NEWBIE HELP!
Hi everyone, I'm new to the forums> I got into this because while on ebay I saw them selling something for a DiY 100" TV. I tried it and while it was fun to do. The project was better than the outcome. I heard mention of a DiY yourself LCD projector and bought plans on ebay for one before stumbling on this website. I didnt pay a lot of money for them so it's no big deal and if anyones interested i can email them to people( havent received them yet, this week). But from what Ive seen there tons of different ways to do this. Diff lamps and even box shaped. So im VERY confused. Whats the best way to go about this?
I even saw plans that you get an LCD panel and a 40 dollar overhead projector(you know the kind that was used in school) and that would work. Then I see other plans with lcd panel using fresnel laenses. I am a bit down on the fresnel lens route becuase of my experience with the 100" tv. Which way would produce a better image the already built overhead projector or the fresnal lens route?
Thanks for any input. And please help me get started.
What components do i need? What shape box? Fresnel or overhead projector? Thanks for ALLLLLLL your help!
Hi everyone, I'm new to the forums> I got into this because while on ebay I saw them selling something for a DiY 100" TV. I tried it and while it was fun to do. The project was better than the outcome. I heard mention of a DiY yourself LCD projector and bought plans on ebay for one before stumbling on this website. I didnt pay a lot of money for them so it's no big deal and if anyones interested i can email them to people( havent received them yet, this week). But from what Ive seen there tons of different ways to do this. Diff lamps and even box shaped. So im VERY confused. Whats the best way to go about this?
I even saw plans that you get an LCD panel and a 40 dollar overhead projector(you know the kind that was used in school) and that would work. Then I see other plans with lcd panel using fresnel laenses. I am a bit down on the fresnel lens route becuase of my experience with the 100" tv. Which way would produce a better image the already built overhead projector or the fresnal lens route?
Thanks for any input. And please help me get started.
What components do i need? What shape box? Fresnel or overhead projector? Thanks for ALLLLLLL your help!
Vince,
I am with you on the "in series/small container" route. I'm going for small, energy efficient, inexpensive, and long bulb life. I know there will be some comprimises, but a 65watt bulb that can deliver the performance of a 400watt bulb (just an estimate) will give substantial saving in power bills over the long haul...not to mention the longevity of these bulbs compared to their halogen equivalents. Good luck on Tuesday!
Type-E,
The "color temp", the way I understand it, is mostly a way of rating the perceived color of the light produced by the bulb. Some bulbs favor certain wavelengths of light, giving them a more red or blue color. I have some 6700K bulbs on my reef aquarium, and they are very "white". I know that above 6700, the light begins to take on a slightly blue tint. Below that, the red spectrum begins to show. A 4100K bulb will definitely have more red when compared to a 6700K bulb. In my opinion, anywhere between 7000K and 5000K would be a good choice for this project. Of course, different bulb manufacturers vary in their ratings (the same is also true with lumens ratings), so actually trying them out is the best way to evaluate its utility.
I don't think the K number has anything to do with the actual temperature of the bulb, but I may be wrong.
B***h,
Those 96watt PC's are really nice, but they are long bulbs (maybe 36 inches or so? Just a guess). It would probably be difficult to harness the light over such a length. Actually, if you took a 6" section of that bulb and compared it to the lumen output of a 6" CFL, you might find that they are very similar. The increased power rating and lumen rating of the 96watt bulb is directly related to it's length. This is similiar to 40watt 48" standard fluorescents vs. 30watt 36" standard fluorescents. The higher power is needed to excite the phosphors over the longer length of bulb.
They do have an excellent color temp. If there was some way to make a parabolic reflector that was a long tube to enclose a bulb like this, it may be a possibility...it would be rather large, though. This is similar to THUNTER's suggestion, but unless the light can be directed outward on its first strike of the reflector, but wouldn't you probably lose some efficiency as it gets bounced around the "tube"? I'm not sure about this...has anyone tried this out?
Fiat1,
Let us know how the UV filter works out. It sounds like a great way to open up some different lighting possibilities.
