The sticky has been updated so that now the first post contains links to all the pertinent posts. If there is one we missed please let us know. The more descriptive older sticky follows after for those wishing more information.
Education and Screen Theory threads
Quick DIY 101- Some Definitions and Acronyms
Data and Testing Definitions and Intro - This thread deals with more of the science of color and how it applies to screens. It gets periodic updates.
Official Screen Recommendation List - These are screens that we have tested and recommend.
Data and Testing Definitions and Intro Discussion - Here you will find questions and discussions about topics and concepts in the main Data and Testing thread.
Gain and other confusing topics. - DIY like anything else brings up a lot of questions and sometimes even more confusion, even at times outright myths that over time people accept as fact because of how many times they have been repeated. Those topics are discussed here and it is an open format where people can ask questions of a more technical nature dealing with the science and theory of screens.
Neutral Grays and Simple Off The Shelf Solutions - This thread may sound more like a screen solution or application but it is more about neutral grays and why we should use a neutral over a 'color'. Within the thread there are some recommended screen options as well as plenty of example screen shots.
Spraying a Screen - This thread discusses spraying a screen vs rolling it.
DIY Screen Painting 101 - This is the main sticky thread going over the fundamentals of painting a screen. The information in this thread applies to both DIY and commercial screen paints.
S-I-L-V-E-R vs. Wilsonart Designer White Laminate - Two comparable diy solutions go head to head.
Paint Variances - For those interested in DIY screens, specifically using paint for a screen, when dealing with common house paints there are sometimes issues with quality and variances from brand to brand, and sometimes even batch to batch. This thread discusses some of the variances being seen between different brands of paint and stores where most people would be shopping.
Inverted (Negative) Images and Uniformity - This thread will also be linked in under screen construction links but it is also good to have it here because it discusses a method for detecting screen imperfections that was pioneered here on HTS.
Exterior vs. Interior Paints - Exterior paints are not a good idea. This is why.
DIY Screen threads
DIY Grayscale and Gamut readings - Grayscale and Gamut readings from various diy materials. The first post contains a very good description of the charts. Probably the best way to display the performance, or in some cases the lack of performance of a screen solution.
DIY Spectrum Readings - Spectrophotometer readings of various diy screen solutions. Needs a description in the first post.
Black Widow PFG - the Presentation - Black Widow - World famous Black Widow screen paint.
Black Widow PFG - the Discussion - Black Widow - Discussion of the world famous Black Widow screen paint.
Cream&Sugar - an N9 reflective screen mix. - Home of the famous (soon to be world famous) Cream & Sugar screen paint.
Scorpion N8 and N8.5 - The middle ground between Black Widow (N7.5) and Cream & Sugar (N9).
The Laminate Screen Thread (Data and detailed information) - This is probably the biggest and most well known substrate on this site. Lots of information as well as screen examples are in here.
Working with Rough Walls... a Screen from Nothing - Can't find a substrate large enough? Walls too rough to use as is? Here is one way to deal with older homes and less than ideal walls.
DULUX Exterior Paint vs. Black Widow - There was a time when this was 'supposed' to be identical to Black Widow. Need proof? Check out the thread! :T
Laminate Showcase - As the thread title says, this is a showcase for those owning laminate screens.
The Silver Pearl - Prof's screen mix from Australia. :T
Blackout Cloth (BOC) and other Screen Materials - Still under construction but this thread is the main sticky that will be the landing thread discussing all material based DIY screens.
Simple Substrate Screens - This thread is still under construction. There are many different substrates out there and this will be the thread where they are presented.
Designer White vs. Fashion Grey Laminate - This thread is a comparison of the two most often used Wilsonart laminates, highlighting the pros/cons of each. This thread also demonstrates the importance of re-calibrating your pj for each screen, with an excellent explanation of why that's so. It's also a good place to learn the difference in performance of a white and gray screen.
Silver Fire Review - It's the rage elsewhere. Find out why it fizzles from an unbiased perspective.
CGIV For mech - benven's last diy screen paint offering. Base coat was measured but the final outcome was never measured as we never received a sample with the topcoat. And the ingredients are not available locally to us.
'Pigment' Free Gray- Initial Development and Testing - Want to read up on the history of pigment free grays? The logic behind Black Widow? It's there.
Polyurethane and other misguided ponderings... - It's all the rage elsewhere. Not so much here. Find out why. This thread will have additional information and concrete data in the coming weeks (Jan 2010).
Other Black Widow Options - Black widow options with bases other than Valspar Ultra Premium Flat Enamel.
Commercial Screen threads
Commercial Grayscale and Gamut Readings - Grayscale and Gamut readings of various commercial screen materials.
Commercial Spectrum Readings - Spectrophotometer readings of the various commercial materials.
Elite Screens Silver Frame Screen Review - Sadly discontinued due to the aluminum frame manufacturer going out of business.
dnp Supernova Review - dnp Supernova review.
Da-Lite Screen Material Review - A review of many of Da-Lite's screen materials.
