Help with projector based on room limitations

brodders1979

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So I have been quite happy with my little man cave, slowly adding and upgrading over the past year. The one dislike has been the size of the TV at just 50 inches and I've had the itch to move onto a projector for more impactful cinema style viewing. The itch has been progressively scratched over the past few weeks and I've been doing my research to see what is realistic in terms of my room size and layout. Am also at the point of reading so many pj reviews that I am now confusing myself with what would work best in my room. A couple of pictures below of the room as it currently stands, and I am thinking of projecting onto the wall space with the 4 front speakers on each corner.
The pj to be ceiling mounted in front of the curtains.

IMG_20191209_183811.jpg
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In terms of dimensions:

Room length 3.35m (excluding Bay window)
Wall width 2.45m
Front surround distance (without toe in 1.7m)
Front surround distance (with toe in 1.6m)
Front height to surround 1.3m


The largest I feel I can go is either 75inches (1.66m x 0.93m) up to 85inches (1.89m x1. 06m) any more than that would be too much for the space. Any less and I may as well turn my attentions to an actual TV.

I have a rather modest budget so currently monitoring both the bay and the forum classifieds for a good second hand deal. I don't want to spend more than I have to so looking in the region of in or around £250. Based on previously sold prices some projectors that have caught my eye from cheapest being Epson eh-tw3200/3500 (around £150) then either BenQ w1070 or Optoma HD151x (£250-£300).

With having both blinds and blackout curtains I can remove all traces of ambient light from the room and don't plan (at present) on introducing any form of blackout treatment so matt grey adjoining walls and white ceiling. 3d is not a requirement but an added bonus and most of my usage will be for movies, Netflix and xbox gaming. Connections are nvidia shield 2017 and xbox one x via denon x2400 amp.

With this setup will I still be able to watch uhd discs (for atmos soundtracks) played on the xbox on a 1080p projector? Similarly will Netflix give me the option to watch uhd/atmos quality programmes or will it limit me to 1080p. Netflix at 1080p won't be an issue but I don't want to lose watching discs or streaming with atmos soundtracks. When 4k projectors become a bit cheaper and more widely available on the second hand market I will be looking to upgrade then.

Do the suggested pj's fit my requirements, should I choose one over the other? I am mostly leaning towards the optoma with having the flexibility of the zoom range and lens shift. This is what I have calculated per the throw distance projecting to 80 inches.
Screenshot_20200202_220705_com.android.chrome.jpg


The front of the lens would be sighted roughly 65cms from the back wall with the pj having a depth of 28cm gives 37cm clearance. Then using the wide angle to achieve the 80 inches. If I zoom out further I can get 85 inches at 1.45x. What impact would this level of zoom have on the quality of the projected image?

I am presuming I will be able to tilt the pj mount (only if needs be so I don't have to use keystone) so that the top of the image starts in the right place on the wall and the optoma has a lens shift of 18cm at this throw distance.

Have I worked out the above calculations correctly, is there anything else I need to consider.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts.
 
So I have been quite happy with my little man cave, slowly adding and upgrading over the past year. The one dislike has been the size of the TV at just 50 inches and I've had the itch to move onto a projector for more impactful cinema style viewing. The itch has been progressively scratched over the past few weeks and I've been doing my research to see what is realistic in terms of my room size and layout. Am also at the point of reading so many pj reviews that I am now confusing myself with what would work best in my room. A couple of pictures below of the room as it currently stands, and I am thinking of projecting onto the wall space with the 4 front speakers on each corner.
The pj to be ceiling mounted in front of the curtains.

View attachment 1253238View attachment 1253239
In terms of dimensions:

Room length 3.35m (excluding Bay window)
Wall width 2.45m
Front surround distance (without toe in 1.7m)
Front surround distance (with toe in 1.6m)
Front height to surround 1.3m


The largest I feel I can go is either 75inches (1.66m x 0.93m) up to 85inches (1.89m x1. 06m) any more than that would be too much for the space. Any less and I may as well turn my attentions to an actual TV.

