So ive been thinking of how i was to build my projector, and was considering a square coffee table so that it is not a huge eye sore. I was thinking having the square to be the length of the projector, and on the sides of the projector on each side of the table having some drawers for storage. i was considering having the fans out the back on one side of the table, will this design give me any over heating issues? Also, since the projector will be on the floor i know there will be keystoning issues...will this be fixable by tilting the front fresnel or will it be at too much of an angle? The way i have this pictured is building the projector in its own box, then building the table around it basically, and having it angled inside the table so that it displays on the wall instead of on the floor. Any potential problems with this? Any one attempt this before? Anyone good with wood working have any ideas to make the table look aestheically pleasing? I want to avoid having just a big wood square...i want to make it look like a piece of furniture not just thrown together, ya know?

anyone with any suggestions id love to hear.

A coffee table is totally do-able (I remember seeing a couple here somewhere). You might consider taking a look at DeathRay's new design. He's using hoses/tubes to channel out the heat. A system like this might make more sense with a table, since the light coming out of the back of your table might be distracting. Cooling will probably be *more* of a challenge, but again, do-able.

As far as keystoning, you will be pushing the limits. My projector sits about four feet lower than the center of the screen. The vertical keystone is fine, as is focus. Any father and I'd have problems. Since you want to hang your screen high enough to be seen over the table, you may very well have a bigger "vertical gap." You can compensate for it by hanging your screen at an angle (leaning forward).

Good luck... hope you brought your jigsaw!

that was what i was worried about, the keystoning....what is the maximum angle you can angle the projector at before having real issues with the keystoning?

At least for me, 15-20 degrees before focus gets iffy.

I'm aiming for a coffee table design also. Fist step is to buld the frame and get the angles right before even thinking about the enclosing table.

Do a scale drawing of your living room first. Remember that the projector is approximately 1:1 ie, 1 metre from the screen will project a 1 metre diagonal image (for a 15" projector)

My eyes are 3700mm from the projection wall. Good design (ergonomics?) dictates your eyes should be level with 1/3 way up the screen although I suppose personal preference could change that. With my screen width of 1530 (1910 diagonal on a 4:3) and an eye level of 900 off the floor (when in a recliner - very comfy ), that places the centre of the screen approximately 1090mm above the floor. With 15degrees of keystoning. the projector in this case is 600 above the floor and 1850mm back from the screen. This places the projection lens borderline on being in the field of view.

Now, i'm more than likely going to use a 17" so my projector will be even closer to the screen to produce this screen size. I'm also going to play a bit with some form of lens-shif and keystone combination to produce the required image. Keep an eye on My PLOG for results to this effect. But don't expect anything to happen quickly! I've got too much on my plate already

One thing that you'll find is that you may need to tilt your screen that you are projecting on to. This may help you resolve some of your focusing and keystoning issues due to the angle you're projecting at.

I found that the front fresnel could only be moved about 20mm away from the LCD before the focus became unsuitable. Unfortunately this doesnt really give you enough angle to project directly from the floor at 4:3. With tilting the screen you can compensate for that.

Also it may be wise to go with a Haas style design(or design with a sloped top) to keep the top of the projector out of the field of view of the screen.

crap...got all exicted and bid on a monitor on ebay without looking here first, my high bid is only $11 right now, but according to the incompatible monitor list the kds rad5 as the driver board being unmovable. the monitor would be great (backlight broken) if it werent for this...hopefully someone outbids me, there are 4 days left...

With a high bid of $11, I don't think you have to worry to much about winning.

I would suggest going with a new monitor. They can be had for $170 -$200. Usually an ebay monitor will cost about the same when you take into account shipping, and you don't know the condition of the screen. Even the smallest scratches will appear on the projected image.

well i was thinking if i could get a monitor with a bad backlight, and save big money that way, i could get my projector working for under $200, but you're right, probably better to buy new so you know there are no problems.

I thought the same and purchased a monitor with a "bad backlight". Turned out the whole thing was shot. Save yourself the time and headaches and just buy a new compatible monitor.

-- jaydillyo

well per the auction it said that it powers on but the picture is very dim (leading me to think bad backlight) and also says no scratches or cracks whatsoever...would be perfect if it werent incompatible....