I built this console way back in 2006, and wrote most of the text to follow at that time. Please keep that in mind when you look at the renderings/photos and when I mention dollar amounts..
My rack was inspired by the Soundations racks, the La Casa 2 model in particular. I don't know its actual price, but the Soundations pieces look expensive, and I assume the La Casa 2 costs more than $300. Plus, as nice as it looks, it's basically two shelves connected by a solid panel in the back and two pipes in the front. If you want more than one component in each of its sections, you have to stack them.
My design includes fixed shelves on the left and right, and an adjustable shelf in the middle. Currently, I have a turntable in the middle section, so I'm not using the adjustable shelf, but I wanted to make provisions for any future equipment needs.
I started by modeling the rack in MicroStation, an engineering application produced by my employer, Bentley Systems. Using a CAD package like MicroStation lets me easily explore different design options (part sizes, configuration, and finishes). It also helps me determine how much MDF to buy and to plan my panel cuts.
The only concern I have about the design is whether the front corners of the top shelf and fixed middle shelves will droop over time. The top shelf is a solid 1-1/4" slab of MDF resting on two 1" thick central supports and a 3/4" back panel. The fixed shelves are inset 1/4" into the back panel and supports, meaning they are fully supported on two sides. I think they'll be okay, but I'm no structural engineer, so I can't be sure. I will take care to place heavier components on the bottom shelf, but only time will tell.
I didn't do anything special regarding vibration isolation, so I make no claims about improved sonics or video quality. I just wanted something that looked good and which made it easy to route my wires and cables.
12/13/2022 Updates: The Soundation inspiration piece is apparently still being produced and sold (for $1800). I could be looking at a dormant website, though.
My concern about the shelves drooping was well-founded. Over the years, they corners did droop a bit (maybe 1/4", which isn't too bad). I found this rendering from late 2007 that shows I considered adding smaller rectangular support tubes at the corners. I even remember buying the tubing. I never installed it, though, because I was worried about damaging the veneer during the update.
