In my first two rented apartments, my only display was a 92" High Power Model C Da-Lite manual pull-down screen with a Sanyo PLV-Z2 720p LCD projector. Being that it was my only display, I had thick curtains over all of the windows in my living room/dining/kitchen area
You can get away with a little bit of light - but not much. The High Power screen certainly helps because it is retro-reflective - which means that it bounces light back to its source rather than "spreading out" the light that hits it. With the High Power, much of the ambient light is reflected away from your eyes and back to where it came from. At the same time, if you position the projector close to your eye level (like on a shelf directly behind you or on top of a coffee table in front of you), the light from the projector is bounced back along the same path, which basically directs it right into your eyes. The retro-reflective High Power screen is also very high gain, so it looks way brighter than most typical screens. The High Power is a much better solution if you have a bit of ambient light than a "grey" screen, IMO.
With the shades that you have right now, there is no way that a front projection setup would look truly "good" during the day though. At night, I think a front projector setup would look good in your room, but during the day, too much light would come through those shades. I got tired of having to keep whole apartment dark just to watch TV during the day So you would either need to get some genuine black out curtains and keep the entire room area dark, or else you would want to have the plasma for daytime viewing and parties with the lights on and then have the front projection setup for night time movie viewing.
Your room is never going to be pitch black. So I honestly wouldn't bother looking for screens other than the High Power. As jostenmeat explained, it hides waves very well. So you can " get away" with a much less expensive manual pull-down High Power screen and I honestly think it would be the best choice for your room regardless.
I'm in total agreement with jostenmeat here - I think your best setup would be to have the plasma. If you want to add the pull-down High Power screen and a nice projector, there's nothing like a truly huge screen for movies! But the plasma should be your first priority, IMO. You'll be able to use it during the day without altering your current room. You'll be able to use it during parties with the lights on. And it's a better solution for "casual" viewing too, IMO.
So I'd suggest that you get the plasma first, but keep the front projection setup in mind. I wouldn't really suggest having the front projector as your only display in that room. I've lived through that and it's darn cool at first, but it also has its downsides
Aren't the sanyo PJ's low lumens? The panasonic has higher lumens I believe so it can do much better with light than the Sanyo's. Also if you run the PJ in eco mode you won't get the brightness in normal mode. There are some drawbacks to normal mode though(shorter bulb life, more fan noise) I still prefer it to eco mode myself, but in an ambient light situation you may need to run it in normal mode. My PJ is a Optoma ep719 and only cost me around 100 bucks. I replaced the bulb after a few months just to be safe. But it runs fine for me. It's not flexible, but for a budget spender it was a much better deal than any TV I could find. I came from a 27" tv and now have 90" of great picture.
Now it must be stated I'm a techie raised in a techie family. I never suggest this approach to the average joe because PJs confuse most people.
Aren't the sanyo PJ's low lumens? The panasonic has higher lumens I believe so it can do much better with light than the Sanyo's. Also if you run the PJ in eco mode you won't get the brightness in normal mode. There are some drawbacks to normal mode though(shorter bulb life, more fan noise) I still prefer it to eco mode myself, but in an ambient light situation you may need to run it in normal mode. My PJ is a Optoma ep719 and only cost me around 100 bucks. I replaced the bulb after a few months just to be safe. But it runs fine for me. It's not flexible, but for a budget spender it was a much better deal than any TV I could find. I came from a 27" tv and now have 90" of great picture.
Now it must be stated I'm a techie raised in a techie family. I never suggest this approach to the average joe because PJs confuse most people.
Thanks for everything Bro. I don't doubt that I will get the PJ in the future. But I would love to experience everything. The best bet is to experience the plasma, and then PJ. Like from an Elephant to a Whale, blue whale. LOL. I wish I can afford both then there will be no dilemma. But thanks for every thing You, Jostenmeat and First Reflection have taught me. I learn new stuffs in every thread. Thanks
__________________
System:
Yamaha RX-V3800
Yamaha MX-1
Yamaha EQ-70
Yamaha Soavo-1 /Front
Yamaha NS-A9** /Front
Yamaha NS-333 /Side Surround
Yamaha NS-C444 /Center
Yamaha YST-SW1500
Pioneer CLD-S201/Upgraded To Pioneer Elite CLD-97
Panasonic DMP-BD60K Blu-ray
Behringer XENYX 2442 FX Pro Mixer
Shure PG-58 Wireless Mic
Vizio 42" LCD TV
DELL XPS 710
DELL 3007 30" Monitor
2 1Tb Iomega HD
Nintendo Wii (gave it to my lil brother)
The problem for me when there was ambient light wasn't the brightness of the image or the visibility of the image - it was the washed out black, the loss of contrast and the loss of shadow detail. You can watch something that is bright and colorful if you have some ambient light and simply use a screen like the High Power and a projector with good light output. But a lot of TV shows and many movies contain a fair number of dark scenes and those just plain do not look good with ambient light around
Does anyone know if there is a difference between the Kuro 600m and the 141 elite- (besides price)
A quick Google
KRP 600M
60" Kuro monitor 1080p typically wall mount; need to purchase a stand, no tv tuner, no speakers. Kuro has 2 year warranty. Calibaration is not as good.
you can add stand and speakers and wall mount. Only two HDMI inputs, composite, component, neeed DVI converison adapter to connect PC, but it can be done
PRO-151 FD
60 " Kuro Elite TV 1080p - has a TV tuner ( you won't use with satellite ir fiber and most likely no with cable unless you use only basic), removable stand, speakers that are mountable and can be easily removed, Elite has 3 year warranty. professional calibration.
4 HDMI ports, PC -VGA interface, USB interface, component, composite and S-video input.
PRO-141 FD
60" Kuro Elite monitor 1080p - typically wall mount; need to purchase a stand, no tv tuner, no speakers. Elite has 3 year warranty. 4 HDMI ports, PC -VGA interface, component, composite input.
professional calibration.
Physical 600M 151 141 Speakers Optional Side None Stand Optional Normal Optional Depth 2.5" 3.75" 2.5" HDMI 2 4 4 DVI-D(HDCP) 1 0 1 D-SUB 15** 1 1 1 USB 0 1 0 Component 1 1 1 Composite 1 3 1 S-Video 0 1 0 Audio-In*** 2 5 0 Sensors 1 Light 2 Color/Light 1 Light IR Repeater 1 1 1 Digital Audio Out 0 1 0 RS-232 1 1 [1 LAN**** 1 (For WCS) 1 (For HMG) 1 (For WCS) ANT Terminal 0 1 0 AR Filter Elite Specific+ Elite Specific Elite Specific Media Receiver No No No
*xx20 Speaker can be mounted on the top; Side mounting Elite speakers
====
Oh Yes Pioneer Plasmas are the best - Elites rock and kuro Elites totally rock!
No Tuners, No Stand, No Speakers, Less HDMI..... other than that not much at all
bandphan, please correct me if what I'm saying is inaccurate in any way, even if it's stated as an opinion:
The one significant advantage of the 141 is the onboard CALcontrol ISFccc, which allows calibration for both day and night viewing for each source.
With the 600M, an unauthorized patch is available, but will void your warranty.
If you are ok with voiding the warranty to have the absolute greatest flexibility in calibration, then you're good. (Or has that changed?)
If this is worrisome at all, then you have to weigh the cost vs benefit ratio.
So . . . on one hand people think Pios are the shiznit for a variety of reasons, but it's arguable that its greatest strength is its flexibility of calibration.
Here is a list of ISF Pros who are able to use CALcontrol on the 600M. It shows who can also patch it for you, and those who can't.
Linear Mode
