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Do you have that one room in your home that you have always wanted to turn into a media room? Maybe the size, shape, ceiling height, aesthetics, or even attic access have made it too difficult or impossible? Can you just imagine what it would be like to finally make that dream come true?
Well, you don’t need to imagine anymore!
We haven’t really talked a lot about Ultra Short Throw projectors. Sometimes when something new comes out you want to wait a little, see how things go, and let them work out kinks a bit. Especially when we’re dealing with customer’s dream homes. The last thing we want is to present the newest shiny just for it to crash and burn a few months later!
But for a lot of people, including our customers, this has quickly become a popular option if it fits the criteria and makes sense.
First, a quick overview of what “throw distance” is. Simply put, it is the distance a projector can “throw” the image. Projectors have an optimal distance that they want to be mounted away from a screen in order to produce the best quality of the image its “throwing”. That distance can change based on the size of the screen. For instance, a projector might want to be 15 feet away from a 120 inch screen. But if you go up to a 140 inch screen, the projector wants to be pushed back to 19 feet in order to deliver the most optimal image quality and fill the screen.
Assuming you now understand how projector throw distance works, we can move on to the main points of the blog!
“Short Throw” projectors have been around for a long time, mainly used in conference rooms or anywhere you can’t mount a projector further back in the room to display on a large screen at the front of the room. A normal projector for a home theater room, on average, would want to be about 16-20 feet away from the screen. A short throw projector can do the same thing, but at 5 feet.
This is also why they aren’t really popular for home theaters, because it puts the projector up front in view of the seating and kind of ruins the vibe. That and they are never optimized for “video” viewing, instead focusing on being super bright to display powerpoints and other kinds of presentations. You could use one, but it’s not optimal and definitely not what they are designed to do.
These little power houses can project an incredible 4k UHD image on a 130 inch screen from only 1 foot and 6 inches away. And that doesn’t mean the projector has to sit that far away from the wall. It’s the BACK of the projector that needs to be that far away.
This makes these projectors extremely versatile. Of course you don’t have to do a 130 inch, you can do pretty much anywhere from a 100 inch to a 150 inch screen depending on the projector. As long as it makes sense and you position the projector the correct distance away from the wall, you’re good to go.
They are also SUPER bright and do well in rooms with a lot of ambient light, as long as you pair them with the correct screen. You have to use a screen that is made for an ultra short throw projector, so you can’t just reuse a screen you have or inherited. Since the image is being projected upwards instead of head-on like a normal ceiling mounted projector, the screens are developed to catch the light from that upwards angle and reflect it back forward as the image.
A screen like this not only reflects the image towards you, but also reflects any ambient light AWAY from your eyes.
They are basically ultra short throw optimized screens. You can use a regular screen if you want, but it won’t be anywhere near as bright and detailed. So if you want to get the most out of your setup, always do a screen that is made for an ultra short throw.
As we mentioned earlier, they need to fit the scenario and there are some caveats that come with doing one of these. I would say the following three bullet points are the biggest concerns or drawbacks.
You need to have a cabinet underneath the screen for the projector to either sit on or sit inside of. Salamander AV furniture actually makes some for the projector to sit inside so you don’t see it, or you can have custom cabinets built for it if you’re remodeling a room/building your home.
Everything needs to be 100% planned thoroughly and on the dot in regards to throw distance and screen size. Just 1/8th of an inch too close or far away can make the image way too big or way too small. Some screens sit off the wall about an inch when mounted, and even that has to be taken into consideration.
They are best used in a room where you can’t run wires to a ceiling mounted projector OR a ceiling mounted projector won’t work. This is where we have used them the most, because it allows people to do a media room with a big screen where it wasn’t possible (or cost effective) before. Otherwise, a ceiling mounted projector is still a superior setup.
The one ultra short throw we have been using and consistently lean on has been the Epson EpiqVision Ultra LS800. While its initial setup process leaves a bit to be desired (not very intuitive even for us) the end results have consistently been the same. They also have their own Epson branded screen to pair with it, the Epson Silverflex Ultra, so the combo floats around $6500 (for the 120 inch screen).
We know there are a few others out there. LG has the HU85LA and Samsung has the Premier LPU7D and LSP9T, which we have personally seen. They aren’t bad products by any means and if a customer wants something besides the Epson then we will happily get it done. The reason we stick to recommending Epson over them is simple.
Epson’s main shtick is projectors, and has been since 1989. That is what they know and focus on. So as audio and video professionals, it is who we stand behind.
If you have that one room in your home that you have always wished you could turn into a media room but don’t want to have to remodel the entire thing to do it, an ultra short throw projector just might be your solution! Even if you’re building a home and a ceiling mounted projector won’t work or fit aesthetically, you’re a few cabinet adjustments away from still having that big screen and projector feel that will make all of your friends jealous!
Give us a call or contact us through the website today! Free consults around the Tyler Texas area, or we’d be happy to schedule an appointment to sit down with new home plans.