AT Screens

[AVSMike]

Question on DIY frames:  I've seen examples of different designs that have center supports for large screens.  Do you have to do anything special to keep the supports from being visible through the AT material?

Paint them flat black or cover with a black material or black velvet.

[bmoney]

The spandex screen is not as sharp of an image and you lose brightness over many of the manufactured AT weaves. With spandex, the adjacent fibers can glow a little bit, so this causes a slight loss in sharpness. Not saying it is a bad screen, just one of the trade offs.

it has been measured that white/black is .8 gain...so the same as V6...also when doing side by side comparison not being as sharp is a myth (although I have not personally done the comparison...so take it with a grain of salt)

If the picture can get sharper Id be dumbfounded!!

just sayin'

pics of mine with tomorrowland:

AT Screens

AT Screens

[bmoney]

Paint them flat black or cover with a black material or black velvet.

or if you use black backing nothing will show from behind the screen

[NBPk402]

Question on DIY frames:  I've seen examples of different designs that have center supports for large screens.  Do you have to do anything special to keep the supports from being visible through the AT material?

We did no center support on our T slot aluminum frame. We do have our speakers almost touching the rear of the screen, and they are not seen through the AT screen though.

[Greg9518LC]

We used black Commando Cloth on all the walls, and ceiling area behind the screen...you can def tell the difference when you are behind the screen.

I think that D.I.Y. screens are an excellent value, and well worth trying out. The cash saved allows you to put the money toward other areas of the system that are lacking, or just allow you to get into projection (if you are stretching your budget to the max already).

Can you post shots of your room with the Commando cloth? How's the absorption compared to triple black velvet? Thanks

[seplant]

or if you use black backing nothing will show from behind the screen

What type of material is used for the black backing, and what effect does it have on the acoustics?  Wouldn't it be preferable to have no center supports and use blackout cloth on the walls behind the screen?  Of course, that is assuming the speakers behind the screen are all black or have black grills.

[NBPk402]

Can you post shots of your room with the Commando cloth? How's the absorption compared to triple black velvet? Thanks

I wish I could, but the commando cloth is behind our AT screen and it is pretty hard to get back there, and the camera will not be a good example. Another velvet that we used on our ceiling is the black stick-on sheets they use for inside of telescopes...literally a black hole for light absorption.

[AVSMike]

it has been measured that white/black is .8 gain...so the same as V6...also when doing side by side comparison not being as sharp is a myth (although I have not personally done the comparison...so take it with a grain of salt)

If the picture can get sharper Id be dumbfounded!!

just sayin'

pics of mine with tomorrowland:

AT Screens

AT Screens

I have seen the two compared, side by side. Get a sample of V6 and EN4K and put up a test pattern. Compare them to spandex. You will be able to see a difference. As everything in HT, the difference will not be great, but it is there.

Chris Seymour also did a comparison and he provided up close pictures, showing how the adjacent fibers in spandex, light up just a little bit and that is why the other fabrics are a little sharper. Bang for the buck, spandex is a good DIY screen. I have not measured spandex myself, but have seen numbers listed lower than .8, but of course, that all depends on what is used for the back layer.

[AVSMike]

What type of material is used for the black backing, and what effect does it have on the acoustics?  Wouldn't it be preferable to have no center supports and use blackout cloth on the walls behind the screen?  Of course, that is assuming the speakers behind the screen are all black or have black grills.

You use two supports at 3rd points, rather than one center support. That way, the supports are not in the sound radiation pattern of the speakers. Also, make the supports as narrow as you can.

[AVSMike]

You use two supports at 3rd points, rather than one center support. That way, the supports are not in the sound radiation pattern of the speakers. Also, make the supports as narrow as you can.

Also image wise, it is best if there is no gap between the surface layer and the black backing. That is why the black backing is bonded to the surface layer with V6. It would be much easier and cheaper to just have it a loose layer, but it would not be quite as good.

[seplant]

Also image wise, it is best if there is no gap between the surface layer and the black backing. That is why the black backing is bonded to the surface layer with V6. It would be much easier and cheaper to just have it a loose layer, but it would not be quite as good.

How much impact does the black backing have on the acoustics?

[bmoney]

the black backing I use is obviously more spandex...and doesnt effect it one bit...not sure about the other AT material

[NBPk402]

I put black commando cloth on my wall behind the screen, and it worked great. I would be interested to hear if black AT material would cause a loss of audio quality also...

[AVSMike]

How much impact does the black backing have on the acoustics?

Average loss less than 1.5 db. That is very good for an AT screen.

[seplant]

I did a little experimenting with samples I got from Falcon (Horizon) and Severtson (SAT-4K). I stretched and stapled the material over small wood frames and held them up in front of my current Da-lite white 1.0 gain non-AT screen. With nothing behind the sample fabrics, the loss of contrast was very visible. Placing black fabric directly behind the screen materials brought the contrast back to a level comparable with my existing screen.  However, moving the black fabric back away even an inch or so from the AT fabrics had a negative impact on the contrast.  This now has me appreciating the importance of black backing for AT screen fabrics.