Hello,

I have read alot about LumenLab projectors and I am very interested. I have a few basic questions that I haven't found the answers to, though (I probably haven't looked hard enough).

-What are the basic specs a LCD should have to be used in the projector? Can I use an old Laptop?
-What can I hook my VGA connection up to (DVD Player, Satelite, Games?) and how much would it cost?
-What would happen if I watched a Widescreen show on it?
-What is the formula to figure out how big the screen will be if I know the distance from the wall?
-What time would you estimate it would take an average person to make it?
-Can you get a good quality bright image for about 500$?
-How can I use this as a science fair project (this would be a great bonus)?

If you could please take some of your time to answer these, I would be extremely grateful. I am probably going to buy the Membership soon, I just want to know more before I get started.

Thanks in advance,

-Timothy

Whatsup Timothy and welcome to the best site every,you've have just stumbeled on a gold mine, all that you seek is with-in this site I will say this what evever you can watch on a regular computer monitor you will be able to watch it on your projector with satisfaction, you can builb a good PJ(projector) for $500 using the standard lens kit but you can get maxium brightnenn with the new lens kit that will be ready in January.
We recomend your LCD monitor have no more than a response time of 25, and the contrast level to 400 but with this the higher the better.
The cost of the membership is well worth it ,and not only you but your family and friends will love it . I will leave you with this thought WHAT YOU PUT IN TO IT IS WHAT YOU'LL GET OUT OF IT.


Have fun

1) 15", 1024x758, 25ms, 350:1 contrast is probably the minimum you want to use (that's what I've got - my Samsung 150MP). You might want to consider a 17", 1280x1024, 8/16ms, 400:1 contast or better (this will allow you to watch true 720p high definition without downscaling).

At present, you cannot use a laptop screen. The circuit boards that control the LCD are part of the laptop itself. The only exception is the Dell WUXGA screen that some members have bought. It's got a resolution of 1900x1080, but costs almost $1000 and is definately an extreme mod at this point.

2) With a standard LCD, you can only get an image through your computer. But you've got a ton of options:

- Buy a TV BOX (Avermedia, Nextvision N6, etc). These will convert a standard or high definition picture into a VGA signal to use with your projector (price range: $60 to $200 and up)

- But and LCD TV (like the Samsung 150MP I'm using). These monitors will accept composite (RCA) video, S-Video, and sometimes even high definition.

Either of these solutions will allow you to connect cable tv, DVD players, and game consoles.

3) Depending on how you handle step 2, most 'widescreen' material will appear letterboxed, just like on a 4:3 (square) tv. Some people have used a program called Powerstrip to make their computer output widescreen video. If you can get everything to display in widescreen, you can build a widescreen projection screen.

4) With the standard lens kit, the diagonal screen size is roughly the same as the distance from the projector to the screen. For example, my PJ is roughly 10 feet away, and I've got a 10 foot diagonal screen. The pro lens allows you to place the pj farther back to get the same size image.

5) I took two weeks to strip my LCD, build my box, and do the initial wiring. Some take less, some more. You'll be tweaking for months (it's an addictive hobby), but the initial build will take some time (rushing your first build is a recipe for disaster)

6) If you find a good LCD deal in a store or on Ebay, you'll definately be able to put up a decent image for $500.

7) I wish I'd built this when I was a kid. It would have been a kick ass science fair project (trust me, you'll learn a lot!)

Welcome aboard! Hope this helps...

Thanks for the replies!

I think I'm probably going to use a 15", mainly because a 17 inch diagonal box is enormous. I was unaware that you could use an LCD TV, so can you pretty much use any LCD TV? I can easily have from projector 10-12 feet away from the wall, possibly even 14 if I mount it up high. I'm not too worried about the assembly because my dad is great with tools and I've built a computer before. We should do ok. The only thing I'm going to worry about is finding a good deal on a LCD monitor. My 17" monitor I am on now was 500$ by itself. I'll look into it.

My plan right now is to either have a laptop or an entire computer hooked up to it with a wireless connection, and then use DVArchve to stream shows from my DVR's all over the house. If that works, it would be amazing.

Thanks again guys...

Wecome Timothy to LL. With the projector that far away it's going to make a picture to large for the wall. You may need to rethink your projector if you need it that far away. It's like a 1:1 ratio. 14 ft away means a 14ft wall picture. The pro lens is supposed to be a long throw lens meaning you can have your projector farther away from the screen for a smaller picture. I don't know the ratio of it maybe someone else in the forums may know. have fun building this pj for the picture is amazing.
I am currently using the standard lens with the larger freshnels and a 17 inch lcd. I would most definately get a lcd with 16ms response or less. CS

I think the Pro lens is around 1.5:1

So 14ft from the wall would be a 10ft diagonal image, or thereabouts.

1.6:1 with a 15" panel for the pro lenses.