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pj in a small room: is it worth it?

post #1 of 21
4/17/08 at 8:40pm
Thread Starter 
I'm finishing my basement and have dreamed of a pj in my den since the moment I set eyes on the place under construction. However, I'm not sure if it makes sense to mount a projector in a room only 15' long and 9' tall. I've got a little flexibility in terms of where I put power and cabling since I haven't drywalled yet but for the purposes of being able to rearrange furniture (wife acceptance factor demands this) I've planned so far around placing the projector about 7'5" from where I'd drop a screen--basically the middle of the room. Using a Mitsu HC1500 as my test pj on projectorcentral's calculator, ceiling mounted I get screen dimensions of 28" x 57" x 50" a 1.10x zoom. The room has french doors facing south so there's a decent amount of light during the day (which I'll somewhat mitigate with window treatments and a new porch down the road.

So is it worth it from a $ and lifestyle perspective since this would be the sole television in the room for HD DirecTV/movies/games?

I'd really love to make this happen but my wife is extraordinarily keen to poor image quality and is accustomed to the Samsung 32" LCD we watch television on now (that I'd move to my master bedroom incidentally).

Thoughts? Advice? Justifications?

Thanks in advance.
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post #2 of 21
4/17/08 at 8:42pm
I have a 15' long room and I mount the PJ lens on the wall, if you could manage that long of a throw, or at least 10', you could project a 106" image which would be definately worth it.
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post #3 of 21
4/17/08 at 9:10pm
Thread Starter 
Assuming I could bump back to 10' from my screen the projection calculator is telling me 77" diagonal. How are you arriving at 106"? 10' of throw length also bumps my recommended viewing area to between 8-12'. Right now, I'm laying out furniture to put the view area between 7-5' from the screen (against a smaller throw distance). Any experiences from the group of sitting 5-7' from a 100" screen? A 70" screen?

10' would require me to run power and hdmi cables to opposite ends of the room for arrangement flexibility (not the end of the world) and the calculator says I'll need 12.7" of air between the lens and the top of the screen so I can probably squeeze a ceiling fan into the room somehow if I can keep the fan compact and/or move the pj slightly off-center.

Thanks for the feedback! Keep it coming!
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post #4 of 21
4/17/08 at 11:03pm
mine intended pj area is only 10' feet long
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post #5 of 21
4/18/08 at 5:38am
My PJ is mounted about 10'4" back in a 11'5" long space and i'm happy.
If you are worried about the light in the day, see if you can use Blackout curtains to control the light for now.

Also if you want a larger screen see if another PJ has a shorter throw distance but at 10' and 1.21 zoom you are looking at 84". I am geting 87" and i'm only a few more inches back then you using the HC1500. My wife calls it overkill since we sit 8 -9 feet back.

If you are going to use it for everyday use (I game 4 to 6 hours a day on mine) you may want to invest on a bulb replacment plan.

See my sig for how I placed everything. As of last night I got all my stuff in and this weekend I get to play hide the wires

Cheers
PS.
IT'S WORTH IT!
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post #6 of 21
4/18/08 at 5:49am
There are shorter throw PJS out there that will give a larger picture at 10'.
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post #7 of 21
4/18/08 at 6:35am
Quote:
Originally Posted by woodix View Post

Assuming I could bump back to 10' from my screen the projection calculator is telling me 77" diagonal. How are you arriving at 106"? 10' of throw length also bumps my recommended viewing area to between 8-12'. Right now, I'm laying out furniture to put the view area between 7-5' from the screen (against a smaller throw distance). Any experiences from the group of sitting 5-7' from a 100" screen? A 70" screen?

10' would require me to run power and hdmi cables to opposite ends of the room for arrangement flexibility (not the end of the world) and the calculator says I'll need 12.7" of air between the lens and the top of the screen so I can probably squeeze a ceiling fan into the room somehow if I can keep the fan compact and/or move the pj slightly off-center.

Thanks for the feedback! Keep it coming!

Actually, mounted at 10 feet, the zoom on the HC1500 gives you the ability to display up to an 84" diagonal image. Based on what you want to do in the space, you could mount at the 10ft mark and project an 80" screen which should look good at 7 to 8 feet viewing distance. If you change you mind down the road, move the pj back to 12 feet and go to the 106" screen size and move your viewing distance back to compensate. I would say even to only have an 80" screen, having a PJ would be worth it. As far as the ceiling fan is concerned, you cannot mount the HC1500 off center of the screen. Do you really need a ceiling fan?
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post #8 of 21
4/18/08 at 7:53am
I have a 8' throw with my Panny 700 onto a 73" screen and I love it. Since your throw will be so small, you'll have added brightness to help fight off the ambient light. You can also get/make a grey screen with a higher gain to fight off ambient light, as well.

