How-To: HD projector wrap up and review (aka Part 7)

In our latest series of How-Tos(see: parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6), we built our own HD LCD Projector. Once the saw dust settled, we set it up in our home theater, cabled things up and hit the couch for a while. Now that we've spent some quality time breaking it in, it's time for us to wrap it up and give you guys the low-down on how well it actually works.

Before we could review the projector, we had to mount it. We borrowed an idea from our old CRT projector. The mounting bracket is held to two uni-strut rails by a pair of 2-inch long 1/2-inch bolts and washers. The pivot bolts are located along the center of gravity by a pair of T-nuts. With the uni-strut, the projector can be zoomed to the perfect position.

The metal halide bulb takes some time to ignite. The green LED reassures us that the system is powered up. The first caveat of usage is the start up time. It takes a few minutes for the metal halide lamp to warm up to full output.

Programming our TiVo remote was trivial. The projector responded to the first set of Samsung codes for power and input select. Once the power is programmed, the most annoying property of the MH bulb is revealed. The lamp needed several minutes to cool off before we could re-light it and finish programming the remote.

For our screen tests, we used the screen that we made using black out cloth. With the room lights on, the picture was much too dim. Bright scenes were easy enough to see, but darker video is unviewable.

Our camera exaggerates the difference a bit, but the center of the screen is certainly brighter than the edges.

The "screen door' effect is visible up close. We've found that it's not noticeable unless a very bright scene comes up. To give you an idea of how fine it is, check out the full screen shot below.

Here's what the full screen looks like from our Superbit edition of The Fifth Element. Despite the drawbacks of the large lens LCD technology we used, movies and TV look fantastic. The 1440 x 900 resolution of the LCD really pays off.

Our total cost was about $850 in parts (including long DVI and VGA cables) and around 60 to 80 hours of work. In other words, worth it probably only to few of you. Although, if we hadn't been writing it up, we probably could have finished it up quite a bit faster.

The final word on the DIY HD Projector: we'll give it a moderate rating. The high resolution produces excellent detail. The slight hot spotting in the middle might be mitigated by a bit of tweaking. (We hear that some DIY screen paint solutions work quite well.) Thanks to the large LCD surface, the screen door effect isn't noticeable 95% of the time. For cost effectiveness, you might seriously consider going with a smaller LCD and less expensive lenses. Considering the quality we've gotten, if you can keep the cost under $600, you're still getting a hell of a deal.

[spinach @ Jun 27th 2009 4:02PM]

oh man, this was such a great series. i would like to build a digital enlarger, to make traditional photo prints from digital images, and this article helps to light up the way quite a bit. thanks!

[GJP303 @ Dec 13th 2006 6:40PM]

Picture quality looks great, wish i did it..

[Billy Bob @ Dec 13th 2006 6:48PM]

you can get a smaller projector for like 500 bucks

[GJP303 @ Dec 13th 2006 6:52PM]

I hate when people tell you about the deal you can get but never say whats the make and model. Could you tell me that?

[Fuzz @ Dec 13th 2006 6:51PM]

Its a great project, and I considered doing something similar myself a year ago. But last month, I bought an Optoma HD70 for $999, does 1280x720 native, and couldn't be happier. Prices are plumeting on good quality projectors, so it didn't make much sense for me to go through all the work.

Good project though, I enjoyed following it!

[Nirm @ Dec 14th 2006 6:21PM]

Me and my roomates built one almost a year ago. We honestly didn't know the quality was going to be as good as it is. What is amazing is that we built it for under 250. It's kind of a big improvement considering the T.V. we had before was about a 20 incher. But now, we have our nice little 10.5 ft screen to watch movies on. I couldn't be happier...it took a lot of time and a lot of tweaking but it was so much fun making it...it was bittersweet when it was done.

[pingman @ Dec 13th 2006 7:06PM]

Cool Project,

Now...who gets the projector?
How about a free giveaway?

:)

[CharlieX @ Dec 13th 2006 7:05PM]

We could build this large wooden badger...

[King Arthur @ Dec 13th 2006 10:08PM]

hahahaha large wooden badger.... Lancelot Galahad and I wait until night and then jump out of the rabbit!

