Front projector thoughts... (1 Viewer)

[JoshGivens]

I am in the planning phase of building an additional room as an upstairs in my house and turning it into a theatre. I currently have a Mitsubishi 65" Widescreen RP TV. My question is this. What kind of front projector/screen can I get for a medium/large room that is going to give me a picture as clear and crisp as my RP TV without breaking the bank on cost?

I know that this is probably as ambigiuous as asking what the best speakers are but I'm just looking for suggestions based on your setups.

I've seen posts about the Infocus 4805, is this picture going to be as good as my mits or will I be dissapointed?

 

[Anthony Cler]

IMO, the overall quality of the presentation on any decent front projector is much higher than on any rear projection TV.

What screen size are you considering?

There are so many good projectors available at low prices nowadays, you almost can't go wrong.

A good place to start might be www.projectorcentral.com

 

[JoshGivens]

I will probably go with as big a screen as the room will allow. At least 100".

 

[ChrisRuh]

I was actually quite amazed by the quality from my front projector (I've had it for 1 week now). The only trade-off is the light issue, but if you have an enclosed room, you shoud be fine.

 

[todbnla]

I own an Infocus 4805, I researched it here but also a forum called http://www.avsforum.com/[/url] Check it out for sure, very helpful, although I am loyal to HTF

 

[JoshGivens]

So your saying, as long as it's dark enough, the picture is as good or better.

 

[Greg Bright]

Light is the enemy in a front projection system. Imagine a movie theater. Same situation. Notice how the doors at the back of a theater are usually blocked by a wall to prevent light from entering. No difference in a home theater. The less light the better.

 

[ChrisWiggles]

Light is a big enemy. The best room is a room that is completely black. I.E. you cannot see the screen on the front wall (which would be painted black).

 

[JoshGivens]

I was under the impression that black wasn't the best color of screen to use. I thought you wanted more of a silver color.

 

[DanielKee]

He means the wall is black around the screen, not the screen itself. A black screen does not work.

 

[ChrisWiggles]

Yes, I meant the wall colors, not the screen! Screens are usually not silver, they are white, or grayish.

 

[Shane R]

I have the Infocus 4805 for about two weeks now. I am especially pleased with it now since getting HD. My room by any means isnt completely dark. It still holds up a pretty good picture with the kitchen light on in the background or the living room lamp on. I installed a dimmer switch for the lights though so I can controll the lighting.

 

[Chris Stock]

Josh

You really can't beat the impact of a FP when it comes to wow factor! An entry level projector ($1500 US) will easily give you a 92" picture, and so long as you are sitting twice the screen width from the screen, then you'll see no screen door effect.

As for screen, you have to put the money out here as a good screen will last you a life time. So aim to spend about as much for your screen as your projector ($1500 or more). Projectors (even TV's) will come and go, but you screen will stay with you through thick and thin. The guys over at projectorcentral.com have an excellent guide.

I'm still waiting to buy a real screen (need more money), but I've been happy with a white wall and black fabric thus far (using a SP5700). Friends and family come over for dinner, but they really come over for the movies. The first question always being, "... so got any new movies?"

 

[Michael Mathius]

Josh, I have a Sony HS10 buy you should be able to get the Sony HS20 for under $2500 or wait for the recently announced HS51.

Even without a totally dark room the picture on my HS10 at night is amazing.

 

[terence]

I have had my 4805 for almost a week and it's PQ is nothing short of amazing! 88" of pure eye candy delight, that a RPTV can't match IMO.

Like Chris said the "WOW Factor" will definatly come from a big image to give that true movie feel. RPTV's are still cool but can take up a lot of real estate if you don't have it. while a pj can be almost none exsistant.

 

[Chris PC]

With a low cost projector such as a Panasonic PT-L200, you can achieve a very nice picture with a 16:9 screen of 100" diagonal with your seating position roughly 12 feet away. Newer projectors offer higher resolution and better contrast/black levels. The one thing I really like about my L200 is that, even with the picture defocussed (necessary to reduce screen-door effect SDE*), it is very sharp and detailed looking. You can see tiny details such as small print, the pores on peoples faces, individual hairs and eyebrows and just fine detail in general. Colour is really nice on LCD too. I like it alot

I have always found that with a TV, even an HD RPTV, I am looking at a TV screen, a box with a picture on it. When I watch a front projector, the actual device is absent from my view. I'm not distracted by seeing anything electronic. There is just this picture that seems to hang on the wall out of no-where. Of course, this affect feels just like a real movie theatre. Size and quality per dollar is high with front projectors. I still can't believe that a huge colourful and detailed image such as this can be had for a fairly decent price, especially compared to RPTV's. The biggest RPTV's are what? 73" diagonal? If it wasn't for space limitations, I could have a 104" diagonal screen for far less cost. Of course, yes, the contrast isn't the greatest, but its far from a concern that ruins the experience. All of us LCD front projector owners desire higher contrast and lower black levels, but we are living with our setups as is now and smiling each time we view a movie. I can't go DLP because rainbows hurt my brain.

* LCD's have wires running between their pixels. This results in space between the pixels which is absent from the image. The effect is that you see a grid of lines between the pixels, kinda like you're looking through a screen door. A simple defocus is all it takes to eliminate the screen door effect.

 

[Gary N]

Keep in mind guys. With any display divice i.e. front projector, plasma, rptv, crt, conventional televisions,
Ambiant light in always your enemy. Front projectors will be more problematic with ambient light.But there will be problems with any video display for that matter. If you can control your lighting any display will look better.

 

[Jarett]

I agree exept a normal direct view tv looks amazingly fine in a bright room light...i'm whatching a 19" right now