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Need input on two projector questions. (1 Viewer)

Derek Brent

Auditioning
Joined
May 25, 2005
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14
First off, I have been on this site for the last six months, and have learned so much. I am about 75% done with my theater. It is 21x28x10 feet,with three rows of seating, which will be for movies, gaming, and a little cable t.v. My projector will be the panny 700 with 106" homemade screen out of blackout cloth, in a 100% controlled
lighting.
First question- Is there a change in picture quality when the zoom is used? The projector placement is very flexible, but I do not know if I should use the 2x, 1.5x, or 1x zoom? Which is best, or does it not make a difference in picture quality?
Second question- I can ceiling mount or floor mount the projector. How far down from the ceiling or up from the floor does the projector have to be in reference with the screen(if that makes any sense to anyone)?
I apologize if these are stupid questions, but I can not find the answers anywhere. Any help or input would be greatly appreciated.
 

Neil Joseph

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jan 16, 1998
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8,332
Real Name
Neil Joseph
I would say place the projector further from the screen and zoom the image in (smaller) to fit the screen for more even light dispersement across the whole screen to minimize hotspotting int he middle of the screen. The lens of the projector will be fairly even with the top of the screen for ceiling mount and even with the bottom of the screen for table mount.

Don't fret about the ceiling mount though in your romm with 10' ceilings. It can be done. I have 12' ceilings in my room. The projector has vertical lens shift, plus there is keystoning adjustments as well if the projector is placed above the top of the screen.
 

trey-m

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
Mar 9, 2005
Messages
51
Some things to think about:

1. The closer the projector is to the screen, the more area you have to walk around in the room without your head popping up into the screen. (With ceiling mount obviously.) So consider that together with Neil's comment when thinking about zoom. Perhaps some experimentation might be in order.

2. Avoid keystoning. I can't say for other projectors, but mine (a cheap X1) has noticeable edge distortions and a trapezoidal light ambience around the screen when keystoning is used. If you get the projector height right, you shouldn't need keystoning at all.

3. Make sure you measure the height of both sides of the image before you start drilling holes in the ceiling. I made the mistake of just "eyeing" it and later discovering that I needed to either drill new holes 4 inches over, or slide my screen 4 inches over. I did the latter, but had I been in a room where the screen needed to be perfectly centered, I would have had to drill new holes- which would have slightly sucked. Likewise measure the top and bottom edge lengths before setting your projector height.

Enjoy.
 

Derek Brent

Auditioning
Joined
May 25, 2005
Messages
14
Thank you Neil and Trey very much for the information. You answered what I needed to know, and I appreciate the tips too. Now I just need to decide where I am going to end up placing the projector. Thanks again.
 

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