Manual Projection Screen: Save Money
By purchasing a manual projection screen you can save a lot of money over other options that are on the market today. Of course money is not the only thing to consider when buying a projection screen, but depending on your situation it should definitely come into play. After all, who doesn’t want to save a bit of money with any purchase that they make. And if you can get away with using a manual projection screen instead of a more sophisticated option why not do so?
The main difference between a manual projection screen and a motorized option is that you will have to pull down the screen yourself anytime you want to use it. In addition, when you are done you will have to put the screen back up manually. For most people this is not a problem so the money that they save is well worth it. The only downfall is that you will actually have to do the work yourself to put the screen up and down. Plus, some people like the look and feel of the motorized projection screen; it makes them appear as if they are more technologically advanced.
If you are not concerned about a little bit of work, or how you look, a manual projection screen may be the best option for you. Not only can you save money along the way, but you will also be getting a great screen that can help out with presentations. A manual projection screen is an option that should be considered.
October 20th, 2006 at 8:28 am
We have made a TV screen at home about 6ft by 9ft, and need it to be more reflective to play video games on it so the laser light reflects better. It’s basically a high thread count sheet stretched over a frame with black plastic on the back.
It works great; we have a projector used as the output. What would you suggest to help make it more reflective?? Do I need to get some kind of see-through plastic, or is there a coating of something that can be applied to the material to make it that way. Or am I going to have to purchase something else to accomplish my task?
Any input you could give in this matter would be greatly appreciated.
October 24th, 2006 at 5:32 am
Thank you for contacting us. We appreciate the opportunity to help you at ProjectionScreensforLess.com.
We are not aware of anything you can put on your screen to increase reflectivity. That doesn’t mean there isn’t anything, just that we are not familiar with anything that will work.
However, all is not lost. There a couple things you might try that could increase your reflectivity.
First, try repositioning your projector. In normal screens the greatest intensity of light will reflect at an equal and opposite angle to the angle of incidence, favouring ceiling-mounted projector setups as it will maximize the apparent screen brightness on the audience level. In other words, position your projector so when the light hits the screen the reflective bounce is directly into the viewing area where people are seated.
Your best reflectivity will come if the projector is shooting straight at the screen and thus the light is bouncing straight back at the audience. If shooting from the ceiling, make sure the bouncing angle of the light is not being projected into the floor.
Second, try curving your screen. Curved screens can be made highly reflective without introducing any visible hot spots, if the curvature of the screen, placement of the projector and the seating arrangement is designed correctly. The object of this design is to have the screen reflect the projected light back to the audience, effectively making the entire screen a giant “hot spot”.
Third, check your projector lamp. If it has many hours on it, you’re getting greatly reduced brightness and replacing it will bring your brightness back to 100%.
If you are using a native 4:3 projector and running it in 16:9 mode you will not be using all of the projector light as certain pixels are turned off to create the 16:9 image. Try running it in 4:3 mode and see if that helps.
Since 6′ x 9′ is not a true 4:3 or 16:9 aspect ratio, try reducing your screen size to either 6′ x 8′ (4:3) or 5′ x 9′ (16:9). This will reduce the area over which you are spreading the light and thus diluting the lumens per square inch.
If none of these solutions work, we would be able to provide you with a 120″ fixed frame screen with black velvet frame (prevents bleed) for $778. If you need ultra high gain, our sister company TRaC Associates has Peak 20 Gain screen but they cost almost $3,000.
Please let us know if we can be of further help.
Yours truly,
Projection Screens for Less