Projector Newbie Questions

[happydood]

Hola, friends.

I've looked at all the intro threads and they seem a little out of date for the information I'm trying to find in regards to short throw and ultra short throw, so I hope I don't insult any of you with TRULY basic questions.

So... just bought a house. We're going to convert half of the garage into a theater space and I think the room will be roughly 9x11 with just under 8 foot ceilings. I don't know much about short throw technology vs UST other than UST is cost prohibitive for us for what we'd like to do. I'll be future proofing the room for sound upgrades but will initially be staying with my 5.1 set up and I'd like as big a screen as I can get in this kind of space. Is 120'' feasible in this small of a space? Can a short throw accommodate that size in this small a space? I'm looking at entry level BenQ's and Epson's as I begin to explore this tech, but I'm wanting 4K with decent HDR support as well. Is this a pipe dream?

I'll be contacting contractors and home theater folks for estimates, but thought I'd check in here first since so many of you whose opinions I respect have already been through it....

[rubystone356]

I just got a house and I use the living room for my home theatre. I have a benQ th575. I have a 150 size screen. I am doing 5.2.2. for atmos. Its wonderful. I tried out optima, benq and epson before going back to benq. they all had the plus and minus. I found the benq to be the best.

I am about 16+ feet away from the wall I am projecting.

Jacob

[happydood]

Originally Posted by rubystone356

I just got a house and I use the living room for my home theatre. I have a benQ th575. I have a 150 size screen. I am doing 5.2.2. for atmos. Its wonderful. I tried out optima, benq and epson before going back to benq. they all had the plus and minus. I found the benq to be the best.

I am about 16+ feet away from the wall I am projecting.

Jacob

That's helpful. Thanks, Jacob. I'm wondering how big an image I can get if the projector is around 5 or 6 feet away...

[JMDiaz718]

Great thread, thanks for starting it! My beloved 3D tv was destroyed recently, due to the wall bracket falling off the wall, very pissed at buddy that installed it. So I may have to invest in a projector that can play 3D soon. Ugh!

[rubystone356]

Originally Posted by happydood

That's helpful. Thanks, Jacob. I'm wondering how big an image I can get if the projector is around 5 or 6 feet away...

good question.. ultra short projector will be helpful.

I had the optima 1080p. it was a great beginners for projectors. while not perfect it did a great job. maybe start there?
Try this: https://www.projectorcentral.com/pro...ulator-pro.cfm

Jacob

[rubystone356]

Originally Posted by JMDiaz718

Great thread, thanks for starting it! My beloved 3D tv was destroyed recently, due to the wall bracket falling off the wall, very pissed at buddy that installed it. So I may have to invest in a projector that can play 3D soon. Ugh!

the good news about a projector. you can get a bigger 3d image then a tv.

Jacob

[happydood]

Originally Posted by rubystone356

the good news about a projector. you can get a bigger 3d image then a tv.

Jacob

Soooo.. I've NEVER been 3D capable and I don't have a lot of titles that can take advantage of it, but I'm dying to watch Creature From the Black Lagoon, It Came from Outer Space and House of Wax in the format. The question of what glasses I'll need will be forthcoming after this initial set-up, so thanks in advance!

[rubystone356]

Originally Posted by happydood

Soooo.. I've NEVER been 3D capable and I don't have a lot of titles that can take advantage of it, but I'm dying to watch Creature From the Black Lagoon, It Came from Outer Space and House of Wax in the format. The question of what glasses I'll need will be forthcoming after this initial set-up, so thanks in advance!

whatever the brand of the projector is.. is the best way.. if you go with benq. they have 3d glasses for it.

Jacob

[JMDiaz718]

Originally Posted by rubystone356

whatever the brand of the projector is.. is the best way.. if you go with benq. they have 3d glasses for it.

Jacob

Geez, the Benq 3D projector on Amazon is almost $1K! And the glasses range in price up to about $75 for four. Guess I’ll do without 3D for a bit, LOL.

My 3D tv just got destroyed, so I gave in and purchased a 4K tv and player, not cheap either. But way less than $1K. So far I’m loving the 4K setup, and Amazon has a lot of 4K discs, at decent prices. I just got The Shining and am a little irritated, that the digital code was missing. And you can’t use Disc to Digital on Vudu for the 4K version.

