CD tower recommendations

[Aussie2B]

My storage units have been maxed out for quite a while, and I know I need at least one new CD tower to hold jewel cases and other games that are roughly jewel case-sized (like boxed GB, GBC, GBA, DS, 3DS, Virtual Boy, Neo Geo Pocket Color, etc.). However, options in 2017 aren't what they used to be. I just want something that's good quality, has a solid back and solid shelves and sides (so, not like a metal wire frame thing), and stays firmly in place (we have tile floors and they're not super straight, so we definitely don't want something that seems like it could topple over easily, and I don't want a rotating tower either).

Anybody own any units you swear by, that are still available for purchase?

[celerystalker]

I bought three pretty big media shelves from Target about five years ago, that have done pretty well so far. I liked that they were big and had adjustable shelves so I could put all kinds of games on them. They look like this now:



They came with more shelves than I used, and could have done CDs top to bottom. They're nothing special, just basic laminated particle board, but do the job, and were about $100 each at the store.

[Cornelius]

Those look good celery. I'm to the point of needing shelving and had planned to build my own, but maybe I should look into an option like that.

[celerystalker]

Thanks. I have a couple of brown ones from Office Depot as well, but they were way more pricey, and the shelves have warped and bowed, whereas the black ones from Target have so far done much better. I still use the brown ones as well, as I need the shelf space, but I'll likely replace them with more of the Target ones eventually. Here's what the brown ones look like:



I'm wanting to say they were about $180 each, and seem far less durable, with some of the laminate flaking near the base even.

[Aussie2B]

Thanks for the pics and info, celerystalker!

Those look like they're probably from Atlantic. From checking out the sites of a bunch of major retailers (Best Buy, Walmart, Staples, Target, Office Depot/Max, Amazon, etc.), it seems like there are a just a few brands that most places carry (and then a ton of different sized and shaped pieces from those brands). Atlantic and Prepac are what I see most.

Right now, I'm kinda torn on if I want to go with one of those brands, or if I want to go with a local chain that makes made-to-order solid wood furniture (Gothic Cabinet Craft, if anybody happens to be in the tri-state NY area and wants a recommendation). I have two smallish CD towers from them (they hold roughly 150 standard size jewel cases), and they're excellent. These things should easily last my whole lifetime and then some (in fact, all of Gothic's furniture literally has a lifetime guarantee). I have a bunch of other furniture from them too (a huge dresser, nightstands, etc.), and it's all great. The only problem is that they no longer make CD towers in the size I have. All they have left is the huge piece that holds 800 standard size CDs, and I'm not sure I want something that large (it's a whopping 77" tall, also only 33" wide and 6" deep, so I'm nervous about stability). It's also like $370 finished, though I could wait for Memorial Day or some such and see if there's a sale going.

Comparing to the towers I already have, I did a rough estimate (intentionally overestimating) that I'd want storage for the equivalent of 500 standard CDs, just to clear off the bookshelves and empty the boxes where I've stacked up excess jewel cases and boxed handheld games and such. If I did have a single unit that could hold 800, it definitely wouldn't be too much for me. I could have it mostly full from the start, and have extra room for other CD-sized stuff that could but doesn't have to be on there, decorations, and, eventually, more jewel cases and boxed games that are still in storage at my mom's house.

Sorry, I'm kinda rambling off my internal dialogue here at this point, haha.

Anyway, anybody else want to weigh in? Not just for my needs, but any experience and opinions on storage pieces that could help people working on organizing their collections.

[Niku-Sama]

I've been toying around with an idea that would be a large furniture grade sheet of ply with angled floating shelves coming out of it that would be bolted into studs with cabinets on the bottoms for larger items or those square-ish cube drawer things. but toying is all its been since I have been focusing more on trying to find a non shit job lately.

my advice would be don't buy furniture at Walmart, also stay away from "cam lock" style assembly if at all possible. its made to break it back down again but no one ever does and eventually over time the area around that hardware gives way because theres not enough material to maintain a sustained load for any medium to long period of time.

the Walmart thing comes from experience from working at Walmart for so long. we used the instore crappy furniture shelves to organize the video games, 6 months in they were sagging out with one row of games per shelf. do not buy

[Emperor Megas]

This thread reminds me how I've run out of space for new games and have been needing to make new shelves for YEARS now. I keep putting it off because I don't have the time, the energy, and because the ceiling of my garage is in severe disrepair, and I'd have to fix it before I can use my work shop. There are partially dislodged, water logged ceiling panels that are hanging from the ceiling that literally have colonies of mushrooms growing on them. It's like something out of The Last of Us.

[TinStarFox]

My Sega CD games{at least the small-cased ones, like Sewer Shark and Batman Returns} should be displayed this way, but are lazily lumped in with the rest of my collective Genesis library.

I have a few towers that look like larger horizontal versions of this:
https://www.amazon.com/Laserline-Hol.../dp/B00TNOBBDY


This stuff often shows up affordably at thrifts/Goodwills/Savers, plus their backs have that sturdiness that the wire-types don't!

I try to get ones with either rectangular bases or tops, to best display music collectibles with my CD albums{mostly by NECA, like their Simpsons Greatest Guest Stars R.E.M. figures, or their ReMego Weird Als}.