Didn't he say a while back that he thought it would cost about a $100 more than the last one?

Take a look at <sorry, but lumenlab does not allow links to that particular site. - OKflyboy> and the original theorized price for the new pro lens is stated there. In reality we will not know the true price until the lens is posted in LL Store front. Prices are always subject to change .

Does anyone know if the new pro lens have zoom capability?

No it won't. It is a fixed focal length lens because the zoom was causing some of the problems.

Which is why each day I grow more tempted to do the 17" with large fresnels and the regular lens. It's getting harder and harder for me to convince myself that the new pro lens is worth waiting for without zoom capability. Especially after seeing some of the jaw-dropping results without it.

I don't think it was ever a zoom lens, I beleive it was a varifocal. This means that you can adjust focal length then out have to move the lens to get the new focal length length in focus. In a true zoom lens focus is maintained while focal length is adjusted to get a zoom effect, but I don't think that can be done with a simple triplet you need more elements.

In theory a varifocal can be used as a zoom lens.

Have you ever noticed that when you move your standard lens closer to your LCD the screen gets larger (out of focus, but larger), and when you move the lens further away from the LCD it gets smaller?

This is how you would achieve a zoom with a varifocal: the lens would not be a fixed distance from the LCD, it would slide on a mechanism like the 'focusing' mechanisms on our standard 15" to change the screen size, then you would use the varifocal capability on the lens (to change the focal length of the lens to match your new distance) and bring the image back into focus at the desired screen size.

This is how the Pro Zoom lens was supposed to function although as I do not have a Pro lens myself I have no practical experience to back that up.

Some info for members procrastinating over the standard or the pro triplet.
Yes the standard triplet appears to be able to resolve a 17” LCD. Members who have tried it say that they are getting good results with the exception of slight blurriness of the edges. What I haven’t seen yet is the ability of the standard triplet to be able to correct keystone using a 17” LCD.
Lens shifting relies on the field angle of the triplet. Fresnel tilting relies on both the field angle of the triplet and the FL of the field fresnel. If the pro triplet is able to resolve up to a 19” LCD this will make keystone correction for a smaller LCD much more attainable. This is all theory and needs to be tested for real world results but it should be taken into consideration.

DJ

Since the new pro lens will not have zoom capability will it be better to just get the standard lens with a 17" widescreen? Or is there a a quality advantage with the pro lens?

For a widescreen, it would probably be slightly better with the PRO lenses, but that is a lot of extra money for the upgrade (plus the throw will be different so you have to take that into account).

I only really see two benfits with the PRO. Longer throw i.e. 100" image is from 16 feet instead of 10 feer (approx) so better if you have a long room. And secondly the len diameter is larger so theortically you could get a large arc length though the triplet, the longer focal length feild fresnel will probably magnify the arc length even more so it may still not be able to capture all the light.

I thought the new prolens was going to have a longer focal length as well, not just the fresnels.

Longer FL = Longer throw.

Right but I meant your last reply seemed to suggest that with the new pro lens kit we will be using fresnels with a 500 mm focal length without changing the focal length of the lens itself. Therefore the light would not have reached the focal point of the collector when it reaches the lens, and will be more spread out. Isn't that what you meant?

I just thought the focal lengths of the collector and projection lens need to be very very close.

Right
PRO FL =500mm
PRO Field Fresnel FL =550mm

actually, i believe the PRO field fresnel's FL is 650!

I may be wrong, but I dont' think so. I have a set

I believe that Brain is just getting the one from 3dlens.com which is 550mm

No, we have our fresnels made to match our lens. 550mm would be too short for the field lens, we use 650mm.

actually if we assume all those things (17", unsplit 20mm gap, 500mm focal triplet, and 100" image) then 600mm field fresnell is ideal I believe. Anyway 550 or 650 with lamp adjustement will work nice. It all depends on what image size (throw) is what you need. If you go for larger image sizes than 100" then i suggest you go for a 550mm fresnell, if you prefer smaller image size, then 650 fresnells would be better choice for you.

Is the 650mm fresnel available yet?
I could think of a few unneccesary body parts I could sell to buy one. Or maybe I could bribe you? Perhaps some "magic beans?"
Really though I understand that there is a wait on the triplet but can we get a start with the fresnels if they are available?
I actually just bought a 610mm Kodak Ektar triplet off eBay cheap. Darn thing weighs 11 lbs!
Thanks

I beleive the fresnel isn't 'new' per se, but the same that was made earlier to the actual specs. There were some that were made with too long a FL (like 990mm), but the latest ones are correct at 650mm (i have one now from my original Pro purchase replacement fresnel)

correct me if I'm wrong Brain............

Ricoks