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#1 ·
High Power The name says it all!


Over the years I've had the privilege of reviewing dozens of screens. It started out with my personal quest to get a screen for my own home theater environment and viewing habits, to now getting the best possible image for movie viewing.






If you've read my original High Gain review, you would have seen how important viewing angle is when dealing with higher gain screens. The constant challenge is how to get a big bright robust image from a dim sub 1000 lumen projector. When I talk big, I'm referring to screens 9 feet wide and up. The answer: higher gain. The second part of this challenge is how to get a great image at most viewing angles. This is where things start to get tricky. As you know, the more light you reflect back in a certain direction the less light you get reflected off to the sides. A perfect lambertian screen diffuses light equally in all directions. Low gain is ideal for good brightness uniformity across the screen and the best for really wide viewing angles. This is fine if you have a high lumen projector. Unfortunately, the manufacturing trend over the last few years has kept the best image and affordable projectors in the 400-800 lumen range. If you're interested in a big bright screen you have to go with higher gain. As with any screen, there is always a tradeoff. With higher gain screens there are even more! But if you can live within these limitations you can achieve images beyond what any other screen can do.


Why high gain?


Many people discount the benefits of high gain. These are usually people that either can't look past the drawbacks of a higher gain screen, or don't want to take the time to consider how higher gain can be your friend. I love to talk about higher gain screens, because that's where the performance is! Many sit around pondering the difference between 1- 1.3 gain screens; but the reality is that hardly anyone can tell the difference between any of them at normal viewing distances. Throw up the brightness performance of a 2.8 gain screen and everyone will know there's a noticeable difference. People love brightness! It's very seductive, and like someone living with a gutless car for years and then going to a car with plenty of power, they are not going back. It's all about the power. High Power!


What are the benefits?


- Higher brightness

- Increased perceived contrast

- Ambient light rejection



Higher brightness



Yes, higher gain screens can take a dim projector and make it a real performer on a big screen. But it's more than that. You can use a higher brightness screen to get more performance out of your image! With some projectors, longer throws yield better contrast, but at the expense of lower brightness. Problem solved with the high gain screen. Many projectors also have lower bulb setting or economy modes. The high gain screen allows you to deliver a bright robust image in economy mode, lengthening the life of your bulb and still giving you the image you like. Finally, an additional benefit of having brightness to spare is through the use of neutral density filters. You can get these at most camera shops for fairly cheap and then use them to deliver a consistent light output from your projector over the life of your bulb. Put a neutral density filter on your lens when the bulb is new, and then remove it later when your bulb has aged and you can still achieve the same light output you started with.


Increased perceived contrast


A screen does not change the contrast ratio of an image. This on/off ratio doesn't change, even with ambient light in the room. But there are many things you can do to allow your eyes and brain to think you are seeing more contrast. Masking, painting your walls darker, and backlighting are a just few of the tricks that people use to accomplish this; however, the easiest is to just use a higher gain screen. No, its not going to help your absolute black levels, but when you increase everything by a multiple of around 2.8, like with a high gain screen, the whites are so much brighter that your blacks, or grays, look even darker. Finally, this isn't just beneficial from the top end to the bottom end. If you increase this separation from the top end to the bottom end you also get larger and more noticeable separation in your gray scale increments. What can this offer? More detail. The lower the gain screen, the more detail you lose in this area because the whole gray scale is compressed together. The more gain you have the more gradation you are generally able to distinguish because it's spread out. It should all still be there, but being able to see this separation with a brighter image becomes much easier.


Ambient light rejection


The reality of front projection is that ambient light needs to be controlled. The more you can do this, the better the image. Unfortunately, a pitch-black environment isn't always the best for hanging out in, unless of course you love caves. So with even a little bit of ambient light in the room, it's important to come up with ways to minimize its effects. Often, we try to solve this problem at the screen. Unfortunately, there simply is no miracle cure. But there are screens that do a noticeably better job.

The Da-Lite High Power


Da-Lite has come up with one heck of a solution for the most demanding environments. Originally designed for boardrooms and business environments, the High Power does an amazing job of reducing the effects of ambient light. First, it's high gain, so it reflects the light back to a controlled location. Second, it's retro reflective, so it reflects its light back to the source; thereby, reflecting other light away from the viewer. If you keep these things in mind when setting up your system, you can reap these amazing benefits. To do this, you simply focus the projected light to your viewing area, and reject the light that doesn't come from the projector. Unlike angular reflective screens, this ambient light rejection ability is only available from retro-reflective surfaces.


