Scope Screen Possible with Optoma UHD65?

rekbones said:

I don't think it has enough zoom or lens shift so you would need to physically move the projector. @bud16415 has a unique solution for this issue with a mount he designed. But in a nut shell no the UHD65 can't be used for a 2:35 screen as power lens memory is a must have in my book.

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@nexus99
There are 4 methods I know of to do CIH. First is most expensive and some would say best and that is using a digital width compression and then an A-lens to stretch the image back out. This method has the benefits of using all the pixels your projector has along with all the brightness. The second method is the most common and uses the projectors Zoom, Focus and Vertical image shift. Having a projector that has these functions motor controlled and programmable are best but it can be done manually although that becomes not very practical for most. The third method is seldom used and I’m not sure why. That is digital scaling and you set up your projector to do scope and then just use whatever pixels you need to make other sizes and ARs. I used this method for a while and ran all my sources thru a HTPC (computer) and did the sizing there. Over the years a few projectors had this function built in and I wish all projectors had a digital sizing function, after all they have A-lens compression and keystone adjustment etc this would be easy to do and call it a CIH projector or CIH+IMAX projector. My logic is if the pixel size and brightness is ok for scope movie why wouldn’t it be just as clear and bright for a 1.85 flat movie.

The fourth method is what I’m doing and as far as I know I’m the only one doing it for home theater. That method is to move the projector to change the image size. this method is widely used in classrooms or offices where the projector is on a cart or on a table and gets slid around all the time to change the image size.

I ceiling mounted mine on a slide that inclines thus I get a zoom and shift at the same time. I then found the projector I selected had a DOF depth of field that allowed me over the range I’m zooming that focus didn’t need adjustments made. I added a pulley and counterbalance weight and enough festoon to the cables to allow the projector to move very easy. It could be motorized very easy but I still move mine with a stick with a hook on the end. It takes 5 seconds to zoom the full range and it’s a good idea to stand up between movies anyway. What I like most about my method is the increase in brightness when I zoom smaller. My smaller size is where I watch TV and quite a bit of TV watching I add ambient light back in the room. More living room like and less theater like. I don’t have a fixed size screen I use a full wall painted a neutral density gray and allow the projector to self mask against the gray. Doing this solves the masking problem and also allows my slide to be off a smidgen as I’m not trying to fit and image precisely if I’m off 1/8” who will notice. I use a system of variable presentation that is something like CIA+IMAX+TV where movies are shown constant image area with the exception of IMAX movies, and TV is sized according to the quality and content of the show.

All I will say is it works for me and gives me function from a $500 projector similar to $3000 projector and even more function than a expensive projector with a $3000 lens added. I’m a fairly DIY type and it took me a few afternoons in the workshop building the rig and debugging it. It is not a pretty thing you would want in your living room but IMO is a conversation starter in a theater/media room where the focus is on the screen end of the room. The reaction when I zoom is mostly “Why didn’t I think of that.”

With 4k now becoming the standard I really wish one of the budget models would add in a digital zoom and 4way shift function.