Best of luck! I use my projector as my primary tv and I can't imagine going back.
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post #9 of 21
4/18/08 at 7:56am
Mine throws 106" 16:9 on a 9' wall from 10'-ish.... Totally worh it.
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post #10 of 21
4/18/08 at 8:10am
I used to have my projector in my studio apartment, the room was like 10x9, i was sporting a 92" screen, it covered the only window, sure it looked pretty crazy but it was awesome!! I sat about 8 ft from the screen
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post #11 of 21
4/18/08 at 8:41am
My room is ~14ft by 13ft - the 13 ft is my screenwall and is open on either side for access to different spaces. Openings can be closed with drapery. Height is 7.5ft in a renovated basement space.

PJ lens to screen (throw) is ~12 ft. dependent on chassis.

With an anamorphic lens (Panamorph U380) I've a Constant Height screen of 54" x 127" and a viewing distance about 11 ft. Depending on my tolerance for geometry errors I will project a smaller 2.35 image - ~50" x 118", 1.78 is 54" x 96" so to me it is worth it.

ted
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post #12 of 21
4/18/08 at 9:12am
18' x 14' x 7.5' with the PJ mounted at 11.5' from the screen at ceiling height. 106" diagonal image. Gotta have a short/medium throw PJ though.
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post #13 of 21
4/18/08 at 1:23pm
Thread Starter 
Everybody,

I've spent most of the day working with the electrician in the basement. I'm happy to report my 100 amp subpanel is attached and I've got power everywhere I want it. As the title states, the number of responses is shocking. My thanks to all who've posted their experience.

As usual, avsforum posts leave me with plenty to ponder. Looks like I need to set aside some quality time with search to find a decent short throw pj.

Thanks again to all who have posted.
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post #14 of 21
4/18/08 at 1:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by woodix View Post

...I'd really love to make this happen but my wife is extraordinarily keen to poor image quality and is accustomed to the Samsung 32" LCD we watch television on now (that I'd move to my master bedroom incidentally)...

Kudos that your wife cares enough about PQ to tell the difference! A good DLP PJ at around 80" and 10' mounting distance will easily match or exceed that puny image enanating from your LCD TV. Definitely, definitely worth it.
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post #15 of 21
4/18/08 at 1:25pm
I'm shooting a 84" image from 11.5 feet throw in a 13 feet x 11 feet room.
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post #16 of 21
4/18/08 at 2:45pm
Im shooting 120" from 10 feet from my Marantz VP4001 set to max zoom.

Frag
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post #17 of 21
4/18/08 at 3:47pm
With my HC1500, I'm running a 12' lens to screen distance and an 84" diagonal screen. I sit at about 9' screen to eyeball distance and while I'm happy with the setup, I wouldn't want to go any smaller.

Still, an 84 to 100+" screen is way bigger than any 60" plasma and IMO a lot more enjoyable.
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post #18 of 21
4/18/08 at 7:59pm
110" 4:3 or 100" 16:9 in a 12x13 room

Victor
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post #19 of 21
4/19/08 at 1:49am
Front projection set up for movies and games is definitely worth it. If you watch a lot of HD tv content then it is worth it. The immersion from a large screen is a completely different experience.
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post #20 of 21
4/19/08 at 6:10am
Why can't you wall/shelf mount at the rear of the room?

15 ft is a great throw distance. Ours is shelf mounted with about a 12 ft throw to a screen with a 7 1/2 ft ceiling and the pj is about 5 ft off the floor and it works great with a screen diagonal of near 120 inches.

Little has been said about your french doors and light.

In our humble opinion and experience a television is for viewing rooms with uncontrolled ambient light. A front projector is for a darkened with light control to create Home Theater environment similar to that of a commercial theater.
goodluck
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post #21 of 21
4/19/08 at 2:44pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by imjay View Post

Why can't you wall/shelf mount at the rear of the room?

15 ft is a great throw distance. Ours is shelf mounted with about a 12 ft throw to a screen with a 7 1/2 ft ceiling and the pj is about 5 ft off the floor and it works great with a screen diagonal of near 120 inches.

Little has been said about your french doors and light.

In our humble opinion and experience a television is for viewing rooms with uncontrolled ambient light. A front projector is for a darkened with light control to create Home Theater environment similar to that of a commercial theater.
goodluck

I agree to a certain extent, that is why I use a TV for day time viewing and drop a 106" screen down in front of the TV for night time movie viewing. I do not have a light controlled room, but I live out in the country and there aren't any outside lights shining into my room.
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