I have a dedicated build thread in the other side of the forum, but I thought I would share the screen build over here as I have gotten many ideas and inspiration from more than a couple of folks here. I will be using 1.5" screen track (window type screen) to secure my Phifer screen material to the back of the border pieces. I wanted to use something that would be removable for future needs.

I started with two 2x8x10 wood pieces to transfer over the radius of my curved false wall.

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe010.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe009.jpg

I thought the 2x8 would be enough to get the whole radius of the curve, however I was shy by about 1/2" on the backside. I figured I would try cutting one piece and if it wasn't sturdy enough I would go buy 2X10's.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe011.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe013.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe012.jpg

Once cut though it was fine, very sturdy as a matter of fact.

You can see the arch on the front side which is what is important, on the backside you can see how it goes flat.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe001.jpg
I was able to smooth out the curve a little better with a small hand plane.
Test fit on the false wall.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe004.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe002.jpg

Then I was test fitting the vertical pieces 1x4x10's which make up the screen border and where the screen tracks will be attached to.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe007.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe008.jpg

The 1x4's take shape extremely well and the curve I'm looking for is perfectly smooth. I cut 45 degree angles on the 2 horizontal pieces and now need to get the vertical pieces done. The 1x4's will be secured to the front of the frame with liquid nails and trim nailer. The inside vertical frame is simply made up of a 2x4x10 cut in half, just need to trim to the exact measurement that I need. My finished screen viewing area should be 110" wide by 46.5" high 119.5" diagonal for 2:37 aspect ratio.

I assembled the basic structure. I attached the 1X4's to the horizontal pieces as I described above. Then I attached the vertical frame pieces.
The first side attached.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Progress001-1.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Progress002-1.jpg

Other side attached and stood up to see how stable it was and get the actual finished height.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Progress004-1-1.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Progress005-1-1.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Progress006-1-1.jpg

Laying back down with the side border pieces on. They are not attached as I want to get the velvet first so I can best figure out how to wrap.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Progress003-1-1.jpg

Won't get to do much in the next couple of days, but Friday night I hope to secure the screen track and by Saturday get the velvet, quite possible that it will be done by the end of the weekend.

Man I know the work space is messy but no comments after 228 views.... hmmm maybe this will prod some responses ;).

Started off by painting the inside and backside of the frame so their wouldn't be any reflections.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe015-1.jpg

Then I used these corner braces to help shore up the corners of the border. I figured it would also be a good way to secure the side border pieces after they were wrapped instead of making it permanent with liquid nails and trim nails, especially since this area has no curve.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe018.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe019.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe017.jpg

After this I started to secure the screen track pieces to the horizontal pieces of the border. No need to staple them as I thought I might need to do. They held just fine when splining the screen.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe020.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe022.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe021.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe023.jpg

Then it was time to wrap it with velvet. What I would have done differently is to have wrapped the velvet before securing the screen track like I did with the vetical pieces. Unfortunately with the bottom piece of the screen if you go up to it you can see some staples and areas where the velvet was trimmed. Would've been a non issue if it was wrapped first and I then secured the track. I'll hopefully should be able to solve this with a thin velvet wrapped filler piece.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe024.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe025.jpg

The vertical pieces i did while off the frame, then put in place for fit and finish.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe029.jpg

The bottom was wrapped and the vertical pieces were secured with the corner braces. This is the point I got to on Sunday night.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe030.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe031.jpg

Monday after running a few errands I was able to get to the good part. I bought the 63" material vs. the 98" but I tried to angle the fabric as much as I could. No biggie as my projector is only 720P but I thougt I would try in case I ever go 1080P. My original idea was to spline the first outermost row of the track and then spline the second row to make the screen tight, but I really didn't need to as the screen was very tight in most areas and only needed to respline a couple of areas. Splinnig the second row wouldn't have helped the problem areas.
Front of the screen
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe033.jpg

Back of the screen mostly trimmed off except the top. There's a couple of waves you can see on the left, this is mostly because there is no supports in the middle and the material splinned naturally pulls down on the frame. This is a non issue though when the screen is mounted. The space the screen goes into is about 1/8-1/4" bigger than the frame, I'm using mini clamps to secure the screen, this helps the frame to be pulled nice and taught removing any waves.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe032.jpg

Now with the screen put in place, room was dark but flash was lighting it up:

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe034.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe035.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe037.jpg

No flash:

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe038.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe039.jpg

and there it is for about $350.00 in materials.

