Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Thunndarr]

(If you already know about Home Theater projectors and have opted against one, feel free to skip this. If not, read on.)

This is a rant I, and some other posters have. It's not so much about why I don't like those sleek, sexy, ultra-cool PDPs and LCD TVs. It's more about informing people about something they more than likely haven't even considered.

Home theater projectors have come a long way. They're no longer those gigantic boxes with red/green/blue R2D2 style eyes on the front. Now, they're small, stylish little boxes that don't require much set-up or technical know-how to get a fantastic, high quality, hi-def picture in your living room for a fraction of the cost of a comparably sized LCD or PDP.

Why do I care about this? I hate to see people making uninformed decisions. Depending on what your wants and needs are, a projector can make a lot of sense.

1: What and when do you watch? Personally, I watch a lot of movies and sports. Nothing beats seeing your favorite movie or sporting event on a crisp, bright, colorful 100 inch screen. I guarantee that LCD and PDP displays just simply DO NOT induce the same feelings of awe. Yes, they are cool, but let's face it, size does matter.

Caveat: I keep a smaller TV around for watching CNN and general background noise. If you feel the need to see Oprah on a glittering 50 inch PDP, well, then a projector may not be for you.

2: How much are you willing to spend? If you've got money burning a hole in your pocket, then yeah, you can get a fairly large PDP or LCD TV, and they do have great picture quality. But for a helluva lot less green, you're going to get a lot more screen real estate from a projector.

3: How long will you be here? If you're going to be in Korea for, I'd say, less than 3-4 years, shelling out 2-8 million on a PDP/LCD TV doesn't make a lot of sense, since the resale value is probably nil (I'm guessing) and there is pretty much no chance of shipping it intact back to your home country. By contrast, my projector will fit in a carry-on bag.

4: What kind of viewing space do you have? Projectors are all different, but generally they have more specific set-up requirements than regular TVs. You'll need a certain distance from the wall, and a certain height. This varies from projector to projector. Mine is ceiling mounted about 12 feet from the opposite wall. I had to run some cables around the edges of the room to set it up. Not terribly difficult, but then, not quite as easy as just PDP/LCD unit.

5: You'll need some thick curtains if you want to watch during the day, as ambient light really washes out the picture. For me, not a big deal. I watch movies at night, and, on the rare chance that I want to see a matinee, I've got some excellent light-blocking curtains.

Well, end of rant. I know a lot of people are planning on staying in Korea for a while, and, like me, are tired of watching tiny, low-res 20 inch hagwon provided televisions. However, there really isn't a point in buying anything nicer if you can't lug it around with you or take it home. Well, this is one option. I hope this was somewhat informative.

[hanguker]

Hey Thunndarr. Thanks for the info. but I think you give people less credit than they deserve. Most people realize that there are modern projector solutions out there, but they opt NOT to get them because of the reasons you mentioned. I was looking into getting one myself and ran into a lot of potential problems:

1. Ambient light washout is a VERY big factor. You essentially need a screening room with thick, opaque (expensive) curtains.

2. For optimal viewing you need a good (expensive) screen.

3. I think you underplay the setup required and the costs of buying a ceiling mount. Its A LOT OF work to run all off the cables around NEATLY and professionally.

4. You can't leave it on. Replacement lamps are $300-600 a piece, and the fan can be noisy, and it takes time to warm up (I think)

5. I only think its worth it if you are going to spend some time and money on good quality equipment for the screening room. This would add up to be quite a lot if you price high quality projectors, screens, curtains, installation, etc....maybe more than a Plasma or LCD.

6. On the plus side....you can get a VERY big picture and you can take it home with you! Also, the "wow" factor is as good or better than a plasma when your buddies see it.

Ever consider rear-projections? The prices have come down a lot and the DLP systems are quite large, crisp and bright.

[Thunndarr]

2. Well, screen prices do of course vary, but mine was something like 120,000 won. Was it deluxe? No, but it provides an excellent picture.

3. My setup wasn't much work at all. Drill some holes into the ceiling, screw in mount, screw in PJ. Cables? Well, you can buy plastic sleeves with adhesive backing that will hide the cables well enough in the average Korean apt. Now, is it a permanent setup? Not really. However, it will get a person by until they're in a place where they need a permanent setup.

4. Lamps are estimated for 2-3000 hours. I've had my PJ for a year and am at 400 hours. But yes, pricey bulbs.

5. My setup didn't come remotely close to the cost of an equivalent sized PDP/LCD. Of course, those would run something like $50,000.