[XSportSeeker @ Jan 10th 2007 9:38PM]

...your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!

[Ma2T @ Dec 13th 2006 8:32PM]

Great results. I plan on doing the same, but with a 10.6 inch 1280x768 resolution LCD :)

[KC @ Dec 13th 2006 7:55PM]

Giveaway, thats what I'M talkin about!

[Bman21212 @ Dec 13th 2006 8:21PM]

Don't be greedy now. Though it is awesome, after all that hard work, i wouldn't give it away to anyone. They usually just give away cameras and stuff because the camera place wants cheap publicity for the camera, so its free for them. Then everyone wins.

With this, only the person who gets it wins. The person who put in all the work is out some money, and a lot of time ;)

[SOCOMRAIDER @ Dec 13th 2006 9:27PM]

Nice picture and all, but I wouldn't necessarily want a giant wooden box on my ceiling. Some nice paint or varnish would help just a little.

[Chris @ Dec 13th 2006 9:05PM]

Picture looks nice, but damn is that housing ugly. Great work overall, I don't know if I have the dedication to build my own, I'd rather just spend the money. Not really a "do it yourself-er".

[erik brunn @ Dec 13th 2006 9:42PM]

with all the time spent making this you could have been working at a real job and could have bought a plasma.

[ron @ Dec 13th 2006 10:22PM]

$800 for DIY lcd with less than 1000:1 contrast ratio... Just get 720p LCD projector for like $900 with at least 4000:1. The blacks on that are gonna suck which makes the whole picture look less lifelike and more washed out. I have a store bought 720p lcd projector and a 9 inch crt and the crt smokes my lcd and this DIY one.

[Willie @ Dec 14th 2006 10:25AM]

I built my own home theater inspired by DIY stories like this one. I used an EPSON 735 Projector, blackout cloth, and molding trim around the screen. I put my equipment in the wall, hooked up HD and XBOX 360. Looks great! Total cost was 900. (one lamp blew out. ouch!)

[E Malave Jr @ Dec 13th 2006 10:54PM]

7 parts and still noone has added the cost of hours spent working, researching, testing or tools necessary in a dollar amount. I know it's a project but even projects should be cost effective. People build their own custom PCs to save $$$$. This should be no different. $850 plus the ACTUAL cost (60 to 80 hours multiplied by $?/hour )of hours is not cost-effective.

[Redsox @ Dec 14th 2006 1:16AM]

Oh for gods sake get over yourselves. He did this as a DIY project the cost is no more then that of any of your hobbies that you decide to waste your money on. So shut up and give the man the credit he deserves. Great project, very well thought out.

[guns @ Dec 14th 2006 1:03AM]

It may have been mentioned in another post, but the writers forgot to mention that one of the largest reasons why people do this is that the bulbs cost $30-50, and not $300-600. The lamps in most projectors have a pretty short life, so with moderate usage you may have to pony up a few bills in a year or two of owning it.

The bulbs used in these diy projects have a much longer life and are much cheaper, so it brings down the cost of use and ownership considerably

[E Malave Jr @ Dec 14th 2006 2:16AM]

Redsox:Considering the actual Redsox just paid over 50 million to speak to a pitcher I can understand how you don't care for money.

My point was clear-I UNDERSTAND THIS IS A PROJECT! BUT if you estimate the hourly cost of a capable, qualified technician for the 60-80(which is it? 20 hours is a big difference) hours this project took to complete you are in the thousands. Every college student with a rotozip and a light bulb should understand this is more difficult than it seems. It could take a novice twice as long even with the great directions.

I commend Mr. O'Brien but after years of working on DIY projects I hate hearing of projects that are started and then given up on because people don't realize the commitment it takes. I am sure even Will thought to himself: "Why did I start this?" at some point. In any case Kudos.

Go Mets! Muahahahaha...

[Ovidiu @ Dec 14th 2006 2:28AM]

Great project, thanks for sharing it with us!

The thrill is in doing the research, designing, scratching your head on how to make things work. You learn a lot of things during this process than just spending the equivalent amount on an already made projector. It makes you really appreciate the work put in making the stuff all around you.