This is awesome! Looks very finished and professional. I cannot believe nobody's posted comments yet. Can you post a link to the screen material purveyor? Also, where do you get velvet?

What kind of speakers are you going to use and how much room is there behind the screen to hide them? Can't wait to see images of the completed theater and screenshots!

Thanks for the kind words owl1,

I actually bought phifer sheerweave material last year from Chris at SeymourAV.

Im actually using Klipsch (http://www.klipsch.com/products/details/c-2.aspx)speakers available at Best Buy, good or bad I had a limited budget and these fit the bill. I have the C2, 4 S2's and a pair of B2's. To me they sound awesome, the surrounds have tweeters which angle off to each side. They feature WDST (http://www.klipsch.com/products/details/s-2.aspx#description) which envelopes the whole listening area.

The front speakers sit on shelves attached to the wall. The left and right speakers are about 11" deep and are about an 1.5" away from the wall and the screen sits at about 18" so about 5-6 inches space away from the screen. Here are a couple shots showing the speakers and the shelves they sit on taken early in my build.

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN1955.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN1956.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN1959.jpg

BTW, the subwoofer is a JBL 12" sub.

Looks great. Do you have any pics of how you mounted the screen to the wall? I am especially interested to see how managed to get tension in the middle of the screen to pull out the wrinkles. I would think the weight of the upper horizontal support would tend to make the screen sag. Also, is the screen easily removed to get to the speakers in the back?

Thanks!

I'll snap some pics for you tonight. I simply used some mini clamps, works like a charm. Very easy to remove if need be.

Oman how I appreciate people like you who can do things easily like this one --- i will also be glad to see more pics on this project and especially the screen shots which will show the projected images on the screen. thanks

Thanks jerix,

If you click my build link on my signature line and go to page 8 you will see some screen pics. They are not the greatest, but that is because of my camera, and the way I had to take the pictures, not the screen.

WannaTheater,

Here are the pics showing the screen secured with the clamps. The top clamps are closer to the center to help support that area. All the sags from the weight of the frame are removed when clamped.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN2579.jpg

The bottom clamps are closer to the left and right speakers
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN2578.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN2577.jpg

Basically the screen sits on top of the false wall. The border sticks out about 1/4" all around on the outside edges, this way when the screen is placed on the false wall it wont go past the edge due to the 1'4" lip.

This looks awesome... great job!

Thanks superleo,

It really turned out as good as I had hoped and was pretty easy to put together. The movies that we have enjoyed so far have been nothing short of fantastic.

Great pitcs/comments for others to follow.

Q:
I'm leary about wood drying and warping, was your wood "conditioned" for a few weeks in your basement and you picked non-warped pieces or used them straight after buying?

Again, you've built something to really be proud of!

Thanks mtbdudex,

I am proud of how the whole thing came together.

I only had the wood in my basement for a couple of days before starting to make my cuts. I did go after the straighest pieces I could find, although I didn't have much difficulty with the 2x8x10's they were mostly pretty good for the picking. I don't know if it is because of the size of the lumber but I had a real easy time picking it out.

Funny thing was after I picked my preferred pieces as well as the 1x4x10's I parked my cart and went looking for other items that I needed, low behold and this never has happened to me at Lowes or HD somebody put all my lumber back :mad: so I had to go re-pick everything. I had a tougher time getting straight 1x4's.

I know what you are talking about warping or twisting lumber. I remember one time I had a 2x4 that I bought, which was straight when I got it and less than a week later it had formed into very nice arc. The begginnings of a canoe I suppose.

In any event after I cut my initial frame piece I wasn't too concerned as it was very stiff, but I knew I had limited time. The next day I cut the next curved piece of the frame and attached the horizontal pieces of the border in order to provide stability. I attached the border pieces with liquid nails and a trim gun. I also cut and attached the vertical frame pieces which was one 2x4x10 cut in half. Over the next few days of working on the frame I was looking for any signs of warpage, to my relief I found no evidence of it.

