Anyone have experience of large viewing distances (TV)?

alx

alx

alx

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As per title, does anyone have any experiences of large TV viewing distances, i.e. 4-5m from the TV? What sort of size TV would you need, would 65" be ok or would you really need 70"+?

I understand you'd ideally be closer, but sometimes a sensible room layout comes before optimal TV viewing distance!
 
I've considered it, but surely projectors are best suited to dedicated media/cinema rooms? I don't really want to have to draw the curtains and sit in a darkened room every time I want to watch tv.....
 
i know someone who lives in a very large home (7 bedrooms) and the rooms are all very large too and therefore they have this issue in every room tbh you cannot have the sofas plonked in the middle of the room to be closer to the tv it would look terrible. in one of the rooms the viewing distance is double to what your saying easy and they have a 60" tv, it looks fine when you get used to it, but ideally you would want as large a tv as you can get.

i think their couches are roughly 6-9m away i've never really thought about the distance when i was there tbh.

i have told them to get a projector but they are skeptical on the quality and the amount of money they would need to spend.

in your shoes OP the distance only being 4-5M away i would get a 50" TV to save over the premium of buying 55" or 60" tv's which are very very expensive compared to their 50" counterparts.

then also spend £500-£2K on a projector as well, so you have the best of both.

use the tv during the day time and the projector in the evening
 
pepp77 said:
Then just buy the biggest you can afford :D
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Haha, good advice :D:p

The room layout isn't set in stone, but it's basically a toss up between having more sofas and using the space more efficiently vs setting it up for a moderately sized tv (~42-55"), losing sofa space and probably making it feel more cramped.

I'll try and go to John Lewis or Currys etc to what various sizes of TV are like at 4m+.
 
Psycho Sonny said:
i know someone who lives in a very large home (7 bedrooms) and the rooms are all very large too and therefore they have this issue in every room tbh you cannot have the sofas plonked in the middle of the room to be closer to the tv it would look terrible. in one of the rooms the viewing distance is double to what your saying easy and they have a 60" tv, it looks fine when you get used to it, but ideally you would want as large a tv as you can get.

i think their couches are roughly 6-9m away i've never really thought about the distance when i was there tbh.

i have told them to get a projector but they are skeptical on the quality and the amount of money they would need to spend.

in your shoes OP the distance only being 4-5M away i would get a 50" TV to save over the premium of buying 55" or 60" tv's which are very very expensive compared to their 50" counterparts.

then also spend £500-£2K on a projector as well, so you have the best of both.

use the tv during the day time and the projector in the evening
Click to expand...

Cheers, good post thanks :).

Tbh I've seen some decent 55-60" screens for prices I'd be willing to pay so I don't think getting something that size would be too much of an issue. Also I wouldn't be moving into the place until early-ish next year so prices may have dropped a bit by then.
 
I sit 4.5M away and used a 60" plasma and I would have happily gone bigger, using a little 32" at the moment and theres no way I could get used to it. but of course coming from a 60" I'm a bit biased :p
 
alx said:
I've considered it, but surely projectors are best suited to dedicated media/cinema rooms? I don't really want to have to draw the curtains and sit in a darkened room every time I want to watch tv.....
Click to expand...

I will post just as you mentioned this specific issue, which was the same concern I had whilst thinking about a projector. Again it also depends on how much money you are willing to spend but if you were at least considering 65" + then you probably have a reasonable amount to play with.

I demoed a Sony HW55ES projector (£2799) on a Draper 2 React Screen (price varies depending on electric or fixed screen £1670 for a 104" electric about £1200 for a fixed frame 100", buy both PJ and screen from the same place and you should get a bit of a discount) which is specifically designed to be watched in bright living rooms as the screen is a dark grey to produce better contrast in lighter environments.

Sony have just released the HW40ES projector which is identical to the HW55ES minus the 3D glasses (still 3D capable and you are better off buying the RF glasses for a superior picture which don't come as standard with any model) and dynamic lens, the dynamic lens is theoretically what should have made the 55ES work well in brighter rooms but the 40ES produces very similar results but is £1850.

So for around £3000 you would have a 100" screen and very nice PJ (HW40ES) that as long as you don't have the lights pointing directly at the screen you will get a very nice picture that can only be improved by turning off the lights, drawing the curtains etc

Certainly look to see if you can demo the combo anywhere close to you, you may be surprised and it may suit your room better than you thought :)
 
Having looked at the floor plan, it seems like one of the light fittings would be right in the path of where you'd want the projector, typical :(.
 
