question about projector

[beanoranger]

I have decided to buy myself a projector. After weeks of reading about the Optoma HD70 I have decided that I am going to go for this one as I have seen good reviews for it and as I am on a tight budget it seems like an ideal price as i wouldnt be able to go any higher in price.

I have a couple of questions though which I hope you wont mind me asking as I have no clue about these things. I read a post by one guy saying that he had been playing his ps3 for around 4 hours or so and his projector cut off because it over heated. I understand that the bulbs in these things get really hot, however I would like to know is it going to do the projector any harm being on for this length of time? Say I wanted to watch a movie that was near the 4 hour mark, would I have to switch it off half way through and leave it for a few hours to cool down before I watch the rest of the movie or would it be ok to leave it on for this length of time?

As its going to be my first projector I am obviously going to be slightly obsessed with it for the first few days. Say I wanted to watch a few movies in the first day (which I no doubt will) will this be harmful to the projector? or is it ok to turn it off for a length of time after watching a movie and then put it back on again after about an hour? What I think im trying to say is how long are you supposed to let the thing cool down before it is safe enough to turn it back on? If the thing does end up shutting down through over heating is it going to do it any harm?

Sorry about this post. As I said I have no idea about these things but I am really looking forward to getting this and just want to be on the safe side in case I end up melting it on the first day. I apologise if this has been asked many times before.

[Tribeless]

Beanoranger.

With most brands of projectors it remains very important they are not used for seven days from purchase to prevent burn in. You just have to look at your machine over that time, and your DVD's, and imagine what might be.

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Joking Not too sure what the answers to your queries are.

[stuartbrown21]

I don't think that generally it would be a problem to have it running for 4 hours or more at once - some members on these forums use them instead of a regular tv and so switch them on in the evening and leave them running until late at night.

The bulbs do get hot and so in general try to avoid installing one say over a radiator, and there must be adequate room for it to be able to ventilate.

The general advice is that once switched off, the bulb should be allowed to fully cool before switching on again and this should help to prolong bulb life. I tend to give it a full hour before switching my PT-AX100 back on.

Hope this helps - some other members will probably be able to offer some more accurate advice.

[BISHI]

The reason the projector cut out is it has an automatic bulb protection chip, (like a thermostat), which is thewre to protect the bulb. The reason it got too hot was probably the fact that the heat intake/outlet was blocked . It is really easy to do so projector placement is very important as it needs adequate space all the way round to ensure air circulation. Also if you are on a tight budget check out HIVIZONE.COM and import your projector cheap. I am !

[njp]

Originally Posted by stuartbrown21

I don't think that generally it would be a problem to have it running for 4 hours or more at once - some members on these forums use them instead of a regular tv and so switch them on in the evening and leave them running until late at night.

Whilst I don't doubt that some people do that, it is (IMO) a bad idea because a) It detracts from the impact of "event viewing" - e.g a good DVD, and b) It's a rather expensive way of watching telly, given the limited lifetime and high cost of replacement bulbs.

The general advice is that once switched off, the bulb should be allowed to fully cool before switching on again and this should help to prolong bulb life. I tend to give it a full hour before switching my PT-AX100 back on.

I've tried, but I can't think of any physical basis for this advice!

[W0LFIE]

Originally Posted by beanoranger

Say I wanted to watch a movie that was near the 4 hour mark, would I have to switch it off half way through and leave it for a few hours to cool down before I watch the rest of the movie or would it be ok to leave it on for this length of time?

Hell No! Any projector that needs switching off every two hours ain't worth your time or money
Can't speak for other projectors but I've got an Hitachi PJTX300 and I've happily watched 2 movies back to back and there's plenty of people in this forum that happily play Xbox and PS3 on theirs.

I agree with everyone re- showing some common sense - they do get hot but as long if you install it correctly (don't stuff it in a cabinet or anything daft like that) and allow plenty of air circulation around it you'll be fine for movies and gaming.
Why not check with your potential retailer first - ask specifically how long they recommend it's switched on for to make sure there's no 'get out' clause in the warranty.

Projector Point have some pretty helpful staff who are more than happy to discuss tech' issues on the phone.

Your wise to do a bit of research, ask as many questions as poss before you buy - this forum is perfect place to spend some time before buying.

Hope this helps

[stuartbrown21]

Originally Posted by njp

Whilst I don't doubt that some people do that, it is (IMO) a bad idea because a) It detracts from the impact of "event viewing" - e.g a good DVD, and b) It's a rather expensive way of watching telly, given the limited lifetime and high cost of replacement bulbs.

I would agree that the pj is best saved for films / sports, but was only trying to illustrate that if you do wish to use one for long periods there shouldn't be any problem (bar lamp replacement costs!!)

I've tried, but I can't think of any physical basis for this advice!

Well, I can't offer you any precise data to back up my 'wacky' claim, but whilst reading up on pj's myself 6 or so months ago I read many times that it is a good idea to allow the bulb to cool fully before switching back on - an hour was muted as a reasonable span of time.

Any other users able to back up this general advice (or disagree?).

[njp]

Originally Posted by stuartbrown21

Well, I can't offer you any precise data to back up my 'wacky' claim, but whilst reading up on pj's myself 6 or so months ago I read many times that it is a good idea to allow the bulb to cool fully before switching back on - an hour was muted as a reasonable span of time.

I've seen it too but I'm convinced it's one of those myths that gains in credibility simply by being repeated often enough. As I said, I can't think of a physical basis for it, and nor could I find one when I looked.

Personally, I would regard the point at which the cooling fan switches off to be the earliest point at which I would attempt to restart the projector. Indeed, I suspect most projectors probably enforce such a period within their firmware, but I have no intention of testing mine to find out!

[stuartbrown21]

Originally Posted by njp

I've seen it too but I'm convinced it's one of those myths that gains in credibility simply by being repeated often enough. As I said, I can't think of a physical basis for it, and nor could I find one when I looked.

Personally, I would regard the point at which the cooling fan switches off to be the earliest point at which I would attempt to restart the projector. Indeed, I suspect most projectors probably enforce such a period within their firmware, but I have no intention of testing mine to find out!

Must admit that I'm so terrified about blowing my bulb that I follow this advice without fail!! If you're using it just for big events like movies then there should be no reason to keep switching it on and off all the time anyway.

[beanoranger]

thanks for the help. I have a new problem now though. not sure i am going to go for the Optoma one now as i have read a lot of posts on here about rainbow effect and how it can cause headaches. I suffer from migraines a lot so it kind of put me off getting a DLP one. Thinking of now going for an LCD one. Is there any LCD ones i should have my eye on that is in the same price range as the Optoma which is £799.

5Tarr, I see you own a Hitachi PJTX300. I had a look at this and i am now thinking of having a closer look at it. are you happy with it or have you had any problems with it? Dont think there is anyway i can get a demo of it so i will need to trust reviews. I seem to be really unlucky with electrical things in that something always goes wrong with them. I have went through 3 Plasma tellys and 2 DVD recorders in the past 8 months because every one of them had a fault. its a lot of money for me so i dont want to make a big mistake again.