Now with the frame in place and the clamps holding I have no concern of it becoming an issue.

Omen321,

How far back is the projector located from the screen? I'm thinking of doing a similar setup in my bonus room and was curious as to the distance because I have a Benq7800 that has a short throw... Do you think 11 feet is to close for this size of screen? and would I have to worry about pin cushioning at that short distance?

whodarem,

I went and measured for you so I could have an accurate distance. My projector is 14'5" back from the center of my screen. Since my screen is curved it is 3" deeper in the center vs. the sides. From 11' you might have a greater amount of pincushion but if you make a curved screen you should be fine, maybe a slightly greater curve radius like 4-5".

IMO 11' is a perfect distance for this size screen. I have 2 rows of seating, the first one being about 9-9.5 feet and I'm perfectly comfortable but the Mrs. isn't. She prefers the back row seating which puts you at about 15-16'. She would probably be ok at 11'.

The thing you'll have to deal with is if you'll be able to get enough zoom thru your lens from 11'. From the distance I'm at, I'm projecting just about the smallest image I can from my projector. While I can zoom some if I need to, once you get past a certain point the image starts to vignette or be cutoff because the whole light beam wont make it thru the prisms. If your making your own lens, it may be worth getting the large trophy prisms to make sure you have enough room for zooming.

Good luck, let me know if there is anything else.

Screen shot time!

Post a few.

Ah, I posted a few in my build thread, but they were just some quick shots that I took of upconverted dvd's. Tonight I will try to get some new shots with the PS3 and post them later on.

Didn't get around to taking any new pics. Dealing with to much snow and then there was the wrapping for Christmas... so here are a couple of the pics that I took before. I'll hopefully be able to get some new ones today or tomorrow.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/screenies003.jpg

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/screenies010.jpg

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/screenies014.jpg

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/screenies013.jpg

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/screenies016.jpg

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/screenies015.jpg

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/screenies023.jpg

Ok I managed to get some newer pics off of my PS3 with Blu Ray. Like before I had to take these pics under not so ideal conditions. I used to have a tripod but it's broken and I didn't have an easy way to set the camera, so I sat in the second row and held the camera with both hands (my elbows supported by my legs), no flash and on most shots I allowed the timer to take the pic.

Stargate:
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN2608.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN2614.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN2616.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN2622.jpg

Dark Knight:
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN2630.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN2641.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN2644.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN2645.jpg

I love this shot, no hint of CA from from my DIY Anamorphic Lens
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN2647.jpg

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN2650.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/DSCN2651.jpg

Any hint of blurriness is either because of me or the camera.

Very nice looking screen wall. Couple of questions if you have a few.

I haven't really looked at curved screens before.... what are the advantages of curved vs flat? And are all projectors able to handle a curved screen?

With the sheerweave 4500 that you bought, are there any moire problems that I've heard about?

Appreciate the build pictures and detail. Looks great

Screen looks great! How did you decide on which radius to use?

I say this because... when SandmanX/Ruben replaced his projector a few years back, the angle he used on his screen had too much curve. To fix the issue, he built a new screen. I'm thinking of building me a new one and am concerned what will happen when/if I change projectors.

Screen looks great! How did you decide on which radius to use?

I say this because... when SandmanX/Ruben replaced his projector a few years back, the angle he used on his screen had too much curve. To fix the issue, he built a new screen. I'm thinking of building me a new one and am concerned what will happen when/if I change projectors.

Hi Steve,

Aussie Bob or Aussiebob has a spread sheet where you can figure out the curvature for your screen. A pm to AussieBob with a request should get you the file, but I' tried twice and never got a response.

Also there is this thread...Screen Curvature (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=738149)

Very nice looking screen wall. Couple of questions if you have a few.

I haven't really looked at curved screens before.... what are the advantages of curved vs flat? And are all projectors able to handle a curved screen?

With the sheerweave 4500 that you bought, are there any moire problems that I've heard about?