Angular reflective vs. Retro-reflective


Which is best? It depends on your setup and viewing environment. Most screens are angular reflective.






Although angular reflective screens work well in a wider variety of conditions, they generally also have less issues at lower gains. Lower gain screens are ideal, because they are very good at diffusing light uniformly. When you get into the higher gain angular reflective screens you need to start thinking not just about the reduction of viewing angle, but also uniformity issues. This is called hotspotting. Hotspotting is caused when the screen surface can't diffuse the light evenly, so you get a brighter image near the center of the screen, or where the angle of the bounce matches up directly with your eyes. The larger your screen, the more you will have to contend with this. Angular reflective screens with optical coatings have a high tendency to hotspot. The more the gain, and the bigger the screen, the more this may affect your viewing. If you're planning on going big, this is something you definitely need to consider. How can we solve this? Retro-reflection.


With a retro-reflective screen, you can have a high gain, large screen and nearly eliminate all possibilities of hotspotting. Because retro-reflective screens bounce the light back toward the light source, they're able to eliminate many of the issues that surround angular reflective screens with coatings.






Some of the best properties of the retro-reflective screen are:

- Virtually no hotspotting

- No seeing waves on the screen (if not perfectly flat)

- Great ability to shed ambient light

- Screen surface is invisible when viewing



BUTlet me caution you. You can achieve all these benefits with the retro-reflective screen, however, you must set it up properly. To achieve the maximum gain characteristics of the retro-reflective screen, you must position your projector so that the light path from the projector to the screen is near your eyes. The closer you can do this, the more gain can be realized. To achieve the maximum gain of the screen, you need to have a zero angle of incidence from this light path. Can this make setting up your system tricky? Sometimes, but it's not impossible. Either table mounting the projector in front of you or lowering the projector further from the ceiling both work very well. Some like to shelf mount their projector on the back wall closer to their equipment. When set up properly, the image from a retro-reflective screen is absolutely stunning. Okay, so who makes these screens and what's the best?

The Da-Lite High Power


The best example of a retro-reflective screen I've seen is the Da-Lite High Power. The first time I saw this screen material I was amazed. The High Power is simply one of the best emulsions available for a screen surface and also one of the best values in home theater. This screen material was made for high ambient light and a bright image. Although this screen is not marketed by Da-Lite as a home theater screen, it has become a darling of enthusiasts for those that are willing to set up their systems to match its properties. In some cases, people don't even set it up ideally and still rave about how much they love it!


The High Power is rated at 2.8 gain. Truthfully, I think its actually a bit more when viewed perfectly on axis. If using the High Power, I recommend trying to set up your system the best you can to capture its gain. If done properly, the images delivered from its surface are nothing short of spectacular. The screen surface absolutely disappears and all you see is what's coming from the projector.


The Viewing Cone


Because of its high gain, this screen also has one of the narrowest viewing cones. The properties that make this screen so good are also what make it have limitations. Don't get this screen and expect to get awesome gain when viewing at 45 degree angles. Generally, you can get 2.5 gain or greater when sitting on a moderately wide couch. The further outside of this viewing area, the less gain you should expect to achieve. As I mentioned earlier, many set up their viewing conditions, even ceiling mount their projector, and are completely happy with the lower gain they get, even though it's not optimal. In some cases you may not want the maximum gain from the screen. Here's a graph I created for the High Power's viewing cone.






Another benefit of the High Power material is that it's not a tensionable material. This means you don't have to bother with expensive tab tensioning setups to get a flat surface. This allows you to get a cleaner looking screen whether it's a pull down like a Da-Lite Model B or the more deluxe Model C. If you want to take it to the next level and get an electric, there are a variety of options including the very cost effective Contour Electrol. This is what I have; and for a few hundred bucks more than the Model C, you'll definitely feel like James Bond without having to be Bill Gates. The fit and finish of the Contour Electrol, like all Da-Lite screens, are absolutely top notch. I'm very pleased with this screen and the Contour Electrol. Whether you're planning a top of the line recessed electric screen, or even a Model B, the High Power material is the most performance you can pack onto a roller. If fixed frame screens are your thing, the High Power material comes seamless up to 6 feet. So if you're thinking about going big, you may be interested in a 6 foot tall 14 foot wide Cinemascope screen. Simply awesome.


