Projector location help

[Dmoe]

Hey there
Im in the planning stages of a garage sim build. Quick breakdown on my plan is a screen with dimensions of 124" x 102". Ceiling height is 10ft, and trying to figure out what projector to use. I assume with a screen that size, a 4:3 is best? I was looking at the BenQ TH671ST and using the calculator and its given me some information but it also says at the bottom of the calculator to reduce the image size because image brightness is too low.

Just trying to figure out what projector will be best for my setup, and where to place it....

[GungHoGolf]

Don't worry about that projector's brightness, unless you cannot control the ambient light in the room. It's a great, bright projector.

Mounting the projector on the ceiling and centered with the ball and screen is always optimal. If you have to hit offset on your screen (ball not centered with screen), then sometimes a ceiling mount will be in harm's way from your club, which may require floor mounting or off-center mounting with a projector that has horizontal keystone adjustment (the TH671ST does not).

[Dmoe]

Why are they telling me to hang it 15" below the ceiling if I switch to an optimal 1080HD? This seems wild compared the the 2 inches above with the BenQ. Are the Optoma 1080 Darbee a good unit?

[GungHoGolf]

That's the vertical offset - each projector has it's own vertical offset. You can ignore the offset and just angle it down then square up the image with the vertical keystone correction, but the image will be degraded slightly due to digital squeezing of the pixels. The -2" offset of the TH671ST is one reason I like it so much over the Darbee (that and the zoom feature).

[wbond]

That’s why I like the optoma over the Benq , with a very large offset and a high ceiling, I’m able to get the projector that much higher off the ground. But no zoom does suck, so I made a sliding track to accommodate mounting

[GungHoGolf]

Yeah Butch, a large offset can be helpful sometimes. Where it becomes a pain is with a straight top enclosure that will block an elevated projector from the uppermost portion of the screen. Projectors with a good amount of vertical lens shift are useful in these cases, too. I think most guys are too quick to jump on digital keystone adjustment as a cure-all for bad placement / bad projector choice.

[Dmoe]

So with 10 foot ceilings, something like the BenQ is a better option than the Darbee? It also had the Darby at around 85" throw distance instead of 125" in the BenQ

[GungHoGolf]

Both would work. The zoom feature on the BenQ makes mounting less of a hassle. If both the ball position and projector can be centered up with the screen, it doesn't matter too much the exact height of the projector - it will be safe from getting hit.

[Noob20]

Not to highjack the thread, but I'm debating between ceiling mount, likely offset, or floor mount for my projector. I have the limitation of 8'10" ceilings. Does anyone know the drawbacks of each setup? I imagine if it was floor mounted, I could move it and take the setup outdoors where I would be able to swing longer clubs.

[mjmtengu]

I am thinking about the BenQ TH671ST very seriously. I have a window in my garage but there is a venetian blind on it. How much does the room lighting impact things because my measurements are about the same as OP and projector central has indicated that the brightness at that distance is too low. Photo attached.

open to suggestions. I can move the net a little closer as well if that helps - the screen will be moveable since it’s in garage.

[spaz]

I am also contemplating projectors and would like opinions. My ceiling height is 10' and i'm hitting the ball from 10- 1/2 feet away offset because of width. So the projector mounted center screen will be above my head. My screen is 10' wide x 7' long. I would like top of image to be about 102" . Considering 2 projectors:

BenQ TH671ST
Would be mounted about 9- 1/2 feet away from screen.
The bottom of projector would be around 104" (If I'm understanding the offset correctly)
so the projector would be 104" up 1 foot in front of my head.

Optoma GT1080
would be mounted about 6- 1/2 feet away from screen
The bottom of projector would be around 116"
so the projector would be 116" up 4 feet in front of my head

Which would be the best setup - I like the idea of the BenQ, reading here it seems like it would be easier to set up, but maybe the Optoma would be in a safer place.

Thanks for any thoughts.

[myrison]

spaz - I have basically the same situation and am just getting ready to order the projector as well. 10.5' ceilings, hitting 8' from screen, and projecting onto 8' wide screen (so my width & screen size are smaller, but I'm hitting closer to the screen, so I'm in a very similar situation). Due to width, I also will be hitting offset by about 18" so I'll be standing with my head nearly under the projector while swinging out to the right of it (it should be a 1.5-2' in front of my swing position as well)

I'm almost committed to the BenQ because I think I'd prefer the projector near me but higher up vs. further in front of me and hanging further down. I feel like I'm far more likely to hit a wedge shot into a projector 3-4' in front of me hanging at ~9'. With that said, I'm going to find a way to mimic this scenario by hanging something from the ceiling overhead (probably just a string with a piece of foam hanging at the height of the projector) and taking a bunch of practice swings with various clubs to see if I come close to it (or feel like I would which would impact every swing).

It's been awhile since you posted, did you end up making a decision?

[spaz]

Yes, I ended up getting the BenQ TH671ST, and it is fantastic. The ceiling mount was going to drop it another 5 inches so i attached the mount above the joist so the projector hangs just below the ceiling height, My one concern was that I was going to have to tilt the projector down as the top of my screen is just over 8 feet but the keystone correction worked perfectly and Image is great. between the zoom feature and keystone correction installation was easy.

[spaz]

Here is the projector mounted.

[myrison]

Nice work. Looking very good! Thanks for the reply.