Help with picking fixed screen for home theater (1 Viewer)

[RCPJohn42]

Here's my room specs. 22' x 15' Room 9ft ceiling no windows. completely dark room projector Epson 8700 UB projector distance from screen 18ft mounted from shelf under soffit 8ft high I have been looking at both Elite and Da-lite. I can save about $500 on an elite, but don't mind spending the extra money on a Da-lite if the quality of the picture is going to be considerably better. I am looking at getting either 100" , 106" or 110" screen. 16:9 Can you also suggest a model # or type for either screen manufacturer that would best suit my room conditions. thanks in advance, John

 

[RCPJohn42]

Originally Posted by mccambley

Thanks for the link and info. Yes, I have been told a few times that 100" would be the safest and going any bigger may compromise the picture quality. since I have the space, I wanted to go bigger, but may need to think about it more. If I purchased a larger screen, could I just shrink the picture down to a size that gives me the best picture? I understand this would leave me with white screen bordering the picture and not sure how bad that would look. I could always cover it with fabric panels if the white border is distracting. My theory is go a little bigger than whats recommended just in case the picture quality is acceptable at 106" or 110". You can always go with a smaller picture, but you can't go bigger if the projector allows it. Is this the wrong way to think of it?


thanks

John

 

[Jim Mcc]

I have to disagree with the 100" diagonal maximum screen size. That is a very misleading statement. All projectors have different brightness(lumens). Screen size/brightness also depends on the throw distance. That link did not say to use a 100" max. screen size. It said to be safe, limit your screen size to 9' wide, with a 1-1.3 gain. That's 124" diagonal. If you read the reviews at Projectorcentral.com and Projectorreviews.com you'll see that the Epson 8700 can easily handle a screen size of 120" diagonal. But it depends on your seating distance from screen. That's the most important thing when choosing screen size. Your room size means nothing. John, how far will you sit from screen?

 

[RCPJohn42]

Jim, I have approx 11 to 12ft to the first persons head and approx 16 to 17 ft to the second row. Thanks John

 

[Jim Mcc]

With multi-row seating, you need to compromise on screen size. You should determine screen size according to where you will sit. The rule of thumb is to sit back 1.5 X the screen width. EX: screen 8' wide(110" diagonal) X 1.5 = 12' seating distance. That's your front row. The back row is a problem because it works out to a very large screen(11' wide). I would go with a 120" diagonal screen. If you want to be sure, set up your projector and display the image on the wall until you decide on what screen works best. I wouldn't even consider a screen smaller than 110" diagonal.

 

[RCPJohn42]

Originally Posted by Jim Mcc

With multi-row seating, you need to compromise on screen size. You should determine screen size according to where you will sit. The rule of thumb is to sit back 1.5 X the screen width. EX: screen 8' wide(110" diagonal) X 1.5 = 12' seating distance. That's your front row. The back row is a problem because it works out to a very large screen(11' wide). I would go with a 120" diagonal screen. If you want to be sure, set up your projector and display the image on the wall until you decide on what screen works best. I wouldn't even consider a screen smaller than 110" diagonal.

Thanks for the information. I will put my efforts into researching 110" to 120" screens. I just need to decide if getting a Da-Lite is worth the extra money over an Elite. I don't mind spending the extra money if the Da-Lite is that much better. I have read some threads that people say the picture is pretty close on both and you wouldn't be able to tell the difference unless you had a very high end projector. I am not sure if there will be that much of a difference between screens with the Epson 8700 UB.


Do I have enough room to go 7.1 or should I stick with 5.1. I could put two rear speakers to the back corners, high and angle them down to the seats, two speakers mid between the two rows of seats on both sides and two fronts to either side of the screen with the center speaker just below the screen.


PS. I plan to post a complete build thread from start to finish on my home theater, once it is done. I expect it to be complete by middle of June.


thanks again,

John

 

[sunxin123]

The bigger the screen the harder it is for your mbt venda projector to produce a mbt casuais good bright picture, mbt mulheres stay at 96-100 inches for the mbt portugal
best results. This is not a direct answer to your question but this is a mbt feminino good article on projection screens.