How does the High Power do it?


The High Power is a glass-beaded screen. However, unlike the crunchy glass bead screens that are angular reflective, the high power uses micro beads. These micro beads are encased in an emulsion that allows it to be then be applied to a nice durable vinyl backing. The retro-reflective nature of this screen comes from these micro beads. The projected light enters through the front of the bead and gets slightly magnified and focused on the backside of the bead. The parabolic backside of the bead then reflects the light and redirects it back toward the light source. As it passes back through the front of the bead the light is then slightly diffused as it heads out toward the eyes of the happy viewer. This is the same kind of technology that is used in stop signs and road striping paint.






The trick is putting it together in an emulsion with the uniformity that is ideal for projection screens. Da-Lite has does this with the High Power, and with awesome results.


Conclusions


I've been reviewing screens now for a number of years. Every professional screen I look at is very good; and I'm a big fan of companies that have the technology to develop surfaces with optical coatings and that take it to the next level of reflective performance. I personally tend to like higher gain screens and the brightness advantages you can get from them. Of all the screens I've reviewed, there's one screen material that has become my reference standard. That screen material is Da-Lite's High Power. If set up properly, this material can deliver the best images available. If you are able to set up your viewing situation properly you can expect to see an image that:

Gives a robust high brightness image with real to life colors and whites

Provides greater perceived contrast

Has a clean uniform image so that the surface completely disappears

Has no hotspotting or visable waves

Has an amazing ability to shed ambient light







The High Power is simply an amazing screen. When I decided to go to a 12' wide 2.40 Cinemascope aspect ratio, I knew the only screen material that could pull this off and make me happy was the High Power. After having it up for a couple weeks, I could not be happier. The image is spectacular, and if you can set it up properly, you are sure to be happy. If you are thinking of going big, and your projector puts out less than 1000 lumens, there's simply one choice. High Power.


Stay tuned. Part 2 will feature the upgrade, Cinemascope and the secrets behind the choices.


A huge thanks to Blake Brubaker, the Systems Display Manager at Da-Lite for making this review possible. As another Home Theater enthusiast, he allowed me to see the light. I hope that I have been able to let you see it too!
 
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#3,203 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by rana_kirti /forum/post/19855155


anyone know whether the high power is manufactured in usa or china ?

Our Dalite High Power was manufactured in the good old USA (Warsaw, IN).


Buying well-made American products when possible (for quality mainly, not just patriotic reasons) has been a good policy. I had a more difficult time with speakers/subwoofers as most what I can find are from China (even small company products). So I've bought SVS, manufactured in Ohio -- I've been very happy with the performance.
 
#3,204 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by movieguy2001 /forum/post/19859256


If I put an offset of 65 inches for the outside seating my gains go to 1.36 1.48 1.79 across the screen. I would think that this variance across the screen would be distracting to the viewer in these seats.

Don't worry. The human eye/brain is very tolerant of non-uniform brightness as long as the change is gradual, which it is. You won't be able to detect the brightness non-uniformity unless it exceeds about 2:1, and you are nowhere near that.


As to overall brightness, you could have an issue with 3D if that's an interest, but I think 2D probably will be fine.
 
#3,205 ·
Hi friends,


I live in india and i'm ordering a HP from my dealer who said he's gonna order it from da-lite. The delivery time is 45 days by sea and 10 by air ( extra charges ) both with 100% advance payment.


1. I wanted to know what things can i make sure so that i get a perfect screen so that i don't have to go through the process of exchange etc because as you all can see that will be quite a hassle if required...


2. I see that dalite website mentions that that the HP will be seamless uptp 6' high. I'm planning to get a 110" ( i'e 54" = 4.5" ) so i should expect the 110" screen to be seamless right ?


3. So what steps can i take at the ordering process and what instructions can i give my dealer which he can give to da-lite so that we can be extra sure that the screen that is sent out is free from defects etc....


4. What tips would you guys suggest...?


Thanks
 
#3,207 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by FLBoy /forum/post/19861171


Don't worry. The human eye/brain is very tolerant of non-uniform brightness as long as the change is gradual, which it is. You won't be able to detect the brightness non-uniformity unless it exceeds about 2:1, and you are nowhere near that.


As to overall brightness, you could have an issue with 3D if that's an interest, but I think 2D probably will be fine.

