This may be a little off-topic, but here goes:
I'm building a new home and dedicating one room to home theatre. Here is my proposed setup and looking for advice, suggestions, equipment reviews, etc..
Room is 15'L x 11'W w/ 9' ceilings. There will be very little ambient light.
Proposed projector: BenQ PE8700+ (Probably stuck with this one based on performance for the $$)
Proposed video scaler/hub: DVDO iScan HD+
The screen is what is holding me up? I want to go with a fixed frame design that has a wide frame around it.
Proposed choices are:
1. Da-Lite Cinema Contour w/ HC Da-Mat material and Pro-Trim in either 92" or 100" diagonal 16:9 HDTV
2. Draper Onyx w/ M1300 material and Vel-Tex in 92" diagonal 16:9 HDTV
3. Stewart ??
The Da-Lite and Draper are pretty similar in price, but the Stewart is considerably costlier. Local shops that sell Stewart say it's worth the money and shops that don't sell Stewart say they are not worth the extra money, so I'm trying to find an honest/unbiased opinion.
Please help me, I don't want to make an expensive mistake......
Thanks,
exelonman

 

Can someone at least point to a good source of information?
Thanks......

 

Audio Visual Science - www.avsforum.com - best place to find information online - it's the s2ki.com of HT.

Projectorcentral.com is great for projector information.

I have a Da-Lite screen over 8 feet wide, by 5 feet tall. I think it is 120" good enough for me and it was less than others. My take is that if I couldn't tell the difference, there were no major quality concerns, and I'm the one paying the bill go with the less expensive screen.

To me your biggest issue is the BenQ projector. It is 2 year old technology and the newer systems have bulbs that last 50% longer, which is the biggest expense of owning a projector after the purchase. The 8700 has been out since Feb 2003, still a good projector, but I would look at this area first since it is by FAR your biggest expense. The 8700 is also DVI, most new projectors have HDMI connections.

Those sites have good information. Good luck with your HT.

 

I have no idea what you are talking about but if I had the same questions I would head to www.hometheaterforum.com

 

May also consider using 5/8 or 3/4" MDF on the walls and ceiling instead of ply and sheetrock - better acoustics and improved sound insulation.

 

my HT research and experience are so out of date, i don't even want to touch this...

 

Thanks for the advice so far.
I accepted it well and ordered the BenQ PE7700 projector today after comparing the older Pe7800+ to it for approx. the same $$.
All other advice is still welcome.....

Thanks,
exelonman

 

I second the advise to ask the folks over as AVS. After all if you need a plumber don't call a carpenter. The AVS guys know their HT stuff. It's were I lurked to when setting up my system. Just don't get them started on whether designer cables improve sound quanlity over Home Depot generic stuff. Those threads get ugly.