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Electric Projector Screens...


usmcavenger

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Hey everyone, I'm in the process of building a house and I'm turning our "Bonus Room" upstairs into a dedicated theater. I currently own a pair of RF-7 II's, RC-64 II, a pair of RC-62 II's, powered by a Pioneer Elite SV-57 and a Klipsch THX Ultra2 KA-1000-THX Amp with a single KW-120 Subwoofer. 

 

Right now I'm looking into projector screens and I'm interested in the electric kind so that when I'm not using it I can retract it so it's out of the way. My question is, do you guys have any specific recommendations in screens? I've of course done some research but haven't seen anything that's really stood out. I'm thinking of a screen size around 130-140in. The wall space is approximately 14ft across and 19ft deep. 

 

Attached is a pic of the wall I plan on putting the screen on with the RF-7 II's flanking it.

 

Thanks for any input and, Go Buckeyes! 

 

 

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Thanks for any input and, Go Buckeyes!

Ok, you have just reduced the amount of help you will receive significantly.  :lol::D  Just kidding, I don't even watch hockey.

 

You may want to suggest your budget as I found there is a wide range of pricing with screens.  I've been very happy with my budget friendly Elite fixed screen but when you add electronics to the screen, going budget might not be the best way to go.  Seymour has great reviews but they will likely be pretty pricey for an electric screen.

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Honestly price doesn't really matter as long as it's "perfect" if you know what I mean. I'd like to say no more than like 3 grand being that I don't really even know how expensive they normally are. I just want something that won't ruin, distort or alter the picture in any way. This will be my first actual attempt at making a legit theater, something I've always wanted, and I'll spend whatever it takes to meet the my standard. Although I'm not too sure what that even is. lol

 

Hahaha hockey. I don't watch that either :)

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Ok I've been doing a little research and like what I see and I'm liking the tensioned screens. Would you know if there's particular materials for screens that work or don't work, or are known to be better than others and what not? I'd think that could play a role in the overall quality and resolution of the picture, but of course I don't have any experience in this department. Thanks!

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I have an electric screen. They can be pretty pricey (nice ones). If your not going to need AT (acoustic transparent) then Seymour is probably a waste. They seem to be (in my research) one of the best AT brands for quality/price. For me the idea was I had my flat panel behind it so the thinking was use both. I found that putting it up in favor of the panel tv was very rare so now its down 99% of the time and the tv is in a different room. I only put it up when I have something to do behind it. It is really nice to be able to do that but for the price difference its a waste. I absolutely would have went with a fixed screen if I started over. Only because they cost like 3-4 times less for the same thing. And I also like the look of a fixed screen when its installed nicely. I have mine now were it looks almost like a fixed screen (but still not perfect imo). If you want to put it away when your not using it theater curtains can be had for a few hundred or less that would hide it nicely. And still look great if you don't go cheap crapy looking curtains. 

 

Its been my experience that price is always a big deal and the biggest over riding factor in everything big we buy in this hobby. Regardless if its perfect or not. Every penny saved on one thing means more to improve in other areas. Like a better projector or more subs (can never have to much bass). As an example my same screen fixed probably would cost almost 2k less. That 2k could get you a few big subs or like 4 18"s diy subs (or more idk). 

 

Now if you have kids and are scared they might go to town drawing on it or spilling stuff on it. In that case the extra money electric screen would possibly be the way to go. But unless your putting something like a flat panel behind it I don't se the point. You could also use screen paint and paint a screen on the wall. Not as nice but again save lots of money. 

 

Don't get me wrong I love my screen. But the electric feature in my room is almost wasted. 

Edited by Cinema_head
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Ok I've been doing a little research and like what I see and I'm liking the tensioned screens. Would you know if there's particular materials for screens that work or don't work, or are known to be better than others and what not? I'd think that could play a role in the overall quality and resolution of the picture, but of course I don't have any experience in this department. Thanks!

Tensioned screens can be a mess if you don't get a nice one. Even then it can move over time and as you lower the screen you will see waves in corners or worse. Mine had zero issues for a long time but as the tempture changed and it being in the basement in the winter I sometimes would see small waves in the screen when id lower it. It would go away after being down for a day or so. But it drove me nuts. Didn't effect the pq but knowing it was there it bothered me. I would but arm weights on the bar at the bottom and that would work really good. 

