i have installed the projector and screen. it has been a multi-day process. the screen came in earlier last week and so i asked paul to help me install it. the screen install could have gone a little more smoothly, but we managed to get it to install fine. the first problem is that the elite cinetension2 only came with masonry and sheet rock bolts. paul and i decided that we would want to ceiling mount the screen instead of wall mounting it. the screen is supposed to fall in front of the mantle which means that the screen needed to be off the wall by about 8 inches. we ran to lowe’s to get some lag bolts and started the install of the screen.

if we had read the directions a little more the install may have gone more smoothly, but with a little encouragement the screen was installed. the motorized screen is fantastic. the biggest priority for me for this screen is to make sure that it isn’t an eyesore. projector screens come in all sorts of styles. there are pull down screens that you suspend from the ceiling and then you just pull it down. these are the screens that you commonly see in offices. this was originally the kind of screen that i thought i was going to get. it’s a pain to have to pull up and down the screen though and i was hoping for something a little more elegant.

then there are pull up screens. these screens are usually used because you want to have a portable solution. the screen has some kind of base and you pull the screen up from the base to the final height. this wasn’t going to work for me because of the footprint it leaves on the ground.

the screen that i ended up getting was a motorized, tab-tensioned screen. it’s fantastic. push a button, the screen goes down. push another button, the screen goes up. the tab tensioned screen adds some tension to the screen so that it will stay flat. it’s a nice perk. i hear that for my size screen it isn’t as big of an issue, but the motorized model comes tab tensioned, so i just went with it.

the projector mount i ended up getting was a little less than ideal, but with a little work, the peerless mount ended up working pretty well once i had a cable management solution. the weight of the cables tilted the projector causing a less than ideal image on the screen.

the projector itself, out of the box, is fantastic. i’m not sure what calibrating is going to do, but it looks like there are a ton of options, nay, an overwhelming number of options for projector calibration. warren was drooling at all of the options, but i was a little intimidated by it all.

still, overall, the new projector setup is fantastic. i guess it’s time for a movie night soon.