I think rear projection TVs provide excellent bang for the buck. However, and I think I alluded to this in my post, was that a lot of people are not in permanent residences. If you're going to pack up and move in a year or two, a big rear projection unit really isn't practical.

And about giving people less credit than they deserve. Perhaps you're right, but I have my doubts. I think most people are still severely in the dark about their choices. PDPs and LCDs get all the publicity and when people think HD TV, odds are, that's what they're thinking about. Now, on this forum, perhaps you're right, but if you ran into 10 Joe Schmoes on the street, I'd guess that perhaps 1 or 2 in 10 would have much knowledge about projection.

(Oh, in case you were curious, my ghetto rig ran roughly 1.8 million including screen and all cables/installation costs. And it would have been much less had I been able to buy my PJ from the U.S.)

[Thunndarr]

[Demophobe]

Great post Thunndarr. Good info...thanks.

[Thunndarr]

Some pics of my setup. Keep in mind I've got about as un-ideal a situation as possible, a perfectly white room, and photobucket has compressed all these images. Still, it'll give you an idea what you can expect in a worst case scenario.

[Clutch Cargo]

I know next to nothing. Are they PAL/NTSC specific? How much was yours? What is the power requirement (Australia uses 240 v). How are they for playing xbox etc?
Thanks for your presentation.

[SuperHero]

[Thunndarr]

[Thunndarr]

[Juregen]

I am drooling over here

i myself have an idea in my head that looks very close to what you got set up

now i just need to sell it to my wife

[JongnoGuru]

A great thread, and a topic dear to my heart. I like projectors & big screens for watching films. At the same time, I know they'll always be a niche product because a good TV will give you a good picture in all conditions, day or night, but even the best projectors will suffer if conditions are bad. At the very least you have to draw the curtains and turn off the lights. But it's worth it. I went from thinking they're too much trouble, too expensive, and too big to thinking I'll never be without one as long as I live.

[Thunndarr]

Perhaps a certain someone wouldn't mind posting pics of exactly how good a properly set up projector in a dedicated room can look? (hint hint)

[itaewonguy]

I always knew one day when I settle back home into my house. I will have a projector setup in one of the spare rooms, make a screening room so to speak. So my plan is.. to have a 50" PDP out in the living room.. and have a mini theatre in the spareroom for movies...

I mean If you can pick up a 50" PDP in 2 years time from now for about 2 or 3 grand and then have a projector for 2 grand..
MAN 5 grand and Ive got a mini cinema and a 50" tv in my house im looking pretty sweet!!!
im sure I will burn through the 2000 hours of bulb life in 2 years tho hahahha

[JongnoGuru]

You've got a really nice projector there, Thunndarr, plus a good camera and you know how to use it. My camera's not so great, I don't know how to use it (point & crick school of photography) and my home-theatre, although "dedicated", was a hastily thrown-together afterthought. At the time of remodelling I was expecting to move to a different house, not this one.



Just another nameless historical landmark in Seoul? Or is it the main gate of Guru Pavilion?
Here, come along with me for a minute. It's not too far.



Just a bit further...



almost there...



a few more steps now...



And here we are. Care for a beer? No? Okay, let's go inside and I'll fire up the projector.



What it looks like with the flash on.

'Where's the gear?' -- Ain't here. It's in a cubby at the opposite end of the room. I don't like having LED readouts & clocks & timers or any other visual distractions around the screen.

'4:3?' -- Probably 90% of the movies I watch are in 4:3 aspect ratio, so I went with that type of screen.



It's an electric retractable screen w/remote- & switch control, and it can be lowered/sized to fit widescreen movies so that there's no excess acreage of screen dangling off the bottom.

'How big dat screen is?' -- 10 ft from corner to corner.

'Wall covering?' -- The walls are papered with a raised-felt charcoal grey wave pattern I discovered on my own. After seeing my place, two friends who are professional home-theatre installers began recommending it to their customers.



What it looks like without the flash and the house lights off.
Just a little light reflecting off the ceiling during bright scenes, which you don't really notice that when you're watching a film.



I'll drink to that.



With outer houselights on.
The screen image only looks blurry because I don't have a tripod and couldn't keep my camera perfectly still or find anything to set it on.



With inner houselights on.
Guests like to spill drinks during dark scenes, so I use houselights with a remote-controlled dimmer.



The gear, in the back and out of sight.
I'd have in-walled the entire speaker system if I'd known I'd be living in this house. Some people like showing off their styling high-tech toys, but mine would be invisible if that were possible.







The army of remotes.
Front row: A/C, projector, screen. Middle row: DVD player, tape deck (yep), VCR (yep). Last row: AV receiver.



An urgent final note.