Good luck everybody...great ideas!
-f4
I am with you on the "in series/small container" route. I'm going for small, energy efficient, inexpensive, and long bulb life. I know there will be some comprimises, but a 65watt bulb that can deliver the performance of a 400watt bulb (just an estimate) will give substantial saving in power bills over the long haul...not to mention the longevity of these bulbs compared to their halogen equivalents. Good luck on Tuesday!
Type-E,
The "color temp", the way I understand it, is mostly a way of rating the perceived color of the light produced by the bulb. Some bulbs favor certain wavelengths of light, giving them a more red or blue color. I have some 6700K bulbs on my reef aquarium, and they are very "white". I know that above 6700, the light begins to take on a slightly blue tint. Below that, the red spectrum begins to show. A 4100K bulb will definitely have more red when compared to a 6700K bulb. In my opinion, anywhere between 7000K and 5000K would be a good choice for this project. Of course, different bulb manufacturers vary in their ratings (the same is also true with lumens ratings), so actually trying them out is the best way to evaluate its utility.
I don't think the K number has anything to do with the actual temperature of the bulb, but I may be wrong.
B***h,
Those 96watt PC's are really nice, but they are long bulbs (maybe 36 inches or so? Just a guess). It would probably be difficult to harness the light over such a length. Actually, if you took a 6" section of that bulb and compared it to the lumen output of a 6" CFL, you might find that they are very similar. The increased power rating and lumen rating of the 96watt bulb is directly related to it's length. This is similiar to 40watt 48" standard fluorescents vs. 30watt 36" standard fluorescents. The higher power is needed to excite the phosphors over the longer length of bulb.
They do have an excellent color temp. If there was some way to make a parabolic reflector that was a long tube to enclose a bulb like this, it may be a possibility...it would be rather large, though. This is similar to THUNTER's suggestion, but unless the light can be directed outward on its first strike of the reflector, but wouldn't you probably lose some efficiency as it gets bounced around the "tube"? I'm not sure about this...has anyone tried this out?
Fiat1,
Let us know how the UV filter works out. It sounds like a great way to open up some different lighting possibilities.
Good luck everybody...great ideas!
-f4
skilzygw-
There are many different approaches- I'm leaning towards the overhead projector route because they already do exactly what we want them to. They shine light through some sort of transmissive medium, and focus the resulting light patterns on a surface. Not to say other approaches aren't worth trying, but it seems the easiest approach to me.
I guess it all depends on your LCD. If you get a 2.5" 800x600 lcd, then the OHP probably isn't a good idea. However, if you buy a 15" TFT lcd monitor, then an OHP is ideal.
There are many different approaches- I'm leaning towards the overhead projector route because they already do exactly what we want them to. They shine light through some sort of transmissive medium, and focus the resulting light patterns on a surface. Not to say other approaches aren't worth trying, but it seems the easiest approach to me.
I guess it all depends on your LCD. If you get a 2.5" 800x600 lcd, then the OHP probably isn't a good idea. However, if you buy a 15" TFT lcd monitor, then an OHP is ideal.
yeah axeman. I was checking out some posts by the username Myren and he shows some pics of his overhead projector and setup. I wish he had some pics of the finished image on the screen. That would be great.
I was under the impression that you needed a small 5inch lcd but your telling me if i was to go the overhead projector route(which I probably am) then it would be better to get a larger tft screen like the kind for pc's?
What is it exactly that has to be done to the screen to make it work? You have to take off the plastic? How easily is that done?
Thanks for all the help!
I was under the impression that you needed a small 5inch lcd but your telling me if i was to go the overhead projector route(which I probably am) then it would be better to get a larger tft screen like the kind for pc's?
What is it exactly that has to be done to the screen to make it work? You have to take off the plastic? How easily is that done?
Thanks for all the help!
whats the throw distance of the OHP?
Just wondering, whats the throw distance with one of those old school(literally) overhead projectors? I mean what size viewing screen can they project the image up to without losing clarity?
