Turning a CRT projector into a CRT RPTV?

sounds like a nightmare to build from scratch, and totally uneccesary as these machines were built by manuf. and called retro graphics untis by both Barco and electrohome. The last one I saw was huge, 6 fee tall with an enclosure large enough to house a faimly of Great Dane's.

Widesreen Review built such a retro projector at some point. Basically you needed to build a room behind your sreening room. The problem with those was the sreen. The picture was never as good as with a projector firing up front.

You can do rear projection with any projector. The question is how much room do you have behind the screen and can you make that room a black hole. Also, straight rear projection (no mirrors) is better than folding the light path with mirrors. You need a screen suited for the application, different than a front projection screen. And actually, high-quality mirrorless straight rear projection can be terrific. You get the projector out of the room (no noise), and the nature of the beast is that it fights ambient light WAY better since the light source is behind the screen, not in front of it where stray light could more easily wash out the picture.

Cheers................Scott W.

Usually, it's with the screen in a wall and the PJ in the next room.

Ben

I have a Barco RetroData801, and a great dane! I'll have to try to get a pic of one standing in front of the other and prove you right!

Yes, this is done all the time. There are big contraptions that facilitate this as well. Run a search, cineramax has done some threads and such about this before as well.

One forum member turned a CRT RPTV into a giant projected 100" image (rear projected, I think).

I did it first years ago. The first was about 100" wide rear projected and then I tried 10' wide front projected. I also tried it upto 20' wide front projected, but it wouldn't converge all the way.

Frequent poster here Phil Smith has his G70 mouned in his garage & utilizes a rear projection screen.

The hardest part with doing a RP install is getting a hold of the screen you need to pull it off.
It is usually really hard to find screens larger than 67" and that's WAY to small for our likings! Isn't it? =)
I have the material to build 5 or 6 of these but never got around to it.

Making a screen or buying one for cheap is pretty easy. I just used a dazian dark grey rear screen. The ambient light ability was MUCH better. Then of course you could also sand the back of a large clear (maybe even gray tinted for contrast/black level enhancement) arcylic sheet. Or paint the back of it with a translucent material.

Rear projection should be the defacto standard of home theater...Widescreen review says the image was every bit as good as front projection, if not better!!!!

Add to the zero keystone, and no projector in the room with you, and I just can't imagine anything better. If only I had the room, I'd still be interested in projectors....as it is, a crt is always a tradeoff...it's right overhead, and loud....rear projection seems like genius. I wish more people on the forum had given it a try!

Ben

You also have to remember that there's the issue of hotspotting and finding a proper screen.

Gary Reber's Widescreen Review's reference system has a rear projection setup, no mirrors. It uses a projection room. It is being rebuilt the same, in his new digs too. Every issue of Widescreen Review has a listing and diagram of the various systems Widescreen uses.

If you want to fold the image path, to shorten throw distance, then you need special mirrors with the reflective material on the surface. If memory serves me correctly, you lose 2-3% of brightness per mirror.

As far as screens go, these can be very costly. I've seen the Blue Ocean rear projection screen and it is a beauty, easily the equal of front projection.

Depending on the size of screen you are after, there was a DNP with some scrathes that could be cut down. No idea if it's been sold, but it certainly would be a nice bargain for the right person.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=845489

OP, go see member Clarence. Awhile back he documented his step by step approach.

Your post reads sarcastic, but I'll give you the benfit of the doubt. Yes, straight rear projection means without mirrors, and yes, it also means you need a sizable space behind the rear projection screen material that you can make completely black and allow for sufficient throw to any given screen size. Straight, mirrorless rear projection looks incredible.

I realize it's heresy to suggest this (there seems to be a distaste for buying anything retail on these forums!), but Stewart Filmscreen makes great rear projection screens/screen matrerial. Someone else mentioned the Widescreen Review theatre, which is a great example. They did a great series of features on the build-out of their theatre. I'd go to their site and look it up.

Another reason why giving the benefit of the doubt is always better than jumping to conclusions

Good luck!

Try PMing Clarence...he's a nice guy.