Home Theater Projectors

A large screen is vital to any Canadian home theater, but you have to admit it’s a bit pricey for the average homeowner. A 60-inch set can cost well over $2,000, and that’s just a midrange model. That’s why many homeowners are opting for a cheaper alternative: home theater projectors.

A projector basically blows up an image from a source (such as a DVD player) onto a larger viewing area, which can be any flat surface. For Canadian home theater systems, the screen is usually a large white fabric stretched over a wall or held up by a screen stand. Most projectors are capable of screen sizes up to 60 inches.

There are several types of home theater projectors, but the ones you’ll find at most Canadian home theater shops are DLP and LCD. LCD projectors use an electronic matrix made up of little receptors, which are switched on and off depending on corresponding image pixels. Although DLP technology is newer, LCDs remain the most popular type because of their low cost.

In a DLP home theater projector, the receptors are replaced by tiny mirrors that move at precise angles and at very high speeds. This allows faster image transition, sharper images, and better color rendition (deeper blacks and brighter whites). The first DLPs were very expensive and were used mostly by commercial cinemas, but recent innovations have allowed manufacturers to create cheaper models for home theater use.