Thanks! Sorry for all the threads I have in a row.
Just wondering, whats the throw distance with one of those old school(literally) overhead projectors? I mean what size viewing screen can they project the image up to without losing clarity?
Thanks! Sorry for all the threads I have in a row.
hi again.
status:
still waiting for a certain company to replace my LCD. when moving into my dorm i kinda broke it, but its under warranty and i'm hoping said company is going to replace it. the lcd should be getting to them any day now and hopefully i'll get my panel back sometime fairly soon and be able to snap some shots for everyone. cross your fingers they dont notice my abusive usage. 😀 whatever the case, the day i get it back will be the day i post pictures, i promise.
i'm very very sorry i didnt take photos back when it was working, but i didnt have access to digital camera and i still dont have access to a scanner to scan in the photos i do have.
personal plans:
the next version i build is going to have all the optical components mounted on an overhead slide rail system with a x-axis stepper motors controlling the positions of the optics independently. i might just forgoe the steppers and switch to an encoded motorized system to reduce costs. i've been writing software for the scenix/ubicom microcontroller which will interface the various electronics with the home automation network i've built. the goal is to be able to just plug in an image size on the computer and have the optics automatically readjust their positions with the help of a trigometric laser pointer rangefinder to achieve the desired results while still retaining focus.
i'm still using basically an OHP scheme, but i'm turning the whole thing on its side, removing the mirror and automating the position. it'll probably end up being about 15 inches wide by 12 inches tall by probably over fourty inches long. no small creation, thats for sure. i'd like to find a good 40,000+ lumen light, preferably a nice arch light, otherwise probably just a metal halide. either way, its going to drain a shitload of power. it'll be again using a 15" TFT lcd panel, but the main goal is to be able to construct a similar system using any size panel at all, permitting for easy ways to get greater resolutions.
obviously this is a fairly large industrial setup, definately nothing compared to soje's tiny M3 in respect to size. but it should have exceptional brightness (goal: over 3500 lumens) and image quality. And for a continued increases in cost i should be able to get continued increases in resolution. For the $5000 listed for the M3, i could get a projector of exceptional brightness with 1080p resolution. This is really just a different scale than the personal projection systems were finding on the market now.
my continued bitch is the inherent light inefficiency. a decent % of the light in the OHP is just wasted, scattered to the four winds (well, sides of the case). I've been trying to concoct a light focusing chamber using mirrors that will hopefully allow me to make use of almost all the light. I think i might have to develop some ray tracing software to actualize this dream, unless anyone knows of some basic software which will do that for me.
if that doesnt work, placing the bulb closer to the fresnel and using a larger back mirror might have to suffice. just try and use existing designs but catch a little more light. as Thunter pointed out, a lot of us are probably loosing a large amount of our light.
i got a pretty decent forced air cooling system all planned out, using two rather large molded plastic blower fans. i have the motors chosen, but its going to take a bunch more work to get the mold finished. the actual venting system will be built into the enclosure itself. doing my best to optimize airflow and reduce noise. basically trying to have one fan be forced in take and one fan forced out take for the who system. cooling is such a bitch.
miscellanary:
i cant wait until LED's are powerful enough to serve as replacements for bulbs. no heat issues. ah.
those are some extremely interesting bulbs gunawan found. next goal for me is trying to find a more powerful version of them. researching that whole HPIT MHNTD thing now.
fiat1 asked how i'm keeping things cool enough. i'm doing ok for cooling because of how i'm applying my cooling. i tried very hard to make sure my fans got rid of the heat before they got to the lcd panel, rather than remove the heat from the LCD panel itself. i changed around the airflow in the ohp box itself to give it better airflow across the bulb itself. And i'm using a much better fan than the factory default one. plus the blower on the back which puts a nice strong wind through the one inch space between the fresnel and the LCD itself, ripping out most of the heat before it gets to the panel. temperatures - without exception - stay below 100 F on the panel itself. high 80's to low 90's are pretty standard after extended usage (a day of movies and video games). results measured with one of those $200 optical temperature sensors, borrowed from dads work.
