DIY projector really works!

[Spudd]

I know there were quite a few fellow ATers that were considering doing the DIY projector thing. Well, I jumped in and after a lot of hard work, it actually paid off.

Yeah, I named it after one of my favorite autobots when I was a squirt in the 80s. Anyway, here are a few shots of my projector. I only have a 2mp Fuji, and it doesn't like night shots, so please bear with me.


Projector Parts:

CMV Ct-522a LCD
Ushio S400DD from AtlantaLightBulbs.com
EVC Tech Ballast from OceanEncounter.com
4' x 8' panel of 1/2" plywood from Lowe's cut for .25 a slice (not completely accurate cuts though)
Fresnels cut to 12.5 x 12.5 and 80mm Triplet from diylabs.org
Eagle Shield to protect the wood on lamp side
13" x 13" piece of IR Glass as heat shield
14" x 11" piece of Lexan XL10 for UV Shield



I'll start with the earliest shots before tweaking, and move to the last shot after a lot of adjustments were made. Remember, my camera doesn't do nightshots well--this thing is brighter in real life.

Oooooohh....the monitor works!!!

First Shot...the image was huge! Bigger than my Christmas tree to the right.

Halo 2 anyone? Hehe

Spiderman 2...it's hard to take action shots just pausing with Mplayer

A little Final Fantasy Pic to give an idea of the brightness

Here's a shot of the enclosure. As you can see, I'm not done with it, but you get the idea. I'll be sealing the back to block light with the grill and louvre later. Sorry again for the pics. Doh.

Setup



As you can see, the brightness, etc. improved as I moved things around. In the first shot, the image was so big (117" wide x 88" tall) that I had to aim at the opposite wall instead. My image is approximately 146" (12 feet) diagonal. Dimensions are 117" (9.75 feet) wide by 88" (~7 feet) tall. This is about a 10 foot throw. There's some minor keystoning since I have the projector's front raised about 4" off the table, but it's not a big deal. Text is sharp enough that I can surf the net with the pj. I'll try and get a shot of it during the day, and at night with the kitchen lights on.

I still need a proper reflector and a screen. The last piece of guts I'll add to the projector setup will be an additional card to my HTPC. Right now it has a PVR 250 in it with MCE 2005 as the OS. I want to add an HDTV card, but I've not made up my mind on which one: ATI TV Wonder or Fusion card.

Update: Went with the Fustion HDTV 3 card, and found a suitable reflector on Amazon. When this stuff arrives, I'll upload new pics of any improvements.


Edit: Update 2/5/05 --> Shrek 2 shots and Anandtech forums up-close text shot.

Hey folks. I've got a few new shots now that I've got my reflector and some other stuff in the projector. I'm still only using my little Fuji digicam, so I'm trying my best to hold my breath as I take the night shots--forgiveness please. Hehe.

Shrek Shots:

1
2
3
4
5

Shot of Anandtech text: this was the best one I could take--I have no camera stand, so again, I'm just holding my breath and trying to be as still as possible--shaking causes bluriness.

Anandtech forums text shot

 

[pulse8]

How much did it cost to make the projector?

 

[Phoenix86]

How much was the total cost?

 

[Electric Amish]

Total cost??

 

[aircooled]

Originally posted by: Electric Amish
Total cost??

and how sharp is the picture in real life??? edit nevermind, just re-read your OP

 

[The Stigenator]

nice

 

[FlyLice]

How much$$$$?!?!!!?

 

[Kipper]

I think people want to know how much it cost you...

 

[mwtgg]

Originally posted by: MadCowDisease
I think people want to know how much it cost you...

Really? I didn't catch that part.

Looks nice though.

 

[everman]

I think Tomshardware did it for a couple hundred. I think there may be a link in the article to a great forum for this stuff too...But what did it cost you?

 

[imported_Pablo]

Now with all the money you've saved, you can buy some sheets and furniture!

 

[hevnsnt]

Very cool! Write up a How-To and send it to me & I will post it on my site!

