[Kathar]

Hey guys! I'm new here, although I have been lurking about here for a while. I've found loads of useful information on this site in the past months regarding a variety of things, so thank you all for that! I now find myself a bit lost however, so I'm hoping you kind folk might shed some light on my confusion.

I'm fairly new to the whole projector scene, having owned my HD700x just a few months now. I've been chuffed to bits with it and certainly couldn't see myself going back to my old tiny TV, but now that the PJ is all set up relatively nicely, with neatly tucked away cables to all my devices, completely blacked out room, etc. I am finding myself at the point where I just want to better the picture further. I want to do this by improving the black levels some more if possible. I find the brighter scenes really fantastic, so I have no problem there. It's just that when the majority of the scene is black, I would describe the scene as more of a grey, rather than black.

I've tweaked the settings and such on the projector itself, so the picture it produces is as dark as it can be, but this is where my troubles start. I don't actually have a dedicated room for the projector, so it's in a bright coloured room, with 2 walls a fairly rich but bright green, the other two walls in a very light brown, and the ceiling in white. Unfortunately I can't change the colour of the room, nor can I do the usual drill of mounting up some black/dark velvet etc. So basically the room has to visually stay as is. This is why I figure my best (and only?) bet for better blacks is to get myself a better screen. Currently I've just been using an old 4:3 roll-up screen (66" diag on 16:9) that was given to me, which was previously used for presentations at a school. It's white, has a slight texture to it and has reflective speckles on it when viewed from certain angles, but these overall don't bother me that much.

After a fair bit of researching and browsing around, it seems like a grey screen might be just what I'm after. I am completely at a loss when it comes to screens and all that though. What with the different shades, materials, gains and so on... So basically what I'm asking is, what do you guys think the best screen would be for my setup? My budget would have to be about £200, for a screen anywhere up to 90" - would have to be roll up too if possible.


Cheers for any help at all on this guys, it's very much appreciated.

[MississippiMan]

Kathar,

You need a Screen that will not detract from the brightness the 700x can provide @ 1300 lumens while also providing your "on Screen" blacks and shadow detail...which is needed since the 700x only manages 3000:1 On/Off Contrast.

If you go with the right "Metallic Based" Gray Screen, be it a Mfg or DIY version, you can...or at least should be able to accomplish both aspects. Your 200 quid limit does restrict your options, as few if any "Roll Ups" will offer you both a positive "Gain" figure and a "Gray" surface that will effectively help you reach your desired goals.

You could get a 'El Cheapo' Matt Bright White manual Roll-up and then paint it using simple Silver/Pearlescent/Gray/Poly DIY mixture. Such would be advisable if you spray...using a Wagner Control Spray 550 (UK version) In reality, a simple neutral Gray in the N8.5 range, combined with approx 33% Polyurethane to "Paint" volume might just be all that's needed. While spraying would require the acquisition of the Wagner, or the use of a borrowed HVLP rig, the end results would pretty much satisfy you needs quite sufficently.

[Kathar]

Thanks a lot for such a detailed reply! That helps me a lot. The spray method you mention sounds a brilliant idea, so I think I'll definitely go for that.

Now that you mention spraying though, I had a thought. Would I be able to just paint my current screen with the same paint (etc.) for the same results, or does it specifically have to be a matte screen? I gather from the bright speckles I get on my current screen, that it's glass beaded (?). I mean either way I'd still be looking to get a larger screen in the future, but if I could do that in the meantime that'd be great.

Cheers

Edit: Disregard my last query, just ordered myself an 82" screen and will be painting it as soon as I can afford the supplies. Thanks again for your help!