So a co-worker of mine was wondering which would be better, going and spending a decent amount of money on a projector screen to be hung on a wall (looking at about a 52" or larger screen size) or if it would be eaiser to just get some good white paint and just paint the whole wall.
I know a lot of it depends on the projector and area its self but just looking to find out which option is better for the money. Also it located in his basement with no outside light coming into the room if that helps.
I don’t think white is the color you want, if you go the paint route. I found a tried-and-true recipe using several layers of paint, and what you end up with is a light grey, which helps with the contrast and gives you reasonably dark blacks. Using this formula, you won’t get the same brightness as you would with a screen, or with the specially-formulated (and expensive) paint-on screens, but for a dark room and a modern projector you should be fine.
I’ve been using it for about 5 years with my Sanyo PLV-Z5, which by today’s standards isn’t all that bright, but for my movie + XBox purposes has been wonderful. The vast majority of visitors assume it is a traditional screen.
This is a huge area, and there has been a lot of work done by home theatre enthusiasts. The simple answer is that there are very good paints, both commercially available and specifically made for the purpose, and homebrewed mixtures for DIY painted screens. Also lots of knowledge on making your own screen. If you are up to doing it yourself the savings are big over commercial offerings.
52 inches is pretty small. Indeed I am half way through building a fabric screen that is exactly double that.
Painting a black border on a screen seems to be a good idea, it produces a well defined edge, so a fully painted wall might still get a border in just the right place.
A good place to start is the AVS Forum. You can spend days just working though the possibilities. Even just searching the forums for “screen paint” will turn up lots of information. There are guys that have done proper colourmetry on the various paints, and fabrics and laminates. Much good stuff. There is a slippery slope here.
Hopefully, your co-worker is not limiting himself to 52". The whole point of getting an HD projector is to go up to 100"+. You can buy 60" flat screen TV for under $1,000.
A projector screen has the advantage that you can position it in front of shelving and instantly make the room seem tidier by hiding lots of junk. Also have a look around - you might not find they’re as expensive as you think. Our projector screens aren’t that big (250cm/98" wide and about 180cm/70" high) but they were only £55.
For the HT I built in our basement, I installed a 103 inch Seymour fixed screen. It was around $1K, but very worth it. Not only does it look great, but because the screen is acoustically transparent I was able to put the center channel behind the screen, where it belongs.
I vote for a manual screen. You aren’t going to save much money going DIY and will be a lot less hassle. I bought a manual screen and lowered in once and never touched it again. I did a quick check on Amazon and found a 100 inch screen screen for $87.29 with free shipping.
In addition to the AVS Forums, I have Home Theater Shack Forums. There, you will find a massive compendium of information on screens. These guys have been experimenting with laminates, paints, DIY fabric screens, etc. They also delve into actual application of the paint and surface prep for painting.
Also, one individual has access to or own actual test equipment for measuring the various components of a reflective surface in order to determine how good a material/paint is in a more scientific manner. I find this important as the human senses are not linear from person to person and information becomes subjective and then you waste money.
AVS, which I have been a part of for years, kinda grew out of the old rec. newsgroup that covered audio and what not. So, there can be some serious snake oil from time-to-time. Any ways, that being said, AVS is still a good source if information if you dig for it.
All this being said, if your friend is looking to keep the place tidy, then maybe a roll up screen is best. That way there will be no evidence of a system at all.
I used to go to both the Consumer Electronics Show and the CEDIA show, and the screen sellers used to throw the best parties at CEDIA (the extended service contract companies threw the best parties at CES). Open bar, great selection of food. You can do that when you are charging an insane markup.