Best spec/value PJ for Classic car club meetings.

Boostrail

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I am a committee member of a local classic car club. We are in process of changing our meeting venue and the new venue does not have any PJ facilities. As it appears I am the only committee member who is somewhat video savvy I have been nominated to recommend a PJ for purchase by the club.
Several of us it appears have large pop up screens but probably 20 or years old.
So what do others recommend. I cannot see that UHD or HDR is relevant to the presentations we have but high brightness/contrast and magnification on a short throw in a bright room is very important.
Any starting point comments greatly appreciated.
Obviously the lowest price for adequate performance is a factor.
 
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I am a committee member of a local classic car club. We are in process of changing our meeting venue and the new venue does not have any PJ facilities. As it appears I am the only committee member who is somewhat video savvy I have been nominated to recommend a PJ for purchase by the club.
Several of us it appears have large pop up screens but prinably
Moved this to the PJ section of the forum, hopefully someone with the know how will be able to help :)
 
Unfortunately I couldn't see you were still editing when I moved it, sorry. should still be able to edit it here though?
 
Obviously the lowest price for adequate performance is a factor’ - always the worst trap to fall in to :)

How many folk viewing, seating layout, ambient lighting levels, audio requirement, what is the source device, where will the projector live when not in use (assuming you are not planning to install it)…

Have you looked at any potential Grant Funding options - though that may be an issue around ‘in person’ presentations for a while yet, which also brings up any requirement to Live streaming your meetings?

Joe
 
Look for an office type projector designed for presentations. These are brighter and easier to deploy on a temporary basis.

Avoid very short throw - less than 1:1, as they are a pain to set up squarely on a temporary basis.

Epson make some excellent projectors, as do Benq. Choose one with the input you desire from your source - I assume a laptop, and if you intend to show films, go for a widescreen format native device (might be called WXGA or similar) as opposed to 4:3 , which is usually better for presentations, older films and photos.

Budget for a decent sized screen and stand for the projector, along with some speakers if audio is of importance.

Hope this helps!
 
Thanks Joe and Noise boy.
Firstly my exploration so far has highlighted that there is a lot of cheap junk out there and that I should be looking at a PJ with around 3000 ansi lumens for use as a presentation aid in a non darkened room.
Layout will be upto 40 people sat in upto 6 rows.
It would have to have multiple inputs to accommodate visiting speakers who may use PC or Mac or even casting from Android or iOS phones and tablets as well as video sources.
One concern I have is that it appears that many PJ's seem to have very low power on board audio systems. We do not want the hassle of having to rig up an external system if possible.
From what I see these requirements would lead to a PJ which is going to be way above the max budget of £5-600.
 
For my money, I would buy one of these. EH-TW740 Projector | Brightness: 3300 lm | Contrast: 16000:1 | Resolution: 1080p | Display Type: LCD | Weight: 2.7kg

It is bright, has good resolution and will accept a wifi module if you did want to stream.

The HDMI input will work with the vast majority of laptops and Macs, and an adapter could be used for older PCs using a VGA output.

Setting up a powered speaker from the audio output on the projector is not an onerous task. You are really limiting your choices trying to find a projector with decent sound, while a small powered speaker - get one with a remote controlled volume for even more control will be a huge improvement for very little hassle.
 
As nosieboy72 says audio is not well served by any inbuilt speaker system on a projector - and certainly not capable of delivering decent audio to 40 folk arrayed six rows deep.

Epson are our first choice for any form of presentation or community system which has to be portable, bright, has decent connectivity and has to last.

If you go with a small active speaker system with inbuilt mixer that will allow you to accommodate a wired or wireless mic too - handy for some presenters when trying to present to 40 folk, and ideally speakers on stands to get the sound to the whole audience.

It doesn't take much longer to set up a small sound system but will make a big difference to the quality of the presentations you can deliver.

Joe
 

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