Ok..

this is a short Plog...

decided to rebuild my unit and get the optimum light and focus that i could..
The first one was ok, but it wasnt very tweakable in terms of distances.
So i've another!
All is mostly done save for painting inner and outer but i have new additions that i haventy seen here before that i thought i might share..
Before i get flamed, i am still using my 400w halogen set up but i am still on a real tight budget.. The results are pretty good though and better now in this new build

New features-

Adjustable fres/LCD frame on threaded rods guidance..

Proper LL air slot with kickass high performance car air filtering!

Adjustable focus box.

Magnetic Lamp mount. Very adjustable

Stipped AG and polar - new high contrast film applied

heres the pics


ghetto rigged for testing with new adjustable lense/lcd sled, focus box with hockeystick wood rails




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detail showing threaded rod guidance/distance adjusters for sled..
also visible is aluminium angle rails to support sled movement

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the magnetic lamp assembly!
Two ultra strong magnets ripped from an old HD
These allow the whole lamp to be munted on the rear steel plate ( seen in first pic )
and nudged around to ANY position

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all enclosed

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and heres the new filter system
High performance, oiled engine filter

Meant for a SAAB turbo

does a great job of damping the light leak but also lets a splendid amount of air through....would thoroughly recommend....made a stand off box for it to maximise its effectiveness

No dirt is getting through this baby

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and heres a few test shots..
Colours are popping now...
much better focus and light spread corner to corner with new frame and adjustability

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next...
(screen is about 8ft x 5.5ft)

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.....

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last one for today
still need to tweak and paint..
neverending!

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The screen shots look good!
Heat tends to degrade magnets.

rearden

Yes, the screenshots look very nice.
The strong magnetic field may also effect your color over time. I dont mean that as a negative. I think its a great idea. I wouldnt have even known that if the ushio techs hadnt mentioned it to me. Still even if you wanted to just move it, then clamp it down with a screw, thats pretty clever!

thanks rearden

yeah true about the heat, havent noticed any problems so far,and they are easily replaceable should i need to change them.

cheers SJ

I was very careful to make sure that the magnets woould not affect the LCD's functioning.. they are a very good distance away and encased behind wood and steel. My PC speakers are closer to my desktop LCD and they contain some hefty magnets...

I was actually referring to the magnets proximity to the bulb. Strong magnetic fields can effect bulbs with reactive chambers.

ah point taken

We'll have to see how that works out....
I hope that the field doesnt extend too much through the layers behind the bulb
But these halogen 400w 's are only 7 quid a pop so if they degrade over time then i guess ill have to replace them. I'm sure ill be able to notice colour change if it happens...

thanks for the advice anyhow SJ

What will 7 quid buy you?
Not trying to be funny, just trying to get a feel for seven quid....

hehe

that was an british-ism

7 quid (pounds) = roughly 12 dollars (i guess)

Beautiful pics. Probably among the finest I've seen.
Would you mind shooting some more a tad more on axis?

wow

thanks very much

im pretty pleased with the results..i will most definatley post some more nearer this weekend. Im ultra busy with some other stuff but check back in the next few days and ill have some on axis shots

I notice it seems to be a tad brighter at the top vs the bottom of the image. That is the exact same as mine, and I don't know why no matter how much I adjust the bulb position.

Excellent price! How about some more screen shots?

yeah it's obviously more discernable in photos, where contrast tends to be exaggerated.
but it is there, vaguely. My optics are pretty much perfectly aligned and yet this is still slightly noticable, but only in certain scenes. I'm wondering whether this could be due in some way to the properties of the LCD panel when used in such a way. Who knows..
Im not too concerned as again, in person, its barely detectable..

Coming soon SJ

got a load on this week and guests :angry:

but come the weekend i plan to get some more shots

Hi Foxy


Like your use of the air filter, great for when your not using the projector you can stick it back in the car and go for a spin

got the insides of the box painted matt black now plus the sled and all its frames...
However, over the last couple of days ive noticed, by projecting a black desktop area a very odd light distribution anomoly which is unlike any that i've seen on other peoples posts..
I know about the LCD edge bleed issue which in most cases is unresolvable but very minor but this is something very different..

The only thing i can guess is that it has something to do with the new polar replacement. I affixed the new polar to the rear of the lcd frame meaning that there is a halfinch or so gap between it and the panel. Maybe a combination of this gap and the fact that the polar is probably not totally flat against a surface means that there are some weird reflections coming into play in the gap before the panel..I've included a mockup of how the screen light problem appears and a couple of progress shots...

has anyone experienced anything similar in their polar transplants ? I'd welcome any ideas././


mockup of light reflection issue
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the guts
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and a miyazake shot..
(the light issue isnt so evident when running detailed scenes

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Ah, Howl's Moving castle! I hope my projector (when I finally have enough saved up to purchase parts) will handle animation well. Planetes in 720p would look really nice.

Hi Foxy....nice job so far.

Could you take a close up shot of your bulb? I'd like to see what kind of halogen you're using.

That is a very good idea for the filter

do you mind if I use ur idea?





This is as far my Projekt goes

not at all Trofeo99, be my guest!

make sure you leave a good standoff for it to maximse its efficiency

right the problem wont go away..in fact it seems to have gotten worse if anything
Im worried that the strong HD magnets holding the lamp in place are causing this defect.
They cant be affecting the LCD as its too far away.
There are no light leaks or reflections, inside is all black and the sled is sealed completely to the sides. Yet when i project a black desktop i get this awful light spread. bright scenes are fine as you can see in my previous shots..but a dark scene shows up as "negative" in the corners where its most evident...

