I'm planning to buy a used DLP projector (NEC NP41) which has this info in the specs:

Throw Distance 1.8 m - 11.1 m

Does that mean I can't use it at a short distance, such as 80cm?

(sorry for the half-offtopic but I couldn't find an explanation with some brief googling, and it might be helpful for other ppl here too 🙂 )

There are essentially 2 types of home projectors. Long throw and short throw. The projector you are interested in is considered a long throw even though the shortest distance is roughly 2 meters. Short throw projectors sit much closer to the screen.

With that projector, the likely scenario is that the closer you put it to the wall/screen, the smaller the image will be.

Edit: The projector you chose uses a color wheel. Since that's a moving part, I hope you aren't susceptible to the "rainbow effect". The more modern DLP projectors use a laser with filters.

    Clokwork With that projector, the likely scenario is that the closer you put it to the wall/screen, the smaller the image will be.

    Thanks!

    Isn't that true of any projector, though?

    Also, if I use it at less than 1.8 meters, is that gonna cause blur or other bad artifacts?

        logixoul

        logixoul if I use it at less than 1.8 meters, is that gonna cause blur or other bad artifacts?

        I don't believe so. At the projectors closest distance to the wall, it will just display a smaller image.

            DLP projectors flicker similarly as PWM. It is quite well known that many people experience migraines and I get bloodshot eyes with DLP projectors.

              8 days later

              Maxx That may be the color wheel versions. The 3 laser versions might help with that, but you still have over a million tiny mirrors directing/redirecting light away from the screen. I'm sticking with 3LCD or LCoS.

                  Clokwork

                  Does 3LCD technology suffer from "LCD inversion" artefacts? (I thought it did - that's why I bought a DLP projector [to no avail])

                    I'm not too sure. The LCDs are likely standard. The good thing is you are dealing with a laser light source and not LED.

                    3 months later

                    Clokwork which projector, do you suggest for office use like browsing, Word document preparation, excel sheet work and little bit of programming?

                    Is laser version good for eye health for long term usage? considering there will be tiny mirrors reflecting laser lights directly into eyes?

                      Unfortunately I can’t speak on a projector for office use as I’m limited to this projector and projector technology. The 3LCD projector was suggested to to me on another forum over a year ago when I spoke about my issues with current TVs. That said, the sharpness uniformity can be an issue and could make it tough for making it an office monitor replacement when you’re dealing with mostly text.

                      Regarding laser, no matter the technology, light will have to reach your eyes regardless of panel or projector type. While a laser can be brighter than other light sources, it also has to reflect off of the screen back to your eyes. Televisions get much brighter than the output from the screen. The Epson 3LCD I have doesn’t use tiny mirrors as does DLP.

                      Clokwork No, it was not DLP. I cannot DLP even 30 minutes.

                      I had 4 different Epson and Sony LCD projectors at home for a few days and my eyes got bloodshot with all of them.

                      On the otherhand, 10 years ago I hand an Epson LCD projector that I used exclusively for TV and Movies, without any strain. The New epson models they advertise as flicker free, are not flicker free.With a DSLR it is easy to detect the banding

                          Maxx as a caveat, I turned off the 4K shift. That is another form of flicker to me. It helped me. I am running at full brightness always thought so if they did use PWM on the laser, it’s either unused at 100% or very high.

                            Thanks, that might have been the reason for me as well. Though I played around with the settings for many days, can't recall if I tried that

                            For those who might be wondering what problem may be caused by the "4K shift", it's called wobulation. The matrix used for the projection is not 4K, it's 2716x1528 for example, but there's a "quick" movement of it to simulate more pixels that there really is, therefore it simulates an UHD picture. So for me, it would be similar to flicker or dithering, pixels moving really fast and using the persistance of vision to create the picture. This method is way cheaper than a native 4K matrix.

                            I only know about one native 4K UST projector, it's the Sony VPL-VZ1000ES, which is really massive and expensive.

                            Of course, there are many native 4K projectors now, but they may not be UST

                              SAH Yup, I'm just waiting on Epson to stop with the shenanigans and release a true 4k projector. I know it takes a lot more light with the higher resolution, but I don't like the E-Shift on any projector. I don't care for gimmicks. Especially when it disrupts a static picture.

                              • Maxx replied to this.

                                  Clokwork wow. Nice information. So this might then explain why my eyes got red though I recall testing with DSLR and could be that I actually was not able to see the typical PWM or DLP flicker.

                                      Maxx I’m wondering if the pixel shifting would even show up on a camera. I Don’t think it would. At most, I believe it would just make the image less sharp.

                                        dev