Is it worth painting an 80s oak entertainment center white?

Clean, sand lightly, clean again with TSP or denatured alcohol. Prime and paint. You might try black and add chrome hardware. I would recommend Painter's Touch by Rustoleum. I painted some bookshelves for my daughter's room around 2001 and they still look great. They survived teenagers with soda cans and glasses sat on them without damage.

absolutely. If it suits your needs I would keep it and paint it. Black immediately comes to mind for modern. Sand down and go to paint store/builders supply place etc... tell them what you are doing and they will let you know best paint. You can paper or paint a different color inside shelves (either back or actual shelf) or add a modern peel and stick tile. I would go on line looking for picts pf what you like. Good luck!

Sorry, I once read from a designer...if you have a piece of furn you like but don't know what to do with it...paint it white or black. I have done both and it has worked.

oak is the finest of woods , very costly also, so why would you ruin it ?

Absolutely! It would definitely update the look. As suggested, you could add color to the back of the shelves to make it more interesting. Paint is huge right now and does make a huge difference. Have fun!

Remember to use a good stain blocking primer, so the tannins from the oak do not show through. Have fun, I am sure it will look amazing when finished. Follow Kathy's instructions.

myself I am a newbie as well I've been watching a lot of tutorials on this because I'm facing the same dilemma what I have come up with is chalk paint you can get it in different finishes I'm thinking about black as well and updating the cabinet and drawer pulls with new hardware I hope this helps

I took a closer look at the wood on this piece...it is quite possible that due to the shiny surface in the photo, it is covered in a paper cover over a plain wood not oak surface...if you sand it this paper will shred and disappear so I would not go near a sander with this...only my observation from the photo, we had a set of three of these types of shelves for a long time...they were not sandable at all...after cleaning this with a non abrasive mild cleaner, I would get a good quality paint and primer sample paint, white would be nice, and try it on an inconspicuous part to see if it will stick and not peel off...if it is indeed solid oak, then you can still clean it and use the paint and primer combo, Home Depot paint and primer has never failed me in all the rooms and projects I have done over many years...Good Luck!