Thank you. That is what I was concerned about. The shift in gain across the screen from the side seats. This should work well then. For 3D, I am assuming most of the content will be 16:9 for awhile and my 16:9 image is only 115" diagonal so I should get decent light output at that size.
 
#3,208 ·
This thread is great, guys... thanks for all the information. Honestly, I wasn't even thinking about a HP screen until starting to read through this and now I am almost convinced.


Most of this thread deals with the Da-Lite screen material. I was somewhat interested in Focupix because of the low (maybe too low?) cost. Has anyone compared Da-Lite's material to theirs to compare video quality? Has anyone been able to get values from them to plug into FL Boy's calculator to determine off axis gain?


Thanks-if the recommendations are mainly against Focupix I may save some $ by just getting a Da-Lite pull down instead of electric.
 
#3,209 ·
All the praises are DEFINITELY valid, I had my doubts at first, but it's definitely the screen to get if your budget is not in the thousands, and even then it may be worth a look or subjective.


Get the HP, I just got it after years and years of fence sitting. I am an idiot for not buying it sooner.


My only concern originally was the HP would look less film-like because of the high gain, boy that isn't true at all. Compared to every other screen I've used (cheap ones mostly), it is unbelievable how much better the HP looks. It's sharper, there is no sheen, it is true that the screen is invisible. That last point of the screen being invisible causes a much more FILM-LIKE experience, much much more.


I've used several cheap screens (some tripods, some Elite pulldowns, etc...).

Even if the HP was double the price, it would be a deal.


Let me explain, the Elite 84" I owned never looked right, it seemed to add a random texture to the screen causing text to look blurry. I thought maybe it was just my projector's optics aging, no it wasn't, it was the screen. I also have a light brown / almost yellow wall where the projectr points, so I couldn't project onto a wall. The 84" Elite looked worse than a wall. Elite owners, keep in mind I have a very cheap ELITE screen that is 4 years old, new Elite models or more expensive ones probably look far better.


The HP is AMAZING, it is clear, bright, and FILM LIKE. I'd say it increased the quality of the image I was viewing compared to the ELITE screen by almost double, at least 50%. I don't mean brightness, I mean sharpness and colors, but yah I did have a bad screen before.


It gave a HUGE HUGE boost to my Ansi contrast because of my white ceiling and white wall on one side. Everything looks more POP / 3D / but also more Film like now.


Yes, the 2.8 gain is brighter, but I really really doubt it can look any better other than the gain itself.

With this screen, it pushed my Z5 into the maximum capabilties of what the projector could do (And although not as good as the newer projectors), it did EXACTLY what I hoped, it gave my Z5 new life, clarity, and contrast.


Forget the black level crud some people post, if you have an HP in a dark room, you can lower black levels just as they were once the lamp ages (I mean think of it this way, your lamps will even last longer).


There is actually a HIGHER chance of the HP improving your perceived black levels in many rooms, because of contrast and the smoothness of the screen it actually accenuates and contrasts the dark scenes out better. I found the blacks on the HP far far better looking than projecting onto a white wall or the Elite screen I used before.


It's amazing how a screen with this much gain actually has fewer artifiacts and screen visibility than a cheap white matte screen, lol.


OH and HTPC text looks so much better now because 1) i got a bigger for cheap. 2) The gain helps text differentiate, 3) The texture on the HP does not affect sharpness of text (unlike just about every other sub-$300 screen I've seen)


SDE = Highly reduced by the HP, my white matte screen increased SDE, the HP texture seems to blend with 720p in a way that not only increases sharpness but also makes SDE on skin textures nearly invisible even if making the SDE on text more visible (only because this screen is sharper than my other one which blurred text), it's so weird how a single screen can improve all this stuff (of course remember my previous screen was pretty bad - $60 84" Elite screen).


However, the HP is brilliant, I can't praise it enough.


I would have maybe wanted it a tad brighter than 2.4 (probably 2.8 would have been better for brightness), but keep in mind, I'm using a Sanyo Z5 with a 3000+ hour lamp, my replace lamp light is on, and the Z5 is already known to be a DIM projector even with a new lamp, and I'm using a dog old lamp.


On a regular white matte screen, it was barely bright enough with a new lamp on a 80-100" screen, with the HP the 106" screen is brighter than the 84" even when the 84" had a near new lamp.