by the way, fiat1, try looking around online for better globes. if you've got 240 mains, you might consider investing in a 1/2 decent step-down transformer to drop you down to 120 if you cant find any good 240 v bulbs.
anyone found any good sources for fresnels recently? there was one listed a long while back which i got to go dig up again.
one of the inherent problems with UV filters and cold mirrors is that - in compliance with the basic laws of reality - they do not remove heat. they simply redirect the heat someplace else. we still need to get rid of the heat somehow.
as for color temp, yes, it would be nice to have a nice 5000-6000 range. unfortunately, a lot of bulbs hover around 3000. yes, it does appear slightly red when just viewed alone. but LCD panels themselves are typically a touch blue biased, which works to make a fairly even image ultimately. plus i use the computer to give everything a bit of a blue tint with curves. but yeah, it would be nice to get a higher color temp than the 3000-some i'm running now.
i think axemans pretty dead on with the lcd panel statement. someone a long while back borrowed a photo term: nothing beats a bigger form factor. the obvious unavoidable problem is, 15 inch tft's are damned expensive for what were doing. personally, i think it really depends on how much you want/are willing to invest.
skilzygw: to get the pc screens working you have to be willing to open up the case and remove the actual LCD panel and controller circuitry from the case. it is a relatively simple process, all it took me was a phillips head screw driver and two hours. be careful, just take your time. i didnt really know what to expect, but it ended up being quite simple.
right now i'm using two lego bricks duct taped down to the corners of the OHP to suspend the panel above the OHP, and i just kinda have the control circuitry percariously dangling off the side. a decent cardboard or wood enclosure for the circuitry is recommended to prevent damage.
right now i'm 9 feet away (purely a constraint of my dorm room) with a nine foot wide by six-point-seven-five foot tall image (4:3 aspect ratio). at my house i was running an image about twelve feet wide by seven feet tall (16:9 aspect ratio) without any loss of clarity at all. its a fairly ancient projector, but its got a relatively bright bulb (17000 lumens) allowing for such large image sizes.
myren
status:
still waiting for a certain company to replace my LCD. when moving into my dorm i kinda broke it, but its under warranty and i'm hoping said company is going to replace it. the lcd should be getting to them any day now and hopefully i'll get my panel back sometime fairly soon and be able to snap some shots for everyone. cross your fingers they dont notice my abusive usage. 😀 whatever the case, the day i get it back will be the day i post pictures, i promise.
i'm very very sorry i didnt take photos back when it was working, but i didnt have access to digital camera and i still dont have access to a scanner to scan in the photos i do have.
personal plans:
the next version i build is going to have all the optical components mounted on an overhead slide rail system with a x-axis stepper motors controlling the positions of the optics independently. i might just forgoe the steppers and switch to an encoded motorized system to reduce costs. i've been writing software for the scenix/ubicom microcontroller which will interface the various electronics with the home automation network i've built. the goal is to be able to just plug in an image size on the computer and have the optics automatically readjust their positions with the help of a trigometric laser pointer rangefinder to achieve the desired results while still retaining focus.
i'm still using basically an OHP scheme, but i'm turning the whole thing on its side, removing the mirror and automating the position. it'll probably end up being about 15 inches wide by 12 inches tall by probably over fourty inches long. no small creation, thats for sure. i'd like to find a good 40,000+ lumen light, preferably a nice arch light, otherwise probably just a metal halide. either way, its going to drain a shitload of power. it'll be again using a 15" TFT lcd panel, but the main goal is to be able to construct a similar system using any size panel at all, permitting for easy ways to get greater resolutions.
obviously this is a fairly large industrial setup, definately nothing compared to soje's tiny M3 in respect to size. but it should have exceptional brightness (goal: over 3500 lumens) and image quality. And for a continued increases in cost i should be able to get continued increases in resolution. For the $5000 listed for the M3, i could get a projector of exceptional brightness with 1080p resolution. This is really just a different scale than the personal projection systems were finding on the market now.
