What size screen should i get for my projector

Go with the size you think will be most comfortable for you. Hello friends, I have a 16 feet X 20 feet hall height is 10 feet.

I want to install home projection for entertainment. Plz tell me what much maximum size can I get if I use 16 feet wall. Can I get full length of 16 feet wide. What will projetor's location. Is p projector good for 16 feet wide screen. Plz help me. Old article yes, but by width is the writer referring to diagonal or horizontal width when discussing the 8 foot 2. Am going to TRY to fit 2 rows of theater chairs. So, based on that information, please give me your suggestions on my projection screen size, distance from screen to 1st row, and then suggested distance between front and back row.

Thank you in advance, for any and all advice, that you can give me. Joe B. I was looking at the Epson ub, or the BenQ , my room is 17'Lx19'Wx8'H, what is the maximum screen size I can get out of this with a good quality picture? I'm hoping for a size between , is this possible? Alex, you can check our projection calculator to see the range of required throw distances for both projectors and see where you would have to place the projector for a inch to inch image.

If you have a 4K Ultra HD projector you can sit as close as one times the screen diagonal. That's much closer than most people are used to, but when you sit closer you're better able to see 4K's finer picture detail and depth. Of course, "ideal" viewing distance is very subjective.

After all, in a movie theater, people naturally spread out from the front row to the back, and everywhere in between. So if your screen's diagonal measurement is 96" 8 feet , you should sit about 12 feet from the screen. A fixed frame screen requires a large section of empty wall space, so it's most often found in dedicated home theaters. Retractable screens roll up into a case when not in use. Fixed frame screens don't need to roll up and down, so they are able to maintain a tight, tensioned surface for a smooth image.

With a fixed frame screen , the screen material is stretched over a thick metal frame that's covered in black velour. This border frames the screen in black, improving the perceived contrast of the image. When you're setting up your projector, it's not always easy to make the image fill the screen perfectly. If a bit of the image spills over onto the frame, the black border material will absorb it. These screens provide the maximum size image for the amount of wall space required.

And they also look cool — like a gigantic flat-screen TV. But with no thick black border to hide image overspill, you have to be extra precise with your projector adjustments. Our selection of fixed frame screens includes models that ship pre-assembled and ready to mount to your wall, as well as unassembled screens that can be put together quickly with just a few basic hand tools.

Motorized retractable screens are nearly invisible most of the time — they only come out to play when it's movie time. If you want a screen that's there for movie nights, but out of sight the rest of the time, the most elegant option is a motorized retractable screen.

The screen rolls up into a long metal case you mount to a wall or ceiling. The case houses a powerful built-in electric motor that can raise or lower the screen silently at the touch of a button.

Installation for a motorized screen is a little more involved than for a fixed frame screen because you have to supply power for the electric motor. Also, most motorized screens feature a trigger input so that the screen will automatically lower when you turn on your projector.

That requires a low-voltage connection between the projector and screen. Tab-tensioned screens exert constant horizontal and vertical tension on the screen surface, for a smoother picture. Most motorized screens are classified as "non-tensioned" — the screen surface hangs freely from the case. Non-tensioned screen surfaces can experience minor ripples, waviness, or imperfections. Tab-tensioned screens use a system of cables and tabs to exert constant tension on the screen's surface. This makes the surface flatter and more uniform.

They are the highest performing type of retractable screen, coming closest to the image quality of a good fixed frame screen. Manual pull-down screens are mostly used in schools and offices, but they can work in a budget home theater, too. The cheapest and easiest-to-install projector screen option is the manual pull-down screen. A spring-and-roller mechanism inside the case rolls and unrolls the screen when you tug on it, much like an ordinary window shade.

The screen material and coatings don't match the quality of motorized screens, but your image will look much smoother than projecting onto a bare wall. You should select a material that's well-suited to your projector and room. The screen material aspects we'll focus on are gain , color , and texture. The amount of light that a projector reflects back at viewers is referred to as "gain. High-gain screens reflect back more light, which can help provide a brighter, less washed-out image in bright rooms or with lower-lumen projectors.

One down side to higher-gain screens is that they can suffer from "hot-spotting," where part of the screen looks noticeably brighter. This is because they reflect the light back in a narrower, more focused band. The picture will look best to viewers who sit directly in front of the screen rather than off to the sides. If you have a wide seating area, you might want to consider a screen with standard gain as it will reflect the light evenly in all directions.

