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  1. #1
    Lob Wedge cspin is on a distinguished road
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    Projector Help -- Viewsonic or BenQ short throw

    Hi All,
    Slowly making my way toward my garage build. My screen is going to likely be 10' wide by 9' tall. Will be going with a Skytrak or GC2. I could use some help on a projector. I have read through tons of posts, and some say go XGA and others 1080 and just move the projector back to fit the 4:3 screen. I really don't know what to do. I want the best graphics possible, but it seems that going 1080 HD gets me into some tricky business. I have found 2 projectors that look to be winners in the short throw XGA segment. They are the BenQ MX631ST and Viewsonic PJD6352LS. The Viewsonic is a couple bucks more, but has a 3 year warranty. Both are pretty new models and have not seen much by way of feedback on this site.

    So, wondering if anyone has thoughts on these. I will likely be hitting from 10-12 ft. away from the screen and have the projector mounted overhead. I went to projector central's website and I really don't understand all of the outputs it provides. My tech knowledge is very weak! I also don't get the offset and keystone thing. Just trying to keep things as simple as possible and not loose my mind on each component for this project. I see that others use the Optoma and BenQ 1080 HD projectors and find a way to make it work. Not sure I am tech savvy enough to pull that off. I am not doing anything other than driving range and some sim play, so no movies or TV in the plans.

    Thanks!

  2. #2
    7 Iron Yongchai is on a distinguished road
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    If i was to buy a projector now, i would probably get this.

    http://www.amazon.com/EH415ST-DLP-PR.../dp/B010NC7DU4

    Otherwise, a low budget option works fine as well (currently using this)

    http://www.amazon.com/Optoma-GT760A-.../dp/B012G1AVTA

  3. #3
    1 Iron AJA is on a distinguished road
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    If you can get a short throw HD projector from a big box retailer with a generous return policy, I'd suggest that you buy one and try it out.

    I have an XGA projector but at the time there weren't any short throw HD projectors. The difference in resolution is pretty significant - 768 vertical lines vs 1080 (make sure that you are getting a true HD projector with 1080p native resolution).

    I'd definitely go 1080 HD given the choice. On the other hand, if there are other constraints, XGA is not that big a compromise.

  4. #4
    4 Iron madspeed is on a distinguished road
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    I am very happy with my Epson Powerlite Home Cinema 730HD which I found on sale for a mere $299. Projector is approx 17.5 ft from screen.

    Image looks alot better than in the photo, this is with no other lighting than two overhead LED shoplights, one directly over each sensor pad


  5. #5
    Lob Wedge cspin is on a distinguished road
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    Quote Originally Posted by madspeed View Post
    I am very happy with my Epson Powerlite Home Cinema 730HD which I found on sale for a mere $299. Projector is approx 17.5 ft from screen.

    Image looks alot better than in the photo, this is with no other lighting than two overhead LED shoplights, one directly over each sensor pad

    Thanks madspeed, this answers the projector question I had for you in my other post. Did not see your response here until after my reply post. I am leaning toward short throw so I can have unit above me when swinging.

  6. #6
    4 Iron madspeed is on a distinguished road
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    no problem, slight correction, it is a Powerlite home Cinema 725HD, not the 730HD

  7. #7
    Lob Wedge cspin is on a distinguished road
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    Quote Originally Posted by AJA View Post
    If you can get a short throw HD projector from a big box retailer with a generous return policy, I'd suggest that you buy one and try it out.

    I have an XGA projector but at the time there weren't any short throw HD projectors. The difference in resolution is pretty significant - 768 vertical lines vs 1080 (make sure that you are getting a true HD projector with 1080p native resolution).

    I'd definitely go 1080 HD given the choice. On the other hand, if there are other constraints, XGA is not that big a compromise.
    Thanks AJA. Have done a lot of homework on projector central and on user reviews here and elsewhere. It looks like the benq ht 1085st is the way to go, provided I can get a better image using in 4:3 mode. The numbers work out for throw ratio based on where I will likely have the unit mounted and my likely screen size. But, the benq mx631st (I think that is the model number) is a newer model that is 720p and native 4:3, and would work as well with throw ratio I need. It has higher lumens, contrast ratio and is $300 less than the ht1085st. I will spend the extra money if it results in a better image quality.

    Any advice would be much appreciated!
    Last edited by cspin; 11-28-2015 at 06:55 PM.

  8. #8
    1 Iron AJA is on a distinguished road
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    The mx631st is a native XGA projector, therefore the maximum vertical resolution that it is capable of is 768 lines. The 1085st is a true HD projector with 1080 vertical lines. It will give a better image hands down.

  9. #9
    Lob Wedge cspin is on a distinguished road
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    Quote Originally Posted by AJA View Post
    The mx631st is a native XGA projector, therefore the maximum vertical resolution that it is capable of is 768 lines. The 1085st is a true HD projector with 1080 vertical lines. It will give a better image hands down.
    Ok, but is that in 4:3 mode with the 1085st? To max out my screen size (10' wide) I would lose about 2' on the top and bottom of the screen if I used it in 16:9 mode. Not sure of any other way of making it work at 16:9 on that screen size without the image going off the screen. The throw ratio is not that different between 4:3 and 16:9 according to projector central. Unless there is some unknown way to adjust the projector, it would seem that using it in 4:3 mode is the only way to go to fill the screen.

