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Video Projector for Home Theater?
ZeLonewolf writes "I'm thinking about setting up a movie-style home theater system. I've already got the room set up and I've obtained a nice sound system. The last step is to acquire a video projector. I'm considering a few options: Projectors on eBay run from $300 to the tens of thousands. On the other hand, being an electrical engineer, there are plans online to build your own (Google cache), that are potentially as cheap as $200. What are Slashdotters' experiences? Will a $300 projector do the job? How about a home brew?"
Very true. AVSForum is the best place for all home theater / HTPC questions.
I purchased a nice used Boxlight XP-55m for only $600 on eBay. It has native XGA resolution. Purchased a 10 foot diagonal glass bead screen for $125 plus shipping from DaLite. Had to build my own mahogany entertainment center, because they just don't sell 'em with projection screens in mind. $75 worth of black flannel cloth from Walmart, $2 worth of shower curtain rings, and a couple of 1" oak dowels turned into theater curtains with upper/lower masks. Total cost of entertainment center materials was under $600, so the whole project has come in under $2000 - but looks like a lot, lot more. Also, I'm not sure why but DVD's look best when played back from a computer. I'm comparing our DVD's svideo connection to our computer's DVI-out port (with a DVI-to-SVGA adaptor), but the clarity is nonetheless superior.
:)
Plus, it looks way cool to play Age of Mythology on such a big screen
"He who throws mud, loses ground." - proverb
There is a good deal on a refurbed DLP projector for about $3500 -- check gotapex.com [gotapex.com]
Pheww! for a moment I thought it was another goatse link.
"When the only tool you own is a hammer, every problem begins to resemble a nail." - Abraham Maslow (1908-1970)