Building new golf room and much help needed.

[cabler]

Hi,
I've been following this thread for over 2 years and am finally ready to start my home sim. I have a ton of question and hope you guys are willing to help. They only thing I have purchased so far is a pre-owned GC2 with no software. The room will be set up as a game room/theater room/golf sim (only way I could sell it to the wife. I'm listing my questions and I'm sure there will be many more. Any help is greatly appreciated.

1. optimal hitting distance and screen size? looking at screens between 12-14 feet. Is bigger better?

2. optimal hitting distance? I was thinking 10 ft from the screen so a I have plenty of room behind for couch, but I can push the hitting distance to 12ft if that would be beneficial. I def. want to leave plenty of seating room behind the hitting area. Would a 12 or 14 ft screen be too big hitting from 10 ft away? Should the scree hang all the way to the floor, or up a foot with border along the bottom?

3. lighting - windows will have blackout shades and sim area will also have retractable blackout curtains on each side of the hitting area. Spot light over the hitting area or not? Should a be able to dim all light in between the projector and screen?

4. projector - short throw or not? I was thinking short throw so I could keep all lighting off in between the projector and screen (ceiling is cathedral and is 12 feet high where projector will be mounted. any projector recommendation? Projector will be used for hd tv, xbox, and golf sim.

5. mat? - Have tendinitis in left wrist and def want a decent mat. Considering Tru Strike and Real Feel. emailed both company. Received immediate email response and phone call from Real Feel. Have never heard back from Tru strike.

6. Software? - Foresight rep recommended FS+1. Also thought about Pro-Tee software on GC2, however Cory from Par2Pro does not recommend it as he feels its a big risk if foresight finds a way to shut it down.

I'm sure I will have many more questions, but this will at least get me started. Thanks in advance. This is a great forum.

[mthunt]

Hi Cabler,

I can tell you what I did. I went and rented sim time and brought my tape. They all seem similar. Some have mats with hitting area in the middle. Those are usually 14.5 to 15 feet wide and you hit 10 feet from the screen. One was only 14 feet wide and I felt worried about the wall behind me. The golf town near me is only 12 feet wide but has mats on either side offsetting you from centre. It works very well this way. 8 feet behind is enough. Anything more is gravy. I settled on 20x15 with a 10 foot ceiling myself. I'm in permit stages now.

The rest is preference. I find the true strike to be pretty nice to hit off. I haven't tried the other one.

Good luck

Mike

[SnazzyD]

For the non-hitting areas, Home Depot sells some great 8' x 6' indoor/outdoor fuzzy green carpets - I use one for my (suddenly limited) downstairs putting area. They're a steal at $25 a pop and could fill out the space between the hitting area and the screen very nicely. And there's something about the fuzzy warm feeling they give you, especially when barefoot. Who knew recycled plastic bottles could feel so nice!

PM me if you want more details/product SKU, etc...

[cabler]

Thanks very much guys. I appreciate all the advise

[bionicbooger]

Hi Caber

This is Bret from golfsimulatorguys.com. Go to our website and have a look around. We will be willing to customize a studio to meet your needs. By the way, our impact screens produce the best picture on the market. We find it amazing that people spend huge money on a quality sim with amazing graphics and a nice projector, and then buy a hanging impact screen made of mesh only that doesn't hold an image well and wrinkles every time you hit a ball into it. Our screens are tension screens that are pulled tight and do not hang. Also, most use a mesh fabric only for the screen. We place a beautiful tightly woven fabric on top of the mesh so you get durability and amazing picture quality.

Feel free to call 317 626 0660