    Also, do you know if using it at 4:3 would distort the image coming from either a ST or GC2? My plan is to have a gaming pc run whatever sim software I end up going with. Would be a bummer to find out that TGC (for example) were set up for a certain aspect ratio and I did not have the right hardware. I heard that ST is set for 4:3, not sure about GC2 and TGC.

    Thanks!

  10. #10
    1 Iron AJA is on a distinguished road
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    cspin... I keep feeding you advice. Find the projector's user manual on the internet and read it. It is very helpful. Read the forums or contact the manufacturers if you have specific questions about their products or software. With respect to TGC and the resolutions that it can be used with there is a lot of information on the internet and not only in this forum. TGC can be used with 4:3 and 16:9 no problem.

  11. #11
    Lob Wedge goodmatt78 is on a distinguished road
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    Quote Originally Posted by AJA View Post
    cspin... I keep feeding you advice. Find the projector's user manual on the internet and read it. It is very helpful. Read the forums or contact the manufacturers if you have specific questions about their products or software. With respect to TGC and the resolutions that it can be used with there is a lot of information on the internet and not only in this forum. TGC can be used with 4:3 and 16:9 no problem.
    Get the benq! I just went through this and bought the optoma gt1080 and immediately didn't care for the image. I then bought the ht1085st and it was night and day difference. I was also questioning how to fill my screen with st ipad app. I actually mounted it at around 13ft on a 12x8.25 ft screen. It fills it great...I can also watch Netflix in 4:3, but in 16:9 it projects way out onto both walls. I actually found this by accident and greatly prefer it to going 16:9 and having a 6.5ft high image.

    Also the manual zoom is a must to get the image just right. It needs a slight adjustment using a 16:9 pc source with the projector scaling it down to 4:3.

  12. #12
    Lob Wedge goodmatt78 is on a distinguished road
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    Here's my setup...It isn't finished as I haven't installed the www to wall putting turf, but it is fully functional.
    Attached Images

  13. #13
    Lob Wedge cspin is on a distinguished road
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    Quote Originally Posted by goodmatt78 View Post
    Here's my setup...It isn't finished as I haven't installed the www to wall putting turf, but it is fully functional.
    Wow, that is one sweet setup! Wish I had room to set mine up indoors. You going to have a cup or two to putt to when you have the turf put in? Looks like you have plenty of space.

    The question I can't seem to figure out is whether a native 1080p (HD) projector using 4:3 mode has a better picture than a native 720p (XGA) projector in its default setting of 4:3? I have done all the math on projector central and do not see being able to run the benq ht1080st in 16:9 without giving up a lot of screen height. Your setup looks perfect at 4:3 and I assume you are using the benq ht1080st in 4:3 mode. I have heard some say that using an HD projector in 4:3 is not going to get anything better than XGA, so just go with the XGA. Others say not, and that an HD projector will definitely give a better picture in 4:3 than an XGA projector.

    Thanks!

  14. #14
    Lob Wedge goodmatt78 is on a distinguished road
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    Quote Originally Posted by cspin View Post
    Wow, that is one sweet setup! Wish I had room to set mine up indoors. You going to have a cup or two to putt to when you have the turf put in? Looks like you have plenty of space.

    The question I can't seem to figure out is whether a native 1080p (HD) projector using 4:3 mode has a better picture than a native 720p (XGA) projector in its default setting of 4:3? I have done all the math on projector central and do not see being able to run the benq ht1080st in 16:9 without giving up a lot of screen height. Your setup looks perfect at 4:3 and I assume you are using the benq ht1080st in 4:3 mode. I have heard some say that using an HD projector in 4:3 is not going to get anything better than XGA, so just go with the XGA. Others say not, and that an HD projector will definitely give a better picture in 4:3 than an XGA projector.

    Thanks!
    Yes, I am coring out 3 holes for actual putting practice and I bought really nice putting turf. The room is actually smaller than optimal....14x14x9...but it works great for me.

    Using the projector calc is a little deceiving. 16:9 and 4:3 are the same image height at the same throw distance. I set mine further back to get 4:3 to be teller and wider than the projector central calc distance....make sense?
    Last edited by goodmatt78; 12-01-2015 at 09:06 AM.

  15. #15
    7 Wood wbond is on a distinguished road
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    This is not correct for all projectors. With the same throw distance, using my projector for example has a height of 62" for 4:3 and it's 46" for 16:9. They both have the same width though.
    Quote Originally Posted by goodmatt78 View Post

    Using the projector calc is a little deceiving. 16:9 and 4:3 are the same image height at the same throw distance. I set mine further back to get 4:3 to be teller and wider than the projector central calc distance....make sense?

  16. #16
    Lob Wedge goodmatt78 is on a distinguished road
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    That is interesting. is yours native 4:3 or native 16:9? I also wonder if you have yours in a "stretch" mode?

    I can confirm that the optoma GT1080 and the Benq ht1085st both vary width and keep the same height when going from 16:9 to 4:3.

    I have noticed a slight variation in overall image size based on source with the BenQ. This difference is with my Ipad Air 2 and PC both using the ST app. This is easily compensated for with the manual zoom on the benQ. With the optoma, you would need a 2nd mounting location to perfectly frame in the image on my set-up. This was a BIG NO NO in my set-up.

  17. #17
    7 Wood wbond is on a distinguished road
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    I think if you have a 1080 projector it may keep the height the same, at least the ones i've reviewed so far. My current projector is 4:3 native and when i've reviewed some 720 projectors their height changes as well with a fixed throw distance.

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