Home cinema - beginner's questions
Discussion
We're fortunate enough to have a largish living room we never use (we all tend to hang out in the much smaller "family room") but it's about time we got some sort of TV in the living room so we could use spend time in it.
Problem is, it's "L" shaped and so I've been racking my brains because the only obvious places for a TV would be in front of the bay window or somehow above the fireplace, where there's already a mirror, mantelpiece etc - neither location particularly suitable for a TV screen.
Then I suddenly thought - maybe we could get a home cinema type jobby with an electric screen that comes down from the ceiling - that way it could go in either of those locations without being an eyesore when not in use.
So - basic question number 1 - are retracting screens like this mainly aimed at gaming and movies - or can the projector handle TV signals perfectly well - in other words, would it be useable for simple TV watching, or is there some reason (projector noise, for example) why screens and projectors aren't a good choice for TV / Sky HD ?
[PS why on earth does my PC beep every time I hold down the shift key and type the letters "TV" ?????]
Problem is, it's "L" shaped and so I've been racking my brains because the only obvious places for a TV would be in front of the bay window or somehow above the fireplace, where there's already a mirror, mantelpiece etc - neither location particularly suitable for a TV screen.
Then I suddenly thought - maybe we could get a home cinema type jobby with an electric screen that comes down from the ceiling - that way it could go in either of those locations without being an eyesore when not in use.
So - basic question number 1 - are retracting screens like this mainly aimed at gaming and movies - or can the projector handle TV signals perfectly well - in other words, would it be useable for simple TV watching, or is there some reason (projector noise, for example) why screens and projectors aren't a good choice for TV / Sky HD ?
[PS why on earth does my PC beep every time I hold down the shift key and type the letters "TV" ?????]
zadumbreion said:
Yeah, but I don't want it there when we're not watching it.... and we can't really put a TV smack in front of the fireplace...
The big problem with Projectors is that they need a very dark room to look their best, so if you just want to watch a TV program in can be a lot of hassle to have to close all the curtains etc to make the room dark.You can put a Plasma above the fireplace, but it will be 'obvious' which is what you are keen to avoid.
We have a separate cinema room for the projector and have a plasma TV hidden in a bespoke cabinet, which is raised electrically when we want to watch TV - is there anywhere you could put a cabinet of this type? Not cheap though.... :-(
Sidicks
my understanding is that plasmas and the like are not good above the fireplace if it is a real fireplace cause they dont like the heat and the big heat changes
there is no reason you wouldnt be able to watch tv on it, just that as mentioned you would benefit from it being darker in the room!
maybe a good idea to post this in the computer forum??
cheers
the moose
there is no reason you wouldnt be able to watch tv on it, just that as mentioned you would benefit from it being darker in the room!
maybe a good idea to post this in the computer forum??
cheers
the moose
E31Shrew said:
zadumbreion said:
How about "mirror TVs" ? They seem an interesting idea - but they don't seem to be widely available at any sort of sensible money.....
We build mirror TV's from scratch. Screen sizes up to 40"And are they at sensible money??
zadumbreion said:
E31Shrew said:
zadumbreion said:
How about "mirror TVs" ? They seem an interesting idea - but they don't seem to be widely available at any sort of sensible money.....
We build mirror TV's from scratch. Screen sizes up to 40"And are they at sensible money??
You can use a projector system for watching TV and with more and more HD channels coming on line the quality is very good. As has been said before projectors work best in darkened rooms but some of the latest projectors are very bright so can give a reasonable picture in a realativily light room. My screen is above some french doors therefore hidden when not in use.
You also need to consider where and what type of speakers you are going to use as well as a sound system and souce equipment. It you are not carefull it can all start to add up.
One last point, a lot of TV programmes are not designed to be seen on very large screens, soaps are a classic example. Some of those close ups can look scary when the persons face is 3 feet tall.
You also need to consider where and what type of speakers you are going to use as well as a sound system and souce equipment. It you are not carefull it can all start to add up.
One last point, a lot of TV programmes are not designed to be seen on very large screens, soaps are a classic example. Some of those close ups can look scary when the persons face is 3 feet tall.
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