How about disguising it as a small hutch? Make it look like it has a door etc... That way you could go boxy and it would look like it belongs there. I have seen hutches that were about four feet tall, single doored. I think they were craftsman styles but it could be anything really.
I have been looking at making a small chest to put my pro model in since we have a highboy table in back of the couch...

SJ

I'm not concerned about a disguise. In fact, I'd rather like to show it off.

Ya know these new spray paints that look like "hammered metal", etc.? I'm currently entertaining the idea of going that route. Maybe do the base unit in paint and the upper part w/stain.

I'm in the unfortunate situation that this thing will be plonked down right by a basement post and that'll detract from it no matter what I do.

Undoubtedly, once I have it functioning the finishing touches will take as long or longer than the "rough" build!!!

Wow MrD !
I just popped in for the first time in a while for some witty encrypted banter, and I find a PJ in the works
Looks AWESOME! Like Tes said, it pays to take your time eh?
10.6 land is running stark-raving-mad with rushy-mcrushalots.

Heh. Sorry to disappoint you. Hope there was enough gobbledygook here to keep you happy. Yes it do; however, in my case I have little choice but to "take my time" anyway. Yeah, it does kinda seem that way. But that's what we like - LOTS and LOTS of interest here!!!

Okay, work is progressing nicely on the second story of my tower of power. Pics to come hopefully this week.

Last night I lit up the ballast in the box. I forgot to isolation mount it - DOH!!! - and the buzz wuz annoying but I'll backtrack a bit and fix it as best I can before proceeding.

I'm wondering should I line the ballast cooling tunnel with some "acoustic foam" as well? Does the Real McCoy make a big difference or can I substitute something similar? Is that stuff available in stereo shops? What's to precise nature of sound deadening material? Also, I'm trying to concoct some nice DIY isolation mounts. The ballast being so heavy I'm wondering just how to make some. Any thoughts anyone?

I dont think the foam has to be special as long as it has that egg carton look to baffle, and obsorb the sound. how about small rubber feet for an isolation mount? I would say get it built and let it morf into the room, the finish can be decided then. you might want to think about locking wheels for it too if you ever plan on moving it. looks like it will be heavy. good to see it finally taking shape!!!

hey drakii... I am getting old here,,, is there tunnel in da light yet for jectionpro,,,

Thank you TES.

Sorry to keep you waiting elken deary.

Last night I made some skids for the ballast angle iron mounts to rest upon. Have yet to fire it up to see if the noise is sufficiently deadened. I used some of what I'm pretty certain is EPP foam.

I also installed a wet bulb thermal cut-in switch which will keep all/most of my fans running until such time as the ballast cools below a setpoint - likely around 100°F.

I have another switch which will act as a cut-out switch (safety switch) in the event my LCD ever reaches an undesirable temperature.

The thermal switches were scavenged and are linked in the first post of this plog.

Maybe some pics by next week. Heck, perhaps earlier.

PS: Thanks also to AV for some PM advice regarding my annoying ballast noise.

I have had many years of speaker building and then years of PC building and trying to control the sound. I have some real acoustic foam it is around $40.00 a sheet and works fine but is a little large to fit in the space for the ballast that you have.

Wool /cotton padding has been used by the auto makers for years to dampen sound from coming throuh the sheat metal I also have made custom muffler system for certain equipment that no off the shelf muffler would fit.

The lower the sound the harder it is to stop because of the length of the sound waves. A 60HZ wave form is over 20' long. Most of the noise from the ballast sounds to me like a higher harmonic of 60 Hz. This should be easer to dampen.

One easy way to keep the sound in is not to make the hole too large for the sound to get out. A smaller hole will restrict air flow but will keep the sound in too.

Wool mating or hard fiberglass pad from A/C ducts is vary effective but hard to find.

You could make a stiff screen shell to cover half of the inside of the ballast box and stuff it with fiberglass or as we call it “the pink itchy.” The fiberglass is a lot more flame proof than a wool pad or blanket.

Yet more progress. Woo-hoo!

The Aerogate fan controller I bought requires 12 & 5VDC. I've got a 12VDC, 1.8A supply so I whipped together a little 7805 circuit to get my 5. I want to keep the fans independent of my HTPC. Why tax that beast when I don't need to? Plus, I want my fans to run autonomously until everything has cooled down to my satisfaction after I've shut down the projector.

Also, finished trimming up the panels for the "second story". With luck I really will get significant work done on the upper half within a week.

Great to see you're still in the saddle!

I recently had occasion to visit a place where they electronically generate what they like to call 'x-rays', of all things. They put these x-rays into your body and their job is to let you see where hard bits are. A man called a 'quack' can then puzzle out whether there are missing hard bits or some that are where they are not supposed to be, and other expensive stuff like that

Point is the x-ray machine had a light gate hanging off the front that looked very similar to your's, DMan, except it used Pb instead of the lighter stuff you're using ('cause I can tell saving weight is very important to you. Power to weight is king, right?).

