Watching TV/cable with FP

[Taya]

I read all those comments about the FP and now want one as well... Considering, 4805 or H30 or even the X1, I'd like to keep budget below $1500. This is my first projector so might have couple dumm questions, apologize...

I will be using the display for TV (cable/SAT) as well as movie.
1. How to you watch TV? means what about the sound? do you need to operate the entire HT system to get some voice out? and what about the screen up and down every time you turn this on?
2. Is that make sense to keep my Toshiba 50" as a TV and have just the projector for movie? I would rather go with one solution, the projector, but would like to have an easy way to operate it for both use, daily.

Hope you can educate me / recommend me some products.

Thanks!

 

[Neil Joseph]

Use your satellite box or a vcr as the tuner to pull in the signals and simply run the video cabling to the projector from the sat/vcr.

The sound comes from your speakers that you will hook up to your receiver. You will also hook up audio cabling between your receiver and sat/vcr.

If you want to keep the budget under $1500 then stick with a fixed screen. I think what you are describing is a motorized screen, right? Such a screen is controlled via a 12V trigger so that it lowers each time the projector is turned on. They are fairly costly, probably as much as the projectors you are looking at.

I would personally keep the tv assuming you do a fiar amount of tv viewing. You must factor in the cost of bulb replacements if you use the projector as a primary display (movies + tv viewing). Bulb lives vary from 1000 to 5000 hours depending on the model of projector and can cost anywhere from $200-$800 to replace.