Custom Media Walls & TV Feature Walls

Designed around your TV and your room

We start with your seating distance. As a guide, 6.5–8.5 ft suits a 65" TV, 7.5–10 ft a 75", 8.5–11.5 ft an 85–86" and 10–13 ft a 98" — an 85–86" TV suits most 9–11 ft living rooms. Without a fireplace, we set the centre of the screen at seated eye level, about 42" from the floor.

From there we size the niche, soundbar ledge and side towers so the wall looks balanced. For a recessed TV, we usually size the niche one TV size larger than today’s, so your next TV still fits.

A TV over a fireplace

With a fireplace below, the fireplace sets the TV height: about 10" from the floor to the firebox, the flame opening, then a safety gap — 8–12" for most electric units, 12–24" or more for gas. With a 16" flame and a 12" gap, the bottom of the TV sits at about 38". That’s higher than eye level, so we often recommend a tilt or pull-down mount. The fireplace’s installation manual always has the final say, and we never shrink the gap to lower the TV.

Choose your side shelving

The towers on either side of the TV can be built three ways, or mixed — for example drywall niches with oak shelf boards.

• Drywall niches

  Minimalist, budget-conscious

  Seamless and painted to match the wall. Quickest to build, but edges can chip.

• MDF cabinetry

  Modern, hides equipment

  Crisp painted or melamine finish, with closed lower cabinets for media equipment.

• Solid oak

  Premium, warm feel

  Natural oak grain, the strongest shelves, and it can be refinished later.

Clean lines, no visible wires

Because the wall is framed out from the original, nothing shows on the finished wall. A recessed TV box keeps plugs behind the TV, a 2" conduit runs to the equipment cabinet so cables can be upgraded later, and HDMI 2.1 and Cat6 cables are rated for use inside walls. New outlets are installed by a licensed electrician.

Plan yours with our design guide

Our media wall design & selection guide walks through all eight decisions — TV size, mounting height, fireplace, recessed or surface mount, brackets, wiring, shelving and lighting — with our recommendation for each and the full measurements of the Kitchener-Waterloo wall below.