Performance is Why DIY!

Let's take a look at the hard details of DIY Theatre® Screen Performance

What could possibly be new about a projection screen? Great question. Several things actually. Screens used to be a commodity – simple tripod or wall mount screens on window shade rollers with a case and either matt white or glass beaded fabric. That was fine for slide projectors and old film projectors. But projection screen technology needs to advance along with the technology of the projection source. Today it is LCD and digital projectors and that requires a different screen surface. Some manufactures try to do it with vinyl film and strings or bulky frames with snap buttons to hold them tight. But time can make them sag. Gravity rules! With DIY Theatre® screens we stay as flat as the wall or material you choose. Our surface will not get sticky, sag or wrinkle with waves like a flag. That is only part of the performance improvements you will experience with a DIY Theatre® screen.DIY Theatre® has developed a new screen technology that includes a non-interference pigment. This is used in our Australian Opal® screen surface. Some refer to the luster of the Australian Opal® surface as a fleur-de-lis due to its elegance. To our knowledge this is not used in any other screen product. Traditional pearlescent screens use an interference pigment which is a larger flake and is fairly translucent. This is the reason that screen performance is lost due to color shift. Old style screens are painted with black on the back so you can not see all the light that is lost as it passes through the screen surface rather than reflect back to you –the viewer. See the illustration of the optically active layer below.

Traditional Pearl Pigments

Notice how the light ray is split when it strikes the old style pearl pigment flake. Some of it is reflected back as it should be and some of the light travels through the pigment and lost in the back of the screen while another part of it is reflected back at a different angle. As multiple pigment flakes are layered this negative effect is compounded. Some of the light ray is totally lost and the rest is split in fractional directions which is the primary cause of color shift due to screen performance. This type of pearl pigment is not a defect - in fact that is how they are designed. Their use is for automotive coatings and packaging materials and it gives the appearance of depth due to multiple layers and color shift looks good on a car. But not on a movie screen.

DIY Theatre® Non-interferenc Screen Pigments

The latest generation of screen pigments made for DIY Theatre® screens reflect very differently. They are opaque particles rather than translucent flakes. When the light ray strikes the non-interference pigments, it is then directed back in a single reflection and provide a much greater color intensity. The non-interference pigments are a very new technology previously unavailable.

Pearlescent pigments used in many of the common projection screens were developed in the 1960’s long before digital projection sources or light sources with UV light were developed. These old pigments work well for cars but not very efficient for a projection screen. The non-interference pigments in our formulations are only recently available and greatly change the active performance of the projection screen surface. The fine grain size (5 - 30 µm) of these pigments and narrow particle size distribution allow our projection screens to perform with greatly reduced or totally eliminated color shift and a greater amount of the projected light to be reflected back to the viewers. This is a huge technological improvement that no doubt other manufacturers will love to copy after our patent expiration. Color shift will affect your performance – if you do not want this then DIY Theatre, LLC can supply you the screen surface you desire.The next most important feature that is exclusive to our patent pending screen coating is that it has been formulated to reflect a broader range of the light spectrum. In the past the light source for projectors was always an incandescent bulb – just a regular light bulb. Today the most common light source is the halogen or metal halide bulb and it emits a greater UV scale element. A DIY Theatre® screen will literally come alive when you expose it to the UV spectrum light source. And we will tell you how you can test it yourself.Our formulation contains a mildewcide and that is a good thing – do other plastic or vinyl screens offer this? Since you install this coating directly on your wall or other substrate you have no need for wires, strings, window shade rollers or other cumbersome accessories. Your screen will always stay flat. And unlike glass beaded screens with glues to hold the beads on, fiberglass laminated screens or vinyl screens that have a strong solvent odor you will find a DIY Theatre® screen to be very pleasing. We have developed a pleasant smelling fragrance that we call Dreamsicle. It will remind you of the days when we chased the ice cream truck. But it is not just to smell good – it has a purpose. As long as you can detect the smell of Dreamsicle the polymer coating is still curing. You can use your screen the same day you install it and it will be dry to the touch within hours. But it will be 30 – 60 days until your screen is fully cured and each day it will look and perform better.Clean up will be simple when you install your screen, as everything is water based. Very environmentally friendly and safe. One final note about our formulation that is exclusive to DIY Theatre® projection screens. We have included microspheres. These are much smaller than glass beads and are not active in the image reflection. They are included to provide for the correct texture of your screen surface and durability for ease of cleaning after your screen is cured.DIY Theatre® projection screens just look good – in fact many consider them elegant. You will find yourself proud of the appearance even when not in use – no need to hide it in the ceiling.

Still not convinced that a DIY Theatre® screen offers enhanced home theater screen performance? Take our screen test >

But the performance of the screen — its beautiful image — is only a part of the unique advantages of a DIY Theatre® Screen.
See how you can TAKE CONTROL of your home theater screen