Need help for DIY Screen - Pune

rahimv

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Hello Friends,

This is my first post to this forum. Was googling around the net for "blackout cloth" and landed on this beautiful forum. I never knew India has so many projector fans!

Coming to the point, I recently purchased the Epson home cinema 705 HD projector. Its on the way to my home, have not received it yet. What I'm looking for now is the screen for it.

I am staying in the rented house and currently not looking for any high performance costly screen. I just search around the net and found that DIY screen can be made using blackout cloth. I also searched in the forum and found that several members are already using this type of screen and have moderate to good results.

One thing I really do not understood is what is blackout cloth? (is it what we call "rackzeen"?) Any members from Pune out there? Can you please point me to right direction on where to buy this in Pune?

I must admit that I do not have any knowledge of DIY screen and am totally noob. Kindly forgive my lack of knowledge and answer even if the question sounds too obvious to you guys (but believe me I am having a hard time to figure it out :D)

Regards,
Rahimv
 
Not sure about DIY screen. A pull-down screen isn't too costly. It's about 8k or so for a 80" screen. Perhaps you can install a pull-down screen.
 
Hi Askii2,

Thanks for the reply. I will surely consider this as an option.

But just out of curiosity, does anybody know what is "blackout cloth" and how does it look like?

Thanking you in advance Experts :)
 
I have built one from scratch and can help you.

Blackout fabric not the same as "Rexine". That's a totally different material.
Blackout fabrics are available only with people dealing with window blinds, and they don't sell just the fabric (this is not profitable for them).

If you want to save money you will have to build the screen from scratch yourself. Otherwise these dealers also sell custom built blackout projector screens, which will cost you close to a conventional projector screen. So if you are not comfortable with regular DIY jobs, you would be better off buying one such custom built or a conventional projector screen.

Don't you have a white/off-white wall?
 
Hello Deepchand,

I recently saw a Sports bar in Karjat, they had this Paint on the wall - that worked as a Screen, at first it looked standard, but it was a Matt Black (Dark Grey).

I was amazed to see the clarity reflected off that. Common knowledge is look for white or off white screens, but this dark wall (screen) was fantastic.

Anyone on the forum know about it ? Looked a bit like a paint on Slate / black board.

Maybe you should look at that for an option.

Cheers
Mazher
 
Hello Mazher, Deepchand

Thank you guys for your reply. This forum is indeed very live :)

There are so many threads in avsfourms about painted screen, but those paints are not available in India. Plus, I believe, due to the restrictions, we can not import it either.

So what I was thinking was creating a DIY screen using blackout cloth and then if I am not satisfied with it, I will paint the one site using colors available in India and see how that works.

Any more suggestion are more than welcome!

Thank You.
 
I have built one from scratch and can help you.

Blackout fabric not the same as "Rexine". That's a totally different material.
Blackout fabrics are available only with people dealing with window blinds, and they don't sell just the fabric (this is not profitable for them).

If you want to save money you will have to build the screen from scratch yourself. Otherwise these dealers also sell custom built blackout projector screens, which will cost you close to a conventional projector screen. So if you are not comfortable with regular DIY jobs, you would be better off buying one such custom built or a conventional projector screen.

Don't you have a white/off-white wall?

Hello ontherocks, thanks for your reply. I think I'm comfortable with building my own screen.

Regarding wall color, no my house is painted with yellowish color. So I guess it will not produce good colors.

And since I am staying in rented house, I think DIY screen would be best option for me as I will be able to dissemble it whenever I want to move to other location.

So yes, I am ready to buy a DIY screen from scratch. Just don't know what kind of fabric I will need. Can you please help in this regard?
 
"A darker (gray) screen reflects less light, of course both light from the projector and ambient light. This decreases the luminance (brightness) of both the projected image and ambient light, so while the light areas of the projected image are dimmer, the dark areas are darker; white is less bright, but intended black is closer to actual black. Grey screens therefore, have the distinction of being "high-contrast" screens."

The above explains for gray screens.

But, I would still suggest a carpenter's laminate for its uniformity in color and size, and who knows you might land up on the right surface that might even accentuate the PQ.

Cheers
 
Hello Musicmaya,

I have already searched the forum before creating the post and did not found information on from where to get blackout cloth or at least how does it look. What I found was there are members who are able to buy the cloth in India and they are happy with that.

Thanks.
 
Hello ontherocks, thanks for your reply. I think I'm comfortable with building my own screen.

Regarding wall color, no my house is painted with yellowish color. So I guess it will not produce good colors.

And since I am staying in rented house, I think DIY screen would be best option for me as I will be able to dissemble it whenever I want to move to other location.

So yes, I am ready to buy a DIY screen from scratch. Just don't know what kind of fabric I will need. Can you please help in this regard?
If you wish to build a screen which you can carry around, you should build a roll over screen (like the manual pull down screens). This is what I have built.
How much are you willing to spend? How big do you want the screen to be?
There are other alternatives to blackout fabric which are much much cheaper.
 
If you wish to build a screen which you can carry around, you should build a roll over screen (like the manual pull down screens). This is what I have built.
How much are you willing to spend? How big do you want the screen to be?
There are other alternatives to blackout fabric which are much much cheaper.

Hello Ontherocks,

Thanks a lot for reply!

Thats exactly what I'm looking forward to build! The rollover one. Even if it is not roll over, If I could just hang it on the wall, I would be more than happy.

I'm not too sure about the budget but at this point I would like to keep it as minimum as possible. Screen size around 100" would be appropriate I guess. Please let me know your views and any alternatives available.

Thanks.
 
Please let me know your views and any alternatives available.
All the alternatives that I have tested are available in Pune. But you will have to test samples of them with your projector and satisfy yourself about the picture quality. Then go ahead with the purchase.

I will give you the contacts of people where you can purchase the materials. These are very specific people who had agreed to sell me the materials separately (which you won't get). PM me for details.

A 100" diagonal screen assuming you wish to build in 16:9 aspect ratio will mean roughly 87"x49". You should have empty floor area greater than this in your apartment to work on.
You would need the following:
an electric drill plus drill bits for concrete and wood
a hacksaw blade
a screwdriver with philips and flat heads
a self retracting metallic measuring tape
a stapler (preferably the bigger one)
 
I will give you the contacts of people where you can purchase the materials. These are very specific people who had agreed to sell me the materials separately (which you won't get). PM me for details.

Hello ontherocks,

Thank you so much for you extended help.
Can you please send me the details. I have sent you PM.

Thanking you again.
 
Hi Folks

I am also from Pune and recently purchased a Panasonic AE 4000. I was thinking of buying at fixed 100 " 2.35 :1 screen as I would normally watch Bluray's.
Where can I get these screens. I ususally find only 16:9 screens available in India
 
I recently purchased a 6' X 4' screen with a tripod for about Rs.3,200 in Hyderabad. A 6'X4' screen gives about 84" diagonal screen in the 4:3 format. In the 16:9 format it will be slightly less. I managed to get hold of the major distributor. The same was being quoted as Rs.4,500 to 5,000 by others. If you want the address please send me a PM.
 
A blackout cloth is generally used to block out the sun from entering through windows. It doesn't allow any light and keeps the room very dark. If you was to cut off the top (where the curtain rods go), than stretch it across your wall, it may work. It may take two or three pieces to do it, but just make sure you stretch it tight.
 
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