Da-Lite's New 3D Virtual Grey Projection Screen Material
Vutec Vision-X Dyna-Curve
Goo Systems Review - Arguably the king of commercial screen paints. Clearly not worth the money...
Seymour AV Center Stage Screen - Seymour AV Center Stage material review. Acoustically transparent material. Seymour makes a good product. :T
Beamax Screen Materials - Beamax screen material review.
SmX Projection Screens Official Thread - Thinking about getting a SmX screen? Or maybe you have one and are looking to tell fellow Shacksters about it. This is the place. SmX acoustically transparent screen.
Manufactured Screens and Professional Paint Mixes - A list of manufactured screens and paint mixes that have links here at the Shack.
HoloDisplays HoloVega - A review - HoloVega review.
Elite PowerGain 3, 4, & 5 - This was just a quick look at three new materials that Elite was prototyping for screen materials. We didn't really care for them too much as they are geared for niche areas of use as opposed to home theater.
Miscellaneous threads
Spectrum Images
Further Investigations... - The Further Investigations threads are a good look at the thought process that goes on between us while we attempt to develop new screen paints. These no longer take place here in the main forum, just in the developer's forum.
Further Investigations Part II
Further Investigations Part III
A study of clears - part two - The link to part one is in the first post. This one is a bit more thorough than the first study.
gray balance before taking photos and GTI N8 - Want to know how to take color accurate photographs? Well read this thread then. :yes:
Black Widow - How does it calibrate? - How does a Black Widow screen calibrate? Very easily if the projector is dialed in! :T
Investigating Screen Gain - This is a great discussion thread on how to measure gain, including what you need and how to accomplish it.
Gain Readings - Gain readings for various materials.
Projector Central Calculator - Just enter your projector brand and model number and it will tell you what screen size you can get for your throw distance, etc. It also will tell you how many foot lamberts you will be projecting.
Links with cool tips and ideas.
THX Home Theater Display Setup
Projector Central PJ Calculator
Calibration guide for AVIA and DVE from RAM Electronics
Avical's DVE tutorial
Bruce Lindbloom's site - one of our favorite resources
Carlton Bale's Home Theater Calculator
The old sticky starts here
Screen Basics and Theory
Substrate Screens
Cloth Screens
Screen Painting
Screen Construction
Tips, Tricks, and Cool Ideas
Paint Selection
Commercial Screen Paints
Commercial Screens
As time permits links will be filled in by the moderators. If anyone feels there is a post or link of interest that should be included, let us know.
Education and Screen Theory threads
Quick DIY 101- Some Definitions and Acronyms
Data and Testing Definitions and Intro - This thread deals with more of the science of color and how it applies to screens. It gets periodic updates.
Official Screen Recommendation List - These are screens that we have tested and recommend.
Data and Testing Definitions and Intro Discussion - Here you will find questions and discussions about topics and concepts in the main Data and Testing thread.
Gain and other confusing topics. - DIY like anything else brings up a lot of questions and sometimes even more confusion, even at times outright myths that over time people accept as fact because of how many times they have been repeated. Those topics are discussed here and it is an open format where people can ask questions of a more technical nature dealing with the science and theory of screens.
Neutral Grays and Simple Off The Shelf Solutions - This thread may sound more like a screen solution or application but it is more about neutral grays and why we should use a neutral over a 'color'. Within the thread there are some recommended screen options as well as plenty of example screen shots.
Spraying a Screen - This thread discusses spraying a screen vs rolling it.
DIY Screen Painting 101 - This is the main sticky thread going over the fundamentals of painting a screen. The information in this thread applies to both DIY and commercial screen paints.
S-I-L-V-E-R vs. Wilsonart Designer White Laminate - Two comparable diy solutions go head to head.
Paint Variances - For those interested in DIY screens, specifically using paint for a screen, when dealing with common house paints there are sometimes issues with quality and variances from brand to brand, and sometimes even batch to batch. This thread discusses some of the variances being seen between different brands of paint and stores where most people would be shopping.
Inverted (Negative) Images and Uniformity - This thread will also be linked in under screen construction links but it is also good to have it here because it discusses a method for detecting screen imperfections that was pioneered here on HTS.
Exterior vs. Interior Paints - Exterior paints are not a good idea. This is why.
DIY Screen threads
DIY Grayscale and Gamut readings - Grayscale and Gamut readings from various diy materials. The first post contains a very good description of the charts. Probably the best way to display the performance, or in some cases the lack of performance of a screen solution.
DIY Spectrum Readings - Spectrophotometer readings of various diy screen solutions. Needs a description in the first post.
Black Widow PFG - the Presentation - Black Widow - World famous Black Widow screen paint.
Black Widow PFG - the Discussion - Black Widow - Discussion of the world famous Black Widow screen paint.
Cream&Sugar - an N9 reflective screen mix. - Home of the famous (soon to be world famous) Cream & Sugar screen paint.
