Question and information about Projector Screen
The projector’s screen is an essential complement to your projector. If the walls around your screen are too pale, they reduce the final contrast since they reflect a part of the light towards the screen. A dark environment around the screen makes the best projection. An ideal home theater room has dark and matte walls and ceiling, just like a real movie theater’s room. Black Sides around the screen are perfect to isolate the background image and increasing the contrast.
What is the right projection screen for me?
Certain models can be installed on a tripod to facilitate their transportation and use. There are also screens that can you can pull out of their transportation cases with brand-name models like: Grandview Cyber Xpress Portation Series Pull-Up or Grandview U-Work Table Top.
A permanent projector screen (installed on a frame) is particularly interesting for a room exclusively used for home theater projections.
Back projection screen.
This type of screen is used for back projections. The screening angle is between 20 and 30 degrees. Since this is a highly granular projector screen you can obtain an image less contrasted and luminous, because the light passes through the screen.
Tripod projection screen
This screen is retractable and has a foldable stand, making its transportation easier. However, the dimensions have to be smaller, because larger screens are very heavy to carry.
Motorized or manual screen?
At Quebec Acoustic, we offer several retractable screens’ brands and models in different dimensions and types of surfaces. The manual retractable projection screen is installed on the wall or the ceiling with a mount. You just have to pull on the handle to unroll the screen. If you chose a motorized retractable screen, don’t forget that you will need a power source at its exact emplacement to install it. The screen is controlled with a wireless remote, a wall interrupter or directly unrolls when your projector is turned on (through the 12 volts plug). Retractable screens are ideal for companies working with a multimedia projector and are perfect for home theater rooms.
You can also manage all your devices from a distance with a Home automation system. With a Home automation system, when you play a Blu-Ray disk or a DVD, your projector automatically turns on, your motorized projection screen unrolls and the lighting of the room lowers… Our professional employees can take care of all the settings for you.
How to chose a format?
Many formats exist, but the most popular are 4:3, 16:9 and 1:1 (square).
The square format is mostly used to project slides.
4:3 screens are generally perfect for Data projectors or multimedia projectors. Certain ones can also adapt their format depending on the image proportions: They unroll a little bit (SR/SL control return/self locking). A 4:3 screen can be open with 16:9 proportions.
The formats used to project DVDs and Blu-Rays 720P or 1080P have 16:9 proportions and 2.35:1 with an anamorphic lens.
For a general use (not HD), it is better to get a 4:3 screen, which is more versatile than a 16:9.
Your screen’s Gain
The higher the screen’s Gain is, the more it is luminous but the screening angle is smaller. Projection screens with a low Gain (between 0,9 and 1,3) are recommended for video applications and home theater.
You can get different projection screen types, from matte white to silver grey.
A white matte projector screen is white and doesn’t shine. It is the universal screen type. It perfectly shows the colors. The white matte projection screen has a homogeneous luminosity. Since the projector screen has a particulary wide screening angle, it is well adapted to larger projection rooms. It is a highly recommended screen for a darker room.
A grey screen is recommended when there is luminosity during the screenings. It helps rejecting a part of the light and increases the contrast.
The silver grey screen is ideal for 3D projections. It perfectly deviates direct light. However, it doesn’t deviate the indirect light as well as a matte white screen. Therefore, its color restitution is not as perfect as the one from a matte white screen.