my continued bitch is the inherent light inefficiency. a decent % of the light in the OHP is just wasted, scattered to the four winds (well, sides of the case). I've been trying to concoct a light focusing chamber using mirrors that will hopefully allow me to make use of almost all the light. I think i might have to develop some ray tracing software to actualize this dream, unless anyone knows of some basic software which will do that for me.
if that doesnt work, placing the bulb closer to the fresnel and using a larger back mirror might have to suffice. just try and use existing designs but catch a little more light. as Thunter pointed out, a lot of us are probably loosing a large amount of our light.
i got a pretty decent forced air cooling system all planned out, using two rather large molded plastic blower fans. i have the motors chosen, but its going to take a bunch more work to get the mold finished. the actual venting system will be built into the enclosure itself. doing my best to optimize airflow and reduce noise. basically trying to have one fan be forced in take and one fan forced out take for the who system. cooling is such a bitch.
miscellanary:
i cant wait until LED's are powerful enough to serve as replacements for bulbs. no heat issues. ah.
those are some extremely interesting bulbs gunawan found. next goal for me is trying to find a more powerful version of them. researching that whole HPIT MHNTD thing now.
fiat1 asked how i'm keeping things cool enough. i'm doing ok for cooling because of how i'm applying my cooling. i tried very hard to make sure my fans got rid of the heat before they got to the lcd panel, rather than remove the heat from the LCD panel itself. i changed around the airflow in the ohp box itself to give it better airflow across the bulb itself. And i'm using a much better fan than the factory default one. plus the blower on the back which puts a nice strong wind through the one inch space between the fresnel and the LCD itself, ripping out most of the heat before it gets to the panel. temperatures - without exception - stay below 100 F on the panel itself. high 80's to low 90's are pretty standard after extended usage (a day of movies and video games). results measured with one of those $200 optical temperature sensors, borrowed from dads work.
by the way, fiat1, try looking around online for better globes. if you've got 240 mains, you might consider investing in a 1/2 decent step-down transformer to drop you down to 120 if you cant find any good 240 v bulbs.
anyone found any good sources for fresnels recently? there was one listed a long while back which i got to go dig up again.
one of the inherent problems with UV filters and cold mirrors is that - in compliance with the basic laws of reality - they do not remove heat. they simply redirect the heat someplace else. we still need to get rid of the heat somehow.
as for color temp, yes, it would be nice to have a nice 5000-6000 range. unfortunately, a lot of bulbs hover around 3000. yes, it does appear slightly red when just viewed alone. but LCD panels themselves are typically a touch blue biased, which works to make a fairly even image ultimately. plus i use the computer to give everything a bit of a blue tint with curves. but yeah, it would be nice to get a higher color temp than the 3000-some i'm running now.
i think axemans pretty dead on with the lcd panel statement. someone a long while back borrowed a photo term: nothing beats a bigger form factor. the obvious unavoidable problem is, 15 inch tft's are damned expensive for what were doing. personally, i think it really depends on how much you want/are willing to invest.
skilzygw: to get the pc screens working you have to be willing to open up the case and remove the actual LCD panel and controller circuitry from the case. it is a relatively simple process, all it took me was a phillips head screw driver and two hours. be careful, just take your time. i didnt really know what to expect, but it ended up being quite simple.
right now i'm using two lego bricks duct taped down to the corners of the OHP to suspend the panel above the OHP, and i just kinda have the control circuitry percariously dangling off the side. a decent cardboard or wood enclosure for the circuitry is recommended to prevent damage.
right now i'm 9 feet away (purely a constraint of my dorm room) with a nine foot wide by six-point-seven-five foot tall image (4:3 aspect ratio). at my house i was running an image about twelve feet wide by seven feet tall (16:9 aspect ratio) without any loss of clarity at all. its a fairly ancient projector, but its got a relatively bright bulb (17000 lumens) allowing for such large image sizes.