[EdZ @ Dec 14th 2006 3:00AM]

Ways to reduce the hotspotting: Use a refletor, move the MH arc back and forards to find the optimal position for your fresnel, and possibly try switching to one of those nice new CERA-arc lamps (the arc length is shorter to fits into the lens' light cone more fully, and it has a better spectrum response).

For anyone contemplating doing this yourself, www.lumenlab.com is the place to go.

[WarriorRocker @ Dec 14th 2006 6:38PM]

It is quite easy for you peons with nothing else to do to bash the work and time that went into this project to ... bash the work and time.

Just because you can buy some off the shelf item does not make the project useless to do.

qouted: "I dont like building things, building things is stupid. Your stupid for building something. Your stupid because walmart has that for 29.99 after rebates. I have a wetting myself problem."

[CB @ Dec 14th 2006 3:45AM]

I've never really understood contrast level envy in projectors, my first one was very low contrast but I got used to it.
Upgraded to a very high contrast HD projector and hated it, the blacks were too black , couldn't see a thing in dark scenes, ended up turning the contrast right down so it looks like the old one...

[Robert @ Dec 14th 2006 5:35AM]

$800 = newegg.com buy projector

[DCH @ Dec 14th 2006 7:07AM]

I would love to do a project like this, have most of the necessary tools, and am always looking for excuses to buy more. I had a question about the keystoning. Is there any simple method to eliminate the trapezoid shape? or are you pretty much stuck with it unless you have a perfectly orthogonal mount to the screen?

[infinityPlusOne @ Dec 14th 2006 10:06AM]

To adjust for keystoning, you need to have the fresnel lenses in a split design where the LCD is sandwiched between the two fresnels. Then you tilt the front fresnel (one closest to the projection lens) to adjust for keystoning. This can be done anywhere from 0 to 15 degrees. Any more than that, and you will get distortion. More details can be found at the forums of www.lumenlab.com.

To the builders of this projector at Engadget... I have been following this project from the beginning and it has been fun. Thanks. And that last Leeloo shot looks awesome. Would have been nice to see some big, high rez pics though.

To the naysayers... Yes you could definitely buy a projector for the same price (or maybe even a little cheaper)... but if your commercial projector breaks (ie. blows a capacitor, cracked lens, etc) can you fix it yourself or will you simply sell it for parts on eBay? My guess is the latter as I doubt anyone would want to pay to have it fixed. To prove it, do an eBay search for a projector that is "as-is" or "broken" and you'll get a ton of hits. Some people decide to ebay their projectors simply because it costs too much to have the bulb replaced! Also paying $200 - $600 for a bulb that lasts 3000 hours in _econo mode_ does not sound very appealing to me either. It also does not HAVE to cost $900 to build a DIY projector and get great results. It can be done for $300 which has been proven multiple times at the lumenlab, DIY Audio, and ledpj.com forums.

I'm not saying that commercial projectors suck. Quite the contrary. They'll always have better blacks, more brightness, and a smaller footprint. But for a person wanting to save a lot of money and doesn't mind spending the time to do it, the DIY route makes a ton of sense.

[chris @ Dec 14th 2006 8:30AM]

people really miss the issue ... its not the price of the projector that is the reason for a LLabs projector its longterm cost benefits ...

First if i start with a cheap lowend lcd, later on i can just switch out my panel to a 1080p panel or some even higher resolution later down the road if they become available... with a standard projector to go from lowdef to high def... i'd have to buy a new projector...

Then theirs the other biggie for cheap guys like me, BULB, the metal halides even the expensive ones are only 45-60$ and they last an extremely long time with proper care.... compair that to retail bulbs for projectors... its a huge difference.

As for quality, this is really subjective it depends on the bulb and lcd you used.... if you dont strip the antiglare from the lcd, or if your lcd is not very transmissive you loose ALOT of your available light, and then theirs the fact that the blackout method for the screen really isnt the best, a nice LightReflective MaxxMudd screen is the best and brightest and from what i've heard if sprayed properly can be spectacular!

