Atlantic 38435182 Oskar 1080 CD/504 DVD/BluRay/Games Wood Cabinet (Maple)
by Atlantic, Inc.
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List Price: Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Atlantic 38435182 Oskar 1080 CD/504 DVD/BluRay/Games Wood Cabinet (Maple)
Customer Review: If I hadn't bought all those CD's I'd be able to afford real furniture.
Summary: 3 Stars
Update 12-30-2009
Hey, it comes unassembled through normal use!
Today I pushed it back from the wall to access the outlet behind it, and eventually found no fewer than seven of the smooth little silvery nails in the carpet by the wall, and the back panels coming off!
It turns out that every time you put a CD back and you push a little on the back panel, it pushes the back panel out a bit, so over time the little silvery nails work their way out. With each nail that works its way out, the next one works its way out even quicker, leading to a cascading failure of the back panels, which are responsible for much of the structural integrity of this "furniture".
So, I just went over the whole back side and renailed it with with one inch panelboard nails. These little nails have small heads and little ribs so they don't come out so easy.
If you buy a new one of these, consider buying separate, better nails before you even start putting it together.
Yes, that's the ironic thought that popped into my head as I finished building this massive monolithic altar to twenty years of misallocated cash. Here I am putting together furniture that could just have well been presto logs that I paid a little over a hundred dollars for in order to hold a collection of 1080 CD's which if bought new at $12.00 each would be almost $13,000 or enough to fill the entire room where this thing now resides with fine furniture made of real wood, with a real finish of real varnish, etc.
Anyway, it took my wife and I about two hours to put this CD shelf together. It wasn't difficult; there are just a lot of shelves and things that need to be put together with a piece of furniture this size. (I really would like to see someone put this together in fifteen minutes!)
There are a couple of "gotchas" that the instructions don't tell you about. First, the eight screws that go in from the bottom don't screw in flush with the wood; they stick out. Bad news if you're not putting this on top of a carpet. I had to improvise a bit (with a large drill bit, as a matter of fact) and take off just a bit of the sawdust, er, wood at each screwhole so that bottom screws would screw in all the way and the bottom would be flat.
Second, there's the nailing on of the back piece where you flip the unit over with it not laying flat on the floor and start pounding nails. As at least one other reviewer has pointed out, this is a great way to break the middle shelf. Thankfully I saw this coming and put some books under the middle shelves befor I nailed on the back pieces.
And now that it's completed I can't wait to gather up all the CDs from where they're squirreled away and put them on this storage cabinet. I'll have them all in one place, and they'll cover up all the obvious clues that this is a really cheap piece of furniture.
Well, I got what I paid for, and for sheer clutterbusting alone it's a pretty good deal. So far so good.
Customer Review: Just what I needed
Summary: 5 Stars
I was looking to replace the collection of space-hogging media racks we currently have with something a little more efficient. Between the base that is only slightly deeper than a DVD case and the wall anchors, this is stable without taking up any more floor space than it has to.
My item arrived in good condition and well packaged. All of the hardware is organized in a blister pack and although a few of the shelf support posts escaped into the larger box, there was nothing missing. The styrofoam used in packaging was very brittle and fragmented easily so I had to vaccuum styrofoam bits off every piece as I unpacked it to minimize the mess. :)
Before receiving this, I was concerned that the shelves may eventually bend under the weight of the media but it looks like they are short enough that they will stand up to normal use well. If they do start to bend, I will add an aluminum right-angle channel to the backs of the shelves to reinforce them.
I assembled this by myself in my living room and took my time. I don't have much more floor space than this took while lying down so it was a little tight from time to time but was never actually a problem. The pieces were all clearly labeled so by double checking the directions, I had no issues with putting the pieces together correctly. I assembled the entire unit on its face so I could simply tip it up into place when done. It was clear that I would need to put supports under the middle bracing shelf and top shelf in order to get the base attached - a stack of six of the short shelves under each side of the long shelves served admirably.
Make sure that when you attach the base, you have it the correct way down. I almost attached it upside-down but then noticed that the bottom side holes are a bit larger to accomodate the screw heads.
I added two rubber button bumper pads to the upper corners to keep it from scuffing my walls.
I'm buying another of these today and a third just as soon as I can make wall space for it.
Customer Review: Big Solution/Small Price
Summary: 5 Stars
My husband and I purchased 2 of these Atlantic Oskar DVD storage units several months ago from a source other than Amazon. We couldn't afford to spend much, so the $125 price tag was low enough to get our attention, especially when we took into the account the size & capacity of this model.
