[Dave>h]

HI,

Just wanted to relate an HD experience I had last night...

Usually, I sit about 2.5 screen widths away from my 61" Samsung DLP. I find this to be a decent viewing distance that also allows me to set up my living room for living and movie viewing.

Last night though, after reading a lot of comments about viewing distance in this forum, I measured out 1.5 screens widths (approx 84") and set up one of my Ekornes stressless chairs at that distance to watch Shrek 3.

OK, I could have found a better film story wise but from that distance viewed at 1080i, it really was an immersive experience. Very "Theater like" in that the screen engaged your peripheral vision while watching the film. Detail and textures were incredible. IT also really added to the 3 dimensionality of the picture; being that close, I was able to read background signs and other minutia that was to small to see at 2.5 distance.

I have never done this with SD DVD so have no basis for comparison but I have certainly noticed pixelization at 2.5 screen distances so I can only imagine it would be considerably worse at 1.5. Probably unwatchable actually.

I would not want to sit that close all the time, but if you want a really immersive home theater experience and a great test of your display and the capabilities of your display device, I highly recommend this experiment.

Hoping this convinces more members to try 1.5...

Dave

[Paul Hillenbrand]

With HD Media, I sit much closer than with DVD. Last night we viewed "Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause" (Blu-ray).
We sat 9 feet back from an 8 foot wide screen (110" 16x9 screen). It was fantastic! Like watching film; Total emersion and no visible flaws.

Paul

[TonyD]

i know David B. will be here to further convince this way of watching.

[Ron-P]

I sit 7' away from my 7' screen and love it. Even did it with SD-DVD.

[Gary Murrell]

I love about 1.2x back from my 7' wide 2.40:1 screen, really nice even with SD-DVD as Ron says

-Gary

[Vern Dias]

1.1x back from my 14' wide screen. Wouldn't have it any other way......

Vern

[OliverK]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vern Dias

1.1x back from my 14' wide screen. Wouldn't have it any other way......

Vern

Pretty much the same here for Scope movies.
Is that for an AR of 2.66 ?

Oliver

[Vern Dias]

2.76:1 - Ultra Panvision / MGM Camera 65 1.0 x width

2.40 :1 - 1.16 x width

Vern

[Dave>h]

It looks like most people sitting that distance away are using some type of projection system. I suppose the advent of cheaper and better projectors has made this an affordable option for many people.

I was really thinking more about fixed size display devices when i started this thread but nice to have the projection folks chiming in too!

Dave

[DaViD Boulet]

Quote:

i know David B. will be here to further convince this way of watching.

The prophet speaks!



Dave, welcome to the "wide angle" club.

There's nothing that says you have to have a projector to view "wide angle" (1.75 screen-widths or closer), but as you note it's more of a challenge to set up a room with sofa/etc. and get a 1.5 distance from a direct-view or rear-PJ set given usual decorating norms.

But even if you slide your chair for critical "movie" viewing when no one else is around... go for it! There's actually a whole science/research behind this. Once you get inside the 1.5 viewing angle (about 30 degrees) your peripheral vision starts to see picture... not just the focal part of your retina. It's this peripheral vision content that makes a movie feel like a "movie" and get that extra emotional impact. Enjoy the experience... and plan your next display to acheive the effect more easily (ie, larger screen).

This is also the ONLY way to critically evalutate HD content. (ie, only way you can really see all the detail and/or flaws)

dave