Front Projector

[fergi]

this seems like an odd place to put this topic but its not relating to cars so here goes,has anyone got a front screening video projector and if so what do you think of them and what type have you got,how long have you had it,what type of cables do you use and what screen have you got


cheers fergi

ps and how much did you pay

[Bax]

as in projector onto the wall, projector?

well i've had a bit of experience with them, nearly got one a while back for a couple of grand.

mrs has one at her place..

i love it, the cheaper they are usually the less lumens or whatever it has, which is pretty much, the less lumens the darker the room has to be. her dads got it set up so it takes up a good 3/4m x 2m on a whitish cream wall, they didn't buy any screens for it.

We always used to borrow the projector from a mates dad, for state of origin and games nights, and would just use a large white sheet.

Only reason that really stopped me from buying it was that the replacement bulb was about 800 or so dollars. And the life of the bulb meant that I'd only be using it everynow and then.. And not leaving it on all the time.

I think her dad paid about.. 2,500..
The ones we used at work which were really good quality are about 6k.

Depends whether your willing to sit in the dark and get some curtains etc. If thats the case then you could probably go cheaper and get a less brighter one

[Demons1964]

At home I've got a 4:3 SVGA LCD Hitachi projector (2000 ANSI Lumens). The size of the room is 5m x 4m, projecting overhead on to a 120 inch pull-down LP Morgan screen. I bought the projector 2 years ago and from memory the projector was $7000 and the screen was about $800. (I guess for the same price today you could get 2500 Lumens widescreen XGA). The screen pulls down from behind a pelmet in front of a big window which is where I can tell you first-hand that a darkened room is a necessity. Even with such a bright projector (budget units can be as low as 800 Lumens) just the light leaking through the side of the screen from the window is enough to mean that on a sunny day I can't use the projector until the sun has set. One day I'll get around to making the curtain for that window!

Lamp life is stated as 1500 hours but the high replacement cost means I shouldn't use it for TV (which is the reason why I didn't get a widescreen projector). The lamp is near the supposed end of it's life but the colours still look fantastic. I'm really obsessive about warm-down times so hopefully that is helping extend the life of the lamp.

The projector runs from a 15 metre S-Video cable straight from the receiver through the walls/roof. I should point out that I ran all the speaker cabling through the walls and roof when I built the house so it looks like a professional setup. In summary, my home cinema is the best investment I've ever made!

Fergi, do you already have a projector or are you looking to buy one?

Mark.

[jules]

QUOTE (bextor84 @ Apr 12 2004, 10:59 PM) Only reason that really stopped me from buying it was that the replacement bulb was about 800 or so dollars. And the life of the bulb meant that I'd only be using it everynow and then.. And not leaving it on all the time.
i've heard this is the biggest problem with them, the bulbs do go and they cost $$$

[fergi]

thanks for the reply bextor/demon/jules
bextor i havent bought one yet but ive been on all the projector/dvd forums reading all about them for the last six weeks.i probably will take the plunge next week and the one i am looking at and seems to have really good write ups is the panasonicptae 500 ,its selling for 3,700 but has really good reviews from www.projectorcentral.com.
they really seem to give honest write ups on all the tests that they do
ive read on some forums that people just screen them on to the wall but i think a screen would show up a lot better,they quoted me $500 dollars for a 15 metre component video lead or about $200 FOR A GOOD QUALITY S VIDEO LEAD.THESE prices do sound high but they had a demo projector going with 2 different cable set ups,component and composite ,i couldnt believe the differece between the two types i was really amazed at the difference in picture quality.so i suppose its a toss up between the component or the s video which they didnt have set up .
cheers fergi

[mickey]

Have been setting up the nightclubs around ballarat via a friend and the straight on the wall deals are good, but then again nightclubs only run at night. Other options are to build a wall box, and using mirrors project the screen CRT style onto a peice of glass, this completely eliminates light interference. I cant remember where i saw the plans, but i'll have a look