[Noodle]

From the advice from these boards I went for the Da-lite high gain screen for my LT150. Even though its ceiling mounted and the retroreflective nature means less gain, everyone still says it was the best.


Ordered it from my local HT place, what was delivered was actually a different brand. One called Screen Technics. Its a 2.2 gain retroflective on a vinyl screen. Looked fine when the projector was on the coffee table, but once installed properly in the ceiling now looks nothing short of terrible. I seriously believe that projecting on the cream wall looked better. The trouble is that the vinyl is not smooth, it is full of indentations for lack of a better word, or grooves. Every single one of these shows up when watching a movie and gives the film a grainy look. My 5th element superbit went from being WOW, to ah crap.


Now the da-lite doesnt do this does it? I just read a post on this page about another chap with ceiling mounted lt150 that loved his. I am talking with the guy where I bought it from, and they are getting me in touch with the screen technics guys to see what we can do.


The chap I bought it from says he was told this screen is exactly the same as the da-lite. Is this anything like what you guys with the da-lite get? Just want to see where I stand between what I ordered and what I got. Also if there are any solutions to my problem.


This is posted on the screens and projector forums for the hope of a good response. Forgive the multiple posts.


Thanks.

 

[ziggyr]

Noodle, are you a fan of Chinese quisine ? Seriously though, I would suspect that what you got from Screen Technics is a standard glass beaded screen with largish beads. Dalite make two versions of glass bead screens : a 2.5 gain and the ''HIGH POWER " at 2.8 gain. The 2.5 has a larger bead size and looks grainy at short viewing distances. The HIGH POWER has much smaller beads and is overcoated with a plastic surface to protect the beads and is the one to go for without doubt.

Remember that due to the nature of retroreflectivity, you will not benefit from this type of screen if your projector is ceiling mounted( unless you ceiling mount your seats also !).

If you definately want your projector ceiling mounted, send the screen back and exchange for a REFLECTIVE type. Screen technics should be able to help in this respect.


Cheers.

 

[Noodle]

Thanks for the reply.

Yeah I have no choice in the mounting, Im renting a villa atm and there is no where else to put it except the open plan living room so it needs to be out of the way.


The technician from screen technics rang me the otherday to find out what was what in my order. He said they actually do carry the high power screen material but they never sell any of it. His opinion was that the da-lite highpower was an absolute crap screen and that brightness did not equal quality. His opinion was that all gained screens were worthless with projectors today and their high ansi lumens due to the difference in intensities across the screen. His recommendation was a unity gain screen.


He didnt seem to think much of the idea of getting advice from a forum either and said that the company he gets his screens from in Denmark spend $30 million a year in R and D and there isnt a screen better than a unity gain matte white.


He was pritty adamant on his opinion so I didnt bother arguing with him. I just want a decent screen I can watch my movies from.


How many of you guys with DLP's have tried the unity gain and then gone to the higher gain screen? Is it definately worth persisting in getting something like a 1.5 gain reflective screen? There is nowhere around Perth that Ive found at least to compare the two so I have to go by the experience of people here.


Hopefully I wont have a lot of hassle from the store with the exchange. I spoke to the dealer the otherday and he told me that the replacement screen was going to be $400. He was fishing for me to see that I'd pay for it. I told him flat out that it wasnt my concern and Im legally entitled to a full refund if I want one since I wasnt given the product I ordered. Ive got to give him a call Friday and see whats organised.


Anyway, thats the update on my current screen woes. So what does everyone think about screen choice? Play it safe and go the unity gain or insist on the reflective 1.5? Is there any chance for hotspotting on a 1.5 gain?

 

[ziggyr]

Noodle, You have been speaking to an absolut idiot at screen technics. This forum has a wealth of information on all subject matter and is your gold mine to finding answers to problems and such.

To say that the high power is ''absolute crap '' is a disgrace and shows no professionalism on his part. To insist on unity gain screens as the best option is the garbage I would expect from someone who sells most of his screens to schools and board rooms.

With DLP, you may want to try a grey screen as opposed to a white one. Remember that you will loose some gain with this. If your DLP light output is on the low side or you have ambient light to deal with, try a 1.5 gain screen or higher. Samples are available from Matrose Agencies or Concept Audiovisual here in Perth.

You can try the high power and other samples for yourself to see what seems right for your projector.


Cheers.