[dapex]

Folks, I am still in the planning stage of my first PJ and I wondered if anyone can tell me if I could shelf mount a Panny ae500 instead of ceiling mounting it? This would be easier and a lot easier to hide any cables etc, but I would not want a 2ft shelf sticking out of the wall, How much room do i need behined the PJ in for cooling etc?

Cheers

[harrisuk]

I am sure the Instuctions say 18 inches or something to that effect. These projectors are not really recommended for shelf mounting or that is my understanding. They need proper ventilation to the rear.

[RTFM]

The problem with shelf mounting projectors that do not have optical lens shift is that the unit has to be upside down if the shelf is high.
This is usually difficult to implement as there are normally control buttons on the top of the projector.
You would need to space the projector from the shelf with say sorbothane feet but then you will find leveling and aligning the projector to the screen tricky.

[dapex]

RTFM, you now have me worried, I had planned the shelf to be high, but if htis is going to cause a problem then surley being ceiling mounted will also cause a problem?

[harrisuk]

This is the main reason I went for a projector stand. It gave me alot more flexebility in the placement of the projector plus none of the probelms of routing cable. Also its not a permanent fixture I can move it if I want to without any problems.

If you read the manual it states that the ae500 is not really suitable for mounting on a shelf / bookcase. These things get really hot !

Having said that there are a number of forum members who have gone this route the Panny projectors without any problem.

[2manyconsoles]

I can feel the heat pumping out from the 500 at a good 12 inches away from it, the unit itself at the bottom right corner gets very hot.

[Zone]

I didn't (or more accuratley the little woman) didn't want ours bolting to the ceiling so shelf mounting was the only viable option.

I understand your concerns dapex about not wanting a shelf sticking out 2ft into the room as that was also one of my concerns, but as already mentioned you do need to leave room behind the projector (pannys at any rate) for them to breath.

I whether rightly or wrongly decided on a shelf (semi circle in shape) 18" deep, the rear of the projector is approx 8/9" from the wall, so far no problems though I do try and keep the room as cool as possible with lamp on low and fan on high.

Also as RTFM has mentioned the projector will need to be sat upside down, I've used rubber feet approx half inch high so as to get some air circulating under it. Also not really an issue not be able to get to the controls on the projector as the remote does it all and is very responsive though I have programmed my pronto now with all the most commonly used commands.

Levelling and squaring it to the screen is simply a case of taking your time and planning ahead, I actually positioned where I wanted the top of the creen to be and worked from there!

Just wish I had a dedicated cinema room so I could get rid of all the wires permantly

Good luck


[IMG]

[/IMG]

[harrisuk]

I can feel the heat pumping out from the 500 at a good 12 inches away from it, the unit itself at the bottom right corner gets very hot.

Absolutely. Mad hot. If you dont lets these things ventilate properly its bad bad new. I have only had a brief play with mine but was amazed at how hot it got. More so when you consider it was freestanding on a Nobo projector stand.

If you want to to see the damage to the optics and the lamp that overheating can do have a look a calibos`s 100ae thread on the topic. OK the unit had mental hours bearing in mind it was less than a year old but...dead as.

Zone your shelf seems plenty big enough with loads of room at the back. What does your mrs say about the cables. Mine would have me shot if I tried to pull this........

[mathew]

Originally posted by harrisuk
This is the main reason I went for a projector stand. It gave me alot more flexebility in the placement of the projector plus none of the probelms of routing cable. Also its not a permanent fixture I can move it if I want to without any problems.

If you read the manual it states that the ae500 is not really suitable for mounting on a shelf / bookcase. These things get really hot !

Having said that there are a number of forum members who have gone this route the Panny projectors without any problem.

how much was your stand and where did you buy it?

how high will it go, etc?

thanks.

[harrisuk]

If you do a search for "nobo stand" you will find this discussed in another thread. But a brief recap

As for the projector stand. I had a good look around and got a nobo projector stand from Staples. Its a solid piece of kit fully height adjustable to 46.5" it is mounted on castors which can be locked in position and has a shelf which can be tilted if this is required. The colour of the stand if Graphite. Cost was £89 + vat which included delivery, this was around £40 cheaper than I could find it anywhere else. Its only available on their website.

