Screen Decisions

[dansil]

I'm looking to change/upgrade my projector screen but it can be a little overwhelming with all the choices out there and trying to understand the science behind making the right decision on a new screen (neutral gain, high gain, high contrast, sizing...), which also needs to take into consideration all the usual factors, lighting control (including room color) and type/brighteness of projector.

OK, so I have a couple of fundamental questions. I have a rectanglular room 13.5' x 18' screen on the short wall and seating approx. 13' from the screen. The projector (JVC RS-45U) hangs from an 8' ceiling and is approx. 16' from the screen. I would like a screen approx. 120" wide and was thinking about the Da-Lite High Power. The greatest viewing angle is less than 30 degrees (by my calculations) and I was hoping the high gain would help the project accomodate the bigger screen and may help as well with 3D viewing although this will be infrequent.

Any opintions or suggestions?

 

[BMXTRIX]

I would never recommend a screen gain more than that of a minimal amount due to hotspotting and brightness uniformity over the width of the image. High gain screens are for rooms where light can't be controlled and you have a narrow viewing area.

A 120" width is over your typical viewing width from a 13' viewing distance. Recommended, center of theater, would be about 104" width, or closer to a 120" diagonal, not width.

Still, with the RS45 and 138" screen, you really do need the gain in some form to compensate. I'm just not sure I would go to that large of a screen with that projector, as it really isn't designed for it, and you will be compromising the design of the projector and your image quality by forcing a square peg into a round hole.

If the goal is a 138" (or so) diagonal, I just installed the Epson 5010 with a 134" Carada screen in Brilliant White (1.4 gain) in a properly treated home theater. Dark walls, dark carpet, dark ceiling. The end result was simply stunning. 2D content was extremely bright and may even need to be brought down some. 3D content was pretty much perfectly bright. Avatar showed excellent depth with good detail.

It seems like a mismatch, IMO, at this point. I'm not sure what you have right now for screen size, but the JVC isn't a powerhouse projector for larger screen sizes and, from what I've read, isn't a 3D class leader either. Both of these things stand in the way of your objective to maintain a high quality image with a larger screen size.

I LOVE JVC projectors, but while they absolutely will deliver the best image quality in 2D for the money, they operate best from 80"-120" diagonals in proper rooms. Very traditional expectations and design. Anything, including what you are hoping for, calls for a different projector first.

 

[dansil]

Based on you're feedback I will definitely reconsider both size and gain for the screen. Right now I have an old Draper roll down, non-tensioned, Matt White screen with a gain of 1.1 viewing width of 92". It has some waves in it that aren't terribily noticable during actual play (but I still know they're there). So I was thinking since I have just upgraded all my other equipment components maybe a bigger, better screen would enhance the theater experience. The reason I was considering the Da-lite High Power (2.4) is that I heard so much about it's qualities (superior brightness, no hotspotting and a reasonable off-axis half brightness of 30 degrees). Unfortunately, it is difficult to actually see a demo of my projector with various screen types that would help with selection but as always thanks for you insightful feedback.