myren
hrm. looks like there may be some pretty nice lighting options i had not previously considered. i'm sure someone mentioned them earlier.
metal hid high intensity discharge (HID) lamps.
they look amazingly spiffy. unfortunately, they're actual lamps, and thus require ballats/starters (or something). i'm not really sure quite whats required to get them working actually. but damn do they ever look cool.
i'm amazed with what i've found so far. the MVR400 - for example - is a 400 watt 20,000 hour 41,000 lumen bulb. holy shiza man, thats about 10x better than the junk i've been looking at for the past week. $30. reasonable color temps (4000-5000 range). whew. man, i think i'm gonna have to go change my pants now.
again though, the down side is they require some sort of starter circuitry. does anyone know how the lamp, ballast, starter thing works? i'm just an ignorant shmoe.
it appears there are a number of different types of "real" lamps, some using constant wattage ballast systems, some using pulse start mechanisms, all having slightly different strengths and weaknesses. unfortunately, i havent found any really good sources for simply explanation of the basics.
i really think this might be the way to go for lights though. for 150 watts less than i'm using right now i could be getting 2-3 times the light with a much much better color temp. worth the extra control circuitry in my book, even though i'm not quite sure what that control circuitry consists of.
additional research/knowledge appreciated. i'll keep looking to.
myren
metal hid high intensity discharge (HID) lamps.
they look amazingly spiffy. unfortunately, they're actual lamps, and thus require ballats/starters (or something). i'm not really sure quite whats required to get them working actually. but damn do they ever look cool.
i'm amazed with what i've found so far. the MVR400 - for example - is a 400 watt 20,000 hour 41,000 lumen bulb. holy shiza man, thats about 10x better than the junk i've been looking at for the past week. $30. reasonable color temps (4000-5000 range). whew. man, i think i'm gonna have to go change my pants now.
again though, the down side is they require some sort of starter circuitry. does anyone know how the lamp, ballast, starter thing works? i'm just an ignorant shmoe.
it appears there are a number of different types of "real" lamps, some using constant wattage ballast systems, some using pulse start mechanisms, all having slightly different strengths and weaknesses. unfortunately, i havent found any really good sources for simply explanation of the basics.
i really think this might be the way to go for lights though. for 150 watts less than i'm using right now i could be getting 2-3 times the light with a much much better color temp. worth the extra control circuitry in my book, even though i'm not quite sure what that control circuitry consists of.
additional research/knowledge appreciated. i'll keep looking to.
myren
Low cost rear projection with not so bright projector
Folks, check this out. Maybe we can lower our lumens level and go for the rear projection option. The picture quality is supposed to be great!
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?threadid=109287
Folks, check this out. Maybe we can lower our lumens level and go for the rear projection option. The picture quality is supposed to be great!
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?threadid=109287
Hey Myren thanks for the quick responses. Sounds great. Guess what I just bought a projector off ebay its a
"Bell & Howell Model 301" Sorry to bother you so much but do you know anything about the bulb and brightness, is it any good? Did you change the bulb to something else or did you use the stock bulb? If you did change the bulb did you need special housing or change the power supply etc...?
I was wondering one other thing, I know you said to get a 15inch tft screen, BUT they are kind of expensive 300 bucks the cheapest of seen. So can I use a about 5" LCD projection panel? They are smaller size and lower resolution but they are a lot cheaper. Do you have any idea how something like that would work?
Thanks!
P.S. What do you think of the projector?
Oh yeah with the projection panel do I need to open it up or is it already built that way? Do I have to lift it off the lens of the OHP due to heat? Do I have to add cooling? 1080i projector that's interesting, how do u plan on that(with a better tft screen)? Thanks!
Thank you very much for your answers. I'm very excited to get started.
If you want you can email me these answers so we dont add needless threads.
Skilz79@hotmail.com
"Bell & Howell Model 301" Sorry to bother you so much but do you know anything about the bulb and brightness, is it any good? Did you change the bulb to something else or did you use the stock bulb? If you did change the bulb did you need special housing or change the power supply etc...?
