help me find a home theater projector... if it exists.

I recall watching a movie once.  Some B-movie from the 80s where everyone has home theater projectors instead of tube TVs.  Shocking, right?

The one scene shows a man watching something on his screen, and the projector was presumably above the ceiling with only the prism/lens sticking down through the drywall (or whatever space age drywall replacement they will use in 50 years).

I don't give a E36 M3 about the movie, but I was wondering if anyone makes one of those projectors IRL.  In wanting to go projection at my house, I lack the space on the mantel to set a UST, and since my ceilings are only 82" high, I can't really hang a UST overhead without whacking my head on it and being a really obvious part of my decor.  I could put a traditional projector above the couch, but then it will be at eye level when I stand up - blocking the screen - blinding people walking by, etc.

I was thinking a UST that is in the attic would be the bee's knees.  If someone makes it.

Would it be possible to put a cut in the ceiling and make a recess to be able to mount it higher so that it was more flush?  I'm not entirely sure what kind of angle or space the UST projectors need, but assuming you're 16oc and use 1/4" drywall to build it out, you could get a recess that was just under 14" wide and if it's going in to the attic it could be as tall as you needed, for all practical purposes.

I did give that consideration.  The UST projectors vary in what they need, but for the most part they can be just a few inches from the plane of the screen.  As far as up/down, the ones I've used have a moveable prism for up/down, but they also cost $8000.  I'm looking more in the $1000 range.

The genius who built this place around the turn of the [last] century used 2x4s as ceiling joists, and they are wimpy at best.  I would have to box out one joist, and I suppose I can "truss" that segment.  It's not a truss roof right now, just a triangle with three pieces of wood like a simple hip, so ceiling integrity is not what I would call beefy.

Assuming I could do that,  Idea #1:  I gave consideration to simply suspending the projector just above the drywall (so the drywall isn't holding the weight) and cutting an .... I don't know... 4" by 10" slot in the drywall and set the prism above that hole, but if the projectors are at all like the one I have at the theater, the thickness of the drywall will cause a significant shadow.  The non-adjustable prism version I sometimes use at the theater will throw a shadow if I lay pencil on the case of the projector.

Idea #2:  I guess I could cut out the full size of the projector to recess it and cover the majority of the projector with muslin or something if it's ugly.

Both of those ideas involve a somewhat significant construction/insulation component that I was hoping to avoid.  A projector with a snout would be much like installing a recessed lighting can - take projector to attic, cut hole, stuff lens in hole, enjoy.

Beware tucking a projector up between joists might result in overheating since the heat will want to rise.

Indeed.  I suppose that LED tech would partially combat that, but in my budget I'm more in the Metal-Halide/Laser category.

Do you have enough room up top to do a lift? Hidden when not in use. There are some on Amazon for  $2-$300

^bomb bay doors open

Steve_Jones said:

Do you have enough room up top to do a lift? Hidden when not in use. There are some on Amazon for  $2-$300

 

 

Plenty of room in the attic, but with 82" ceilings, a UST projector would be directly at forehead height in the only walking path in the room when it's deployed.

Steve_Jones said:

Do you have enough room up top to do a lift? Hidden when not in use. There are some on Amazon for  $2-$300

 

Oh man, couple that with an Alexa enabled lift controller. Change your Alexa wake word to "Hal" and start every movie experience with "Open the pod bay doors, HAL."

Seriously though, I can see some issues with bouncing the image off or through anything. I'd want a projector with power zoom/focus so once you mount it in the hidey hole, you don't have to actually touch it. That way you only have to get it lined up once. Run a HDMI extension to it so you want add/remove sources without ever needing to touch the projector.

Curtis, what you're looking for is a ultra short throw projector.  They allow you to set the projector very close to the wall and it projects at close to a 90 degree angle.  Here's a spendy option I found with some quick searching that can do ceiling mount.  With some searching, I suspect you could find a less expensive option that meets your requirements.

Yup, thanks.  We're talking about UST projectors.  I was looking for one that mounts in the attic with just the prism coming through the ceiling.