There were knobs at both the top and bottom which controlled the lead shutters in x and y, probably on a cable drive or very small rack and pinions. It was a beautiful, smooth and accurate mechanism, as you would expect for the price of an x-ray PJ. I know how well it worked because every time the radiograficator left the room with his pieces of irradiated plastic, I twiddled his knobs. He didn't seem to notice. Maybe he was just shy.

I complemented him on the system and asked if they had any spares out in the maintainence shed. He apologised profusely, suggesting that when they were worn out or otherwise became defective, they were generally sold to India and/or proximate locales.

Hey! I had some knee x-rays a year maybe two ago. I remember that thingamabob too!!! Mine projected what looked like a targeting reticle image onto my body. It WAS a cool mechanism.

I'd prolly never have recalled that had you not jogged my memory banks.

It's my pleasure to serve.

Knee still holding up?

I'll have a Big Mac and large fries.Not bad. Physical therapy rocks. I've never been able to figure out what happened but it was a rough few months. For my age I think everything is working pretty good.

The ballast I got (thanks Advance!) was what they called "potted". It looks like someone filled up the case with epoxy. They said they use them in places where they need to cut the hum of the ballast. IMHO it doesn't hum at all, especially in comparison to the PCAC fans. I need to come up with something to quiet them. The 1/2 MDF makes a nice sounding board I was going to try a few layers of Ace's cheap body undercoating spray to attempt to seperate the fan from the MDF or maybe some RTV/shoe goo/silicone caulk.

rearden

I'm thinking of changing this from My Plog to My Plod.

Divider of tower installed showing the size of this puppy.

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A good portion of the guts installed in the bottom of my enclosure. At upper left are the two thermal switches. One bulb sits next to ballast and will keep the fans running until the ballast has cooled to a setpoint. Other bulb will shut down the ballast in the event the LCD reaches a dangerous temperature. The plastic thingie held in place with the hi-tech strap is my 1.8A, 12VDC power supply. The green heat sink will have my 5VDC 7805-based circuit screwed onto it. Not really necessary to have the heat sink but what the heck - it's been lying around for more than a year in my junk drawer.

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Here's to a productive weekend.

PS: Rumor has it SJ is running scared. He thinks I may get my projector running before he finishes his stand!!!

I wouldnt say "running scared", but I AM going to purchase a winter parka for when hell freezes over....

BTW. I'm not sure why, but the full picture reminds me of the UN Building ...

Might I suggest a big hat instead? Flying pigs still poop ya know!

It needs little windows and a row of flags...

Dude! This is Durachko we are talking about...

...he needs G.I. Joes at the very least!
( okay, maybe LEGO...)

Samuraijack

geeeezzzz will both of you finish someeethhhiinnggg,,

Hear hear!

Oh....well how about some of those little pewter figurines they use for tabletop gaming?

This is getting ridiculous even for my plog. SJ, what say you 'n me - we go over to down under and kick some Aussie arse? These guys are ganging up on me!!!

I put feet on my base. I got much more wiring done. I'm working . . . I'm working . . . what can I say???

Sure, why not?

You guys come on over here, we'll have a bit of a rumble and then I'll fire up the BBQ and set up the beers and bourbons . 33*C over here today, BTW.

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But you'll probably just use the 54 odd hours of round trip flying time as an excuse for further delays

I may just be able to whip ya what with yer bum shoulder 'n all. (That is you I'm remembering - right?) I'm a total pacifist so you needn't worry. I just found out last week that the lab next door at work is visiting Australia and has been there since Christmas. I thought it was dang quiet up there! Below freezing here but it's been the mildest winter I can recall.

Ready to cut my triplet hole and have gotten yet more done on the second story.

Pics should follow soon for what little they're worth.

Oui, c'est moi. Slipped on a child's toy last night. Didn't fall but wrenched the shoulder with the involuntary tense-up you always do but are never aware of untill carrying an injury.

I'm really pleased that progress on your box is continuing despite your earlier threats to take another extended sabatical. Looking forward to the pics.

Pics as promised. Just on the off chance some poor, misguided soul might find something useful about my build.

Ready to cut the triplet hole.

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More electrics in place. Again, the gray boxes are remote, wet bulb, thermal switches. One will keep the fans running until the ballast has cooled to a setpoint. The other will shut down the ballast if the LCD exceeds a setpoint. The green heatsink just gives me 5VDC to drive my Aerogate since it requires both 5 & 12VDC and I want to keep it separated from my HTPC. Also, note the push-button fuse.

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My subwoofer is isolated from the enclosure by EPP foam alignment blocks hot glued in place and I used an old piece of webbing to keep it from falling out when I place/move the enclosure. It remains to be seen how good of an idea it was to house the subwoofer within my enclosure. I hope to test it soon. (HA!) Here you can also see two of the feet I recently installed. They hold the enclosure off the ground so the dust bunnies'll have a place to call their own.

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Another picture of the ballast exposed. You can see the bulb from the one thermal switch tucked in there to the left of the ballast in this picture. The other bulb is just hanging out waiting for its penthouse suite to be installed.

