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[victor-eyd]

As a FP owner, I know its a real drag to undo your projector from your ceiling or wall mount, disconnect all the cables and wires, move and attach to your outdoor setup, and do it all over again when its time to go back into the HT room.

Here's a suggestion: Buy a used one at a really cheap price, say under $200.00 or less. My reasoning is that I don't want something to destroy my pride and joy, and moreover, having to realign the pj with my HT screen, which was already a pain the first time around. In my findings I've been able to buy CRT projectors (which will also work outdoors btw) for $50-70.00, and lcd pjs as low as $10.00 (It was a throwaway, but actually just had a mis-seated lamp-700hrs left on bulb). Assume that in an ideal setup, you'll watch movies twice a week (4hrs tops). With warm summer nights going only between 4-6 months, that around 60-100hrs only per year. Even if you found a pj with only about 500hrs left on the bulb, thats still a minimum 5 years of occassional use.

So "occassional" pjs are out there, and they'll be perfect for those warm party nights. Don't stress on perfomance, but rather the best image you can get for the $. Its just a party, there's already plenty of distractions around- you just want to be known as the guy with the drive-in sized screen.

And leave the really good pj where it belongs- in the theater room

Victor

UPDATE: July 10,2005- Found another projector- Sharp XG E1000U with a working bulb, great condition, $30.00.

See, they're out there!

[Cherry Hills]

Want to reveal your hunting grounds? I'm not seeing these super-cheap PJs falling into my lap.

[b_sparks]

the Sharp XG E1000U is only 600 ansi
thats not good enough is it
plus the bulb is almost 400 dollars wow


MSRP (USD) : $8995
Brightness (Lumens) : 600 ANSI
Contrast: ANSI: **
Full On/Off: **
Weight: 35 lbs.
Size (inches) (HxWxD) : 9.0 x 21.0 x 18.0
Throw Dist (feet) : **
Image Size (inches) : **
Lens:

Focus: Manual
Zoom: No
Optional Lenses: No

Digital Zoom: **
Keystone Correction: Fixed
Lens Shift: No

Compatibility:
HDTV: **
EDTV/480p: **
SDTV/480i: **
Component Video: **
Video: **
Digital Input: **
Personal Computers: **

Networking:
Wired: No
Wireless: No

Warranty: No
Lamp:
Type: Metal Halide
Life: 2000
Quantity: 1

Display:
Type: PolySi LCD (3)
Native: 640x480 Pixels
Maximum: 640x480 Pixels
Aspect Ratio: 4:3 (VGA)

Performance:

H-Sync Range: **
V-Sync Range: **
Pixel Clock: **

Speakers: **
Power: **
Voltage: 120V - 120V
FCC Class: **
Audible Noise: **
Special: **
Status: Out of Production
First Ship: **
Last Ship: **

[victor-eyd]

Nope, the Sharp will be just fine for outdoor viewing. My Nec has only 700 lumens, plus over half the bulb has already been burned (1300 hrs on counter = 700 left on bulb) and Iwas showing everything from Star Wars to Shrek on a 15' wide screen with no problems. I also have two street lamps within 75ft of me, and I have no problems with ambient light.

I even fired my old crappy Sony crt with half the lumens and it still looked decent. Ofocurse what you are showing is just as important as the projector. If you limit yourself to bright movies (ie animation, outdoor movies) even a low lumen pj will be just fine. It will of course struggle to some extent if you use movies like Pitch Black or Pirates of the Caribbean which has a lot of dark scenes.

As to sources, try your local schools- they're always upgrading, and online classifieds.

I don't do a lot of outdoor presentations, it still gets too cold in my area at night (not good for toddlers) and I don't want to drag my ht projector out and later have to realign, reconnect, etc.

As to replacement lamps, joppru.com and myprojectorlamps.com offer to refurbish your bulb for about 250.00, so replacing the bulb, while not exactly cheap, will still be cheaper than buying a brand new one (depending on model, of course)

Victor

[rfisk]

Ofocurse what you are showing is just as important as the projector. If you limit yourself to bright movies (ie animation, outdoor movies) even a low lumen pj will be just fine. It will of course struggle to some extent if you use movies like Pitch Black or Pirates of the Caribbean which has a lot of dark scenes.