I was wondering one other thing, I know you said to get a 15inch tft screen, BUT they are kind of expensive 300 bucks the cheapest of seen. So can I use a about 5" LCD projection panel? They are smaller size and lower resolution but they are a lot cheaper. Do you have any idea how something like that would work?
Thanks!
P.S. What do you think of the projector?
Oh yeah with the projection panel do I need to open it up or is it already built that way? Do I have to lift it off the lens of the OHP due to heat? Do I have to add cooling? 1080i projector that's interesting, how do u plan on that(with a better tft screen)? Thanks!
Thank you very much for your answers. I'm very excited to get started.
If you want you can email me these answers so we dont add needless threads.
Skilz79@hotmail.com
Hello,
This is my first night of looking at this forum, I'm amazed at what I see. I thought about doing this awhile ago but didnt know where to start, looks like I found the place!
Myren, I've decided to go "your" route, although right now I've only got one of the 5.6" LCD's from PE (was going to use it for in my car MP3, but that can wait till summer), I will be getting a 15" as soon as money permits. Can't wait to see some photos of yours working!
By the way don't be reluctant to use ballast/starters as they are as easy as puting in a light switch, well at least the ones I install at work.
Everyone, keep up the good work!
This is my first night of looking at this forum, I'm amazed at what I see. I thought about doing this awhile ago but didnt know where to start, looks like I found the place!
Myren, I've decided to go "your" route, although right now I've only got one of the 5.6" LCD's from PE (was going to use it for in my car MP3, but that can wait till summer), I will be getting a 15" as soon as money permits. Can't wait to see some photos of yours working!
By the way don't be reluctant to use ballast/starters as they are as easy as puting in a light switch, well at least the ones I install at work.
Everyone, keep up the good work!
If you are interested in the Overhead Projector route, be sure to check out Ebay. Do a search for "projection panel" and you should find many LCD panels that are designed to do exactly what we would like to do with them. It's worth a look. Some even have S-video and computer inputs. Others have used these with good results. Just a suggestion before anyone spends $300 on a nice 15" LCD (it would probably work great with great resolution, but why run the risk of messing it up? Just my opinion!).
baybum,
Thanks for the link! Those numbers are impressive. I think they require a metal halide ballast, but I have heard of reef aquarium guys finding those for cheap. Reefcentral has an active discussion board that might have some suggestions. Check the Do-it-yourself section, or do a forum search. I know they put out a good bit of heat (some people have to put expensive "chillers" on their aquariums to cool the water when these are running!), but they might be fine for our purposes.
Good luck!
-f4
baybum,
Thanks for the link! Those numbers are impressive. I think they require a metal halide ballast, but I have heard of reef aquarium guys finding those for cheap. Reefcentral has an active discussion board that might have some suggestions. Check the Do-it-yourself section, or do a forum search. I know they put out a good bit of heat (some people have to put expensive "chillers" on their aquariums to cool the water when these are running!), but they might be fine for our purposes.
Good luck!
-f4
Popcorn
This will seem really stupid, but it is practical. I am building my projector in a nice looking coffe table, I have decided that I will add a popcorn warmer since there will be so much heat from the lamp housing why not use it to keep powcorn warm, what is a home cinema without popcorn?
This will seem really stupid, but it is practical. I am building my projector in a nice looking coffe table, I have decided that I will add a popcorn warmer since there will be so much heat from the lamp housing why not use it to keep powcorn warm, what is a home cinema without popcorn?
Fender4,
Thanks for the advice, I did a search before but only for the ovation 820, and didn't find that many, but with this search alot more. Think I'll buy one of these to start.
Thanks!
Thanks for the advice, I did a search before but only for the ovation 820, and didn't find that many, but with this search alot more. Think I'll buy one of these to start.
Thanks!
CRT projectors
Hi all,
Q1. Please someone tell me how these CRT projectors work. Is it worth trying or not?