[chris @ Dec 14th 2006 9:37AM]

DCH, yes thers 2 ways, one is to tilt the front fresnel, you get key stone correction when you do the split fresnel design (one in front and one in back of lcd).... you get slightly better brightness but no keystoning with an unslit design (both fresnels behind the lcd)

[Dignan17 @ Dec 14th 2006 8:50AM]

Great job with the projector, guys! This has been a really interesting How-To series. I've read each article and been fascinated by the process. Mostly, I'm just impressed with the work you put into it.

I'm not sure the performance benefit is worth the effort for me when I can get a non-HD projector for $500, but the process is really interesting!

[James @ Dec 14th 2006 9:57AM]

Seems like a total waste of time. 80 hours at minimally $10/hour is another $800 added to your cost, so what you have built is a substandard, ugly, big projector for at least $1600, with a crappier image than almost every production projector on the market.

If you are going to do a DIY projector, the only thing that makes sense right now is to do a full HD 1920x1080 one, as those cost $5000+, but even those are dropping like crazy and will be well below $3000 next year.

[1337 @ Dec 14th 2006 10:49AM]

Quote: "...80 hours at minimally $10/hour is another $800 added to your cost, so what you have built is a substandard, ugly, big projector for at least $1600..."

Do you get paid for your hobbies? I'm sure you spend 80+ hours a month watching tv/surfing the web/playing games/ and you never see a dime for any of that time...

DIY is a hobby not a job. DIY has no deadlines, only ones you set for yourself. it doesn't matter if it takes you a week or a year. Its meant to be fun and educational.

I built a DIY PJ for about $500 (15" Haas style). it took me about a month of weekends to complete and i learned alot from it.

Why did I build it? Total cost was low ($500). bulb cost is low ($50 for 10,000+ hours). Experience and Educational gain (priceless)

[san @ Jul 18th 2007 5:49AM]

exactly right.. when you're working on a diy project cost is seldom the main issue, at least with me.. remember how the author quotes "Smell that? Is it the insulation burning off those wires? Nope, it's the sweet smell of success.".. the feeling you get from making something so cool on your own, you don't judge it by the time you spent making it. As a matter of fact, i have a working projector but hell, i'd like to build one of these babies when i get a chance.

i think the next best fun feeling is when you surprisingly are able to fix a broken gadget. i just repaired my audigy card (replaced a leaky capacitor from a guide i found on the net), and man that was an awesome feeling.

[Gordy @ Dec 14th 2006 11:12AM]

Great project! Thanks for sharing.

[Frank Palazzi @ Dec 14th 2006 11:42AM]

Great project, thanks for your hard work and detailed instructions. While I might not build one of these soon it did give me a great idea how to make an inexpensive teleprompter for video production! (It has to be reversed..ie. a mirror image, if you've never used one)

Thanks Much for the inspiration!

Frankrac

[DM @ Dec 14th 2006 1:22PM]

Could you share the exact dimensions of your cutouts? I'd like to see some blueprints, etc. I built a home theatre, just need a projector to go with it, my current one is on the fritz.

[John Bailey @ Dec 15th 2006 9:34PM]

Great project guys. One day when I come across a cheap LCD, I want to do something similar.

To the idiots who just don't and never will get the concept of making something for fun... Go buy yourself a life. The thing you are missing is that you will never be able to do this. Not because it is too complex, but because you can't accept the joy of making something yourself is beyond price. And because of that, I really feel sorry for your deficiency.

[Geoff @ Dec 15th 2006 10:10AM]

Another feature of this design is that it's upgradeable, and already starts at whatever high resolution your panel can do, e.g. 1280x1024. 1920x1440, etc (read: GREAT for 60" computer monitor!) Commercial projectors with this kind of resolution are spendy!

And next year, he can just whip out that MH bulb and throw in something else (how about a panel of high intensity LEDs mounted right behind the LCD panel? should be *much* better in heat / power but not sure about the light output), or buy a higher resolution/better contrast LCD for a better image.

Try even wanting to do that after you've paid $1000 for a commercial model (can you say, "void my warranty!")

