Hello all,

I am curiously addicted to this site and have decided to start thinking about a PJ.

I have in mind a design for a vertical 15" PJ using the long-throw LL lense. I'm expecting to throw 12' to 15', and am anticipating an 8' to 10' screen.

Main use of this system will be watching DVD and VHS (sound effects - boo, hiss), as well as the occasional TV show.

The problems - super tight budget and wife approval factor. I need to make something that doesn't take over the den with complexity.

Fortunately, I'm in no rush.
So I am stuck at a couple decisions - some questions:

a.) In order to get 720p or higher resolution, am I correct in guessing I'll need to get a new DVD player anyways (my current Pioneer only has component out) with HDMI or DVI?

b.) Will I be better off making my own HTPC even if I'm not going to be gaming? Or should I just be looking at stripping a 720p LCD TV rather than going with a monitor (so I can use the tuner)?

c.) Any weird things I should anticipate with 4:3 and 16:9 issues if I'm taking signal straight from DVI out on a DVD player to DVI in on an LCD TV or monitor? Most of the stuff I watch is widescreen.

I would be grateful for any light that can be shed on these. My brain is swimming from trying to analyze all these different posts!!!

Thanks in advance,
GENE

Supraguy is a big cheese here and I thought he was from Ontario but I just checked and he's from Alberta. My knowledge of Canadian geography is nil but maybe he's kind of a neighbor and he certainly knows his stuff. Now that I think about it Alberta and Ontario are not all that close I think? Anyway, welcome, good luck, and visit my tweaks topic (see my signature line).

I think you'll be able to avoid an HTPC but they can be very useful for picture enhancement from what I gather.

I've been surfing this forum for quite awhile and MY head still spins!

Thanks, Durachko. I've read quite a bit of Supraguy's stuff; he's always got interesting things to add.

Yeah, I'm hoping to avoid the HTPC, but if the price/performance ratio makes sense, I'll do it.

And geographically, Ontario and Alberta are about as close as New York and North Dakota... Ontario has all the banks, and Alberta has all the oil, so I wonder who's really in charge of Canada now!

GENE