[rubystone356]

all of my projectors that I bought were under 1000.. maybe around 800.
the 3d glasses are expensive unfortunately.

Jacob

[The Admiral]

Originally Posted by happydood

Hola, friends.

I've looked at all the intro threads and they seem a little out of date for the information I'm trying to find in regards to short throw and ultra short throw, so I hope I don't insult any of you with TRULY basic questions.

So... just bought a house. We're going to convert half of the garage into a theater space and I think the room will be roughly 9x11 with just under 8 foot ceilings. I don't know much about short throw technology vs UST other than UST is cost prohibitive for us for what we'd like to do. I'll be future proofing the room for sound upgrades but will initially be staying with my 5.1 set up and I'd like as big a screen as I can get in this kind of space. Is 120'' feasible in this small of a space? Can a short throw accommodate that size in this small a space? I'm looking at entry level BenQ's and Epson's as I begin to explore this tech, but I'm wanting 4K with decent HDR support as well. Is this a pipe dream?

I'll be contacting contractors and home theater folks for estimates, but thought I'd check in here first since so many of you whose opinions I respect have already been through it....

Friend, whilst it's always natural to be wanting the biggest screen you can fit in your room, there are many other factors you'll want to consider too... When you start experimenting, you'll probably realise that you'll move from wanting the biggest screen possible to the best viewing experience possible and, being very close to the screen, that might not be 120". I am not saying it isn't, it might very well be, but you might feel the need to go a little bit smaller to get a nicer, more precise, more comfortable picture depending on the material your screen is made of, depending on your projector, on how far back you can sit from the screen, on how close you to the projector you have to sit (some are quite noisy...)... What matters is what you're happy with. It's mostly about experimenting. I have tried many projectors and, unlike user rubystone356, to me Epson has always been the better option. If 3D is on the table as well (it should be!), factor in as well that 3D doesn't look so good if the screen is huge and you are mega close to it. Only trial and error can help you to work out the best screen size for your room.
I have a 165" 1.78:1 screen in a large room and, in a smaller one just a bit bigger than yours (15x11) I have opted for a 125" 2:40 screen, which (with a fixed height picture and a motorised zoom) provides a 1.78:1 picture just over 100" in diagonal. I could have gone bigger for the 1.78:1 format, but I felt that 100" was the right size for that ratio for my room and my circumstances. Yours might be very different!
The same goes for your sound system. Your first instinct might be to want to go for 4 speakers on the ceiling but with an 8 ft ceiling (less if you intend to get some form of sound insulation), that might not provide you with very satisfactory results. Once again, it should be all about prioritising quality over figures. And that quality will solely depend on your very own standards.

In any case, go for it. I can't explain the joy my rooms give me. I doubt I'll ever go back to a TV screen to watch films, even though I love my TV. It's just not the same. However, I struggle watching TV and playing games on a projection screen. For those, TV always seems the better choice. YMMV. Have fun!

[The Admiral]

Originally Posted by happydood

That's helpful. Thanks, Jacob. I'm wondering how big an image I can get if the projector is around 5 or 6 feet away...

There is no set answer to this question. Projectors all have different throw ratios, so you need to look at projectors you might be considering and then do the maths to see what kind of picture you can get with them (many websites will help you do that). Yes, look into the screen size but look at the potential lumen / nit output as well, especially since you say that you would like some decent HDR performance.

[happydood]

This is all golden information, Admiral. I'm starting to suspect a little smaller might be better for the way I think the room is going to shape up...

[Goldtoes68]

What is your budget?

Given the small size of your space I wouldn't rule out an ultra short throw projector. There are a few more budget friendly options available that offer fantastic pictures.

[happydood]

Originally Posted by Goldtoes68

What is your budget?

Given the small size of your space I wouldn't rule out an ultra short throw projector. There are a few more budget friendly options available that offer fantastic pictures.

Good question. I'm going to keep my current receiver/4k player/5.1 speaker set-up as I'm pretty happy with it. I'm assuming 11 or 1200 for a projector, 300 for a screen, and about 5,000 to hang the drywall and run electrical for a strip of track lighting and to power the set up. I'm kinda shooting blind here as I've never done it before. Reasonable? Unreasonable? UST's are generally running on the wrong end of 2 grand from the research I've done...

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