Which PROJECTORS do not require absolute darkness? (1 Viewer)

[jeff joe]

If you opt to buy a projector instead of a rear projection TV, do you need to be in absolute darkness to see the image?

Which projectors out there for home theater use boast an image that one can see easily in a room that's moderately bathed in sunlight in the daytime?

 

[Vince Maskeeper]

Jeff,

Understand that with front projection, the color "black" is simply no light being cast from the projector. So look at your wall in the room you want to use- that is essentially what "black" will be when using a projector.

I would say a high horsepower projector would make a "visible" image in a moderately light room- but probably not much of an image you'd like to watch. For ref, I have a NEC LT-150 projector, which is considered to be really bright. I have a single light in my HT room (no windows)- and when that single light is on, I consider the projected image to border on unwatchable. I can make out what is going on, but it's like watching a broken television.

I would suggest finding a local dealer and seeing how the projected image loks with the lights on in the room-- I think you'll find it not all that pleasing, and sunlight would only be worse.

-Vince

 

[Gabriel_Lam]

As Vince said, most projectors have a hard time with sunlight. If you don't have direct sunlight on the screen, you may be able to get away with it, but you'll still notice a definite loss in contrast. In general, the higher the projector brightness, the higher gain your screen is, and the smaller the size of your projected image (screen size), the more able to withstand ambient light your setup will be.

I'm on what most HT people term a "light cannon": a 3000 lumen projector (Proxima DP8000, XGA native LCD w/MLA panels, 800:1 on/off contrast) with a .8 gain screen (Stewart Grayhawk) of just 80". I'd say the image is ok with some ambient light. However, the image is much much better with good light control. It really shows in the contrast.

 

[Greg_R]

In my (limited) FP experience, I've seen that some (indirect) room lighting will slightly detract from the picture. However, sunlight will ruin the picture (you will barely be able to see anything, let alone resolve detail). If you are going with front projection, you are going to need to block the majority (preferably all) of the sunlight entering that room. Even RPTVs can be totally washed out with sunlight glaring off the screen...