Outdoor HTPC help

N

nosoup4you718

Limp Gawd
Joined
Feb 21, 2005
Messages
380
Ok, so last summer i sorta threw together an outdoor set up and had a blast with friends on the weekends. Next summer, I want to do this right..

Pretty much last summer I built a quick screen out of wood i found around the house and a painters tarp, it got destroyed by the end of the summer by rain and storms lol it was pretty big lol.. I used a 2500 lumen projector (sharp notevision c45x) and my crappy logitech speakers from my computer. I gotta say, it was great :cool:

Next summer, as i said, I want to do it right.

Heres what i need to do.

Build a screen to 16:9 aspect ratio that can easily disassembled. The disassembly and reassembly is key.

Buy a new projector.. needs to be atleast 2500+ lumens

Buy an audio system.. i want a powerful sub lol, i want to make the trees shake. Nice reciever. I do NOT need surround sound.. i had enough friends trip over the wires i had out last year.

As for the HTPC i already got that. Dimension 9100 with a nice tuner etc.

if any of you guys have some ideas, i'm open to all suggestions. For a screen, i was thinking a painters tarp again, but building it out of PVC pipe. I would like to have the screen lifted off the ground a bit, last year it went all the way to the ground and i think it'd look a little nicer raised..

Heres a pic of last years..

P1010039.jpg


and here is a comparison of how i want it to be next year..

htpcscreen.jpg


again, i'm open to all ideas suggestions. I know A LOT about projectors, but not much about audio.. so if you give me a little more help with that i'd appriciate it.
 
parkland might be easier to dissasemble. would require a less rigid frame since it has some rigidity naturaly. also, it is moisture resistant. as for audio, your choices are limited when using indoor/outdoor speakers. I have heard some JBL's that I liekd.
 
thanks for that, i'll look that stuff up.

Also, the stuff doesnt have to stay outdoors.. i'll drag it in and out when i need to
 
As for the screen, I'd suggest using a fairly heavy material with heavy duty buttons on the top side. You fold the top over the top of the frame and button her down to the backside. On the bottom 2 industrial strength grommets, one anchor on the bottom of each side of the frame and some rope. When you do it this way you're able to adjust the tension on both corners of the bottom each time it's set up. This should eliminate wrinkles (if your button attachment project on the top side is completed with a decent ammount of precision). As for the speakers, check this out http://www.partsexpress.com/projectshowcase/smithereens/index.html $527 plus shipping, wood, and time. Darren is a master speaker designer and does an excellent job in his DIY designs. As for the receiver, there are so many that opinions will vary widely. I like the NAD C320BEE if you want an integrated solution, elsewise just go for an amp with a volume control. Parts Express has some crowns that'll put out an unbelievable power/dollar value.
 
thanks a ton for the info, those speakers look amazing.. but one more thing.. i'm 17and $520 speakers are not in budget lol.

I'm figure i'd like to put 200 - 300 into the screen tops.. about 1000 to 1500 into a projector (probably used, low lamp hours) and a couple hundred into audio

I found some of my dads big old speakers which will do fine, i need a reciever and sub though.

and the tension idea is great, i was trying to figure out a way to keep the screen tight. Last year i just hung it over the top of the frame, nailed it tight to the back and put sand bags on the bottom to keep it tight.
 
just be sure to consider the parkland. I have used several DIY screen solutions and have found parkland to be my favorite. easy to frame, bright picture, and you can clean it with a damp washcloth. Plus, becuase it is a semi rigid material, it is way easier to work with than any stretched material. It can be found at Home Depot or Lowes for 17-21 for a 4x8 sheet. I used velcro around the edges for our temp screens for LAN parties.

as for the sub, this is the best budget sub running around the net these days...
http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&DID=7&Partnumber=300-635

for a receiver, are you looking for stereo or surround sound?

for surround sound, check shoponkyo.com for refurbs...
5.1 HT-R320 for $130
7.1 TX-SR503 for $200
 
You really might want to concider having surround sound. I helped a friend "wire" his back yard for surround a few months ago and here is what we did. We ended up running speaker wire through 1" PVC conduit that we buried about 6" under the grass and then installed waterproof, covered outlets with binding posts at all the necessary lcoations around the yard. Then when it came to be movie time we would just bring out the speakers on their stands, plug them in and we were ready to go. If you are careful to cut the sod and undercut it a bit you can also avoid scaring the yard too much. You can also consider using some of your existing AV equipement if you want. We ended up using most of his equipement from his living room, he just found a nice low cabinet that had wheels and would just unplug the main power and output from the receiver, roll it outside, and then plug back up and go.
 
again thanks for all the info.

I'd LOVE to run surround sound wires underground.. but digging up the yard will probably upset my parents just a little bit.. but i'll run that by them.