Psycho Sonny said:
is spending that amount of money worth it over say a HD30 for around £1200 and a 100" screen for £50 off amazon?

is it really 3 times better?
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Well when I demoed the screen it was vs a normal white and another grey screen, difference was night and day to myself and the mate I took along but you are also paying for a screen that won't crease, falter over time. Aside from the main factor that most people can't really watch a projector without all the lights out, curtains drawn so don't bother going down that route, this is specifically designed to take away those shortcomings.

With regards to the PJ, I haven't seen the HD30 in action but I believe they are a class apart judging from reading over on AVForums.

Its one of those things you need to demo yourself to decide if its worth it for you, I didn't want to compromise on the 'Living Room' aspect of where the PJ will be so am willing to pay for it. But in comparison to a 65" TV it's not much more of an excess cost wise unless your going for a bargain basement 65".

Light fixtures can always be changed OP but not gonna try and convince you, if you want one you'll get one ;)
 
Richeh said:
Well when I demoed the screen it was vs a normal white and another grey screen, difference was night and day to myself and the mate I took along but you are also paying for a screen that won't crease, falter over time. Aside from the main factor that most people can't really watch a projector without all the lights out, curtains drawn so don't bother going down that route, this is specifically designed to take away those shortcomings.

With regards to the PJ, I haven't seen the HD30 in action but I believe they are a class apart judging from reading over on AVForums.

Its one of those things you need to demo yourself to decide if its worth it for you, I didn't want to compromise on the 'Living Room' aspect of where the PJ will be so am willing to pay for it. But in comparison to a 65" TV it's not much more of an excess cost wise unless your going for a bargain basement 65".

Light fixtures can always be changed OP but not gonna try and convince you, if you want one you'll get one ;)
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Yeah, all very true.

When/if I move in I'll rejudge the situation and see how I feel. As you say light fittings can be moved.
 
Would say come and have a look at mine when all setup but don't think you could be further away if you tried lol

This may be your best bet http://www.ideal-av.co.uk/ I have spoken to Allan the gentlemen who owns it on the phone for over an hour without ever buying anything from him, he will happily show you all different setups and has a 'white' demo room also. He does specialise in higher end gear and the components i've mentioned he does but the PJ is the lowest PJ he does so couldn't compare it to the HD30 etc but to give you an idea of screen size and the environment i'd definately give him a call if you do think about it more seriously. There may be some closer to you but Allan won't sell you want you don't want.

Best of luck.
 
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At that distance you want as big as you can get. I was 4 meters from 120" in my last flat and am intending to go bigger in the next. The issue with projectors, other than bulbs making them unsuitable for general, daily watching, is how important room treatment is. Black levels are always an issue - you really want the best pj you can afford and the least light possible bouncing around. Darker coloured carpets/walls/ceiling make a world of difference. Ideally have black velvet panels coming out a few meters from the screen along the walls/ceiling. It's actually possible to have a very smart a sexy looking living room when treated this way - it doesn't have to be soulless a black hole. The effort's worth it and something that blows away going to the cinema isn't ridiculously expensive.

This looks like a bargain at under 2k:

http://www.avforums.com/review/sony-vpl-hw40es-hw40-sxrd-3d-projector-review.10331

Or this for 5k:

http://www.avforums.com/review/jvc-x500-dla-x500-3d-d-ila-projector-review.9922

A TV can't even begin to offer the same cinematic, falling off your seat in excitement experience :D If a pj really isn't an option, go for the biggest plasma you can get your hands on. Resolution won't matter a huge deal as you won't see the benefit of it at that distance. There will likely be some second hand bargains floating around.
 
Psycho Sonny said:
is spending that amount of money worth it over say a HD30 for around £1200 and a 100" screen for £50 off amazon?

is it really 3 times better?
Click to expand...

Not having the rainbow effect makes it worth it to a lot of people before other improvements in image quality.

To the OP have you visited any potential neighbours homes / houses with similar sized rooms to see how people lay out larger rooms?

Living in London it's not a problem I envisage having but when I've visited friends and family in the country / the states with very large rooms ive tended to see people using more 'zoned' layouts of the furniture so you can comfortably speak to someone on the other sofa / see the tv .
 
I would quite like a projector and thanks for all the advice, but as this would be in the lounge and hence be the main 'tv' I'm not sure how suitable a projector would be for this sort of usage. Maybe I'll just have to use my current tv as well, will see.
 
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