 

[Spudd]

Whoops! Forgot to list prices. Here you go folks:

Projector Parts:

CMV Ct-522a LCD --> $190 from Newegg.com
Ushio S400DD from Atlantalightbulbs.com --> $37
EVC Tech Ballast from oceanencounter.com --> $120 because it's an electronic one. You can get a core and coil for $57 if you want.
4' x 8' panel of 1/2" plywood from Lowe's cut for .25 a slice (not completely accurate cuts though) $24
Fresnels cut to 12.5 x 12.5 and 80mm Triplet from diylabs.org --> $60
Eagle Shield to protect the wood on lamp side --> free
13" x 13" piece of IR Glass as heat shield --> $12
14" x 11" piece of Lexan XL10 for UV Shield --> $4

Total = $447

The cost can go up or down depending on the tools and resources available to you. There are a lot of miscellaneous things that can increase the cost a bit, like buying a screen (blackout cloth) and little stuff like wood screws, hinges, spray paint, weatherstripping, Silicone II, and big stuff like a power drill, jig saw, etc. The basic design is from LumenLab.com with my own DIY stuff added, and the optics are from diylabs.org. By the way Pablo, I have furniture and stuff, but when it came time to get this thing going, everything was moved out of the way--I was going to make this thing work or die trying! roflmao

 

[Wag]

What's the resolution on that thing?

 

[Spudd]

Originally posted by: Wag
What's the resolution on that thing?

Native resolution is 1024 x 768. I'm typing this stuff on it right now. It's so clear you can see each pixel on the screen. :Q

 

[Spudd]

By the way, in case anyone wants to try it, please for the love of god make sure your monitor is strippable...otherwise you will be in for serious trouble. My 522a and the 529a are very easy to strip. Thanks for the props people!

 

[aswedc]

I'm doing this on a budget - would be all set to go except the eBay seller that I bought the LCD from sent the wrong AC adapter. Total cost should be $170, hopefully it turns out just as well

 

[Spudd]

Originally posted by: aswedc
I'm doing this on a budget - would be all set to go except the eBay seller that I bought the LCD from sent the wrong AC adapter. Total cost should be $170, hopefully it turns out just as well

Cool. If you can pull it off for that much, that's insane!

 

[aircooled]

Spudd, do you still have the LumenLab PDF ??

 

[hevnsnt]

Originally posted by: aircooled
Spudd, do you still have the LumenLab PDF ??

me too!

 

[Crazymofo]

That is dirt cheap for that large of a screen.. now all you need is a sound setup for movies...

 

[Rock Hydra]

Did you have express written consent from the NFL for that screenshot? *gasp*
j/k

 

[Spudd]

Originally posted by: aircooled
Spudd, do you still have the LumenLab PDF ??

It self destructed after the projected image went up on the wall!
Seriously though, it's worth it to support the community and the guy who came up with the basic design. Moreso than the guide, the access to the other diyers is nearly invaluable.

 

[Spudd]

Originally posted by: Crazymofo
That is dirt cheap for that large of a screen.. now all you need is a sound setup for movies...

Yeah, that's why I gave it my best shot. The idea that the bulbs on the commerical projectors can cost hundreds of dollars and only last a few thousand or hundred hours was the decision maker. The bulb I'm using is 400Watts, gives out 33,000 lumens (of course only a fraction makes it to the triplet after hitting your LCD) and lasts 20,000 hours--and only costs $37 to replace.

 

[DBL]

Originally posted by: Spudd

Originally posted by: Crazymofo
That is dirt cheap for that large of a screen.. now all you need is a sound setup for movies...

Yeah, that's why I gave it my best shot. The idea that the bulbs on the commerical projectors can cost hundreds of dollars and only last a few thousand or hundred hours was the decision maker. The bulb I'm using is 400Watts, gives out 33,000 lumens (of course only a fraction makes it to the triplet after hitting your LCD) and lasts 20,000 hours--and only costs $37 to replace.

I assume you could do this with a 1600x1200 lcd if it wre easy enough to strip? That would be quite a deal considering the cost of a projector that supports that type of resolution.