First Time projector buyer Help!

Question 1: A discussion thread already exists that should help you.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=696411


Question 2: I'll leave this one to someone smarter than I am.

2. Depends on how far from the screen the projector will be, what size image you are projecting and where your screen is located vertically.

I'd get the lamp warranty. It's nice not to have to worry about the lamp blowing too early.

The HD70 has a large offset (33%), and it has no lens shift. This means, you'll have to mount the screen pretty low and the projector almost flush with ceiling. I've got an 8 ft ceiling and tried measuring mounting positions when I was considering the mits HD1000, which has a similar offset to the HD70, but I couldn't make it work. You can compensate somewhat with digital keystone correction, but I wouldn't use it to completely negate the offset (image quality may suffer).

Is there a calculator that exits or formula I can use to calculate how far from the ceiling I have to hang the screen if the projector is 6 inches from the ceiling?


Currently I have a 76 in 16:9 screen I picked up on woot for $35. and I believe the projector will be around 10.5 feet from the screen.

I bought a 106" screen, so that's why it was a difficult fit for me. With a 76" you should have a lot more room to adjust. Roughly speaking:


76" diagonal screen is around 36" high.

36" x 33% offset = 12"


Of course, you also have to take into account the frame of the screen, so the top edge should be maybe a little less than a foot under the center line of the lens. I find that a comfortable viewing height is where the bottom edge is about 30" off the ground. You may want to mount a little higher since your screen is smaller. That gives you maybe 12" to play with in terms of your ceiling mount.

3gem- head over to www.projectorcentral.com they have a projector calculator pro that may be helpful. i'm not sure if it will tell you how much offest you will have at a given distance, but it will tell you about screen size at a given distance for your particular projector. I wish i would have paid more attention to this sort of thing when purchasing my projector. good luck.

Thanks for the help. I plan on mounting the screen 7" from the ceiling, it has a 9" top border when fully extended. And the projector mount is 4" from the ceiling. I am guessing the lens will be around 4 inches from the ceiling. I haven't seen it yet, So I will see if my calculations are correct once I get it and try to install it.