Thanks for the audio help i'm gonna check out that sub later.

:cool:
 
how big are you wanting the screen? you can order larger sheets directly from parkland, but honestly, with a well done screen, the seems are practically invisible when there is an image projected on it and you are sitting at viewing distances.
 
i'm thinking big.. i figure, what ever the aspect ratio of 16:9 is to ??:12

Yes, i can figure out.. i just got outta finals and i'm done with math for the day lol

see, the only problem with this parkland stuff is, i got really nowhwere to store it when its not in use, thats why i liked my tarp idea since i could just fold it up when i'm not using it..
 
it rolls up and doesn't get creases like a tarp, but I see the advantages of material, especailly for something of that size. and the size would be about 21.3 feet by 12 feet if I did the math right. that's pretty big. you need to be sure that the projector will do that size at all, much less in the are you have it. The throw required for that size of a screen would be pretty far back. I have to go back 16 feet to get a 7x4 screen.
 
yeah i'm not worried about throw distance or the projector. i know i've got that covered. I took my projector out to a friends block party last year and we did about a 30 foot screen that was across the fence to a basketball court and it worked out fine.
 
just wanted to be sure you didn't have to put the projector or screen in a neighbors yard ;)
 
nosoup4you718 said:
haha.. i dont think they'd mind anyways :p
Click to expand...
Are you going to start a plog or post pics of your results by any chance?

I know a lot of us would really like to check out this project ;)
 
Yes I will.. I think later tonight or tomorrow i'll describe in detail how things went last year etc.. and plans for this year..

Last year, i also went around to a few neighbors houses and a couple of block parties and made some good money.. =D All i did was nailed my painters tarp up to their garage and it worked out great..

but anyways, i will keep a detailed work log of this..

EDIT: Also, the actual building will have to wait a little while since i'm in the chicago area and its F****ING COLD right now lol
 
I think i'm gonna take a little trip over to home depot today.. just wander around and see what they have.. i'll post later with what I found :)
 
if you dont mind pulling your speakers in and out, I would recommend the Klipsch Quintet system. Nice and light speakers that pack great sound.

Best Buy is running a deal where you get the speakers, a klipsch 10" sub, and a yamaha HTR-5840 receiver for like $899.99...something like 200 or 300 dollars off.
 
yeah, i definetly dont mind pulling my stuff my stuff in and out.. i'll probably use the stuff in the winter for my regular system anyways
 
Okay.. status report~!

i will post a full worklog when i'm finished..

just about finished building the frame to the screen. aprox 12 ft high and 15 feet wide and its about a foot, foot and a half off the ground.

I picked up a 1000 watt pioneer reciever. Theres a radioshack closing near my house, so i'm gonna pick up the outdoor PA speakers once they get marked down a bit more.

I got an epson 835P projector. it has 3000 lumens and great picture quality.

the only question i have now is what material should i use for the screen? It needs to be big enough to fit that frame but i dont want to spend TOO much.. Also, if i need things sewed together, i got someone who can do that so it looks fine w/o a big weird seam in the middle of the screen.

any ideas? Thanks!
 
well, the idea of this is to be ultra portable and to a much larger scale then any of the DIY stuff. I hvae sound and all that already.

I'm just trying to figure out the material for the screen..
 
Okay.. i finally got some time and got some real work done. I gotta say, my screen is slightly larger then even I imagined :) and i was shootin for big.

Heres some pics, i'm gonna start an offical worklog thread hopefully tomorrow..

p10100686cu.jpg


-- I started w/that. Lots of connectors and 4 FT and 3 FT pieces.


p10100634ce.jpg


-- Layed everything out and figured out i had a few wrong pieces that i'll pick up tomorrow. Pretty much the whole support system was a little off lol

p10100711ql.jpg


-- With a bribe of free pizza.. i got the help of a couple of friends


p10100708ry.jpg


-- My corners.. Pretty much a T with a 3inch piece of pipe in the two holes and a cuppler on each end.


p10100743oh.jpg


-- Since i had the wrong support pieces, we just leaned it against the tree.. I'm all the way to the right.. and for a comparison i'm about 6ft tall.



p10100767mt.jpg


-- Just so we're clear.. this is bigger then ANY DIY setup on the web.. So pleeeeeeeeease stop saying "why dont you just use the DIY set up.. blah blah blah"


Yes, my projector can handle the size, as for screen material i'm gonna swing by the fabric store and get in like those 5 foot wide rolls and i got the sewing teacher at my highschool to sew them together. She claims she can do it w/o a noticable seem..

we will find out lol

Any comments?
 
i was screwin around last night and pulled the projector outside for a test with just a sheet on the garage. sorry for the crappy pics, i took them kinda fast. the Image quality is a lot nicer then the pictures show




Just to show size..

 
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