Right now a QUESTION!! 😉
Im very happy with the image so far but there is one thing that bothers me. When the lamp has warmed up and is operating at full brightness, if you get a black scene in a movie like in space or something, you can see a very small brighter circle in the centre of the image, its not much brighter and you only notice it when you block out pretty much all light which is escaping from the projector.
Its def not the LCD overheating and if i fiddle with the fresnels i cant get rid of it.
Could it be the condenser needs moving away a bit from the bulb? thats the only thing i can think of.
Im very happy with the image so far but there is one thing that bothers me. When the lamp has warmed up and is operating at full brightness, if you get a black scene in a movie like in space or something, you can see a very small brighter circle in the centre of the image, its not much brighter and you only notice it when you block out pretty much all light which is escaping from the projector.
Its def not the LCD overheating and if i fiddle with the fresnels i cant get rid of it.
Could it be the condenser needs moving away a bit from the bulb? thats the only thing i can think of.
Have to say, those last shots you posted look stunning - the colours come out very vibrant and clear.
Your circle problem is probably something to do with the reflector and condensor setup - not sure myself - better ask the experts in teh forum.
Well done on your results so far..
Your circle problem is probably something to do with the reflector and condensor setup - not sure myself - better ask the experts in teh forum.
Well done on your results so far..
thanks kemly789 for your kind words🙂
Well its been a 15 hours straight day building today!!!!... i did 12 hours yesterday and 10 the day before that... oh and 8 the day before that.
Anyway i didnt realise this building projectors took quite so long! they before you first start building it seems pretty simple, you know, box, couple fresnels lamp etc etc. I didnt realise how much hard work it is actually building one, not that im complaining, im really enjoying building but my whole body aches like fuk 🙄
Well its been a 15 hours straight day building today!!!!... i did 12 hours yesterday and 10 the day before that... oh and 8 the day before that.
Anyway i didnt realise this building projectors took quite so long! they before you first start building it seems pretty simple, you know, box, couple fresnels lamp etc etc. I didnt realise how much hard work it is actually building one, not that im complaining, im really enjoying building but my whole body aches like fuk 🙄
So then after the 15 hours i now have got most of the projector finished. All i have left to do it to put the mirror in, and build the lens focusing system. Oh and a little bit of wiring for the fans to finish and also need to get a vent cover. Then i can relax and watch a bloody movie!!! 😀
Heres some photos of the work done today:
First pic is of the LCD adaptor and powersupply for the fans fitted
Heres some photos of the work done today:
First pic is of the LCD adaptor and powersupply for the fans fitted
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When i fit the mirror it will go here:
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Also fitted the Buttons from the LCD monitor.... poor thing was in such good condition before i ripped it apart! 😀
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View of the box with the lid on. You can see where i need to get some sort of vent cover, I was going to put a fan there but it wasnt needed so need to find a cover for it.
I also plan to have some sort of ducts going up over the fans in the front and sides so that i can redude light leakage.
I also plan to have some sort of ducts going up over the fans in the front and sides so that i can redude light leakage.
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And finally just for fun, my nice tidy work area.... or as my parents used to call it... the dining room 😱 haha
sorry dad if you read this! 😀
sorry dad if you read this! 😀
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light box metal against wood
I have read posts from another builder who had his metal light box flush up against the wood, and he complained about a burnt smell after using it for a few hours. He removed the metal to have a look and the wood underneath was charred.
Shiny metal does not radiate heat very well. If it has the lamp on one side and wood on the other, it just gets hotter and hotter until it starts to burn the wood. It looks like your metal against the wood has a hammered finish, so you may get enough heat transfer just from the front side into the air stream so this does not occur.
But if you do notice a burnt smell: Try making your light box 1 cm smaller in each dimension, so it can be mounted with a 1 cm free air space between the metal and the wood.
I am also a little worried that you might cook your LCD controller board. I would figure out a way to put it on the other side of the LCD, or at least put a light shield over it. The light on that side of the box can be really hot! The UV won't help either.
I have read posts from another builder who had his metal light box flush up against the wood, and he complained about a burnt smell after using it for a few hours. He removed the metal to have a look and the wood underneath was charred.