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And a gratuitious piggy-on-a-pedestal pic so I may not ever be accused of providing content sans claptrap.

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As always, constructive criticism and/or foolhardy witticism welcome.

Very soon it'll be time to try to sink those fancy-schmancy fasteners into my beautiful plywood panels.

Gotta rig a jig for drilling the holes for them since this beast won't fit on my drill press.

I'm on a roll here folks. For me at least.

Later . . .

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OK, if you subwoofer looks this small how HUGE is this thing!

wouldn't having a sub in your projector shake it? if it was shaking wouldn't the lcd and fresnels go out of focus? I might have over looked something but it seems like that would happen?

AV: The sub is very small.

ziggy: That, my friend, remains to be seen. I've heavily ported/vented the enclosure to alleviate any propensity of the sub to rock 'n roll my projector and "aimed" - as it were - the subwoofer in the most benign way possible; however, my understanding is the nature of sound emanating from a subwoofer would deter any but the most foolhardy (me) to attempt such a stunt. Stay tuned . . .

I've extended my LCD control cable so that I may mount it cleanly outside my enclosure along with my other controls. The colored wires were the ones spliced in. They're just shy of 20" long.

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I've bored out the hole for my triplet (as well as bored all the members of Lumenlab).

Naturally, the entire time I was CAREFULLY boring this hole my son is sitting on the basement stairs in his pajamas screaming at me.

It's a wonder I still have all my fingers.

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How is the ballast BuZZZZ?

wow, progress. you are using the same ballast I use in my Pro-V, and the V-15, I really didnt notice any buzzing in either one of them and they are mounted to the enclosure with just the brackets and no dampening device. I did notice the "buzz" in my first PJ which was a dog coffin style and I sat right next to it for viewing, even though I could hear a buzz it really wasnt that noticeable. in your design, burried down in the base I would be suprised to hear it at all. also with the size and weight of your build I wouldnt worry about the sub woofer shaking anything out of whack, besides you will probably have everything well secured.

I am overdriving a bit and that prolly causes more buzz. I haven't fired the lamp yet since putting in the new ballast mounts. We'll see . . .

<Couple of pics added a coupla' posts up.>

HOLY CRAPOLY.....

I go away for a few weeks and you up and raise the bar and start finishing your PJ.

looking good my friend...keep the momentum and stop making me look so bad....

Dont worry it wont last long....I'm sending "Red" down to visit...

That's it young man. I've had just about enough of your fresh mouth. Here comes the bar of soap to wash that foul hole out. I've wondered where the heck you've been. Saaaaaayyy . . . maybe you're a jinx and your absence is responsible for my progress??? Remmy - you don't need any help from me to look bad!!!

Welcome back to my "plod" which is what I'm officially callin' it from now on.

Now THAT is what I call good-news/bad-news. <errrr . . . do she like hot tubs???>

Run D Run.................

My brain says "RUN AWAY". My "brain" says "RED, RED, RED!!!!"

Surge protector incorporated into HTPC side of enclosure.

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Main power switch wired. I used the wire cut off the end of the surge protector above. Waste not, want not.

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Little by little . . .

<Creepin' up on ya Remmy>

Good thing I got this nice warm parka on sale....

You just hang onto that a wee bit longer mister.

But I really do think I see a very, very dim light at the end of a l-o-n-g tunnel.

OOOO.....Tash Talk..

"tash"?

Yes, "Tash talk"!

...As opposed to "Tesh Talk", which is usually quite froofy and non confrontational and thrives on national radio...

Know something? What with all the new "words" and phrases coined almost daily I never know when to believe you guys and when not to believe you so usually I just chuckle a bit uncomfortably and discreetly Google anything I find confusing. <I Google A LOT!!!>

slow but steady, thats going to be a very bright lite at the end of the tunnel!!

Got a few more pieces in place and the triplet fits nicely into the hole - thank goodness!!! I believe I'll assemble my triplet backwards so it don't stick out like a sore thumb when all is said and done.

I've reached another point at which I can see it'd be really easy to stall again on my build but I'll keep picking away. The next major hurdles are getting the z-axis adjuster rods in place for the fresnel/LCD sled and concocting and implementing a design for my FS mirror mount assembly. I've got some ideas though. I spend way more time thinking than building. I've even spent whole evenings puttering around the basement with frequent 5 minute stops in front of the unfinished projector just staring and thinking. Not good for speedy progress but so far things have gone pretty much without a hitch.

Last night I did realize I'd made a glaringly obvious mistake in my thinking regarding wiring but the fix was incredibly simple. Whew!

Having a coupla' buddies visit this weekend so not much will get done most likely.

Gotta top off the hot tub too!!! We've finally sunk into some frigid weather of the sort where your hair freezes while sitting in the hot tub. Time to break out the snorkels!

It would be tragic if you stalled again particularly as you have done so much recently. But another 12 months of bears and rattlesnakes would be fun...


That's exactly how I'm building my car! Well, that and 3am deluxe design moments that drag out for hours.


Sorry to hear it's cooling off over there