I will still be getting a new projector eventually, but this holds me off for a while, and few projectors are as DIM as a Z5 with 3000 hours on the bulb, so this thing is definitely plenty plenty bright even without the 2.8 gain characteristic, ESPECIALLY for newer projectors (most being 2x-3x brighter than my Z5). There is no way, and I mean no way I could have even used a 106" screen with my Z5's current lamp if it was not for the HP's increased gain.


Oh, and one last benefit, with the increased brightness I was able to get more accurate colors by reducing the Z5's yellow and red push in Dynamic mode without sacrificing too much brightnesss. I never was able to get dynamic mode / high brightnes mode looking right on my Z5 until I got the HP, even when I had a new lamp.


ALSO - brightness uniformity is excellent and a non-issue, when watching a couple movies not once did I see any non-uniform brightness, you'd have to sway back and forth pretty far and intentionally to see any change in brightness (suddle movements don't cause problems).



Hope this helps...
 
#3,211 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by FLBoy /forum/post/19840939


The setup values for the 2.4 HP are in post #2 of the Screen Gain Calc thread.


BTW, when I was in school we also used slide rules.



If you want to see the effect of changing the height of the projector, just leave all the other values of the calculator constant, and change only the projector height. The Excel will recalculate every time you enter a new value for the projector height (or any other input value for that matter). That way you can see what happens to the screen gain as you change your projector height. Easy peasy! No need to be afraid. Just experiment!
Quote:
Originally Posted by newfmp3 /forum/post/19841522


No problem. We just got our first snow fall so I had to run out and snow blow drive way...yuck


Here are the parameters for the new 2.4 gain HP screen.


SCREEN NAME: DA-LITE HIGH POWER (NEW)


SCREEN TYPE: RETRO REFLECTIVE


ON-AXIS GAIN: 2.4


MAX VIEWING ANGLE (ONE SIDE): 30 DEGREES (AT ONE-HALF THE ON-AXIS GAIN)*


GAIN AT MAX VIEWING ANGLE: 1.2


MIN OFF AXIS GAIN: 0.9

Guys, many thanks for your help here!


I'm slowly getting to grips with what is what
 
#3,212 ·
Guys i need some honest and expert opinions on this....


Here's my situation... Ever since i read about HP i'm trying hard to find ways to make it happen in my living hall.



1. Table mounting is not a option as it's very inconvinent to install the projector time and time again to watch a movie.

2. Shelf mounting behind the back is also not a option because of room design/other restrictions.

3. My ceiling is 9'5" = 113 inches.

4. I can't find a telescopic mount which can remain up at ceiling and come down near to eye level when in use in order to get max gain of HP's retro reflective nature.

5. I found was a adjustable column which had 3'-5' extension but keeping it at 3 feet level from ceiling means its 6 feet from ground and it's has the in-convinience of people walking into it all the time. More-over everytime it has to be brought down to 5 feet extension down you have to unscrew and re screw the adjustable column. Just not practical.


So for me the best available solution is to keep the projector lens at a steady height of 84" high from the bottom of the floor ie 29" from the ceiling towards the ground in my 113 inches high celing.


Now's the intresting and important part...


After putting in my required values in FLboy's Screen Gain Calculator as follows....


BASIC SETUP (Change the green values as needed to fit your situation.)

What is the type of screen? Specify A for angular reflective or R for retro reflective. (Do not guess at this parameter--it makes a huge difference!) R

What is the manufacturer-published on-axis centerscreen gain of your screen? 2.40

What is the published maximum viewing angle (to one side in degrees off-axis)? 30

What is the centerscreen gain at the published maximum viewing angle? (Don't guess at this either. Consult manufacturer if necessary) 1.20

What is the minimum gain of your screen at large off-axis angles, e.g., 60 degrees? (OK, you may guess here, but make it
 
#3,213 ·
If the price of Matte white is less than that of the HP, meaning a budget screen, I would get the HP. If the price is more than that of the HP meaning very expensive, then I would get the HP. This gives you the option to move the projector in the future which will give you a visual upgrade for free. The HP is not that expensive in a manual pull down.. not sure what you wanted to buy.. You have read the requirements, you understand the limitations, go for it!


There are free standing lifts that will raise your projector from a lower lever to a higher level. There is a guy in the Dedicated Home Theater forum that has one and it looks very cool. I saw this last year so it may take a bit of work to find it but it may be worth your while. His projector came up from behind his seating when in use.


Did not find the thread with the lift but did find a picture of it in this thread
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...projector+lift
 
#3,214 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by rana_kirti
So now the most important set of questions....