During assembly, we nearly ruined the first unit while attaching the back panel, due to it not laying flat, as mentioned by other reviewers. On the second assembly, we propped the unit up on stacks of the shelves, which worked really well and allowed us to better align & affix the back panel. Once the first unit was set in place against the wall, the loss of stability from our error was minimized. Placing the second unit directly next to -- and touching -- the first, stabilized it further. MOVING that unit in the future might present a problem, so be cautious during this stage of assembly!
Back then, the 2 units held all 800+ of our DVDs with room to spare, but now we're pushing the limits . . . so I've just ordered a THIRD unit. We have a small home, but the slim profile of these cabinets fits in our hallway beautifully, without impairing passage. We love them. They stand firmly against the wall, and once loaded, seem to be rock solid.
Our only complaint -- and it's something I haven't yet seen mentioned -- is that the bottom shelf is virtually useless unless you are VERY young and flexible. We're not. Sure, you can PUT stuff down there, but bending down to read the titles and/or retrieve a disc is tough for us old folks. Keep that in mind when calculating your total space needs with these units.
Maybe the material isn't solid hardwood, but it is not unattractive, especially when the shelves are filled, and it's STURDY. If you have a large DVD (or CD) collection, this is an excellent choice. For the price, you get a LOT of storage. And with FREE SHIPPING from Amazon -- something we weren't offered on the first two -- this cabinet is an even better deal than before!
Customer Review: Well, maybe 4 1/2 stars
Summary: 5 Stars
Now that it's all put together, I like this storage shelf a lot. It looks good, and is able to hold my CD collection of something like 500 CDs (I don't remember buying all those CDs!!!), a smaller number of DVDs, and a few VHS tapes. As other customers have commented, the back panel is pretty cheesy, and I had to do some repair with duct tape on the back side (where it doesn't show). Also as other customers have commented, when you turn it over to nail on the back panel, you REALLY DO have to support the assembly carefully, or evil things may happen. (Four stacks of about six of the short shelves make a good support.)
Also follow the instructions very carefully; they are almost but not quite clear. When you place the dowels (O) into pieces (I) and (J), be sure they are still in place when you attach the upright pieces (A)(E)(F)(B), and then (C)(G)(H)(D).
Yes, you need your spouse or a friend to help you put this together -- if you think, "Oh, I can do this by myself," don't complain afterward if something bad happens.
Yes, the safety wall mount is highly recommended, and relatively easy to install. Take the printed instructions on page 5 with a grain of salt; it's better to install the mounting brackets (B) on the top of the unit first (but don't tighten the wood screws (C) all the way yet) -- that way you will get the drywall anchors placed correctly. (I.e., do the first part of Step 3, then Steps 1 and 2, then complete Step 3, and finally tighten all the screws.)
One of the great advantages of this unit is that you can put the CDs with the hard-to-read spines up where myopic old guys like me can see them, and the DVDs with the easier-to-read spines on the lower shelves. Overall, we're very pleased.
Customer Review: Works, but not especially well made or attractive
Summary: 3 Stars
Although I like attractive, well-made furniture, I don't like paying the high price they demand.
This DVD shelf works but is what you'd expect from mass-produced pressboard shipped in a flat-pack.
As others have noted, this comes in quite a few pieces. The finish is some sort of plastic coating over pressboard (essentially sawdust and glue formed into boards).
I noticed that a few of the shelf pieces had missing finish on one side and one was an inch too short. Thankfully, you won't need all of the shelves unless you're planning on storing CDs.
Assembly was complicated by a few things: The locking mechanisms that held the top and bottom halves were difficult to get locked properly and they failed completely when the unit was placed on its face in order to attach the back. I ended up using wood glue on the alignment dowels and clamping it together overnight.
Since the back gives the unit all of its lateral strength and more or less locks the entire unit to whatever alignment it has at the moment of installation, I had my wife hold it in a vertical position and hold a carpenters level while I got the first few brads installed.
Once it was assembled, it was pretty simple to install the shelves and load the DVDs into it. Since the unit isn't especially strong, I *highly* recommend not trying to move it once it's loaded.
I also highly recommend using the included retaining clips that will attach it to the wall. It may save you from tipping mishaps in the future.
I'd probably pick a more substantially made unit if given a do-over, but this shelf does work.