Dell lt85 special - help!

Long time lurker, first time poster.


Been thinking of taking the plunge for the Sanyo 60HT, but in all honesty my heart's not into spending the 5K since the 9/11 events.


Bought LT85 from the Dell site. Took their financing offer (additional $50 off, 90 days free and no penalty to pay off early) and next day shipping. Total final price of $1567.00.


I'll be happy if I get 18 - 24 months from it.


Onwards to the DIY screen section...

Well, I've just joined the club! After much hemming and hawing about whether to wait for another price break on the LT150, I decided to take the plunge and went with the Dell deal on the LT85. I believe it came to $1596. I took the standard free shipping since I still haven't gotten around to hooking up speakers, etc. at my new house, so I'm in no rush. I went with their 90 day no pay option as well, but saw nothing about an extra $50 off. Not only that, but after I finished the deal I remembered that ebates has a Dell discount (another 2%), which I'm sure not to get now either. I have their "Mo Money Maker" plug-in installed but it doesn't always seem to work. I may try complaining to them, but I doubt it'll work. No biggie.


I recently got a DirecTV system installed at the new house (had it at the old house) and took advantage of Blockbuster's $10 deal for installation. By telling them you want the "Para Todos" system, you get the oval (HDTV-ready) dish, though my installer couldn't find a signal for it due to my trees. Still, it was a good deal anyway (you also get a card for one free weekly rental for a year and the oval dish comes with a multiplexor so I got four feeds). On top of that, I took advantage of the big (temporary?) price cut on Philips DirecTiVo systems at Circuit City ($99 each) and bought two of them. So it seems like I've done a pretty good job of getting an overalll great bang-for-the-buck TV/movie setup. In one sense, I'm almost glad my installer couldn't pick up the HDTV sat because then I'd have to pay $450+ for a receiver without the benefits of TiVo and I would have wanted to hold out for the LT150. Without the option of HDTV, the LT85 (at $700 less) just made a lot of sense for DVD (and some DirecTiVo) watching.


Oh yeah, this saved me even more money (well, that's what I tell my wife), because I had been looking to get a new 32-36" TV (my old 35" TV won't fit in our new A/V armoire, but it will hold some 36" models). I had been hemming and hawing (again) about whether to go 32" or 36" and whether or not to get a HDTV capable one since I didn't know how long it would be before I finally got a projector. I finally just about decided on the Sony 32FS13 (bottom-of-the-line flat screen with anamorphic squeeze) for about $850. Now that I'll have a projector, I don't think I care about anamorphic squeeze, so I'll probably get an even cheaper 32" TV. Any recommendations for a good bang-for-the-buck 32" TV for under $700? Flat screen and anamorphic squeeze are unimportant.


Now I have to decide on a screen. I'm leaning towards a Da-Lite model B Hi-Power 45"x80" 16:9 screen for my viewing distance (about 15'). Possibly even smaller. Any recommendations for a bed sheet to use in the mean time? I heard some mention of lower/higher thread count being better.


Also, any input on recommendations for a DVD player will be appreciated. I'm thinking I want the Panasonic RP91, as I believe that's the best (only?) one for stretching an older letterbox disc properly on a 16:9 screen, correct?


Scott

Rather than create a new thread, I figured I'd just bring this one back up. My LT85 arrived yesterday but I haven't had time to try it out yet. My wife commented that the box seemed big. I found this funny because I previously had a Sony 1270Q CRT projector which sat around in my office collecting dust till I sold it (I had been planning to have a custom coffee table made for it but then we moved into a smaller house and decided it was too big to use at the new house). But, her comments didn't surprise me too much because I had previously drilled it into her that this thing would be super small.


Anyway...I opened up the box and there was, of course, some excess cardboard packing material. The projector was already inside the carrying bag. I took out the bag and asked her if she still thought it was big. She nodded in agreement that it now seemed pretty small. Then I opened up the bag to find that the projector only filled about half of the bag (the other half was taken up by the cables, etc.). I think this shocked her even more. Of course, I'm probably overdramatizing the whole thing. Within a few seconds, I'm sure her mind was back on the other issues of her life. As much as we geeks would like our spouses to get as excited as us about these things, that just doesn't happen.


Now, can someone (Huey?) help out with some of the other questions I had in one of my previous posts (type of bed sheet to temporarily use, do I need a RP91 if I'm committed to using this thing with a 16:9 screen, etc.)? Thanks,


Scott