SUMMARY: Sun projection monitors

From: Seth Bradley (sbradley@iwarp.intel.com)
Date: Fri Jan 11 1991 - 13:27:06 CST


The following is a summary of the responses I received:

####################################################
From: Rod Henry <henry@csd4330a.erim.org>
High End:

NEC - The GraphicSmart's projector - (708) 860-0335
Barco - Barco Projections Systems - (404) 432-2346
Panasonic - Panasonic DataMaster Pt-105 - 1-800-553-7222
ElectroHome - ECP 3000 - 1-800-265-2171

I have been more interested in the Projector Panels for overlaying on a
overhead projector (substantially lower cost).
The February, 1989 Computer Graphics Review had a nice article worth looking
at.

Some projector panels are: (but are not Sun compatible as far as I have found)

Kodak - Kodak Datashow - 1-800-445-6325x830 (IBM)
Computer Accessories (Sand Diego)
Dukane (St. Charles, Il)
In Focus Systems (Tualatin, OR)
nView (Newport News, VA)
Sharp Electronics (Mahwah, NJ)
Telex Communications (Minneapolis)
(phone numbers are not listed in the article)

These are all PC accessories that hook to the graphics cards (vga, ega etc...)
but I like the lcd panel much better that the projector. I am hoping that
support for Sun systems will be forthcoming.
-------------------------------------------
From: jipping@frodo.cs.hope.edu (Mike Jipping)
Check out the July, 1990, SunExpert magazine. They have an article
(several, actually) on video and Suns. The have a list of seven
"big-screen" video projectors on page 52.

We have a brand new Sony VPH-1270Q. It looks great and can take anything
from NTSC (TV video) to high res graphics from a Sun (up to 75 kHz). We
have three inputs into it: TV video, PC video, and RGB input (that's what
we put out Sun into). It's got 7 memories, so that when you tweak the
thing to look great for your particular input, it will remember the
settings and call them back whenever a machine at exactly your scan rate
is used. So far, we've had great luck with it -- but we've been using
it for only two weeks.

The price lists at $15,900. We got for around $14,500 I believe. If
that hurts, it's about the median price you'll have to pay...the
SunExpert article lists some cheaper. But none have as many horiz lines
(it's got 1250) or as many convenient features.
-----------------------------------------------
From: Aydin Edguer <edguer@alpha.ces.cwru.edu>
Workstations Plus sells a Gretag Image Systems "Esprit 2000" projection
system. List price is $17,995 - 20,495. Workstations Plus can be reached
at 1-800-735-5777, ask for John Martini. I am not even a satisfied customer
of Workstations Plus, I just have one of their catalogs.
----------------------------------------------
From: paula@atc.boeing.com
We have a Barco projection TV system for use with our Suns, Macs, Symbolics,
PC's, etc. It's a huge box on wheels with about a 5 foot diagonal screen.
We've learned not to move it around too much, because it gets out of alignment
and requires the attention of a skilled technician. The Barco works fine with
color or monochrome Suns, but it's not quite fast enough for the 1600x1280
monochrome displays on some of our 3/260's. All color Sun displays use the
same scanning rates, so your 4/370 should be OK.

Before we got the self-contained Barco, we had one that was designed to sit on a
table and project on a separate screen. BIG mistake! You had to readjust the
color alignment any time the screen-to-projector distance changed. For semi-
portable use, the self-contained unit is preferable. The table-top unit would
work OK if permanently installed in the ceiling.

When we bought the Barco, we were aware of three choices. The other two were
from Electrohome and Hughes. The Electrohome unit was a color video projector
similar to the Barco. The Hughes device was monochrome-only, but had great
resolution because it used a liquid-crystal shutter to create the image. For
our use, the Barco seemed to have the best image and the most flexibility.

We've had a lot of trouble with our projector, primarily because we move it
around to accommodate the needs of varying-sized audiences. I guess I would
stop just short of recommending Barco over the others. You should probably
check out the current offerings of all the vendors before making your buy.
We dropped about $30K on our unit, plus who knows how much since on "house
calls" by the technicians. We got our unit through a place called Photo and
Sound Company, which I gather is a nation-wide concern. You might find them
in the Yellow Pages under "video".
-----------------------------------------------------------
From: Dan Butzer <butzer@cis.ohio-state.edu>
We just received a very nice Sony Unit. We use it with a Sun 4/60-GX
machine as well as HP9000/300 machines. Outstanding picture. I very much
prefer it to an Electrohome unit I once had to use. We bought ours
from B & J Video, 614-876-0269. Steve Williams @ B&J was our contact.
-----------------------------------------------------------
From: "Grootwassink, David" <grootwass@tawc1.eglin.af.mil>
I briefed the group on the research for projection systems that include:
        a. Overhead projection systems. None have a video scan rate
           that will project video from a SUN workstation.

        b. Rear Projection systems.
                1. Sony - VPH 1270Q -This system has 650 lumens peak light
                   output. With 650 lumens, the briefing room lights must
                   be dimmed to see the projections.
                2. Electrohome - ECP 4000 - This system also has 650 lumens.
                3. GE - Imager 610 - This system also has 650 lumens.
                4. BARCO - BG 800 - This system has 850 lumens peak light
                   output. The output is stronge enough that the lights in
                   the conference room will not have to be dimmed for use.
                   The system has the capability for inputs from five (5)
                   separate sources. The system's Horz Freq: 15-90 Hz with
                   autolock. Vertical Freq: 45-120 Hz autolock.
        c. Throw distance. The distance from the lens to the screen, is
           70 inches. To meet this requirement, a mirror must be used. It
           can be suspended from the ceiling, but will cover the back door.
           The mirror is precision mounted for proper focus.

The BARCO BG800 was chosen as the unit to install.
-----------------------------------------------------------
From: eap@bu-pub.bu.edu (Eric A Pearce)
To: sbradley
Subject: Re: Sun projection monitors
Date: Thu, 10 Jan 91 09:46:51 -0500

We have a huge rgb projection system that cost something in the
5 figure range and I don't think it looks that great. It's
sold by GE (acutally made by NEC).

A cheaper solution might be to buy a Mac, get an overhead projector
and put on of those LCD displays that is meant for the overhead.
then you log into your Sun from the Mac. The LCD display gives
a very crisp image on the projector. It's also something you
can cart around from room to room. The GE display is bolted to
the ceiling and must be more than a 100 pounds.
##############################################################

This last approach is probably the one we'll follow, as you can
get a usable system for under $5K including the Mac, whereas the
true projection systems seem to run well in excess of $10K.
We don't need graphics, so this would probably work. I wonder
why no one makes an LCD display for the Sun. Insufficient
resolution, perhaps? Thanks to everyone who replied, including
the following:

Brent Chapman <chapman@alc.com>
Jim Battan <battan@sequent.com>
era@niwot.scd.ucar.EDU (Ed Arnold)
lamour@maestro.mitre.org (Michael Lamoureux)
mjk@mayo.EDU (Mark Korinek)
-----
Seth J. Bradley
Internet: sbradley@iwarp.intel.com
UUCP: uunet!iwarp.intel.com!sbradley



This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.2 : Fri Sep 28 2001 - 23:06:09 CDT