Hi!

My room is about 14x14. Is there likely to be no CRT projector with a throw distance short enough to work in that kind of area, to project a 4:3 image at least 50" wide (not diagonally) - but preferably larger? Which of the CRT projectors would be best in having relatively short throw distances?

If the use of a mirror would be required, what would the costs involved in that be?

Thanks very much.

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The throw is about 1.4 X the width of the screen, so that's about 70" lenses to screen for a 50" wide image. Virtually all CRT projectors will give you a 50" wide screen, but that's a bit under the minimum screen width recommended. I'd go for a 70-80" wide screen, that will put the set more or less butted up close to the back of the room depending on what set you install, and you'll most likely end up sitting under the projector. Done deal!

A marquee 8500 or 8110 with upgraded HD-145 lenses will give an 84" wide screen at 9 feet to tip of lenses, 12 feet to back of machine. That's also a sweet spot for a bright punchy image.
BTW, whether you go 16:9 or 4:3 makes no difference for throw distance, it's based purely on screen width.

What these guys are telling you is that yoiu have plenty of room. I'm currently in the process of mounting my projector vertically, with a mirror above it, in order to get a 60" wide screen with only 10' wall to wall.
-Greg

Just wanted to join the chorus: I have a Barco 708s with HD-145 lenses. With a total room depth of 11.25', my image reached almost 90" wide.

I finally rotated my setup to the deeper 15.5' room dimension and got a width of over 104" (125" diagonal in 4:3). That said, the screen is still 2' from the wall with the PJ 1' in, so it could be even bigger. CRT generally has a pretty short throw, so it's ideal for smaller rooms. I previously had an Infocus IN72 which required far more room depth, one of many many reasons I switched to CRT!

P.S. I have a spare set of HD-145s if you ever decide to hunt them down.

I've been down that road. The vertically mounted projector with a mirror works fine. My situation is very similar as my room is also 14 foot deep.

Here's a thread from some time ago...

http://archive.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?threadid=451005&highlight=Apartment

Zenith sets have shorter throw distances.