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People walking in front of projector path in a casual, lights-on living room setting

1390 Views 6 Replies 3 Participants Last post by dbpaddler, Aug 11, 2021

reed_wright

Discussion Starter · Aug 7, 2021

I'm looking at something like Epson 6050UB for my living room home theater. The only downside is that in some casual, lights-on scenarios, anybody who walks through the living room would walk in front of the projector path. I'm talking about social occasions, stuff like a party where you have the TV on but it's pretty much in the background, or Super Bowl parties, or a big family event where some kids are playing video games and others are just hanging out.

My question is: How big of an issue is it in practice? I've never owned a projector. I'm thinking of comparable situations where we had family socials where some people were watching sports and others were just hanging out in other parts of the house. People would regularly cross through the living room on their way to and from the pool. They would walk right in front of the TV and briefly block the view in the process, but it was such a normal thing that it was a non-issue. Does it become more of an issue with a projector?

I know USTs would also be a solution, but a UST wouldn't be ideal for my scenario.

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dbpaddler

· #2 · Aug 7, 2021

Stupid question. If you're ceiling mounting the standard projector, is there a reason why you couldn't ceiling mount a UST? Not sure what the ceiling is like close to the screen. You would then reverse the ALR screen since they're directional. That would take out your worries entirely and even simplify center channel placement.

But of course you'd have to take the distance from the projector to the top of the screen into consideration.

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luv2fly3

· #3 · Aug 7, 2021

I'm not sure I'd go so far as to say "stupid question" given he's not owned a PJ in the past.

I've owned several PJs in different locations including a living room setup and dedicated HT room. The reality is that yes, if you have PJ back from the screen with any distance, you have the issue of any person walking across the image creating the shadow in the image. Other than going with a PJ designed to shoot the image at a very close distance as you mentioned, or getting both the PJ and screen much higher than any possible person could walk through, you're going to have that issue.

Depending on your space, preference and budget, honestly if that's a big concern and "risk", a large panel TV would probably be a better solution.

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reed_wright

Discussion Starter · #4 · Aug 8, 2021

Geez, dbpaddler. Anyway, a ceiling-mounted UST with an upside down CLR screen isn’t going to work because the image will get washed out by overhead light during lights-on viewing.

Luv2fly3: I’m leaning toward the option of mounting projector and screen on the high side, though not so high that it will clear everybody. The projection path will stay above 6’ for the rear half of the room. Foot traffic in the room naturally flows from the side to the rear anyway, and any kids running around in the front half would also be clear. Not ideal, but it’s my favorite pick of available options. A short (1.0) throw like the BenQs would solve the problem, but I think I’d rather contend with some degree of walkthrough in order to get a higher quality projector.

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luv2fly3

· #5 · Aug 8, 2021

reed_wright said:
Geez, dbpaddler. Anyway, a ceiling-mounted UST with an upside down CLR screen isn’t going to work because the image will get washed out by overhead light during lights-on viewing.

Luv2fly3: I’m leaning toward the option of mounting projector and screen on the high side, though not so high that it will clear everybody. The projection path will stay above 6’ for the rear half of the room. Foot traffic in the room naturally flows from the side to the rear anyway, and any kids running around in the front half would also be clear. Not ideal, but it’s my favorite pick of available options. A short (1.0) throw like the BenQs would solve the problem, but I think I’d rather contend with some degree of walkthrough in order to get a higher quality projector.

Sounds like a good option. It really just depends on what you want, and are willing to put up with if using a PJ. I've never found it to be a problem because most people understand they are "in the way" when they walk through the image, so they do so quickly.

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reed_wright

Discussion Starter · #6 · Aug 8, 2021

I've never found it to be a problem because most people understand they are "in the way" when they walk through the image, so they do so quickly.

That’s the kind of experience I was hoping to here about. I know it’s subjective but it’s still helpful to hear from people who’ve had to face this issue. Thanks!

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dbpaddler

· #7 · Aug 11, 2021 (Edited)

Better projectors will also have more lens shift. The higher you can mount the projector, the higher the path for the projected image. My Epson literally has just the nipple pipe on it which is just two threaded ends. As close to the ceiling as I can get it. I'm surprised how close up I can get my spin bike and be out fo the saddle before my head ends up bouncing up and down on screen.

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