[James_T]

I have a slew of questions regarding this projector, and I'd appreciate it if you guys could continue to help me with this as I will likely be making this purchase in the next 2 weeks. Here goes...


1) I need a screen to go with this projector, and based on opinions here I want a gray Da-Lite screen. I'd like it to either be a ceiling mount or even a table-top mount, though if it is it must have a wide base and not just feet. I'd like this to be a 50" wide 4:3 screen (meaning 62.5" diagonally I think). Max budget for screen is $500-600. I'd like black matte borders if necessary for light leakage. Where should I look online and which screen exactly should I look at?


2) I can get the Boxlight for $2650 online, and the Infocus for $2799. My concern here is that I know that the Infocus models after week 46 have the light-leakage fix. Do the Boxlights have a similar fix after a certain manufacturing date? I was thinking maybe if not then I should go with the Infocus and ask whoever I buy from to make sure it was manufactured after week 46.


3) I know this projector has keystone correction. The distance from the ceiling-mounted projector to the screen will be 108", and the room is 88" high, so the center of the screen will be approximately 48" from the ceiling (maybe even a bit less than this). This gives a maximum angle of 24 degrees for the projector relative to the center of the screen (and in practive will be a little less as the screen will be a bit higher and the projector will hang a little lower from the ceiling). Is that OK? I guess what will happen is I will angle the lens downward a bit and the keystone correction will compensate for this.


I'm sure I have other questions but I'll start with these. Thanks!

 

[arrow]

James,


That's a pretty small screen. Is it that the room is too small to accomodate seating or projector placement for a bigger screen? For instance if you have about 9' between yourself and the screen, I would recommend moving up to 72" wide.


I'm not sure light leakage is an issue anymore unless the projector is very old. However, you will have a problem with the halo. You'll need about a 5" mask all around the 4:3 screen to block out the halo.


Keystone correction is not available on the Infocus LP series except for data connections. This has never made any sense to me, yet it's true. So if you stick with the Infocus you'll want to mount your screen closer to the ceiling (6" or so) for a ceiling mount projector to minimize your tilt.


--Les

 

[jmeitz]

I bought a Da-Lite hi contrast grey 84" diag screen for 320 bucks at jensonaudio.com and got my lp340 for 2550 at infinity-micro.com. You might want to check them out if that is what you want.

 

[Steve Dodds]

James,


You can get the Toshiba clone (TLP-S2?)from them direct for $2500 brand new or for the same price from Costco.


Cheers


Steve


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Steve's Stuff

 

[James_T]

Steve:


Is the Toshiba precisely identical as well? Any issues with buying from Costco?


Does anybody have this projector (Toshiba TDP-S2)?


Thanks.

 

[arrow]

Arrow: Infocus recommends a space of 2 feet from the back of the projector to the wall, so the furthest back I can place the projectors lens is a little over 9 feet from the screen. Seating will be anywhere from 8 to 9 feet from the screen.


OK, gotcha. A 9ft throw will yield 50" wide per projector central.

The other reason for the smaller screen size is that I don't want to be able to see pixels too easily, so I figured a 50" wide screen (62.5" diagonal) would fit well into the 2x distance general rule. But I'll look into the possibility of a larger screen if I can mount the projector with its vents closer to the wall.


The rule(TM): 3x screen height for 4:3. 1.5x screen width for 16:9. This is why I like 16:9 screen with lp350 native mode for 4:3 material. On a 50" wide screen, 16:9 material would be 28.125" x 50" which is the right size for about 6' viewing. Regardless, your room is only as big as it is so it sounds like you're doing the right thing.

As for angling the picture, given where I'll be putting the screen (6" higher than I had planned as you suggested), will I need to angle the projector downward or just the lens.


The projector must be tilted.


--Les

 

[Steve Dodds]

I believe it is a straight clone.


You need to sign for a membership at costco. $40 or so.


And you'd need to check on sales tax.


However, someone told me once they have an extremely generous return scheme. Like a year or something. But that could wrong.