Q2. How do those line doublers work? If I buy a 2.5" lcd can I use one of those? Does a line doubler simply make 2*display lines? I don't think so, the LCD itself does not have that number of pixels to display. Or am I wrong?
All 2.5" LCDs I could find on the net are 480*234. Mars-cam has one of those at http://www.mars-cam.com/osd/lcd/panels/vlcd25p.html, can I use a line doubler to improve resolution? then I won't have to take the slide projector apart.
My projected image will be at around 5.5 m. (=?? feet) from the projector. Could somone please tell me some approx. lumen value for the bulb I need?
Please help,
Gabriel
Hi all,
Q1. Please someone tell me how these CRT projectors work. Is it worth trying or not?
Q2. How do those line doublers work? If I buy a 2.5" lcd can I use one of those? Does a line doubler simply make 2*display lines? I don't think so, the LCD itself does not have that number of pixels to display. Or am I wrong?
All 2.5" LCDs I could find on the net are 480*234. Mars-cam has one of those at http://www.mars-cam.com/osd/lcd/panels/vlcd25p.html, can I use a line doubler to improve resolution? then I won't have to take the slide projector apart.
My projected image will be at around 5.5 m. (=?? feet) from the projector. Could somone please tell me some approx. lumen value for the bulb I need?
Please help,
Gabriel
Line Doublers take the signal and double that, you would still need something capable of that produced resolution though.
Gunawan W
What about an off-road light rather than a regular headlight? It would be a powerfull spot light. I've got some 7" off-road lights on my jeep that I'm thinking of testing with.
What about an off-road light rather than a regular headlight? It would be a powerfull spot light. I've got some 7" off-road lights on my jeep that I'm thinking of testing with.
fender4 said:
woupps.. I wonder what the compact means in it then. There was the size of the thing but not the "measurement-unit" mentioned.
I got some answers for my lamp-posts and one was like one line of text basicly saying "go **** yourself", other one was loaded with information and catalog pictures and **** so I'm probably today going to order at least Osram HMP575 (6000k, 11000lumens, 1000hours) for my Medium-OHP and see how it works. The bulb costs $200 but I don't think $0,2/hour is going to kill me. The guy was recommending VIP R 273/45 5800 K 270W 38V 7,1A with somesort of integrated coldmirror in it (17000 lm, 1000hours) so I'm thinking about it for the diy thing. This is supposed to be $300, I'm not sure did it include the socket. I'll need powersource for it from somewhere else, and tried to check these out quickly and they would seem expensive.
The lamps are quaranteed for half their promised lifetime so don't have to worry if it blows up after 10 hours turnihg into expensive paperweight...
So if I take a projection panel and an OHP and use it as stock with no modifications... it's going to be too dark? but if I add more light though it won't it become washed out?
Does any of you have an idea how much heat does a HID (high intensity discharge) bulb output? Will it melt my projector if built in without cooling?
I have a pdf catalogue and I found an acceptable bulb originally made for studio and stage lighting 400W, 20.000lm, 5600K, 650 hr. lifetime. How much heat will I have to get rid of?
Another idea: why not build the projector into a computer case? You already have a power supply (hopefully usable), 2 or more cooling fan mounting points and a good design with massive metal casing, no plastic parts melting etc 🙂. Just redesign the mirror/lighting installation, drill a hole for the projection lenses on the front panel, and you're done. And you also get an on/off button for the whole projector.😛
Any ideas or possible problems with this setup?
Gabriel
I have a pdf catalogue and I found an acceptable bulb originally made for studio and stage lighting 400W, 20.000lm, 5600K, 650 hr. lifetime. How much heat will I have to get rid of?
Another idea: why not build the projector into a computer case? You already have a power supply (hopefully usable), 2 or more cooling fan mounting points and a good design with massive metal casing, no plastic parts melting etc 🙂. Just redesign the mirror/lighting installation, drill a hole for the projection lenses on the front panel, and you're done. And you also get an on/off button for the whole projector.😛
Any ideas or possible problems with this setup?
Gabriel
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