1. Is getting a Gain of 1.80 in my situation still Worth getting the HP ?

2. My other option is Matt White with 1.0 gain. Will the HP with 1.80 Gain still be better than the 1.0 Gain of the Matt White ?

3. Should i get the HP or Matt White ?

4. Although i can only utilize 1.80 of the 2.40 available from the HP will 1.80 still be a great experience over 1.0 of Matt White ?
Will the 1.8 gain that you can get from an HP yield a noticeable improvement over a matte white? Yes! An 80% increase in gain is quite obvious. Order samples of the HP and a matte white and compare for yourself. The image on a matte white will appear drab next to the HP. When you see the difference with your own eyes the numbers from FLBoy's gain calculator will make more sense.
 
#3,215 ·
This screen kicks some serious...

Owned 3 cheap screens before, replacing all with HP's, other screens going in the trash.
 
#3,216 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by coderguy /forum/post/0


This screen kicks some serious...

Owned 3 cheap screens before, replacing all with HP's, other screens going in the trash.

Can not say I am impressed yet. It's bright yup, viewing angle seems to be a non issue, color uniformity great, no hot spotting, but my blacks have increased too much. I was expecting this some., need to recalibrate everything and then decide. When I started the process of ordering this screen I had a 4805. Now I have a 8350 since the 4805 started acting up after deciding to get the hp. The 8350's blacks are not as good as the old 4805 dlp to start with, add in brighter screen...well, I need to play with it more before deciding.
 
#3,217 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by newfmp3 /forum/post/19878582


Can not say I am impressed yet. It's bright yup, viewing angle seems to be a non issue, color uniformity great, no hot spotting, but my blacks have increased too much. I was expecting this some., need to recalibrate everything and then decide. When I started the process of ordering this screen I had a 4805. Now I have a 8350 since the 4805 started acting up after deciding to get the hp. The 8350's blacks are not as good as the old 4805 dlp to start with, add in brighter screen...well, I need to play with it more before deciding.

If your using a brand new 8350, yah you are looking at a massively pumped up image with too much brightness and contrast. You need to crank everything way down.


The black levels are relative to the lamp brightness relative to the IRIS's and lamp mode. If you can't crank it down enough, simple solution, move the projector off-axis temporarily unless it's mounted.


For instance, if with the HP you have to close all the IRIS's completely down and lower the brightness to where your FL acheivment is within recommended spec (or how you prefer), then that is a problem and requires a filter (But I would seriously doubt this situation would last long).


Remember, it's ALL relative, the extra brightness won't hurt you unless your above a certain FL and just can't get below that point in which you need to take additional steps temporarily until your lamp fades down a bit.


Now if you were in a 100% bat cave with black walls, then another screen may fair better than the HP for black levels only compared to a gray screen or something similar. If this is the case and all you wanted was better black levels in a completely dark room, then I don't know why you bought the HP when pairing with one of the brightest PJ's that exist. Although again, these problems are not problems to me, simply move the projector or install a filter, reduce all settings, or whatever. I mean of course the image is terribly bright on this PJ on this screen with a new lamp using god knows what settings you have.
 
#3,218 ·
Well, I've gone thru a lot of projectors, but my screen is a Da-Lite HCCV 92" with a DIY frame, very crude. I might know a bit about PJs, but absolutely not handy at all. My light weight screen now is hanging off 3 10-pound picture frame hangers.


After 9 years, I'm finally going to upgrade and pick up a used Model B HP 106" for My PJ. Based on specs, the B is suppose to be about 25 pounds, unlike the 50 pounds Model C (would have been my 1st choice).


Someone suggested to screw to the wall studs a 9-ft 2x2 (painted white to match my wall). Is this an overkill for a model B (he has the C)? What kind of brackets or hooks should I screw onto the 2x2 to hang the screen?


Thanks a bunch. BTW, it's not likely that I will move onto a Model C.
 
#3,219 ·
Yah it's overkill for drywall unless you have kids that might hang from it and rip it down. You have 2 choices, go into a stud or use a sheetrock anchor.

Home depot makes a 77 pound rated anchor screw for $7 for a pack of like 8 or something and it comes with the drill bit to make the hole. Assuming all home depots carry these same ones, the anchors you want will look like a regular fairly long screw + a regular plastic anchor (don't buy the ones with the funny looking spider legs at the end, these are a pain to do depending on sheetrock depths). The anchors come with the screws and the drill bit all as one package.