Appreciate the build pictures and detail. Looks great

Thanks Wazzey,

The nice thing about a curved screen is thatn it wraps towards you and gives a more enveloping effect I believe. The technical benifit though is when you are using an anamorphic lens. With just about every lens available DIY or otherwise you will have certain amount of pinchushion (curving of image on top and bottom for the most part). A curved screen helps to conteract this. I would only use a curved screen with a lens in place. Without a lens in place the image ends were curving upwards.

No moire problems for me. My projector is 720P so it hasn't been an issue. I tried to rotate the material as much as I could in case I ever upgrade but I only got the 63" material so I probably got about a 7 degree rotation. No worries if it becomes an issue with an upgrade the material can be had pretty easily and affordably now.

Screen looks great! How did you decide on which radius to use?

I say this because... when SandmanX/Ruben replaced his projector a few years back, the angle he used on his screen had too much curve. To fix the issue, he built a new screen. I'm thinking of building me a new one and am concerned what will happen when/if I change projectors.


Aussiebob was kind enough to foward me his excel calculator via email which allowed me to put in all sorts of info to determine the proper radius. Throw, size, seating distance, etc.

I believe the result was about 3.5 inches, but I went with 3" and it has worked out fine.

oman321,

Would a person be better off going with a flat screen, if doing the zoom method for 2.40 scope movies ?

John :D

Yes, When I was projecting on my screen before I put the lens in place, it had the opposite effect of pincushion due to the curved screen.

Thanks oman321, that is good to know.

John :D

looks awesome Oman! I have a 110" AT 2.37 screen too, but am now wishing it was curved. I think I might try and build the frame first and then just attach my existing screen to it and see how that works. Could you email me the spreadsheet please, I tried PM'ing AussieBob and got no response as well.

Looks terrific...and I can't wait until the garage is warm enough for me to do this!

Thanks Chris,

The screen is definately one of the highlights of my theater room. I was dreading even attempting this, but it turned out to be fairly simple to do and very rewarding.

Man oh man Oman!!!
Everytime I come here you blow my mind with all your crazy and awesome work! I have built my screenwall but not my screen so I still have my 1x4 poplar pieces in the garage and I am almost thinking of going curve on my 132" wide 2.37 screen. I just dont think I have the room (behind the screen) to accomodate a 10" wide stud for the 3"-4" curve that I would need. I have exactly about 24" from treated main wall (including 2" furring) to back of the screenwall 2x4 studs, but my gigantic Klipsch speakers are 21" deep and the sub is is 22" deep. I love those speakers so I must plan my screen and screen wall distance around them. I may not be able to even do a 2" curve with the depth of these speakers and the short distance I have.

The only way I could have been able to do this is if I had made the soffit above the screen wall containing the eyeball can lights deeper so that I would have been able to move the can lights further out, and in result, I would have been able to move the entire screenwall (prior to construction) a good 5-6 inches outward to allow more room between the main wall and screen wall for my speakers and for a nice curved screen with a shadow box (neither of which I have).

Anyways it looks awesome man.

Good to see you on the forum damsam77,

You may still be able to go curved, check out tr6's screen build. His screen is flat in the back and is against a flat wall. He cut a curve out of the front of 2x5 material. Perhaps this may be an option for you.

I know you've been working hard, but we need to see some updates on your thread along with some pictorial eye candy...

If you like the screen check out the star panel which I installed last week. Posted shots of it on my build thread :D. It's bumped a page since then so FYI it's on page 12.

what is that tracking that you used to atack the screen materal to the fraim?

That is screen track that is used to enclose a 3 season porch or sunroom. Technically the phifer sheerweave material is screen material as well, so I figured it was worth a shot. It worked out great. Here is a Lowes link which shows some pics of it a little further down the page.

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=howTo&p=LawnGarden/PchScrn.html

Wow great build thread, you should have posted in the dedicated forum:D

You did a great job, looks like a professional screen!

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff231/oman321/Screenframe039.jpg

Hey Shawn, thanks for stopping by. I am definately pleased with how it turned out. A little nerve wracking going into to it, but once it all came together it paid off in spades.

