Optimize Your Projector Settings: What are the characteristics that make a good gaming projector? Input lag it on the top, especially if you are playing online games. When you push the gaming controller, you want to see the result on the screen as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, some gaming projectors have lag that is so bad that you can actually perceive it. A good gaming projector is going to have a little bit of lag because zero lag is impossible, but it will not be enough to impact your game negatively.
Frame rate is another feature that you would consider. When you play fast-paced games on a projector that does not have a fast frame rate, the image becomes blurry. It’s not nice to look at, and it’s definitely not something you want in a game where every fraction of a second count.
Finally, you want to look at luminosity. Projectors perform the best when they are in a dark room reflected off of high-quality screens. Most people do not have the luxury of using their projector in a completely dark room, so they need a projector that has high luminosity. If you are going to be gaming in a room with a lot of ambient light, you will want a projector with a minimum of 2500 lm.
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How to Optimize Your Projector Settings for Gaming
Finding a projector that meets the requirements of a gaming projector can be a challenge. However, there are some excellent guides out there, including this one showing you the difference between short throw vs. regular gaming projectors and which one won’t break the bank buying new bulbs.
Once you have found the right projector, you need to set it up to give you the best experience. The following are some tips that may help.
Determining the Proper Distance from the Screen
One of the first things that we need to consider is the distance that your projector will be from the screen. This will be determined by the throw ratio of the projector. A projector that is a short-throw can be closer to the screen while still producing an optimal size image. A long throw projector may need to be situated farther back.
When you look at the owner’s manual of your projector, you are going to see a number that looks like 1.15:1. In this scenario, these numbers would indicate that for every meter of width your picture has, your projector needs to be 1.5 m back. If you want your image to be 2 m wide, the projector will need to be 2.5 m back, and so on.
We feel that getting a projector screen is essential to getting the most out of your projector. Sure, you can project onto a blank wall, but your gaming will have sharper images and more vibrant colors if you use a proper screen. Putting a solid black frame around the screen will also improve contrast levels.
Finding the Right Position for Your Gaming Projector
In an ideal situation, your projector would be level with the middle of the screen. This will minimize the distortion you see while gaming. If you can rest the projector on a flat surface, this will help with leveling the image.
Use the zoom features to fit the picture to the screen. If you are unable to position your projector level with the screen and it ends up being too high or too low, you may end up with an image that takes on a trapezoid appearance.
This can be fixed with the keystone corrections. The keystone settings in your gaming projector stretch out the entire picture horizontally or vertically based on the need. However, you should note that using the keystone setting will affect the quality of the end image. It’s better to position your projector correctly from the get-go to avoid image distortion if possible.
Improving the Gaming Focus
Once you have the projector in the right position, you can make adjustments for focus. The best way to do this is to have your projector project words. Maybe you can put a Blu-ray disc into your gaming system and pause the screen on the credits.
Have a friend stand by the projector as you make the adjustments. As they look at the pixels in the letters, you can slowly adjust the focus back and forth until you clearly see if the pixels are blurry or not.
Some projectors will allow you to adjust the sharpness by incremental values. Don’t overdo this setting as it could leave you with images that are overly edgy, and this can detract from your gameplay.
Properly Adjusting Image Settings
When you purchase your projector, it’s going to have the factory default settings. Start with the standard or cinema presets to get an idea of what your projector is going to be like out of the box. From there, you can start to tweak settings.
You may want to find a game that has a simulated fluffy cloud background. Then turn the contrast all the way up. Little by little, bring the contrast back down until you start to see the details of the clouds as opposed to just a blob of white.
To adjust the brightness, find an image that is supposed to be black. For example, you might find a space scene with stars in the background. Or you might find an image that has a man with a black suit. Adjust the brightness slider and make the image as dark as you can without losing the details.
If you selected an image of space, the blackness of space should be dark, but you should still be able to distinguish the stars. Or with the man in the black suit, the suit should be black, but you should always be able to distinguish the folds and creases of the suit. If the details of the image get lost, you have adjusted brightness too far and will need to lighten up the image to the point where these details become apparent.
Most projectors will come with the option of an eco-mode. This is great if you want the projector’s fan to be quiet. But it is going to have an impact on your image and gameplay. Most gamers disable the eco-mode because it affects their ability to get the most out of their gameplay.
Once you have your gaming projector set up the way that you want it, you will need to get a suitable sound system. Your projector will likely come with speakers, but they are probably no good. If you’re going to spend the time to set up your projector and your screen, you definitely should invest in dedicated 5.1 speakers.
As always, we look forward to hearing from you. Are there any tweaks and setting changes you use when setting up a new gaming projector? If so, tell us about them in the comments section below.
Gravit Sinha is the founder of ValidEdge. Ever since he was a kid, he has been a problem fixer and that passion is what inspired him to start and grow this website! 🙂
