There is no real rule here, it is usually dictated by circumstances. As you already know there is a conflict between avoiding placing the rack between the speakers and having short cables. Mine is placed between the speakers because my dedicated lines are there and I have 2.5 M speaker wire. You can do 2 things: don't worry about it or order some short speaker wires from a company that allows try outs and see if you get an improvement. Every placement issue is a compromise and very hard to predict without trying out.
where to place equipment rack?
my room is a standard rectangle(14x19) with the speakers on the short wall facing the listening chair about 10 ft back.My rack is behind me in the corner about as far away from the speakers as possible-since I've read this is for the best.But this requires 20ft+ speaker cables. Would I do better to place the rack in the front corner,just behind the plane of the speakers and shorten the cables?Any thoughts....