I have a rather modest budget so currently monitoring both the bay and the forum classifieds for a good second hand deal. I don't want to spend more than I have to so looking in the region of in or around £250. Based on previously sold prices some projectors that have caught my eye from cheapest being Epson eh-tw3200/3500 (around £150) then either BenQ w1070 or Optoma HD151x (£250-£300).

With having both blinds and blackout curtains I can remove all traces of ambient light from the room and don't plan (at present) on introducing any form of blackout treatment so matt grey adjoining walls and white ceiling. 3d is not a requirement but an added bonus and most of my usage will be for movies, Netflix and xbox gaming. Connections are nvidia shield 2017 and xbox one x via denon x2400 amp.

With this setup will I still be able to watch uhd discs (for atmos soundtracks) played on the xbox on a 1080p projector? Similarly will Netflix give me the option to watch uhd/atmos quality programmes or will it limit me to 1080p. Netflix at 1080p won't be an issue but I don't want to lose watching discs or streaming with atmos soundtracks. When 4k projectors become a bit cheaper and more widely available on the second hand market I will be looking to upgrade then.

Do the suggested pj's fit my requirements, should I choose one over the other? I am mostly leaning towards the optoma with having the flexibility of the zoom range and lens shift. This is what I have calculated per the throw distance projecting to 80 inches.
View attachment 1253226

The front of the lens would be sighted roughly 65cms from the back wall with the pj having a depth of 28cm gives 37cm clearance. Then using the wide angle to achieve the 80 inches. If I zoom out further I can get 85 inches at 1.45x. What impact would this level of zoom have on the quality of the projected image?

I am presuming I will be able to tilt the pj mount (only if needs be so I don't have to use keystone) so that the top of the image starts in the right place on the wall and the optoma has a lens shift of 18cm at this throw distance.

Have I worked out the above calculations correctly, is there anything else I need to consider.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts.
Just a quick reply from me mate.

I previously had a Ben Q w1070 projector, in a room not far off the dimensions that you have. We had a 92" diagonal screen in the room, absolutely perfect.

I have a samsung 4k uhd player and an Xbox one S. Obviously both play 4k discs, and we used to downscale the 4k discs to 1080p but this stil means you can access the Dolby Atmos/DTS-X soundtracks on 4k films.

As for Netflix, we used the 4k account through the Xbox one S( limited to 1080p for picture quality) but lets you access the Dolby Atmos tracks on certain content.

We now have an Epson EH-TW7400, but is above your opposed budget. Either way, i think something along the lines of the Ben Q W1070 would be perfect for the room..
 
thanks, good to know that I can accommodate it then. Do you happen to recall why you chose the w1070 over other similar models available at the time?
 
I was also going to suggest the BenQ based on dimensions and throw ratio, only thing I would add is room conditions aren't perfect for either a projector or the BenQ but that's OK because all you need is a screen that deals with light walls.

First question is whether the TV will remain, if not then you seriously should look at a screen paint option and paint the entire wall you intend to project the image on to, think of it as a feature wall. With the right paint you will achieve decent blacks and no need for an expensive pull down screen.
 
I'd also consider the possibility of having the PJ mounted in the bay which would increase the throw. Using a close to ceiling mount would line up pretty good for the viewing height.
 
I was also going to suggest the BenQ based on dimensions and throw ratio, only thing I would add is room conditions aren't perfect for either a projector or the BenQ but that's OK because all you need is a screen that deals with light walls.

First question is whether the TV will remain, if not then you seriously should look at a screen paint option and paint the entire wall you intend to project the image on to, think of it as a feature wall. With the right paint you will achieve decent blacks and no need for an expensive pull down screen.
The projector will replace the tv (which will go into the bedroom). Plan is to make next choices on screen, repaint wall etc once the pj is in situ and I have a better understanding of areas I can improve. As much as I would want to change the room to improve the picture quality I still want it to be aesthetically pleasing to keep the wife happy. Although she keeps telling me it’s my room and I can do whatever I want with it, when I propose suggestions she’s like “oh no” 😏
 
I'd also consider the possibility of having the PJ mounted in the bay which would increase the throw. Using a close to ceiling mount would line up pretty good for the viewing height.