This is also called neutral gain, or it may be listed numerically as a gain of 1. Screens with negative gain also offer wide viewing angles. Since they reduce all the reflected light not just the projector's light , they can also help mitigate issues with ambient light in the room.

These screens are often used with high-lumen projectors to compensate for the amount of light they absorb. White screens are the industry standard due to their brightness and ability to display vivid colors. If you have total control over the light levels in your room, like in a dedicated home theater, a white screen is an excellent choice.

Gray screens became popular several years ago when projectors had poorer contrast capabilities than they do today. They were referred to as "high contrast" screens thanks to their ability to deliver deeper black levels. But they — along with the more recently available black screen options — are still a great option for rooms with a lot of ambient light. However, they may require more powerful projectors to compensate for their darker whites and light colors. Screen Innovations' Micro Texture surface left is 9X finer than typical screens — making it an excellent choice for 4K video.

Even the most basic manual pull-down screens have a smooth enough texture to provide great picture quality with high-definition video up to p. But the smaller pixels of true 4K projectors and "enhanced for 4K" models require a 4K-rated screen material with a finer "grit" to show all the detail and depth. So far we've been talking about conventional projector screens.

But we also carry screens designed to overcome specific challenges presented by some rooms. This screen is specially designed to work with short-throw projectors. Ultra Short Throw UST projectors can be placed directly under the screen, making them very easy to set up and connect. There are no hassles with ceiling mounting or long cable runs between your components and the projector.

But with the image projected at such a steep angle, we suggest pairing them with specially designed screens. Projectors used to mainly be found in dark, dedicated home theaters. But that's just not always possible. Sometimes you want a projector right in your imperfectly lit living room. Either one of these two types of retractable screens work equally well. However, for any retractable screen, there are two additional aspects you should keep in mind.

The first one is that to obtain the best performance out of a retractable screen, you should look for a tab-tensioned one. This type of screen has a system behind it to ensure that the surface is perfectly tight and flat when pulled out, while the whole tensioning system also moves out of the way when the screen is rolled in.

Without tensioning, retractable screens tend to have curling and wrinkling that impact your video experience, creating distortions and image wobbling, most noticeable during panning shots. The second important aspect is that any of these retractable screens can come in a manual or motorized variety. Manual screens are light, less expensive, and don't need any electricity to work, which makes them easier to install anywhere very quickly.

Since there is no risk of a motor failing over time, they represent less maintenance and more years of service. On the downside, you have to get up from your seat and pull these screens out by hand before use, which can seem inconvenient when everything else has a remote control. Motorized projector screens exist to remedy that inconvenience.

They offer the most stylish look for your home theater as they slowly and gracefully emerge from their enclosure for your movie session at the touch of a button. These electric screens can be rolled out by using either a remote control, a wall switch, or by connecting them to the 12V trigger port that is available on many projectors. You have to keep in mind that they require a power supply and also cabling if you decide to use the automatic trigger function.

Motorized electric projector screens tend to be the most expensive but also offer the most functionality and flexibility of all types. After deciding the style that suits your media room the best, it's time to choose the right size for your projection screen.

While bigger is usually better, the massive size of projector screens presents challenges not commonly found when using TVs that rarely exceed 75" diagonally. The price difference between a " and a " projection screen is usually minimal, so you might want to go for the biggest size you can fit on your wall. However, it is advisable to pay attention to a few other factors when choosing an optimal size. Even if your wall is large enough, bigger is better still may not always prove the best strategy.

That is because the bigger the screen is, the longer the distance you need to sit away from it to watch comfortably. If your room is not large enough, you might be better off opting for a smaller screen. To calculate the optimal viewing distance, we have to consider the field of view of the human eye. An easy way to calculate this distance is multiplying the screen size by 1.

If you use the THX guideline, a " projection screen is best viewed from inches or 3. Projector screens come in at least three different aspect ratios: , , and Content formatted in is standard in older TV shows and almost entirely out of use today, having been replaced by To choose the ideal aspect ratio for your screen you need to consider the type of video content you watch the most and the formats supported by your projector.

Using a screen to watch widescreen content would add black bars to the top and bottom of the image in what is known as letterboxing. For the ideal distance from the best seat: As a rule of thumb, any seats greater than about four screen heights away will start to have their experience diminish, and after five or six screen heights away the screen probably appears too small. Once your height is determined, the width can be found multiplying it by your chosen aspect ratio.

For more on aspect ratios check out our article. Use the screen size calculator. How close you can sit is a factor that matters most in compact spaces. Converting to feet, you would want your audience between