[Anthony @ Dec 16th 2006 12:12AM]

Ok So this is a pretty cool project, I got a hold of a PDF file of the lumenlabs walkthrough on how to do this a while back and I think I know why this one has a bright circle in the center with the corners being less bright.

I believe you left out a very importent component of the lcd screen. In the back light assembly you have a few sheets of plastic between the plexy looking refector. you have a frosted sheet that is not needed, but there are polorized sheets, and these help spread the light evenly across the lcd screan, this is also importent in a lcd projector, because the backlight and screan have to work together as the lamp, or in other words the LCD is the lamp, but doesnt produce its own light.

I believe if you were to open this baby up and carefully slide them polorized sheets in place where they belong, right up against the lcd, then the bright spot will be no more and you will ahve a uniform brightness across the whole picture.

Rember that the polorized sheets are like the fresnel lenses you used they use ridges to do there job and remain flat. You can damage them if you get dust on them and carelessly try to wipe it off with your hands.

Hope this helps the author of this project, and those of you planning to reproduce this project.

Those of you that want to do this for $200 or less can get a 15" guide here:

http://www.lumenlab.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=8972

[Geoff @ Dec 21st 2006 10:07PM]

The polarizing sheets are for the LCD to block the light. It blocks light depending on how much 'twist' the incident light on the panel is subjected to as it passes through the crystal material. 0 degrees different from the polarizer and the light passes through, 90 degrees different and the light is blocked. The signals to the panel control the level of twist, but yes, light entering is 'pre-polarized' before being twisted by the crystal, and post-blocked based on how much off-angle they end up, so these sheets are critical (although I expect they're part of the panel itself.)

The brightness in the center of the screen in my guess is caused by the fact you're using a spherical (point) light source and collimating it with a flat surface approximation of another curved surface. There is less light reaching the outer edges of the first fresnel than at the center. An extreme example is sunlight reaching the earth - bright at equator and dim at the poles; less light per sq ft because of the angle to the light source and the distance away from the closest .

To adjust for this, you either need to create a true uniform (i.e. planar, not spherical) light source or use some kind of neutral density gradient filter to cut down the light in the center of the panel but leave the edges the same. A diffuser will help, but not a whole lot. You almost need more bulbs, or some kind of area light source rather than a point...

[Yogi @ Feb 7th 2007 10:15AM]

Engadget u dont have to get disheartened by the comments of the readers here..It looks like u r low on morale here...You didnt even tell us how big the projected image is...You could have shown us some more pictures...The results would definetely improve with a condenser lens... It surprises me that even a 1440x900 native resolution creates screen door problems...The contrast ratio of 700:1 also appears low with the results...I would give the project an above average rating..

[wkuniv @ Jul 19th 2007 8:51PM]

I wouldnt waste my time with this. I bought an optoma home theater bundle for 800 bucks and it took three days to get and 5 minutes to set up. So why waist your time and the chance of screwing up and loosing out 850 bucks. What a waste.

[Canis @ Nov 16th 2007 3:02PM]

I just build one of these, it isa folded design and therefor much smaller. By using a mirror placed between the LCD and the lens you can cut the length of the box in half.

Also if you check out the lumenlabs forums, you'll find that they have made big light level gains not only by using a real screen, but also by removing the Anti-Glare coating from the LCD.

Cost of completion on my project?
LCD - Free ( i had one with a dead backlight)
Bulb and Balast - $70 (I'm using a non-digital ballast-yes it hums, no you can't hear it over my sound system)
Lens and Fresnals from LumenLabs - $65 (I'm didn't do the Pro Lens kit, no point since my LCD is 15')
Wood - Free (If you don't have the wood laying around, chances are you don't have the skill to complete the build. Use Cardboard, your results won't be as good, but hey even a 1st grader can use scissors and paste right?)

Labor for assembly + $600 (I put this together in spare moments while working. Spend a little time working on this instead of browsing the internet while waiting for AD replication, or Exchange server defrag)

Total cost? I made $430 on this project. You find me a comparable projector that someone will pay me $430 dollars to take of there hands, I'm there. Until then, I'm more then happy with my results.