Embarrassed....Audio furniture help


Well, I swore I'd never let a woman dictate my two channel system but here we are.  Wife and I bought our first new home, I've got a small but adequate second living area for my system.  Problem is, as mentioned, my wife.  Setup will consist of CD player, AppleTV unit and integrated amp.  May add a streamer at some point but we'll cross that bridge later.  I'm using a pair of bookshelves and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

Here's the rub....She is demanding an A/V credenza, so speakers sitting on the credenza on either side of the TV.  Of course I'd love a vertical audio stand and be able to use speaker stands but it's too open, too many exposed cables, blah blah, you know the story.  

Question of the day:  can anyone point me in the right direction?  I need minimum 18" depth and all the awful Crate and Barrel stuff she recommends isn't up to my audio standards.  Needs something with doors for a clean look but I still need my IR signal to work.  Because the speakers aren't going on stands, I'd like something at least 20" tall.  A lot of the fashionable stuff is 14-16" tall, putting the tweeters way below ear level in the listening position.  

Any help would be much appreciated.  

Sincerely,

Man shaking his head with a borderline resigned look


cjlundberg
Your audio furniture may be your smallest problem. Demands usually grow. Good luck.
Allow me a question.
Not sure exactly of your context.
Does she like music?
Did she ever heard good hifi? Did she enjoy it?
Can you bring her at a friend’s place that does not have a Frankeinstein setup, so she can discover/enjoy/fall in live with good sound?

My point is she will become way more tolerant if she likes the results.
My 2-cents.

Would she like this?
https://modulumaudio.com/furniture.html
Wow, I guess I'm lucky. My wife has no say in how I display my audio gear. But then, she's not the typical picky aesthetic type either. I was fortunate to build (along with a good friend) my own audio rack out of solid maple and mahogany. It looks great and my wife likes it too. I will soon have a matching CD cabinet to go with it. There are many options out there and as @mitch2 said, check out Amish furniture. They make really nice stuff!
I would recommend to build your own rack and you can make it with any size and type of shelving you want to also you can leave it open to ventilate all the equipment.
If you don’t want to spent thousands, take a look at the collection (can be delivered) on Costco of all places. I have 2 Salamander Design pieces, but not everyone wants to spend $3K - $10K. Can't hurt to look: https://www.costco.com/entertainment-centers-TV-stands.html
Like mijostyn said;  'There are some things in life that are just non-negotiable!'
 ... so now I'm single ! 😂

 The Lesson Learned; 
My happiness was contingent upon hers! 
The Amish do a great job with woodworking and offer a variety of solid wood designs such as solid cherry, quartersawn white oak, and more, plus your choice of stains and finishes.  The furniture is usually very solid and well-built to support audio gear.  The styles lean more toward traditional than modern but there are many options.  Here is just one example of a company you could look at but if you do a search you will find many more.  Most of it seems to come from Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana.
I had the same issue to deal with last week so 2 days ago I bought this unit. I checked out the non-corner unit at a local store and it was nice, very solid and a cool feature to avoid scratches on the top plate. It is 20 inches deep and has air flow holes what will work with a remote. I need to wait 4 weeks for deliver.


I bought from a local store and not these guys.
https://www.modernessentials.com/BDI-Corridor-8175-Home-Theater-Furniture

You need to re-negociate.

Offer a custom shoe closet in return for her relinquishing insistence on credenza.

Win-win.
Ditch the whole cadenza thing and get console audio system.  Wrensilva makes modern tech ones.  The downside is price and you won't be able to place a TV on the top surface.
Post removed 
I have a West Elm credenza I use, with speaker stands just next to it on either side. TV is on the wall behind it, and tube amp & TT are on top. My wife thinks it looks pretty cool.

Maybe if the wiring is minimal your wife would be fine with it. Mounting the TV on the wall above/behind the credenza gives you some space on top.

Note, I have to open one door on the credenza while it is operating so my DAC has airflow since it gets a wee bit warm.
you mentioned TV, please clarify:

2 channel sound only

or

also 5.1 system for small home theater?


@cjlundberg,

As @mwh777 pointed out, Salamander makes beautiful A/V cabinets. Let her pick the cabinet from Salamander and you grab following two accessories,

Harmony Elite remote with a hub. I am using two of these in separate rooms with Salamander cabinets and they simply work with any electronics inside the cabinet. No remote clutter and you will enjoy the ease of one command control your multiple devices.

https://www.logitech.com/en-us/products/harmony/harmony-elite.915-000256.html?crid=60

For speaker height adjustment and isolation (very important), I recommend to buy IsoAcoustics Aperta Isolation Stands.

https://isoacoustics.com/isoacoustics-products/home-audio-products/

Hope this helps!
If you have an open floor plan room, aesthetics are the least of your worries. It is struggle to get decent sound in such an environment and you will never get excellent sound.  I wouldn't put anything beyond a sound bar in a living room type situation. It's fine for what it is. Figure out a second room for your serious audio system and go to town. A smaller enclosed room will always offer better acoustics and you keep all of it out of your wife's line of sight.

Oz


Post removed 
There are some things in life that are just non negotiable. Put some computer speakers on either side of the TV, get her the credenza that she like in exchange for your own music room where you can do anything you GD  choose. Take one of the extra bedrooms.
Post removed