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Screen for Panasonic AE 8000 in light controlled room

post #1 of 13
1/20/13 at 10:06am
Thread Starter 
Guys,

Can you please point me towards brands/screens which will go well with Panasonic AE 8000.

60% movies 40% TV/Sports - 3D preferred but not a big deal. I'll be watching 90% 2D.

Gray or white?

What gain - 0.8, 1.0, 1.2, 1.4 etc?

Budget - 500 to 3000 (basically undecided at this time).

I hear ppl talk about Stewart G3 Firehawk, SI Black Diamond, SMX, Elite but I have no idea. What about using seymour XD material and having it made at Jamestown? How much better Is the Firehawk than Seymour XD Jamestown?
Edited by smuggymba - 1/20/13 at 6:15pm
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post #2 of 13
1/21/13 at 4:33pm
Thread Starter 
No screen recommendations for one of the hottest projectors on the market these days:eek:eek.gif
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post #3 of 13
1/22/13 at 4:47am
You say you have a light controlled room. I am assuming this means you also have dark walls, ceiling and carpet. If this is true then any white screen will be fine for you.
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post #4 of 13
1/22/13 at 5:23am
You also didn't say if you want manual drop, electric drop, fixed frame, AT perf or weave. Can't assume you have have dark walls, ceiling and floor as that is all part of Light controlled, however, most people who ask this question are not aware of this fact.
In a properly light controlled room a White, Color Neutral screen is what you want.
Now if you need AT (audio transparent), that adds another set of issues and compromises.
Here is a test report created by one of the forums professional display calibrators, it will show how neutral the screen fabrics are as well as the rest of the spec that can make one screen fabric better than another.
http://accucalhd.com/documents/accucal_front_projection_screen_report.pdf
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post #5 of 13
1/22/13 at 6:59am
Thread Starter 
Walls and ceiling will be painted with a gray/slate dark color as I see in many of the pictures in the Home Theater forum.

I would love a fixed screen which is AT but I can't make a false/baffle wall myself and I can't seem to get recommendations for anyone who can do it in Houston. If I can't find anyone who can make a false/baffle wall, I'll go with the regular white screen.

Now which 1.0 gain white screen - Is Carada ($1000) same as Firehawk G3 ($3000)? Is Elite ($500) same as Carada ($1000)
Edited by smuggymba - 1/22/13 at 7:06am
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post #6 of 13
1/26/13 at 5:58pm
Thread Starter 
Any recommendations?
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post #7 of 13
1/26/13 at 6:07pm
Try Seymour AV.
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post #8 of 13
1/26/13 at 6:11pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by ragged View Post

Try Seymour AV.

If I can someone to construct a baffle wall in Houston, I'll go with an AT screen and Seymour will be on that list. What about non AT screen?

My front wall is 12 ft, so I can increase the screen size if I use a baffle wall but it seems expensive and how will I get to the speakers etc:eek:. So, is Carada better than Elite? Is Black Diamond better than Carada..how much difference does $1000 make? My room is light controlled and I'll paint the walls gray/slate.

How much is a Black Diamond is better than a Jamestown with Seymour material?
Edited by smuggymba - 1/26/13 at 6:19pm
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post #9 of 13
1/30/13 at 11:39pm
good info to me ,My room is light controlled and I'll paint the walls gray/slate. thanks for your sharing, 2.gif
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post #10 of 13
1/31/13 at 9:30am
Quote:
Originally Posted by smuggymba View Post

If I can someone to construct a baffle wall in Houston, I'll go with an AT screen and Seymour will be on that list. What about non AT screen?

My front wall is 12 ft, so I can increase the screen size if I use a baffle wall but it seems expensive and how will I get to the speakers etc:eek:. So, is Carada better than Elite? Is Black Diamond better than Carada..how much difference does $1000 make? My room is light controlled and I'll paint the walls gray/slate.

How much is a Black Diamond is better than a Jamestown with Seymour material?


It sounds like you're putting the cart before the horse with this. I could be wrong, but that's just me.

Do you have the projector already? If so, what are you projecting it on now? You say that "I'll paint the walls gray/slate" as in you haven't already. So is this a current build, or are you planning on painting an existing room as is?

I would suggest slowing the process down a bit and research the benefits and tradeoffs in the screen wall / AT screen idea. At least then you'll understand how you "get to the speakers".

IMO, the screen should be the last thing you purchase, and likely the last thing you'll ever need to upgrade if planned for correctly. AVRs and PJs get upgraded frequently around these parts, but screens, not so much. Just try and sell an expensive, one year old screen on the secondary market when you realize you made the wrong choice, or you want to go bigger. You won't. At least not at anything above 25% what you paid for it. Ask me how I know.

That said, I'm partial to Seymour AV and Da-Lite. I currently have the Seymour EN4K frame and AT fabric in my bat cave light controlled room with black cloth-covered everything and the Panny 7000
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post #11 of 13
2/2/13 at 8:37pm
Thread Starter 
@ADDUpstate - you're right.

I don't have much idea so I'm trying to understand the whole picture - horse type and the cart type:p

I haven't bought a projector yet but from what I've read AE 8000 seems to have good reviews so I have kind of decided on it. The screen is the confusing part - I want to know how different a $500 screen is from a $3000 screen. People love Elite Screens that cost $500 and some ppl swear by Firehawks that cost $4000.

Then we have Jamestown using the Seymour material and Da-Lite Supernova 08-85.

Things get crazy and blow my mind when people say that a $4000 Black Diamond screen has sparkles and is unwatchable:eek:. So, that leaves me thinking what to buy and the local stores don't have all of these brands where I can see them side by side.
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post #12 of 13
2/3/13 at 5:17am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ADDUpstate View Post

IMO, the screen should be the last thing you purchase
Quote:
Originally Posted by smuggymba View Post

I haven't bought a projector yet but from what I've read AE 8000 seems to have good reviews so I have kind of decided on it. The screen is the confusing part
The Panny is a fine choice; what you oughta do is get it and start playing with it (shoot against the bare wall to get some perspective).

I did this, and got so excited when I tried it that I rushed-out the next day and bought a 10' Gatorfoam board to play with, because the wall I was testing against was not a bare wall. Cost $175 or something but it gave me something to project against. Well, I've never replaced the GF board--just added felt trim to it to dress it up a bit.

Get yr PJ and sweat the screen after.

http://s124.beta.photobucket.com/user/laserfan/library/Home%20Theater

"Love" is not a strong enough word to describe how I've enjoyed my projector setup, now 5 years down-the-road.
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post #13 of 13
2/3/13 at 6:53am
Get your projector and watch your local craigs list while you work out how big your really want to go. Those high end secondary sales do show up for an entry level price as shipping a screen is very costly. Not saying to stop researching a new screen, but do monitor used in your location. A new Dalite 110" model C manual pull down goes for about $1000+ new but used $100-$300.
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