Curtis73 (Forum Supporter) said:

Steve_Jones said:

Do you have enough room up top to do a lift? Hidden when not in use. There are some on Amazon for  $2-$300

 

 

Plenty of room in the attic, but with 82" ceilings, a UST projector would be directly at forehead height in the only walking path in the room when it's deployed.

Recess the projector into the ceiling at an angle pointing at the wall?  

Or... mount the projector in the attic with a recessed port for the lens. Bonus points for making the port servo controlled so it drops down flush with the ceiling when not in use.

I've designed for pretty much any type of projector installation you can imagine in pharma conference rooms... at least up until they ditched projectors for giant flat screens a few years ago.

Get one of these puppies. 

Bolt it to the floor. 

Wire in a new circuit. (You will need more than 120) Might want to increase a/c and ventilation. That lantern gets hot. 

Install an expensive fire suppression system. (Because nitrate film)

Put on your fire resistant racing suit. (Again because nitrate film)

Cut a hole on the other side of the room. 

Show movies on the side of your neighbor's house. 

Remember overkill is just enough. 

Ian F (Forum Supporter) said:

Curtis73 (Forum Supporter) said:

Steve_Jones said:

Do you have enough room up top to do a lift? Hidden when not in use. There are some on Amazon for  $2-$300

 

 

Plenty of room in the attic, but with 82" ceilings, a UST projector would be directly at forehead height in the only walking path in the room when it's deployed.

Recess the projector into the ceiling at an angle pointing at the wall?  

Or... mount the projector in the attic with a recessed port for the lens. Bonus points for making the port servo controlled so it drops down flush with the ceiling when not in use.

I've designed for pretty much any type of projector installation you can imagine in pharma conference rooms... at least up until they ditched projectors for giant flat screens a few years ago.

This is what I'm thinking, but it's a lot more work than I might want to tackle.  Since March, I've been non-stop with home renovations and encountering major setbacks, like discovering my wood foundation was gone and having to tear out subfloor, joists, and jack up the house to put a new foundation in.  I'm so close to finishing the fireplace and I'm dragging my feet because I'm bloody burnt out.

The ceiling is just 2x4 joists and not strong by any means.  It would just require crawling around in an attic an installing some trussing before I cut and build a recess.

I think visually, so here's a picture. or two.

Here was the hope - that someone made something like this:

Idea #2 adds a lot of framing and attic work, and will look the most sanitary, but I'm afraid the drywall thickness will shadow the image

Idea #3 like some of you suggested keeps the work involved, solves the shadow issue, and not quite as sanitary.

Also.... those are totally not to proportion.

There's this but it's stupid expensive and then you'd still need the projector. 
 

Snowdoggie said:

 

Get one of these puppies. 

Bolt it to the floor. 

Wire in a new circuit. (You will need more than 120) Might want to increase a/c and ventilation. That lantern gets hot. 

Install an expensive fire suppression system. (Because nitrate film)

Put on your fire resistant racing suit. (Again because nitrate film)

Cut a hole on the other side of the room. 

Show movies on the side of your neighbor's house. 

 

Remember overkill is just enough. 

 

I do have an 8k lumen that I use outside.  I can pretty much melt the paint off the garage with that thing.

superfund said:

There's this but it's stupid expensive and then you'd still need the projector. 
 

I actually have access to a few projectors, but they're huge.  But that gives me hope at the possibility I could find a lens that would fit something I have already.

I have some NEC 5500s, an 8000 Epson, and a couple 6000 Mitsubishis.  The upside to that is that those projectors are free.  The downside is that they are massive and old-school... like XGA old school, and some don't even have HDMI.  They were part of some work I did with a science center.  They refitted with all new projectors and they were just going to scrap the old ones, so I just conveniently scrapped them to the bed of my truck.

You aren't kidding though... I did buy a good 8k laser for the theater for $5000.  If I wanted the other available lens, it would have been an additional $3500.  I tried to rent a lens for a 10k at another theater so I could rear-project with a shorter throw and it would have cost $1800 to rent it for a month.  Lenses are no joke.