It's part of the build thread, I just wanted to post over here as well since I got some of my ideas from a few different folks who showed their screen builds over here. Also since it's the 2:35 DIY section I wanted to have some contribution for others to follow if need be that wouldn't necessarily visit my build thread.

So, through my studies on AVS I have been convinced to do a 2:35 screen...but tell me why I would go with a curved screen? I haven't found much on that. What is the benefit...what circumstances should I do it under? Thanks! Looks like it turned out nice!

So, through my studies on AVS I have been convinced to do a 2:35 screen...but tell me why I would go with a curved screen? I haven't found much on that. What is the benefit...what circumstances should I do it under? Thanks! Looks like it turned out nice!

I'm not Oman, but the curved screen is mainly to counteract the distortion from an anamorphic lens. But it also is a more "immersive movie experience". And it sure looks cool!:D

Shawn is spot on. If you plan on zooming then you wont need or really want a curved screen as it will create the opposite effect called barrel distortion.

When using an anamorphic lens instead of zooming it can produce the pincushion effect which can be corrected with a curved screen or by having a long enough throw (typically 2x throw or more).

Here's a link with a good pic of the effect.
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://express.howstuffworks.com/gif/movie-tech-pincushion.gif&imgrefurl=http://express.howstuffworks.com/exp-movies2.htm&usg=____Y_z03nm1fctI2HyEd1hXUaB6o=&h=385&w=300&sz=11&hl=en&start=8&um=1&tbnid=5teKlZTkQiq7jM:&tbnh=123&tbnw=96&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dhome%2Btheater%2Bpincushion%26hl%3Den%26um%3D1

oman321, great job on the screen. It looks very professional.
I was looking for something not to involved and I don't want to a pay hafty price for a curved screen as all of my budget just went into my HT build.

I have thought about doing a curved screen many times but the attaching the screen material was the part I wasn't to sure about . However, the system you used seem very simple.

I do have just one question regarding the screen attachement if don't mind me asking.

What size Phifer spline did you use .125, .140 or .175 to go into the 1.5" screen tight?

BTW, I will most likely be making 2.37 130" diag AT screen.

Thanks,

Taz

Hi there Taz1,

Thanks for the compliment, building my screen turned out to be one of the best and most rewarding projects that I conquered in my build. Sometimes I just sit there staring at the screen:rolleyes:. My wife thinks I should start a screen company :D I told her they've beat me to it :p

I can't quite remember which thickness of spline I chose. I can check to see if I still have some at home and report back to you, but I can quickly explain the scientific method I used when choosing it...

While at the store, I got the screen track and picked a couple of spline bags. Without opening the bags I grabbed a piece of the spline and simply pushed it into the track. I went with the one the started to feel like it snuggly fit but didn't require an extra amount of force to get in.

This paid off as the screen material is obviously thicker than the plastic bag. At first I was struggling a bit to get the screen material and spline in, but once you get going with and get used to it, it became pretty easy. I also had plenty of spline so I used several short pieces to secure the screen all around and then I was able to spline one continous piece all around.

Definately read the beginning of the thread for what I would have done differently when it came to attaching the velvet.

I wil still try to see what thickness of spline I used, but feel free to ask whatever questions you may have, I am more than happy to help out.

I found the rest of my spline Taz, unfortunately it's wrapped on something and I don't have the original bag to give you the exact size.

Looks fantastic Orlando.
Love your ideas and ways around issues. Yankee ingenuity at its best!

-t

Thanks Tek.

The photos are no longer present on your thread?

No problem seeing them on my end. Check your end.

The photos are no longer present on your thread?

It's me... My bandwidth has been used up for the month with photobucket. They should be back up by next week.

can I request you utilize imageshack.us again HEHEHE

You know what they say the sqeaky wheel gets the oil...but since good things come to those who wait...;)

Pics are back.

Nice build!

I've been wondering for a long time, do you need some kind of special lens to get the picture right on a curved screen?


Vode

Thanks,

You only want to use a curved screen when you are in fact using an anamorphic lens. Wether DIY or purchased from one of the popular vendors anamorphic lens' tend to introduce pincushion. A curved screen corrects this effect. If you are zooming to achieve scope or 2:35 then you want a flat screen.