Excellent points there, Victor. 

It still amazes me just how different movies really are from one another in regard to lighting.  Some are really brown, some are really bright, some blue... I often spend the first couple minutes of a movie adjusting things and then the scene changes and the first few minutes of wierd lighting were just for dramatic effect -- so I'm adjusting again.  And we all know how much everyone loves it when you're tweaking your gear during a movie. 

BTW, you DO have a knack for finding great deals on projectors!

Randy

[victor-eyd]

Randy,

Thanks for the compliments.

I'm slowly trying to make my home a multiplex for under $1000.

So far a have a $800 A10x in my primary ht
$10.00 NEC MT820
$50.00 Sony 1022 crt (busted convergence- will use as sideshow video)
slowly working on:
(3) diy pjs based on the psone and game cube lcd est price $75.00 per pj- for my kids
(2 or more) lcd pjs from a local school est price $25.00 for each

Victor

[b_sparks]

Thanks Victor..



Bryon

[victor-eyd]

Found another $50.00 Sharp pj

Damn- they're like cockroaches, these pjs.

I might have to a start a new line of work.

Victor

[David]

Need guidance on locating the cheaper projectors for Fall project.
Building an outdoor theater for the neighborhood kids.
really appreciate any assistance.
  thanks David

[victor-eyd]

Start with a budget. From $10.00 to $300.00 you should land a late 90's business pj, most likely lcd with either vga (good) or svga (better) or xga (best) resolution. Search online classifieds and local schools, sometime they are in the process of changing over and the prices are so low it almost a joke. From $500-700 in price and you'll should consider refurbished recent lcd or dlp projectors ie X1 or similar. Any higher and buy new.

If the lamp is dead, don't bother getting a new one- they are way too expensive. Instead have the bulb refurbished. Jopprugroup.com has a program and seeing the feedback they seem to be doing it fairly well. Cost should be in the $250.00 range.

Screens can vary in size and shape. Some have used 4x8 plywood painted white, others have used tarps or bedsheets or blackout cloth. Don't get too bent over seams or breaks. At 200" inches no one is looking for those things  . As to what size, start with your garage door. If you like the image imposed on 2 standard issue 2-car door, pattern your screen to that size.

Lastly, audio makes the experience complete. While you can use old stereos or even computer speakers, consider an old surround sound stereo and whatever speakers you can find at the local thrft store. Any dvd player will do for video and you're all set.

Victor

[Maggiesmom]

Hi Victor,
Wanna start that new biz now?  I am frantically looking for an inexpensive pj for my husband's 40th bday party.  I was going to rent, but thought spending $400/wk for a pj was stupid and would just buy him one as a gift.  Not that I want to skimp out on him, but we are not in a position to be spending $800+ on a pj.  Anyway, I am 2 weeks away from the party! (ok, so I procrastinate a bit) Can you help, or give me REALLY good directions to find something fast?  I tried a few local classifieds & schools to no avail.....

mm

[rfisk]

We do have a free classifieds area available in the forums for 'for sale' and 'wanted' ads.  It's currently going unused but whichever side of the equation you’re on, you might want to drop a note in there. 

Maybe Victor will hit the saturation point of ‘collecting’ projectors and post some for sale. 

Randy

[Maggiesmom]

Thanks Randy!  Yeah, I saw that.  Kind of sad over there....But it can't hurt to throw it out there!

mm

[victor-eyd]

Finding a used projector is like finding a great sale at your favorite department store. If you cannot find it locally, consider ebay to your search. Just limit the search to within a 100 miles so its no more than a 2 hour drive if its worth your time.

As to saturation Randy, it will be acheived once the cineplex is completed (8 screens, one home)

Victor

[Maggiesmom]

well, I didn't get a $50 bargain, but I did get a decent deal on ebay on an InFocus X1a.  The popcorn machine is reserved and E.T. is on its way from Netflix.  I don't think he has a clue as to what I have planned. He will be so jazzed when he sees the screen roll down and the pj come rolling out with the bow on it.  I'm getting VERY excited......

mm