1..i can get around 12
foot with the
projector mounted from the ceiling
flat with
screen about 9 ft off the
ground. 35 ft would have been to the balcony. we already had plans to mount the epson
projector this way but couldnt do to needing a ladder mid service to turn on and off so we thought we'd buy a long
throw but didnt know prices so we'll stay short around 10-12ft we'll say....
2..the size of the 10x10
screen i mentioned was a rough idea we currently have a
transparency machine that puts out im guessing 12ft tall 6-8 ft wide.. so something in that area doesnt have to be that exactly ,as long as people can see words clearly for a song from roughly 30ft away im open to what you say will work so please let me know...
You really need to select the desired
screen, actually
image, size first then work backwards. For a church with the furthest viewer 30' away a 3' high to 5' high
image might be typical. With your budget you are most likely looking at a 4:3 format
projector, so that would then be 36" high by 48" high (60" diagonal) to 60" high by 80" wide (100" diagonal) images. You can always go with a bigger
screen but consider those sitting up front and their having to view the entire
screen, you don't want them getting neck strain or having trouble reading the entire thing at once.
Then you have to look at what projectors might be able to project that
image size with the
projector at the desired distance from the
screen. If there are no projectors in your budget that can do that then you may have to adjust the
image size.
Projectors, Projector Reviews, LCD Projectors, Home Theater DLP Projectors at ProjectorCentral.com can be a great resource, especially the "Search By Feature" and "Calculator Pro" functions that, respectively, let you search for projectors that meet selected criteria and look at the relationships between
throw distance and
image size and brightness for many projectors.
3..wasnt sure on control dont know whats availible just know we want to be able to turn it off without a ladder and mid service without destractions from service..
Beyond simply using the handheld remote for the
projector there are multiple potential control options including IR extension, serial and
network.
Network control, which uses a
network cable from the computer or
network to the
projector and software provided by the manufacturer, may be the best option for you but it does require a
projector that supports
network control, which may not be part of a
projector that meets all your other requirements. IR extension essentially extends the handheld IR remote signal, you have a receiver near the operator at which they
point the remote and an associated emitter at the
projector that emits the same code. Whether wired or wireless, this obviously requires additional equipment. Between having to create the serial codes, have a computer with a serial port and needing a
projector with a serial control port (that typically requires custom wiring), serial control is probably not
practical in this situation. There are also some simple control systems such as
http://www.spcontrols.com/prodcat.php?hierId=32, but those would entail more cost and equipment.
4.. we purchases a 100ft
vga cable to feed the
projector didnt think we'd need anything else..
100'
VGA cables are always sort of a risk as it may work fine or it may not. The quality of the cable, the output of the source and input of the
projector, the bandwidth of the video signal (determined by the resolution and scan rate of the source), the cable path and so on can be factors. There is someone on another church media site who is right now dealing with problems where a 100'
VGA cable worked when they used it to run from the computer to the
projector before installing everything but once everything was installed with the cable run through the attic they apparently experienced
image issues.
I guess my
point is that you may be fine but don't be too surprised if you end up with some
image issues and potentially wanting to look at buffer amps or video over
UTP/CAT solutions.
Speaking of running through attics, you need to make sure the cable has to proper
rating for the path used. For example being run in walls or above ceilings typically requires CL2 rated cable while if is run an a space considered a
plenum space then it requires
plenum rated cable.
5..
power source was going to be a
receptacle built into the shelf or hanger for our
projector..most of the guys in the church have a carpentry buisness and we can
build most of our own stuff and
wire our own equipment so kinda infinite possibilities
6..we were going to solid mount the
projector with 2 steel pipes from the ceiling like 2" and run the cable
thru one and
power thru the other.
8.. the budget was kinda just for the
projector. ive got the cable .. the mount is kinda furnished by the carpenters in the church..
i will try to have pictures and exact measurements this weekend please keep in mind time& labor is being donated so that is not a part of the budget
I have no doubt you have some very handy members or that they produce quality work. I have a little more doubt they want to personally assume the liability for electrical work or flying a
projector. Unless you happen to have the blessing of qualified, licensed Electricians and people familiar with the hardware and installation involved with flown projectors then I strongly suggest that you hire qualified parties for those aspects.
the church is talking about a desktop to run the "easyworship" program on and also be able hook up the visitors laptops in the balcony so not sure what little cables and what not we will need or extra programswe may need.
If you have more than one source then you either need to run multiple cables to multiple inputs on the
projector or provide a
switcher to
switch between them. A simple two input
VGA switcher is inexpensive and if that works for the computers involved and you are okay with the resync issues that occur when switching between sources where the
projector goes black and maybe blinks a few times before syncing up a second or two later that is an option. If you want to support other video formats such as
composite video,
HDMI,
DVI,
etc. or want cleaner switching then you need a more advanced device that will likely cost significantly more.
so didnt really want to go over 1000$ with everything that would leave me around 850$ for the
projector but if you think i need to go a little higher i may be able to get around 1200$ just for the
projector but probly no more than that...
As you can tell from the comments above, how much you end up spending on the control, switching, installation,
etc. is going to impact how much you have left for the
projector.
And/or a remotely-controlled
projector douser (
http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/multimedia-projection-show-control/6801-need-remote-douser.html ). Eventually Kodak added "auto-black when no slide in
gate" to slide projectors, to eliminate having to use a blank solid slide to avoid projecting white all over everything. I wonder why there are no video projectors with a similar feature?
Most projectors have a picture
mute function which projects black, but the
projector is then projecting black and not actually cutting off the light engine output as a
douser or
power off would.