Yeah, just the exact moment I pushed send. From somewhere I got an epiphany about anamorphic ;)

So pretty much a useless post from my part. Still a nice one taugh.


Vode

Why go with a curved screen as opposed to a flat screen?

See post 51 for the quick explanation.

Got ya. Now the next question is whats a anamorphic lens? You dont need to answer, ill just do some research unless there is a fast answer you could give.

It is what some folks will to mainly use to stretch their image from left to right. With movies that have black above and below the image your projector or external device such as a scaler, a PC or even a DVD or Blu Ray player are used to apply the vertical stretch to get rid of the black bars. This will then fill your cinemascope screen which can be a ratio between 2:35 and 2:40.

Here is a link to one of the popular lens sellers which has a nice video explaining cinemascope and Costant Image Height (CIH).
http://panamorph.com/#/home

It looks like your project came off with exceptional results! Thanks for all the details. I kept looking for pointers on how to make a curve screen. Thanks to your tips, I'm going to give it a try.

The construction looks straight forward. My next step is to select screen material. I'm debating going acousticly transparent versus material that is digital ready (in case I get rich and go 3D). I have the sample pack from day-light but am not familar with the material you used. I'm sure I can find a link in here to guide me through the selection. Again, congrats on a great project, and thanks for sharing the tips with the rest of us.

Thanks Saask, the material I used is Phifer Sheerweave 4500 which could be easily had from this online vendeor.

http://www.interiormall.com/cat/nsample.asp?ID=113044&t=2182

If I were making my screen today I would use SeymourAV.com next generation sheerweave material center stage XD for a comprable price and since he is willing to sell to the diy'ers. Good Luck.

Need Help,

I m trying to build a screen not sure yet flat or curved 120", for Marantz VP11s proejctor with TD of 13.6ft. Any suggestion for DIY screen and which screen is better flat or curved one?

Thanks

digesh71

Welcome Digesh71, It really depends on what you pland to do. First of all I'm assuming you want a scope (2:35) screen. Then the question is are you using an anamorphic lens with vertical stretch or are you zooming the image to get rid of the black bars.

If you are using a lens you would want to go with a curved screen, if you are zooming you want a flat screen.

Now the next question is whats a anamorphic lens?

Basically an anamorphic lens is one that magnifies (or compresses) only in one directions - typically horizontally. Horizontal Expansion is the most popular and the other type is a Vertical Compression lens.

This has been an interesting read. Thanks for posting.

I just purchased my first projector and I hate to admit that right now I'm watching my movies on a white sheet hanging on the wall. And the projector (HD65) is sitting on a cart in the middle of the floor. It is about 12' back and I'm shooting roughly a 110" diag. The room is about 11' w by 23' d with a 7 foot ceiling. I've looked through my movies and would guess about 2/3 of them are 2.35 to 2.4, the rest being 16:9-ish. So I'm thinking about trying to make the anamorphic lens with the crystal wedges.

I've read your comments about the purpose of a curved screen and have a question. You indicated that you shouldn't use it if you are not using an anamorphic lense. If you are watching a 16:9 on the curved screen (without the 2.35 lens), do you get the distorted picture on it?

If you are watching a 16:9 on the curved screen (without the 2.35 lens), do you get the distorted picture on it?
The curved screen is intended to remove pincushion distortion by adding barrel distortion (as they are opposites). If there's no pincushion to remove, all you have is barrel.

If that's not clear, check out the images here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distortion_(optics)

I've looked at the picture and previously read the descriptions of the barrel and pincushion distortions and I realize I probably worded my question incorrectly. Sorry about that. :o

For those who use a curved 2.35 screen, do you watch any 1.7 content on it? The reason I ask is because it appears the barrel distortions are the greatest at the edges of the screen. If my math is correct and you are watching 1.7 content on a 2.35 screen then you have roughly 28% of the screen's width that is not being used...14% on each side.

So my second question would then be IF you are watching the 1.7 content on a 2.35 screen, is the picture width small enough that you don't notice the barrel distortion? or is it a distraction?