You only need 1 of these screws on each side (2 screws total). Two of these can theoretically hold 154 pounds, no obviously I wouldn't trust it probably to hold more than 30-40, but it sure as heck can easily hold 25lbs if mounting to the wall and not the ceiling of course, unless you have kids that might hang from the screen or something. Mounting the screen to the ceiling is a different story.


First make sure you have a drill, second drill the first hole into a non-stud part (you may need a stud finder to make sure) and use the drill bit that came in the package to make this first hole. If there is a stud there, so be it, it probably won't matter, although a metal stud may break your bit.


BE VERY CAREFUL to make the hole only EXACTLY as wide as the drill bit is, do not let the drill bit wiggle and loosen the sheet rock, if you do this, you'll need to mount it in a different way or a different hole. However, it is ok if the drill wiggles a tiny bit when you are starting the hole, just don't let it wiggle as the hole is being completed. You really need a fairly decent drill to ensure you get a clean hole that matches the size of the drill-bit, if you use a $10 screwdriver as a drill, chances are you will wiggle the hole and it will get too wide for the anchor to secure itself.


Second, stick the plastic anchor into the hole and screw the screw into the anchor. Don't screw the screw all the way in, because then the projector screen wont rest securely, leave a little bit of the screw sticking out (but not much).


Now mount the left side of the projector screen by sticking the hole for the projector screen over the screw. Also make sure you feel the screen hole lock onto the screw (and not just sit there on top), you'll know what I mean when you do it.


Next using 2 people, drag the right side of the screen up as the left side is already mounted, and using a LEVEL (a fairly big one) make damn sure the screen is level, then after the LEVEL shows a good reading, using a pencil mark a spot through the right hole of the projector screen where it mounts. Drill the second hole, place plastic anchor, insert screw, hang right side, done ---- perfectly invisible and secured mounting (as long as no kids around).


You are going to need 2 people for the part where you mount the right side, unless your real strong and can hold the screen with one arm for a while whle reading the LEVEL and marking with a pencil, that is until you get it perfectly level.
 
#3,221 ·
So sounds like this:


1. Avoid the studs

2. Drill hole with drill bit from supply

3. Screw one plastic anchor in

4. Screw a long screw into the anchor

5. Hang screen on one side

6. Mark the next hole with pencil to ensure leveling with a long leveler

7. Repeat 2-5.


Now if I do hit a stud, then I guess I would not need the plastic anchor on one of the holes?


Thx.

Thanks.
 
#3,222 ·
BTW, I went to HD web site, I could not find the described anchor screws; maybe in store only
 
#3,223 ·
#3,224 ·
You don't need that unless you just want to mount the screen in front of the wall.

Regular anchor screws with a high weight rating protruding 1/4" to 1/2" is all you need, also some of the weight of the screen will be taken off the screws because it pushes back against the wall. In this configuration, everything works nicely.
 
#3,225 ·
Hi Tryg


Thanks for a very good review of high power screens,

I am planning to buy a screen for my HT setup, I have a living room which i want to use for HT Setup which is 15ftX20ft, the screen will on the 15 ft wall, the cieling height is 14ft, My throw distance will be 19ft from screen.

My plan is to use angular reflective method since i have provisioned cabling for that already. I have quotes from Dalite high power and Draper screens and dalite seems to be on expensive side and i am considering qoute from draper. Draper has a 133" Diag 16:9 High power screen - Glass beaded material(Gain 2.6) manual pull down screen -Luma 2 series, which is what i am considering. Draper doesnot say whether it is microbeaded or not neither i have any review of this screen so far to determine its quality, but since draper is already in this business for many years i tend to assume, it should be good, Do you have any idea of this draper screen ?

I have seen in Dalite, Draper and many other websites where they have mentioned that there is certain amount of image clarity loss in high power screens, can you provide your thoughts on this ?, also the quality loss increases with viewing angle, in my setup above could you please suggest if there will be a quality loss ?, i can go for retro - relective method also but that will call for projector to be in rear center of the wall and cabling to pop out of the wall which i want to avoid as much as possible,


thanks for your guidance in advance

MV
 
#3,226 ·
There is no substitute that I'm aware of for the High Power.


Set up properly, there is no better image.
 
#3,227 ·
coderguy,


Thanks. Saves me about $25.
 
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