Steve


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Steve's Stuff


[This message has been edited by Steve Dodds (edited 06-27-2001).]

 

[James_T]

Steve:


I've heard that they have a 1 year no-questions-asked return policy at Costco, which is why I find purchasing it there attractive. I already have a membership there as well. However, I'd guess there would then be a sales tax applied, which would jack up the price quite a bit.



Arrow:


I'll be building a ceiling-mounted shelf for the projector, and I'll make it capable of angling the projector. This will put the projector about 3" from the ceiling, so 85" from the floor. Since the projector is 9' from the screen, how far from the ceiling should the center of the screen be to give me a small enough tilt that the image is not distorted? I'm guessing that straying from a 90 degree angle of the projector lens to the screen messes up the image quite a bit, correct?


What is generally considered the maximum angle to have without detracting from the image significantly?


Thanks again for the help, guys.

 

[leckian]

Make sure if you buy a InFocus that you get the V not the B. The B is for business and has inferior scaling. InFocus is no longer making the V but there are still some in the pipe. The Boxlight CD-455M has the excellent scaler and is still available.

 

[James_T]

leckian:


Thanks for the heads up... I had actually heard about that, and most websites are really ambiguous whether they are selling the B model or V model.


Does anybody know for sure if the Toshiba TDP-S2 is also a replica of the V model (as the Boxlight CD455m is)?

 

[James_T]

Arrow:


Thanks for your reply. I decided on the 62.5" diagonal screen for two reasons, one of which you guessed. Infocus recommends a space of 2 feet from the back of the projector to the wall, so the furthest back I can place the projectors lens is a little over 9 feet from the screen. Seating will be anywhere from 8 to 9 feet from the screen. This is a bedroom, mind you, so it is pretty small. I'll be moving into an apartment next year. The other reason for the smaller screen size is that I don't want to be able to see pixels too easily, so I figured a 50" wide screen (62.5" diagonal) would fit well into the 2x distance general rule. But I'll look into the possibility of a larger screen if I can mount the projector with its vents closer to the wall. Thanks for the heads up on the halo, I was confusing that with the light leakage problem. I'll see if I can get a screen with a 5" mask, or I'll just make the mask myself.


As for angling the picture, given where I'll be putting the screen (6" higher than I had planned as you suggested), will I need to angle the projector downward or just the lens. I am planning to make my own ceiling mounted shelf with an adjustable tilt.



jmeitz:


Thanks for the info. That's pretty much exactly what I want, except with a smaller screen.

 

[abigpicture]

James,


WHen I was at INFOCOMM..I had a discussion with the INfocus product developer for the new 530. Anyway I asked him why they changed the 340's scaler. he told me they changed lots of things. I did not ask him to elaborate on the other changes as the scaler was enough for me not to want it.


The Boxlight 455m is the only unit out there that I know of for sure that is the original 340 exactly. That is only guarnateed until July(end of this quarter)I am fairly positive that the Toshiba unit is certainly not the original 340 and even the 340V is not the original 340...


Regards,

john

 

[BBobley]

For what its worth, I just called InFocus tech support at 1 (800) 799-9911. According to their tech, the LP340B is a new and improved version of the LP340V. He said it has a higher contrast ratio. He also claimed it had the line doubler/scaler. He also told me that the Boxlight and Toshiba units are identical to the 340B.


However, when I called Boxlight at 1-800-884-6464, they gave me a different story. They say that the Boxlight CD-455M is the LP340V, while the Boxlight CD-454 is the same as the LP340B. He indicated that the 455/340V was better for video while the 454/340B was better for data. He also indicated that they had both units in stock.


Brett


[This message has been edited by BBobley (edited 06-28-2001).]

 

[arrow]

Quote:

Originally posted by abigpicture: I did not ask him to elaborate on the other changes as the scaler was enough for me not to want it.

John,


Whaaaaat?

The scaler was enough for you to want it? If so, why? The scaler in the 350 is pretty good. How is the sage chip better?

OR

The scaler made you not want it? If so, why? Don't like faroudja?


--Les