Hey Nebrguy,

No shame in utilizing the sheet to make the most of your projector right now. If you look at my HT build thread you will see that the good ole bedsheet is what I utilized for quite a while and that includes hosting a superbowl party a couple of years ago.

I normally leave my lens in place all the time wether watching scope of 16:9/1:78. I can add pillars to the sides shrinking the image back to a 16:9 aspect with the lens in place, but I don't do that and for the most part watch 16:9 material in scope and my son and his friends do their gaming in scope as well.

If I were to display 16:9 and remove the lens you will see the bottom and top edges on the left and right warp/curve up and down. It does so coming in about 6-8 inches from each edge of the image. For me it is definately a distraction and I prefer to leave lens in place and squeeze the image or leave it set to scope. Hope this answers some of your questions.

Thanks, Oman. You even answered something I hadn't asked. Appreciate your response. I went to the store and bought me a few yards of BOC today and then to the lumberstore for some wood. My first attempt of a screen will be a flat screen, but I'm intrigued by what I'm reading on 2.35. I'm sure this won't be my last build, but for $40 worth of material I figure I can play around and see what gives. I really like the looks of your screen. Thanks again for the reply.

Thanks for the compliment NebrGuy, glad I could be of help.

At first I was intimidated at trying to build my first real screen and curving it to boot. It turned out to be one of my most enjoyable projects from the entire HT build. Seeing it come together was pretty cool and goind acoustically transparent so I could place the speakers behind was/is definately worthwhile.

If you have further questions feel free to ask.

Oman321,

Greetings! You've posted a couple times on my new build thread so id thought id pop over here and see what your 110" curved screen build looked like because i am considering building my own screen as well to save on cost. (always on a tight budget)

I've got to say that screen is incredible. It turned out really nice!

My brother in law has an amazing cinecurve screen, the ones with the panels that automatically scootch in from the sides to go from 2.35:1 to 16:9. So I've been toying with the idea of making something similar but with manual adjustments.

Basically adding black material on a track that can be pulled in or out to change the aspect ratio of my screen. i know the thought of having to get up out of my chair to change it is daunting but hey...you gotta exercise some times right?

just wondering what your thoughts one something like that would be having built your own screen. Think its doable without being cheesy? or not worth the effort?

Thanks premier, definately worth while. I've considered adding such masking techniques and if done right you can easily automate it now or in the future. It's really one of those back burner type things though as there are still to many things going, especially now that I'm in the midst of rebuilding since I had a flood issue recently.

Here are some links from this part the forum for some great masking techniques both automated and manual.

One of my favorites:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=941076

Another good one.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1229614

There are probably some more in the DIY Screen section. If you end up going manual there is nothing wrong with that, in fact one of the screen companies and another one soon are offering manual inserts that you just set in place. To make things easier think about postioning the left and right speakers at the inside of the 16:9. Less to worry about as far as acoustic transparency if your doing an AT screen.

The other option which I often employ, (and I know it's taboo) is that I often set 16:9 content to 2:35. Only once or twice did it seem wrong and I collapsed it back to 16:9, otherwise gaming and tv shows are usually set to scope. Just leave the lens in place for 16:9 content with no v-stretch. If you plan to zoom that obviously wont work.

Good luck.

Oman,

Do you have a link to the spline you used to attatch the screen. Im not following how that worked...

Or...you are so good at explanations, could you elaborate on how the spline worked? and how its held up as far as keeping the screen properly tensioned?

The spline is just off the shelf spline from Home Depot or Lowes. I just grabbed the screen track (also available at Home Depot) and tried to fit the spline into track while it was still in the plastic bag to help account for the screen material.

I've had the screen up for a couple of years now and it has held up tremendously well. I haven't had to adjust it or anything and there is no evidence of sagging or loosening up. To boot I have taken the screen down several time and I am confident that it will hold up ok.

The best thing that I did was to cut small pieces of spline and secured the screen material all around and then I could secure the screen all around with one long piece of spline while streching the screen and removing the small pieces.

It's the same as rescreening a window screen just on a bigger scale.