CurtPalme.com Home Theater Forum

[mc86]

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Hi -

I am a n00b that has waited 14months to *finally* start the setup of my first PJ! Although the shocking balls posting has me reconsidering!

It is an ECP 4500 (dressed as vidikron VPF50HD) that has 07MS tubes in it with all the new style boards on as per Curt's ECP pics. I have reason to believe it was a lightly used (1yr) showroom model that sat for a decade. Anyway, I want to do a workmanlike job installing this seemingly nice unit. 720p or 1080i is good enough for my light movie watching (for a few years).

While I *think* I've done a pretty good review of the manual, setup, intros, forum searches, etc. -- a few things I can't seem to find or that may be TOO obvious for me! I am cursed/blessed by being an engineer, so often the obvious and practical elude me. I am making my own guide for this and will post pictures and video documenting my work on my portal for anyone interested (just PM me).

1) I can't seem to find instructions for HOW to adjust the raster size to the correct size (fill/center on the tube face, do not go over edge, etc). All sorts of the forums / instructions tell me WHAT the right size is...but hand wave at HOW. Same for image size and focus. Anyone give me a dope-slap or a pointer here?

2) Can I presume that with the raster at the "correct" full size (too maximize brightness and resolution) that the lenses will be able to fit the image on my screen? Folks here say not to trust the calculator...so I won't -- how will I know that with the raster full size the lenses will be able to get the image to fill my screen? I have a 80"W screen about 11ft away. Or is adjusting the raster and lenses sufficiently "easy" that I just have to iteratively tweak on these...

ALL help greatly appreciated...

Thanks,
Matt
[/i]

[dvh99]

just move the pj with maximized rasters forward and backwards to fit the screen.
dont let the rasters get to close to the boarders of the tubeface, i always stay 1 cm from the sides but thats personal, others may leave a smaller or bigger margin.
and get a 9500lc ultra its awesome .

dennis

[dvh99]

1 more thing the lenses dont alter the size of the image they are for center and corner focus only.

[mc86]

All -

Dennis, you were right: I had misunderstood what the lenses will do -- I'd seen the center and edge focus, but just presumed the size would change. I wouldn't have this unit if I need awesome and not nice -- well, ok, I am just too poor. Anyway, now I "get" why the rasters are always set to the correct size (leaving edge as you indicate) and the PJ-screen distance is the dependant variable here.

Unfortunatley, TB95-08 states that the ECP 3500 and 4500 service manuals were made vanilla for safety. I've been checking the 4100 manuals for some of the details that may be the same. Please confirm if I have the process of adjusting the rasters to all but an absolute minimum of 5/16" edge around edges and centering and sizing them equally correct:

To do this, I follow the manual -
1) Section 4.3: Center all three rasters horizontally via Power Deflection Module's (PDM) Pot R1.

2) Section 4.3: Vertical centering is "controlled through the vertical deflection circuit and can be adjusted using the convergence proceedure". So, am I to take "can be adjusted" to mean "is adjusted"?

3) Section 4.15: Adjust verticle size via PDM pot R74 (verticle size) for green first by setting the pot to its approx to mid-point and then adjust the blue and red to match green. Size = 5 onscreen for this. How and the heck do I get to the R74 pots with the unit on?! Any tricks here? Does Curt sell the "tweeker" pot adjust tool or can I put thick rubber tubing over a long skinny screwdriver?

4) Section 4.15: Horizontal size adjustment is done for the green tube raster size via the PDM pot R2 (size). Size onscreen is set to 5. However, the blue and red R2 pots (h size) don't do anything. Instead, setting width for those tubes involves adjusting two width inductance coils (marked arbitrarily with green and red) when operating under highband and lowband modes made active by providing different sources. This seems a bit intracate. Also, is using a PC to provide the inputs (set to different settings) a good way provide highband and lowband inputs? Is there also a "tweeker" for these inductance coils?

Finally, since H and V sizes are apparently independantly set, is the screen itself my final guide to insure the 4:3 ratio I desire?

Matt

PS - I'm increasingly appreciative of the knowledge you folks have here -- and of the fact the the results MUST be worth all this bother...or else you are all simply NUTS. I suppose after I iterate through the entire process, I'll chuckle at my current Qs.

[LOTREE]

To be honest Matt I never touched anything on the Horizontal Deflection boards. I always used the size controls from the keypad when setting up the image. I kinda want to setup my 4500 again to go through all the controls I never bothered to touch before. I wasn't aware of the vertical linearity control was there until reading through the layout and setup tips again. Definitely a feature I've adjusted on the Zenith.

As for setting up the raster, turn the contrast down and bump up the brightness until you can see the face of the tube just light up. Move that around until centered and alter the size as needed.

The only puzzling thing and something I've noticed on the 4500 and 1200x also is that I can set my raster dead center and to the correct width yet the actual image is projected off the one side or is A LOT smaller. Anyone have any ideas how to maximize the image within the raster while keeping the raster constant?

[LOTREE]

Forgot... As for the "Tweaker" or anti-static Trimpot tool, I found a lot online searching but I'd check a local electronics store if possible, they may give you a basic/simple one or someone here on the forum may have a few kicking around. The one that's supposed to come in your ECP Tool Kit is only worth a few cents. For any of the rear adjustment pots a mini screw driver works fine, I just wouldn't want to be probing around inside the projector with it, being a metal tip and all.

[mc86]

Just to update/close-up my own post for others in the future who might find it. One can find the answers on your own with some searching and open-ears. the AVS archives have a lot of ECP stuff too...I was late in finding that after months on this site.

1 and 2 are correct.

On #3, I covered a 12" long flathead screwdriver with a 1/16" thick wall urethane tubing over the entire length. The end of the flat-head I ground down to about ~7/64" x ~3/32". The pots can be reached on all of the PDMs with such a tool, carefully (think "Operation") with the unit running and the lenses off. I was able to do these all by myself in about 15mins, iteratively with the other two pots on the PDM. Note: the manual was unclear about the vertical size trim on the vertical gain/linearity pots. The Video Gain pot does ALL three vertical tubes raster size. I set each PDM board's vertical to a little more than 2/3 of the way up and then used the master gain to size the screen. I figure that'll help keep everything in the middle ot the design specs and should help stability/linearization/etc. I'll post a pic of the blue tube raster, complete to about 5/16" from the edges. Note the other two pots on the video gain are linearity...meaning spacing of the lines on the raster as a function of height (think hall of mirrors funhouse).

On #4, I did only the lowband work and did not touch the inductance coils yet. Instead, I used the H width pot for each on tube for now. I set the raster to full tube face width less 5/16" with the pots and the on-screen width size = 5.

Unrelated, the manual calls out a method different from curt's for setting the Video Gain pots for each tube. I found my own variation of Curt's method. Specifically, I provided a 0-100 IRE signal from the DVE setup DVD that went from left to right and back against itself right to left. When I turned the G2 way down, that made for wonderful sensitivity in adjusting the 0-10 turn trimpots to the "zero" point at which there was no + or - image. I later set the G2 according to the manual protocols.

Matt