 

[Jim Mcc]

John, check your PM box. I don't know much about screens, other than they're too expensive for my taste. I'm strictly a DIY screen guy. Have you considered a DIY screen? There are numerous choices out there. Some involve painting and some do not. If you're interested, check out the "DIY Screen" section at Avsforum.com. My screen is a sheet of Wilsonart "Designer White" matte laminate. It's glued to a sheet of 1/2" MDF and hung on the wall. It's the same material used for countertops and is very durable.


Have you checked into Carada and Draper screens?

 

[Robert_J]

My DIY 103" screen is blackout fabric over a wooden frame and a black border made from door casing. I used a decorative "square" in each corner. It took a weekend to make (most of that was black paint drying) and cost $80.

 

[liljrey]

I wished I had an answer for you but I need help with my Home theater as well. I have the exact opposite problem, I need help finding a projector for a 120" Da-Lite screen at a distance of 18'..... I bought a complete home theater package chairs screen and projector. The room is 18'x18' and the projector I have now, that is having problems (shuts off with no warning, we don't know whats wrong) is on a mounted shelf on the back wall of the room right behind the theater seating and this works best for us because all of the audio equipment surround, cable box, blue ray etc. is located at the rear of the room as well. We do not want to have to buy and run extra cable along the ceiling if at all possible. We need a projector that will allow a throw of 18' feet on a 120" diag. screen. Our room is ready to go and we just would like to know what our options are for a new projector. They vary so much and we are not projector pros by any means. I would like to spend $600 or less. We aren't terribly picky on quality of picture but would like to run HDMI since we have the equipment to provide HD format. We are more picky about the new projector having the throw distance needed for our setup without compromising the quality.Our current projector is old (Epson Powerlite 5500C) but does have a great quality picture at this distance but not sure if we want to put the $ into fixing it at this point. Would rather have newer technology. Thanks and hopefully someone replies in the near future.

 

[liljrey]

I have to exact opposite problem, I need help finding a HD projector that will work at a distance of 18 feet with a Da-Lite 120" screen. My room is 18x18' and I have 2 rows of theater seating (back row raised). My current malfunctioning projector Epson Powerlite 5500C (shuts down with no warning) is mounted on the back wall just above rear row of seats, on a shelf and this works out great as all of our equipment in located in the rear of the room as well. Would rather not do a ceiling mount. Can anyone suggest a projector with a decent (not perfect) picture quality with a throw distance that will work in our room (completely dark, no windows) on a budget of $600 or less? Thank you in advance for your replies.

 

[smithb]

Too many variables involved for anyone to make a decision for you. I think the best advice is to just get the projector first (if you don't already have it) and simulate the setup position and lighting as best as possible and just try it out for a few days projecting on a white wall. make sure to check it out from the different possible sitting distances. While you do so, you can try and get screen samples from some of the vendors or play with DIY samples. Personally, I like the black velvet border giving crisp edges to the picture so I wouldn't want to shrink the picture down.


Also, make sure to watch it with good samples of the content you like to watch. Some won't watch anything but blu-ray while others have extensive collections of DVD content. Some only watch pristine transfers while other have varying degrees of quality in their collections. This can also make a big difference to the screen size you choose.


This is too big of an investment to just wing it if there are ways available to help make the best choice for you.


I went with a 92" screen back in 2003 and for what I watch I am still very happy with the choice today (2.0 viewing ratio). Now if I only watched blu-ray content I'd probably want to move up to 110" screen.

 

[liljrey]

Sorry about the double post, I didn't think the first one posted.

 

[Jim Mcc]

A $600 budget for a projector with lens shift is not possible, unless you buy a used one. And that is VERY risky. You need an LCD projector with lens shift to use a shelf mount.