How big a screen is too big?

[dogon1013]

I am looking at hooking up the Wii to a projector that will project about an 8ft wide screen on a wall.

Anyone have experience with the wimote and sensorbar with such a large screen. I will have to be about 8 to 10 ft away from the screen to play and I'm wondering if it will still work OK?

I'll probably end up trying it myself, but if anyone else has some experience with this, please let me know.

 

[Nemix]

haven't tried it myself. but don't see why it wouldn't work. use my projector for movies and movies alone...

just make sure you use component cables for such a big thing. mines got a analog monitor input with a component adapter. and i highly recommend not using the projectors built-in speakers... LOL

 

[JT.]

You should be able to get it to work just fine. I don't see why not. You could always contact Nintendo's tech help.

 

[dude boy]

i heard using bowling on big screens makes it very easy to win

 

[dogon1013]

I just found this video today of the Wii being played on 2 projection screens (about the size I am looking at). Looks like there is no problem with it.

http://www.nintendowiifanboy.com/2007/04/30/when-the-professor-is-away-wii-will-play/

 

[dogon1013]

just finished my testing (using composite video). It works well, though the wii-mote pointing in the menu is rather sensative.

Playing wii-bowling is a lot of fun with a nice long lane in front of you to really wind up your shot. I broke my record and bowled 4 strikes in a row.


Now I need to wall mount the sensor bar(wirelless would be nice) and build my component cable for the projector. Then the sound system...

I'll post some pictures later.

 

[wiimo]

IMO, you can never have a screen thats too big in a situation like this.

Its funny that my friends and I decided to do the same thing last weekend. Being as the weather is so nice we tested by projecting the wii on the backyard wall - there simply wasnt enough room in the living room for all 3 of us to be playing tennis.

My cousin and I built a frame out of 3/4PVC that came out to be 8ftx14ft. We then went to the store and picked up 2 queen size flat sheets and sewed them together followed by popping the seam at the top and sliding it over the pvc. Due to the size and the fact that the yard has a slight slope to it, we had to add some counter anchors (bricks). But all in all it made for a fun party - this was the first but not the last:


the setup

a little golf

a lil boxing

the screen

the picture

baseball
Total cost was about $50US. Next time though, we'll set it the width of the yard to have even more room and viewing area.

 

[ciper]

The general rule of thumb for deciding when the screen size is too big is to multiply the vertical size by a certain number. Personal preference plays a big role but the closest ratio is 2 times diagonal for 16:9 screens and 3 times for 4:3.

For example a 40 inch 16:9 display has a minimum viewing distance of 6 feet 8 inches.
The OP said an 8 foot wide screen at an aspect ratio of 4:3 would be 6 feet tall. Pythagorean theorem says an 8x6 screen would have a diagonal size of 10 feet so you should be roughly 30 feet away for best results. Unless its really dark Im not sure the WiiMote will work at that distance.

 

[dogon1013]

The question of "too big" is really about if it's too big for the wii. as the screen gets bigger you are gonna have to stand back from it farther to see the whole thing. At some point you will be too far back and the wiimote will not be able to sense the sensor bar (That was my theory at least). It seems like this is not an issue with most projection screen sizes.

Wiimo,
If you want more brightness out of your outdoor screen you can make a real nice one out of "blackout cloth" (from your local fabric store, it's pretty cheap, too). It's a white cloth with a PVC type coating on one side that won't let any light thrue. Just search the web for "DIY projector screen" and you can find info on them. that's how I made mine, though the wii looks good enough projected onto a light brown wall that I doubt I will use the screen I made.

 

[dogon1013]

The system turned out good, It's barelly noticable, unless you spot the projector, though it's not 100% done (waiting on a transcoder for 480P and I need to hide some more wires).

I got the projector mounted and working well. Even hooked up the surround sound (includeing subwoofer behind the easychair).

The sensorbar is just double sided taped to the wall. made a shelf for the projector, and for one of the rear speakers. front speakers were mounted to the wall with white speakerwire running to the reciever behind the easychair. I know have a nice "bowling lane" to run towards the screen while wii bowling.

I like it


PS I'm trying to upload photos, but having trouble, will try again later.
PPS Got it

 

[wiimo]

The system turned out good, It's barelly noticable, unless you spot the projector, though it's not 100% done (waiting on a transcoder for 480P and I need to hide some more wires).

I got the projector mounted and working well. Even hooked up the surround sound (includeing subwoofer behind the easychair).

The sensorbar is just double sided taped to the wall. made a shelf for the projector, and for one of the rear speakers. front speakers were mounted to the wall with white speakerwire running to the reciever behind the easychair. I know have a nice "bowling lane" to run towards the screen while wii bowling.

I like it


PS I'm trying to upload photos, but having trouble, will try again later.
PPS Got it

Nice setup - you were looking for something a bit more permanent than i thought. Are you going to be using wire molding to hide the wires running up the back of the speaker? Looks like you spent a lot of time/money on that stuff, but good work!

 

[dogon1013]

Since i have to hide a VGA cable (with connectors), S-video, AC power cable (with connectors) and speaker wire, I need something special for that corner, the standard molding won't do it. A flat strip of white wood would do it (3 inches wide).

There is also a PC behind that box near the cables. and I plan on painting the sensorbar wire the same color as the wall to make the wife happier. I didn't plan on spending that much time and effort on it, but she wanted it to be as stealth as possible. I had all the equipment except for the rear-speakers in storage, so it didn't cost too much. The transcoder, adapters, and cabling did cost about $200, but now that room actually gets some use and I can play Wii while the wife watches TV.

 

[dogon1013]

Got the Transcoder today (x2vga) it works well, and the picture looks great in 480P, very clear. The grass textures on wii sports tennis look very nice and the text is easy to read, and doesn't look muddled anymore. Even the text when opera browsing is very readable.

The livingroom is now officially the game room.