Magnets the problem? Anyone got any ideas PLZ!!!


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right it aint the magnets as ive removed them and tried it without..
ggrr..
so now im stuck.. :angry:

Hey,Foxy.
Just being devils advocate here...
Having done the AG thang,is it possible that there is residue on the lcd??
Just looking at the pattern on the photo.
Or...
Has the lamp suffered a failiure.At £7 it may be worth replacing???
Cheers P

heh i was kinda hoping to hear from you!

Thanks for the insights..
Its not the lamp as ive three of them and each one tests the same..
I remember when i removed both AG and polar that i didnt clean the panel thoroughly mainly because there was literally no residue..but i'll give it another look as you mentioned the pattern.....

thanks and btw enjoying your 360 shots...you and my mate must be the only lucky sods to get one here in good old blighty!

OK so time out from the GLOWIES section for a bit!
I've managed overcome the problem by splitting the fresnels and last night i took went EXTREME.
Yep AG time...
The panel im using had AG both sides, so after four hours rag soak, the one side peeled up perfect. I simply nicked the very corner with a credit card and pop, a little clear tab curled, saying "Pull Here!" i swear it couldnt have been easier. Then side 2! I left this one over night , about 8hrs, and before leaving for work...same deal, the little clear corner popped up and a simply slid the thing off.
I went to work pretty buzzed!


Got back , and this evening mounted everything back in place, hit the lights and boom. Panel survived and i couldnt believe the colours, brightness is definatley up too, and the split config means a much better light spread..pictures dont tell the real story bla bla youve heard it before but heres a few that i managed to snap, a bit random, but when your on a highlike this you just snap anything that looks pretty good

this is also still with the 400w OHP halogen light and condensor, this weekend ill get my HRI Metal Halide 400 wired up, cannot wait to see the difference

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a dolphin
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can't stop playing this game..even better massive
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sorry , wrong camera setting, got the grain but i liked the brightness of it

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Soon as i get the MH lamp in , i'll be itchign to get some shots up..for now i need a rest too much excitement

Hey foxy, outstanding screen shots! Are you still using the Liquid Video LCD? If so, I was thinking of doing just the AG on mine, not the polar, you think that is possible or does it all want to come up? Where did you get the replacement film and what kind would I look for?

I'm thinking if I break my LCD it would be a good excuse to scrap it and build a 17 pro haas so I guess it would be a win-win either way

THanks nncognito!

I'm actually using aold 15" Dell which i got for £30 recently.THis panel has a CT of 350:1 and a response time of wait for it...50ms
Beleive it or not i have no issues watching films or playing games, none of that scary ghosting you'ld expect from such a low response time..i read something yesterday here about a guy with a 40ms panel saying he'd had no complaints with it too..if it wasn't any good then i'd move back to my Liquidvision 16ms, but i can honestly say (controversially )i don't see any performance difference between the two, now the AG has come off.

The reason i'm not using the liquidvision at the moment is that as you know i stupidly pulled up the polar as well. This cost me a whacking great £60 or thereabouts to order a new sheet of polarizer. To cut a long story short, it works well, providing you find the EXACT angle of polarization, not simply 45 deg that some are suggesting..I had problems with glowies too from my fresnels being unsplit..i did resolve that but i chanced upon the dell recently and liked the idea of an AGless panel,done properly!! It worked on both sidews perfect ly as you can see here.

My Liquidvision is still working fine, packed carefully away but ready should i need it again. I probably didnt soak it long enough and dug too deep at the corner when attempting the removal..but others have had success with this panel. Times are a bit of a mystery at the moment as regards the soak method, my dell i lifted off in one clean piece after just 4 hrs..possibly the reverse side would ahve come up too in that time but i left it overnight for 8hrs..

My advice would be to definatley attempt this. its worth the pop in contrast. It really is. You'll be knocked out by the colour. Like others have done, set the panel at an angle so any excess water would move away from the electronics. Leave it for six-eight hours and just poke carefully the corner with a credit card. For one side i did actually use a razor blade which worked a treat. If the little corner pops up and is clear, you're good to go. if not, move to another corner..when it comes off you'll wonder what all the fuss was about


good luck!

oh yeah, and used distilled water for the soak as well..you never know whats in our tap water these days!

hey guys

little issue to sort out while im working on the glowies

I have an issue with a different sort of glow. I've noticed that when i achieve perfect focus, esp on a dark image with white text for example i get a glow around the text which seems more eveident towards the bottom of the image..in the test pattern for example the problem is clearly evident. The glow seems to happen on the vertical axis..i was wondering what could cause this. My thoughts are that improper alignment would cause this..
any thoughts on this
heres a mockup of whats goin on..you can see the problem is more intense towards the bottom of the image..
( im keystoning about 5degrees)




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I had a similar problem with my text on certain parts of my screen also it seems to be resolved. It may be that you are still getting light leaks on the sides of your fresnels or that your fresnels are still slightly misaligned. My fresnels are now warpe badly but my image is sharp and without glowies. Although these fresnels appear to be totaly even I noticed that you still have to adjust them a bit for a perfectly even light flow.

You might be able to just drop your contrast a bit so that all of the text evens out setting it too high also give a glow to text so try dropping it a notch until all the text remains even.