I had thought about this as would help with the cable management aspect but that would remove the ability to fully close the curtains. The blinds do a semi decent job of cutting out daylight but there is some element of light bleed that the blackout curtains deal with. Not a problem during winter but through the summer months may be an issue. The window is west facing so gets full sun in the evening. There may be a pj mount with an arm that can protrude through the curtains holding the pj on the other side but have not come across one as yet.
 
Blackout blinds would work, something like this. It would also give you a bit more throw distance.
 

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The projector will replace the tv (which will go into the bedroom). Plan is to make next choices on screen, repaint wall etc once the pj is in situ and I have a better understanding of areas I can improve. As much as I would want to change the room to improve the picture quality I still want it to be aesthetically pleasing to keep the wife happy. Although she keeps telling me it’s my room and I can do whatever I want with it, when I propose suggestions she’s like “oh no” 😏

OK so replacing the TV, I think you really need to look into my suggestion of painting the wall in it's entirety and projecting the image on to it. Here's a link to images posted by a member on AVSForum in the US, he bought the paint off @MississippiMan and followed his instruction, what you get is a screen that can behave like an ALR screen but for a fraction of the price.


Here's a link to his whole process.


I think you it would be a wise idea to contact @MississippiMan on AVS who will advise you better on this subject than just about anyone. If I could go down this route I would have already done it but I have a door directly behind where my screen is.
 
So managed to get a benq w1070 on the bay. Getting delivered next week all being well.

Any recommendations on ceiling mount? Don't want to go over board price wise. Also what kettle plug (need about 3/4m) also hdmi cable as I need over 5 metres.

Tia
 
Most mounts will suit but the distance they hold the projector away from the ceiling varies.

Duronic Projector Mount PB05XB | Bracket Fixing for Ceiling | 13.6kg Capacity | Universal | Heavy Duty | Fittings Included | Rotate 360 °, Swivel 40 °, Tilt 60° for Easy Projection Set-up https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01D3OHCC8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_5QKDEb2994SKE

Not sure if you meant 0.75M or 3 to 4 meters long but you’ll get one on Amazon. Also regarding HDMI I would recommend a Amazon Basic version as they are brilliant but when you say over 5M does this mean closer to 7M because even though the W1070 isn’t 4K you might want to replace your current projector with one as the bug takes hold in which case maybe going for an Optical HDMI might save you in the long run.

Here’s both a normal HDMI and an Optical HDMI, you decide but there is a huge difference in price for a reason.

AmazonBasics High-Speed HDMI 2.0 Cable - 7.5m / 25 Feet (Latest Standard) Supports Ethernet, 3D, Audio Return https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B014I8TC4E/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_j4KDEbX8HX3RD

Shuliancable Fiber Optic HDMI Cable, HDMI Optical Cable Support 4K@60Hz/4:4:4 HDR HDCP High Speed 18Gbps HDMI Lead 10m 15m 20m 30m (5m) https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07R19933D/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_D6KDEbBEQ6KDX

Not sure if it’s different in the US but here optical HDMI cables come in 5m or 10m, they don’t seem to offer one between these sizes.
 
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Thanks for the detailed response, for the projector mount will I have to mount it to a ceiling beam do you think? Might limit my options if I do. I could get a wall mount instead and attach it to the wall just above the curtain pole, will need enough clearance for the light fitting but should be OK.
 

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If you don’t have to option to mount a beam there are alternatives.


But your suggestion of using the wall above the curtain would definitely work. This one should be suitable but if ever upgrade to a heavier projector then maybe spending a bit more might be worthwhile in the long run.

PM103 Universal Projector Wall Mount Bracket Telescopic for All Projectors Tilt &Swivel PM103 Universal Projector Wall Mount Bracket Telescopic: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics
 
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All set up now thanks everyone for the advice and input. Maybe add a screen further down the line but looking to replace the sofa for a nice stylish recliner.

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