Scorpion N8 and N8.5 - The middle ground between Black Widow (N7.5) and Cream & Sugar (N9).
The Laminate Screen Thread (Data and detailed information) - This is probably the biggest and most well known substrate on this site. Lots of information as well as screen examples are in here.
Working with Rough Walls... a Screen from Nothing - Can't find a substrate large enough? Walls too rough to use as is? Here is one way to deal with older homes and less than ideal walls.
DULUX Exterior Paint vs. Black Widow - There was a time when this was 'supposed' to be identical to Black Widow. Need proof? Check out the thread! :T
Laminate Showcase - As the thread title says, this is a showcase for those owning laminate screens.
The Silver Pearl - Prof's screen mix from Australia. :T
Blackout Cloth (BOC) and other Screen Materials - Still under construction but this thread is the main sticky that will be the landing thread discussing all material based DIY screens.
Simple Substrate Screens - This thread is still under construction. There are many different substrates out there and this will be the thread where they are presented.
Designer White vs. Fashion Grey Laminate - This thread is a comparison of the two most often used Wilsonart laminates, highlighting the pros/cons of each. This thread also demonstrates the importance of re-calibrating your pj for each screen, with an excellent explanation of why that's so. It's also a good place to learn the difference in performance of a white and gray screen.
Silver Fire Review - It's the rage elsewhere. Find out why it fizzles from an unbiased perspective.
CGIV For mech - benven's last diy screen paint offering. Base coat was measured but the final outcome was never measured as we never received a sample with the topcoat. And the ingredients are not available locally to us.
'Pigment' Free Gray- Initial Development and Testing - Want to read up on the history of pigment free grays? The logic behind Black Widow? It's there.
Polyurethane and other misguided ponderings... - It's all the rage elsewhere. Not so much here. Find out why. This thread will have additional information and concrete data in the coming weeks (Jan 2010).
Other Black Widow Options - Black widow options with bases other than Valspar Ultra Premium Flat Enamel.
Commercial Screen threads
Commercial Grayscale and Gamut Readings - Grayscale and Gamut readings of various commercial screen materials.
Commercial Spectrum Readings - Spectrophotometer readings of the various commercial materials.
Elite Screens Silver Frame Screen Review - Sadly discontinued due to the aluminum frame manufacturer going out of business.
dnp Supernova Review - dnp Supernova review.
Da-Lite Screen Material Review - A review of many of Da-Lite's screen materials.
Da-Lite's New 3D Virtual Grey Projection Screen Material
Vutec Vision-X Dyna-Curve
Goo Systems Review - Arguably the king of commercial screen paints. Clearly not worth the money...
Seymour AV Center Stage Screen - Seymour AV Center Stage material review. Acoustically transparent material. Seymour makes a good product. :T
Beamax Screen Materials - Beamax screen material review.
SmX Projection Screens Official Thread - Thinking about getting a SmX screen? Or maybe you have one and are looking to tell fellow Shacksters about it. This is the place. SmX acoustically transparent screen.
Manufactured Screens and Professional Paint Mixes - A list of manufactured screens and paint mixes that have links here at the Shack.
HoloDisplays HoloVega - A review - HoloVega review.
Elite PowerGain 3, 4, & 5 - This was just a quick look at three new materials that Elite was prototyping for screen materials. We didn't really care for them too much as they are geared for niche areas of use as opposed to home theater.
Miscellaneous threads
Spectrum Images
Further Investigations... - The Further Investigations threads are a good look at the thought process that goes on between us while we attempt to develop new screen paints. These no longer take place here in the main forum, just in the developer's forum.
Further Investigations Part II
Further Investigations Part III
A study of clears - part two - The link to part one is in the first post. This one is a bit more thorough than the first study.
gray balance before taking photos and GTI N8 - Want to know how to take color accurate photographs? Well read this thread then. :yes:
Black Widow - How does it calibrate? - How does a Black Widow screen calibrate? Very easily if the projector is dialed in! :T
Investigating Screen Gain - This is a great discussion thread on how to measure gain, including what you need and how to accomplish it.
Gain Readings - Gain readings for various materials.
Projector Central Calculator - Just enter your projector brand and model number and it will tell you what screen size you can get for your throw distance, etc. It also will tell you how many foot lamberts you will be projecting.
Links with cool tips and ideas.
THX Home Theater Display Setup
Projector Central PJ Calculator
Calibration guide for AVIA and DVE from RAM Electronics
Avical's DVE tutorial
Bruce Lindbloom's site - one of our favorite resources
Carlton Bale's Home Theater Calculator
The old sticky starts here
Screen Basics and Theory
Substrate Screens
Cloth Screens
Screen Painting
Screen Construction
Tips, Tricks, and Cool Ideas
Paint Selection
Known OTS Neutral Greys
Topcoats
Topcoats
Commercial Screen Paints
Commercial Screens
As time permits links will be filled in by the moderators. If anyone feels there is a post or link of interest that should be included, let us know.