Home > Consumer Reviews > Bell'O WAVS-341 Bent Wood Audio Video Cabinet (Espresso Finish)

When was the last time you bought something, and found it to be much better than you would have expected? Here's your chance. The Bell'o WAVS-341 is a beautifully constructed example of function, style and craftsmanship of a quality that is hard to find at any price. I recommend this unit and the Bell'o brand wholeheartedly, and suggest that anyone who has been disappointed at the quality or aesthetics of the typical box-store television stand give Bell'o a good look. Add to this the fact that you can easily pay more for an unattractive, disposable-quality stand, and this piece is an amazing value.

We picked the Bell'o WAVS-341 television stand after an exhaustive online and brick-and-mortar search for a well-made, solid cabinet with clean lines and a bit of style. After perusing cheap particle board junk at a well-known Swedish furniture outlet we normally like and $1,800 particle board junk in the local department store, and finding nothing that even seemed functional, we found the Bell'o line on the Internet and were immediately impressed.

We liked the solid wood construction and the mid-century modern look of the bent wood frame and legs of the WAVS-341, and found the lowest price by about $100 here on Amazon. We ordered it, and it has exceeded our highest expectations.

The unit came packed beautifully in a large *heavy* box and arrived in perfect condition. As mentioned,it's a big heavy thing (something like 180 lbs.) that FedEx brought to my door using a pallet and pallet jack, so expect to need some help getting inside, or open the box where it is and carry the individual pieces inside.

Assembly took some time and some care, and really requires two people due to some complexity in aligning everything when assembling the bent wood pieces. I managed it on my own, but was lucky not to bung up the finish. However, all of the necessary hardware was included and impeccably labeled, and the directions were crystal clear and easy to follow. Once completed, the table felt like the most solid piece of furniture you could wish for. Everything aligns precisely and locks firmly into place. The only tools I needed were a screwdriver and the Allen wrench included in the package. I used a palm-sized electric screwdriver that also has Allen screw bits that sped things up considerably.

In putting the unit together, you notice first-rate details, like the rotating cams that lock the back panel firmly into place. Even the little monogramed "Bell'o" medallion that is normally out of sight is beautiful and clearly well-made. The cord organization system is simple, consisting of slots in the back panel and two flexible cable keepers that attach to the back of the unit, but it works well and keeps things neat. Bear in mind that this unit is close to the ground, so despite its excellent design, you will have stoop a bit to get all your cords and wires sorted out.

Our 52" LCD television weighs 67 pounds, and does not cause the slightest visible flex in the top shelf of the unit, which I believe is rated at 120 pounds. It looks absolutely great, its rich veneered wood gleaming sleekly but unostentatiously beneath the television. The tv and the new stand looked so good that we felt the need to paint and decorate the living room a little better just to keep up.

As for the price, once you start looking, you realize that 1) you almost can't find anything this beautiful and well-made in a store to start with, and 2) if you can, it's likely to cost much more. I recently saw something similar, but unquestionably less beautiful, in a Scandanavian / modern type furniture store for almost twice the price. Department stores are worse, and will happily charge you two thousand dollars for anonymously styled particle board.

I don't write a lot of reviews on items I buy from Amazon -- and I don't generally gush like this over consumer purchases. But in this case, I was amazed at how difficult it was to find a decent, functional, well-made example of a product that most Americans need, and for that matter, it's difficult to find ANY furniture that is built right out of quality materials, looks good, functions well, and doesn't cost several thousand dollars.

Bell'o not only covers that in spades, but has that even more hard-to-find quality -- the feeling that someone actually designed and built this item with pride, and with a determination to do a good job. And with *artistry*. Style. Taste. Craftsmanship. These words don't apply to many things the average person can buy anymore. I wish these guys made regular household furniture, because I'd buy a houseful of it. I'd like to shake the hand of the man or woman who designed and built this thing, and then agreed to sell it for such a reasonable price. In lieu of that, I offer my humble five-star review of the "Bell'o WAVS-341."

After reading many good reviews about this TV stand, I decided to order it from Amazon. The TV stand arrived shortly but with damage I could not see before completely unpacking all the pieces. The box took a lot of beating and consequently there were dents and scratches all over the TV stand. Bell'O included a touch-up pen for the TV stand. It helped but you cannot repair a dent with a pen.

The two biggest pieces (table top and bottom) are touching the box directly without *any* protection on the side. This means any side impact to the box will almost guarantee to damage the pieces. I would highly suggest Bell'O use thicker packing material and add a protection layer between the box and the big pieces.

* 5 Star for the TV Stand itself. This is one of the most beautiful TV stands I have ever seen. Build quality is top notch. Design is very elegant.

* 2 Star for the poor packaging. Another review also mentioned damage to the TV stand.

* 5 Star for Amazon customer service - they were very helpful in answering my questions and offered options to compensate my loss for accepting a damaged TV stand. I cannot recommend Amazon enough.

I am happy with the overall look of the piece and I was able to put it together by myself so those two things earn it a good review. I will agree with other people who've posted reviews - the packaging for this product is terrible. There isn't enough padding between the outside of the box and the two biggest pieces. This resulted in several dings on the edges of the top and bottom piece. Fortunately I was able to hide the worst of them in the back. I think it would have been a nightmare to try and return this so if the damage had been worse I'm not sure what I would have done.

This TV stand is very cool and I highly recommend buying it. I would also recommend making your purchase in person and driving it home yourself.

The Stand that was delivered to me was seriously dinged and scraped up. The packaging seemed to be sufficient but couldn't stand up to the abuse it was subjected to along the way to my doorstep.

Beautiful and sturdy, this tv stand was exactly what I was looking for. Luv wood and luv unique and this definitely fits the bill. I looked closely at this cabinet after reading the reviews. I'd just gifted myself with a new TV and needed something to put it on. Ordered it Monday evening when I got in from work and it arrived by UPS on Wednesday. I was expecting a really hugh box, after reading previous reviews, and although the box is big, it is not oversized.
My daughter put the stand together, in about an hour. You do need two people to put it together, actually three at one point, but it is absolutely beautiful.
I would highly recommend this cabinet to anyone who wants something different, that will last for years, and which you will not be tired of looking at. If this was brought in the store and delivered assembled, it would easily have been double the cost, if not more.