Shiny metal does not radiate heat very well. If it has the lamp on one side and wood on the other, it just gets hotter and hotter until it starts to burn the wood. It looks like your metal against the wood has a hammered finish, so you may get enough heat transfer just from the front side into the air stream so this does not occur.
But if you do notice a burnt smell: Try making your light box 1 cm smaller in each dimension, so it can be mounted with a 1 cm free air space between the metal and the wood.
I am also a little worried that you might cook your LCD controller board. I would figure out a way to put it on the other side of the LCD, or at least put a light shield over it. The light on that side of the box can be really hot! The UV won't help either.
My light box is setup as follows:
You can see (well maybe, my diagram isnt very good) there is a 1cm gap behind the metal which holds the reflector, This has air sucked through it as well as inside the light box where the bulb is.
There is good air flow everywhere and even the aluminum which is right next to the bulb is cool enough to touch after being on over an hour.
I was worried about the LCD curcuit board but i have a fan blowing in directly down and onto the PCB. I have left it on for well over hour n half and touched the black chips on the PCB and they are only slightly hotter than they get normally without the lamp on.
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You can see (well maybe, my diagram isnt very good) there is a 1cm gap behind the metal which holds the reflector, This has air sucked through it as well as inside the light box where the bulb is.
There is good air flow everywhere and even the aluminum which is right next to the bulb is cool enough to touch after being on over an hour.
I was worried about the LCD curcuit board but i have a fan blowing in directly down and onto the PCB. I have left it on for well over hour n half and touched the black chips on the PCB and they are only slightly hotter than they get normally without the lamp on.
I have basically got my projector to a working state, still got few bits to do like make some vents so stop light escaping and try n fiddle with my reflector to stop a small hot spot in the middle of pic but apart from that its finally finished! took about 8 days total to build once i had the parts.... 8 days of 10-15 hours stints that is lol
heres a pic of the beast complete with lovely cardboard vents. I plan on putting some sort of material to cover it but thats will be a long time in the future.
heres a pic of the beast complete with lovely cardboard vents. I plan on putting some sort of material to cover it but thats will be a long time in the future.
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couple of test shots to finish up
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oh and a shot with the lights on ( 3 x 100w lounge lights)
You may notice that the image is distorted at the bottom, this is because i have i just chucked the projector on a small table in out lounge, not setup correctly.
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You may notice that the image is distorted at the bottom, this is because i have i just chucked the projector on a small table in out lounge, not setup correctly.
Finally got my projector setup in my bedroom! very happy with the results, although not perfect but they are good enough!
Heres how i have it setup....emmm nice cardboard vents 😀 lol
Heres how i have it setup....emmm nice cardboard vents 😀 lol
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And heres a couple of test shots again:
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Hey I think its great! Especially the butt-ugly cardboard vents😉
The quality is excellent in the dark! And the design is good too!
Remember, its best to have the exhaust on the top, because hot air moves up!
Although... are the rounded edges because of your camera or is the projector doing that?
Cheers,
Alex
The quality is excellent in the dark! And the design is good too!
Remember, its best to have the exhaust on the top, because hot air moves up!
Although... are the rounded edges because of your camera or is the projector doing that?
Cheers,
Alex
my exhaust vents do go up, the intake vents are all going down. 🙂
The curveness of the image is there in real life, although the angle of the shot makes it look worse.
I think its because im only using a lens with the light entry side having a 50mm diameter and the light exit size having a 40mm diameter. Its a varifocal and i think it was supposed to be used on smaller LCD's.... my LCD is 13.3". i might try and get another lens at some point to let more light in as well. Hopefully this will sort out the barral distortion and maybe make the image even brighter
The curveness of the image is there in real life, although the angle of the shot makes it look worse.
I think its because im only using a lens with the light entry side having a 50mm diameter and the light exit size having a 40mm diameter. Its a varifocal and i think it was supposed to be used on smaller LCD's.... my LCD is 13.3". i might try and get another lens at some point to let more light in as well. Hopefully this will sort out the barral distortion and maybe make the image even brighter
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