Sony VPL-VW60 "Black Pearl"

[Brain Sturgeon]

Originally Posted by bigstick

Thanks, this helps with my decision. Your advice seems consistent with a rather thorough review found at projectorreviews.com. While I'd love a Da-Lite or Stewart screen, the price is, for me, prohibitive. I'm pretty much resigned to the lower priced Elite or some such screen. Elite does offer a 135 inch diagonal screen (117.7 inch view width) with a 1.8, 1.1 or 1.0 gain. Should I decide on the smaller screen, am I correct that you'd recommend the higher gain? I take it the 135 inch screen presents significantly less concerns than does the larger 150" screen. A 120" diagonal is also offered at 1.0 and 1.1 gain. Does it matter which is best for my application should I decide to go with a 120 inch?

Most of the popular PJ's out there seem to be at their best at a screen size of 10 feet or under (16:9), unless you are going with a high gain screen; so I think that screen should be about as big as you can go assuming reasonable light output (≥ 12fL). I would probably go with the higher gain screen. You can control light output by using the high/low lamp settings the PJ has or by using neutral density filters if needed.

One way to see what screen size/material you will want is to put up the PJ, zoom a picture to the size that you want (117" width) on the blank wall that you will be putting your screen on, and then put up samples of screen material on the wall (manufacturers will usually send small samples of the screen material for free). That way, you can see if the size of the screen works for you, and choose the screen material (gain) that you want.

Originally Posted by syncguy

Another point to consider is whether you may wish to upgrade to a scope screen at a later stage by adding an anamorphic lens to your projector. If this could be the case, it is better to have a 2.35:1 screen rather than a 16x9 screen.

Scope screens are awesome... I use a 10' 2.4:1 myself. Once you go CIH (constant image height), you will never go back. However, it can get pricey depending on how you do it. The cheapest way to do this is to get a scope screen and then zoom your PJ in/out to fit the various AR's to the screen. No more black bars! Of course, using an anamorphic lens on a motorized sled is still the best way to do it (also the most $$$).