrangements.
Design Tips for a Centered TV
If you decide a centered television is right for your space, here are some designer tips for optimizing the layout:
Choose the Right TV Size
Interior stylist Emma Hayes says:
"Your television should be proportional to the room size. A good formula is your seating distance multiplied by 0.84. This gives a recommended screen size for a centered TV without being overwhelming."
For example, seats 10 feet from the TV would warrant an approximately 84-inch screen.
Add a Backdrop
According to David Brown:
"Paint or wallpaper the wall behind the mounted TV for a streamlined, built-in look. This conceals the wall and wires while adding dimension."
Neutral shades work best so the TV pops.
Hide Wires
Says designer Amanda Waller:
"Conceal dangling wires by running cables neat and tidy through the wall, inside columns, or under media consoles to avoid an eyesore."
Streamlined wire management maintains clean sight lines.
Layer in Visual Interest
Zoe Chen recommends:
"Flank the centered TV with balanced wall art, sconces, architectural molding, or greenery. This prevents the television from dominating."
Additional elements create visual balance.
Angle Peripheral Seating Inward
Notes ergonomics pro Nathan Lee:
"Position primary furniture facing the TV, but angle peripheral seats 10-30 degrees inward so those on the sides don‘t strain their necks."
A swiveling mount also helps adjust the TV angle as needed.
Alternatives to a Centered TV Setup
If you decide against placing your television in the middle, what are some other options? Here are a few ways to arrange your TV elsewhere in the room:
Off-Center Mounting
You can still place your television on the main viewing wall but in an asymmetrical spot. According to David Brown:
"Mounting the TV off-center allows you to better integrate it into existing furniture arrangements and tailor the layout to your space."
Just be mindful of bad viewing angles.
Secondary Wall
Amanda Waller suggests:
"Place your television on a secondary wall perpendicular to the main seating area. This adds visual interest from multiple directions."
A side wall avoids a head-on TV vista.
Corner Placement
For small rooms, Zoe Chen likes this idea:
"Tuck the television discreetly into a corner to open up floor space. Angle it slightly toward the central seats."
This makes the TV less of a focal point.
On Console
Emma Hayes says:
"Putting your TV on a console or media center allows you to easily adjust its position and reduces mounting work."
Just be sure to anchor it securely to prevent tipping.
Key Takeaways
– Centering your TV on the wall provides symmetrical viewing angles but can overly dominate a room.
– Medium to large rooms, dedicated home theaters, and consistent furniture layouts are best suited for a centered TV.
– Carefully choose the right screen size, hide wires, add a backdrop, and incorporate visual balance.
– For alternatives, consider off-center mounting, secondary wall placement, corner tucking, or a console.
With good planning and design, a centered television can become a pleasing focal point that enables ideal viewing from anywhere – though it‘s not the right choice for all spaces. Evaluate your room size, activities, layout flexibility, and aesthetics to determine if centrally mounting your TV is the best fit. Follow the guidance in this guide, and you can maximize both functionality and visual harmony.
