Anyone have any thoughts? Glass-beaded? Matte white? High contrast grey?

Are the upgrades on the screen surface worth it? and what are the factors that determine it?

What is the right screen depends on the room and the projector. A few guidelines include:

- For a low contrast projector in a darkened room, a grey screen may be best (to boost blacks) as long as the projector is bright enough.

- For a low-brightness projector, you may need a high-gain white screen, but be aware that high-gain screens look best straight-on and tend to wash out at higher viewing angles.

- Rooms with less light control (not totally darkened) benefit from high-gain screens, too -- you need the gain to overcome the ambient light falling on the screen.

- There are some fairly good, inexpensive screens that are quite highly regarded. Check out the "screens" forum at AVSFORUM, as well as the DIY screens section for ideas on how you can use a painted wall to good effect.

I have a fully darkened room with dark chocolate walls and ceiling, and I project onto a screen painted on the wall. A professional screen would be better, but my setup gets plenty of "wows!" when first-time visitors watch a movie on it.