It goes pretty high. High enough to clear the back of most settee`s with enough room to project over your head whilst seated.

These people should give me commision really. How much gear (projectors and accessories) have they sold of my threads I`m joking of course.

[Zone]

Originally posted by harrisuk
Zone your shelf seems plenty big enough with loads of room at the back. What does your mrs say about the cables. Mine would have me shot if I tried to pull this........

Not printable here mate

This is my first foray into the whole big screen thing so everything at this time is simply a compromise!
Its just one of those things that I/She errm we have to put up with, but if/when we do move house a dedicated HC room will be high up on the list so its grin and bear it at the moment

[harrisuk]

If she is giving you a hard time you could try a bit of plastic conduit pained the same colour as your wall to mask the wires to your PJ.

Would mask it pretty well. I have used that old chestnut before

[G a f f e r]

stuck mine on a tv bracket and the exhaust (thankfully) just edges outward from the rear wall and ports into the empty space of the bay window......have at least 1.5-2 feet emtpy space behind the fan part now

the tin foil helps 'partition' the hot air away from the close rear wall....works a treat.

[CrispyXUK]

like an exaust really init?

[mathew]

Originally posted by Gaffer74
stuck mine on a tv bracket and the exhaust (thankfully) just edges outward from the rear wall and ports into the empty space of the bay window......have at least 1.5-2 feet emtpy space behind the fan part now
the tin foil helps 'partition' the hot air away from the close rear wall....works a treat.

Works well for you, looks good

BUT if you do have a wall behind your PJ, and can't send the exhaust off into the bay window and are wondering about huge shelves..

why not get a TV bracket with a double arm?

e.g.

http://www.argos.co.uk/webapp/wcs/st...roductId=94621

gets you a decent distance away from the wall, because the arm is double the length, and the platform tilts , so there should be no problem aligning with the screen.. and £20 only..

[harrisuk]

The TV wall bracket is a great idea if you are looking for a wall mounted solution.

[calibos]

AE300

The shelf is 10 inches deep except for the rounded protruding bit which is another 10 IIRC. PJ exhaust is about 10in from wall. Lamp Low and fan high. Rubber feet lift Pj about 1cm off surface and PJ controlled exclusively from remote. Cables in trunking painted wall colour.

AE100

My ae100 was mounted right side up on an avrack with window about 2ft from exhaust. IMHO its premature demise was purely due to excessive use with lamp low and fan low. Thankfully my ae300 quieter fan enables me to run it fan high and at 3000hrs it exhibits no sign of panel burn which my ae100 started to exhibit at about 2500hrs. I dont run my ae300 fan high because of worries about its shelf mounting or exhaust distance from wall but because I use it as much as my old ae100 (when I say I, I mean my 3 brothers and I!). Anyway, no problems apparent as yet.

[Zone]

And credit where credits due!
I got the idea for my semi circular shelf after seeing pictures of Calibos's set up!

[mathew]

Originally posted by Zone
And credit where credits due!
I got the idea for my semi circular shelf after seeing pictures of Calibos's set up!

Which DIY store did you and the other chap get your semi-circle shelves from?

Thanks.

[Zone]

Originally posted by mathew
Which DIY store did you and the other chap get your semi-circle shelves from?

Thanks.

DIY job mate, B&Q for a 2x4ft sheet of MDF then cut to shape.

[mathew]

great thanks,

i think i'm going to do the same thing

looks a bit nicer than a tv stand, and will shield fan noise allot better

i like my house pretty cool, so heat shouldn't be a problem, and i'll put it on rubber feet as you guys have.

I have a jigsaw which should be suitable for cutting the mdf so i'll just pickup some mdf and a couple of brackets, and the cheapest no brand work-mate they have

where did you get the rubber feet, and are they the normal self adhesive type?

i'm wary of sticking things to a new projector

[Zone]

Originally posted by mathew
where did you get the rubber feet, and are they the normal self adhesive type?

i'm wary of sticking things to a new projector

I used the square ones from Maplins as they lift the projector higher off the shelf and let some air circulate underneath. Don't worry unduly about any adhesive on them as it can easily be removed if you'd prefer.