 

The type of screen material you want will depend on how much light your going to have in the room and the projector you have when watching movies. If you get the screen first the projector wouldn't be a factor. I would suggest doing lots of reading on it from people that are a lot smarter than me. The whole projector/screen is a completely different animal from home audio and the more research you do the happier your going to be. Avs forum and blu ray.com fourms are both great places to learn a ton. Lots of peps here know a lot too but those two forums are filled with super geek experts on this topic. What I did was after I ordered my screen I spent a good two weeks reading and asking questions before buying a projector. For me my the screen and type was pretty easy based on room and what I wanted. So then I could ask the projector questions based on the screen/size/room. 

Edited by Cinema_head
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So do you still use a screen for your setup? If so, any tips or suggestions or is it literally just set it up, calibrate the projector (or whatever you call that) and that's it? haha sorry for all the questions.

I'm not sure I understand your question. I have a fixed screen. I knew in my room I had no need for the screen to ever be not showing. The fixed screen comes in a few parts. I assembled it and mounted it to my cabinet and it had never moved since installation. I did calibrate my first projector (Panasonic AE3000u) with the Avia II disk but when I upgraded to the Panasonic AE8000u, I didn't bother with calibrating as I was extremely pleased with the PQ out of the box.

As cinema said, fixed are much cheaper and look fantastic if your room is a dedicated room. Some like he use a retractable screen because they watch regular tv from a tv behind the screen but he discovered it's not very exciting watching any size TV when you have a massive screen in the same room.

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As with all things in life, the more moving parts, the more potential for something to break. With the fixed screen there really is nothing to break because it never moves. There's no maintenance other than taking a lightly damp cloth and wiping the dust off of it every once a while

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Also when selecting a screen I had to decide whether I was going with 16:9 or 2.35:1 aspect ratio. Since at the time we did not have cable TV, and just about all of our content or Blu-ray movies, most of those movies are in the water 2.35:1 aspect ratio so I made the most sense for me to build my theater using a send a scope or 2.35:1 screen. Since at the time we did not have cable TV, and just about all of our content or Blu-ray movies, most of those movies are in the water 2.35:1 aspect ratio so I made the most sense for me to build my theater using a send a scope or 2.35:1 screen. Looking back I absolutely made the right decision in going with the wider screen. For somebody that watches a lot of football like wake junkie, it makes a lot of sense for him to have a 16:9 screen because those are shot in that format. I just like having the really wide screen because I wanted to replicate as best I could the experience that you get at the theater. I think it's safe to say with my current set up I really have no desire to go to the movie theaters anymore LOL

Edited by Youthman
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My current screen is not acoustically transparent meaning you cannot put a speaker behind it and allow the sound to come through it. last November, I purchased acoustic transparent fabric from Seymour to build 150 inch fixed screen. The cost of my 103 inch elite non-AT screen was $560. The cost of the 150" Seymour fabric was just over $300. By DIY, I'm able to get an extra 47" in diagonal and spend probably $100 less than what I spent on the 103"!

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Sounds like your build is similar to what we just completed. My thread is here for reference: https://community.klipsch.com/index.php?/topic/158099-fds-dolby-atmos-ht-design-build-thread/page-3

Our Elite motorized screen is not tensioned and you can see that it's not completely flat, but it was only $250 on Amazon. I may upgrade in the future, but for now it's good enough.

Edit: I will add that I've seen large-scale tensioned motorized screens in person, and they were completely flat.

Edited by FuzzyDog
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I don't own a screen of any type, but I was wondering what others have brought up, why have an electric screen?  There is no "wasted" space if you have a dedicated theater room. 

 

You are doing your research and you seem to have plenty of experienced consultants, here so that helps.  That room of yours sure looks like it has plenty of potential for greatness.

 

I see by your signature quote that Atmos is next on your Next list.  Will this be an Atmos theater room?  If so, what are the plans?

Edited by wvu80
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The OP's room pic makes it look like the screen may be mounted up against a sloping ceiling.  I gather that the screen may be hanging out a few feet into the room. 

 

In my case, our room is not a dedicated home theater.  We're planning to mount a flat screen tv on the wall for regular tv watching (food network and cartoons).

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If this has already been suggested, I apologize.

Consider a permanent fixed screen to avoid any waviness issues. Then hide the screen behind motorized theater drapes or a motorized roller shade. In my experience, Somfy motors are the best. Furthermore, if the switch is not dry contact (hard wired), a RF (radio frequency) signal remote is better than IR (infrared)' IMO.

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In my case, our room is not a dedicated home theater. We're planning to mount a flat screen tv on the wall for regular tv watching

 

 

Same here, if I had a dedicated room I would have gone with a fixed screen and saved some cash.

 

These are cool but very pricey:

 

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