Help Me Decide - Large TV or Projector? Considering Epson LS500

HondaF17 said:

I mainly lurk in the speakers/subwoofer forums. Last year spent $10k on all new speakers and dual 21'' subs. So, my audio is done, and I love it.

See pictures. This is a 65'' 4k TV. Looks a little small! TV is about 6 years old. Looking to go bigger and better. I don't see the point in going from a 65'' 4k LED to an 85'' 4k LED. If I get a new flat panel it might as well be OLED, and large sizes of those are still rare and crazy expensive.

Options basically as follows:

-85'' LED, something similar to Sony X800H for $1800.
-77'' OLED, LG or Sony, for $3500-$4000.
OR
-An Ultra Short Throw Projector, like the LS500 with 120'' screen for $5500. Note: This option would also force me to buy a new media cabinet for $1800, in order to move the center channel down onto a shelf (and pointed toward MLP). This one: Synergy Model 248 - Salamander Designs .

I'm leaning towards the LS500. But I want to know what you guys think. This is not a dedicated theater room. It is our basement, which doubles as general media room and kids play area. The tape on the wall indicates the screen size of the 120'' screen that comes with the LS500. This room has a decent amount of ambient light, with lots of windows (see pictures). So I believe the LS500 will be better than a traditional ceiling-mounted projector. Please see pics.

Thoughts? Any recommendations?!? Thank you!!

View attachment 3162388 View attachment 3162389 View attachment 3162390

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I'd suggest painting the entire screen wall and adjacent side walls/ceiling with a grey paint (I use Roscoe TV White which is suitable as a screen paint and for the side walls and ceiling - others may not be) and experimenting with different screen sizes by projecting onto the wall. Add a dedicated screen (especially for an UST), if desired after that. The window beside the screen wall will need an inexpensive light blocking vertical shade; you can get these in a variety of styles including powered, remote controlled versions (which would work well for the other windows); make sure the interior colour is grey. The nature of the screen wall is such that sunlight from the other windows won't reach it (from what I can see) and so a bright projector will still give a pleasing image during the day with the overhead lights near that wall turned off, and will look very nice at night with the overhead lights off, and other lights dimmed, preferably with directional lamps that aim the light downward, away from the screen wall.

You have a good setup for a short throw, ceiling mounted projector. AS an alternative to an UST I'd suggest looking at an Optoma GT1090HDR which can give a 150in image from 5ft 5in. Its a bright laser projector that accepts 4K HDR and projects 1080P HDR. After you watch, even TV, with such a large image, you won't be interested in small screens anymore.

(use the drop down menu to select other projectors)

Also look at the BenQ LK953ST - A short throw 4K laser projector.

The GT1090HDR, for example, could also be a daylight/TV projector, and could be paired with a dedicated theatre projector for use during movie night.

Alternatively you could install a longer throw projector and for combined day/night use I'd suggest looking at the (also the 1080P HDR LED BenQ X1300i), LG HU/AU810, the JVC LX-NZ3, and the Optoma ZK507. These are all 4K laser projectors and have the light output to look good on a grey painted screen wall, during the day, and superb at night.

Markolc81 said:

My concern is kids play area. If there's any chance the kids will end up touching or numbing the projector cabinet, you will constantly be realigning the UST projector.

Alternatively, can wait a few years, 100" LED screens will be coming out and coming down in price.

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Re: Kids. That is something I haven't considered. But I'm not worried about it. We taught our toddler not to touch the gas fireplace. Should be able to do the same here.

Re: Point 2. That's kind of the issue. I feel like buying a $3-4k LED TV now is just a waste of money, because it's not OLED, and in 3-5 years I think you can probably get 100'' OLEDs for decent price.

DunMunro said:

You have a good setup for a short throw, ceiling mounted projector. AS an alternative to an UST I'd suggest looking at an Optoma GT1090HDR which can give a 150in image from 5ft 5in. Its a bright laser projector that accepts 4K HDR and projects 1080P HDR. After you watch, even TV, with such a large image, you won't be interested in small screens anymore.

Optoma GT1090HDR Projection Calculator - Throw Distance and Screen Size

Find screen size and throw distance for the Optoma GT1090HDR projector.

www.projectorcentral.com

(use the drop down menu to select other projectors)

Also look at the BenQ LK953ST - A short throw 4K laser projector.

Click to expand...

This part is interesting to me. Ceiling mounted would solve four issues:

1) don't need to buy a different media console (although I may anyway)
2) More importantly, wouldn't require me to lower my giant center channel into a shelf of said media console, which I'm not crazy about that idea
3) Would enable my media console to remain flush against the wall.
4) No chance a kid can bump it and throw off alignment

Can I ceiling mount an UST like the LS500? Then flip the image and mount the screen upside down? What are the best ceiling mount short throw projectors for home theater?

The BenQ LK953ST you mentioned above looks very interesting. It has 5000 lumens vs the LS500 4000 lumens, and I think would word better for ceiling installation. It would have to be 7 feet 4 inches to throw a 120'' screen. Is that too far away for my room? I can't find much reviews on it; seems like it's marketed towards education (classrooms) and presentations/medical...?? It shows up as #4 on the Projector Centrals' Top 10 for conference rooms!

Also looking at the Optoma CinemaX Pro. Shorter throw distance than the LS500 but 500 less lumens. Per manual this is table top installation only. EDIT: Looks like CinemaX Pro is discontinued. Love the short throw; only 14.5'' for 120'' screen. I could have something with that short of a throw distance on top of the media console with my center channel in front of it. Has the CinemaX Pro been replaced by anything?

Thanks for the help. Lots of learning to do. Going to another Hi-Fi store tomorrow.

PixelPusher15 said:

An UST projector with a screen designed for only accepting light from a UST PJ location will perform better in ambient light than a normal ceiling mounted projector. I do believe a UST PJ can be mounted on the ceiling and the screen be inverses but then the screen is susceptible to being washed out by the overhead lighting.

What are you watching during the day vs at night when it’s darker? A lot of times people will just have background/casual stuff during the day and then do critical viewing at night. This is where my large TV and normal throw projector/drop-down screen recommendation comes from.

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Thank you. During the day is casual viewing. It's kids watching Disney+ during lunch time, or once football/hockey season starts I'll watch some college football or day hockey games. Honestly I don't think I've sat down and watched a movie during the day in years. Day time is social/casual viewing, or friends over for sports, etc. Night time is when me and the wife watch movies. But, during summer, in MN, sun doesn't set till 10pm sometimes.

See this picture: This picture was taken today at exactly noon. The windows in this room face primarily east, with a couple that face north. So it never gets direct sun on the TV wall, except early morning when I'm not watching. You can see in this picture that the wall near the windows is brighter, and the wall the TV is on is quite a bit darker. I never paid attention to it until now. And I can easily put a light blocking blind on the window near the wall.

Just trying to figure out the best form factor for me...your idea of a drop down screen is a good one. But I'm hoping to come up with an "all-in-one" solution that doesn't make that necessary.

I think I've ruled out an 85'' LED. I don't see the point. Seems like I'd be half-assing it. In this picture you can see the 85'' taped off compared to the 120''.