When watching the Immortals 3D movie “Gods Fight” scene, the bodies and heads sprung off the screen directly toward us. The tridents seemed to pierce our bodies along with the bad guys. We watched in awe, jumped in fear, and attempted to move out of the way. The depth perception in this movie is amazing. We were a part of the battle and truly immersed in the 3D experience.
During the movie Dredd 3D, we cheered and attempted to protect ourselves when Mama (Lena Heady aka Cersei from Game of Thrones) is judged by Dredd and tossed through a glass window. As her body breaks the window, our cinema filled with glass in slow motion. The glass shards rained down upon us as we watched Mama fall in a slow decent to her well-deserved death. It was a thrilling 3D watching experience. We were hooked on 3D and wanted more.
So imagine our surprise when we read so many articles and watched so many YouTube videos on how 3D movies and technology are dead. So many people hate the 3D viewing experience. Much commentary is given on how the 3D effects do not come off the screen. Those negative experiences are contrary to our experience when watching 3D movies. A Reel Cinema @ Home 3D experience has been nothing but positive and immersive with each movie we watch.
We cannot tell you how many times we have swiped at bubbles in the air or moved to avoid something coming off the screen. This makes us wonder why our 3D viewing experience has us dodging tridents versus those who were bored with the experience. We wonder if the viewers who are bored have the right 3D setup so they get the most out of their 3D viewing experience. We absolutely believe our positive 3D viewing experience comes from our setup.
The four immersive factors that contribute to our positive experience are equipment, darkness, distance, and disc.
First let’s discuss the equipment. The main equipment consists of an Epson 3D Projector, Epson and Xpand RF 3D glasses, and a 3D compatible blu-ray player. We also have a 3D compatible receiver, but a 3D receiver is not necessary to play 3D effectively. If you choose to add a receiver to your component mix, it MUST be 3D compatible as well.
A Reel Cinema @ Home’s second Epson projector was purchased based off one criteria and one criteria only. The projector must be Active RF 3D capable. We already owned nine pairs of RF 3D glasses. Whatever projector we purchased our current RF 3D glasses needed to work with it. While Epson has terrible, atrocious, and completely unacceptable customer service (Epson Service Review), the projector we purchased after our horrible customer service experience performs wonderfully.
A Reel Cinema @ Home uses Epson and Xpand Active RF 3D glasses which synch with the projector. Our Epson projector produces an immersive 3D picture full of depth and pop outs, the projector 3D settings are easy to navigate, and the projector confirms the 3D glasses are synced with a popup message on the screen.
Finally, a 3D capable blu-ray player is a must. You can read the review of our 3D player here. Our model is older so you might want to research an updated model.
Second let’s discuss darkness. For the tridents to jump off the screen, the room must be completely dark. No extra light whatsoever. A Reel Cinema @ Home uses custom modern mouse blackout curtains we made ourselves. If you don’t have the gift of pattern making and sewing, you can purchase a good set of Walmart Eclipse black out curtains for a reasonable price. Do not cheap out and buy only one panel per window. Invest in two panels per window to ensure good coverage. Again, the only light allowed in the room when watching 3D movies is the light from the projector.
Third let’s discuss distance. Our current theater room (we are moving very shortly) is 10 X 15 so we have a fairly, small room. In our current theater, our seats are placed back as far as possible for proper 3D viewing. The further back you sit the better the 3D experience. If you sit close to the screen, the tridents do not have far to travel. If you sit as far back as you can, the tridents have a longer distance to travel and you will move to get out of the way.
Fourth let’s discuss 3D blu-ray discs. When purchasing 3D movies it is important to ensure you purchase an authentic, factory copy. Only a few movies are released in 3D in the United States during the year. Like most United States 3D movie fans we import many of the 3D titles we watch. Please ensure each imported 3D title is “region free.”
The “region free” distinction is vital to imported 3D blu-ray movies. Blu-rays movies are subject to region locking. For blu-ray media, you will see the letters A, B, or C on the disc. The letter refers to the region of the world the disc is intended to be used in.
| Region A: | North America U. S. Territories South America Japan South Korea Taiwan Other Areas of Southeast Asia |
| Region B: | Europe Africa Middle East Australia New Zealand |
| Region C: | Asia (Except for Japan, Korea, Taiwan and other areas of Southeast Asia) |
| Region ABC: | Region-Free (Applies to all countries listed in Regions A, B, & C) |
All 3D blu-ray players are locked to only play blu-ray discs of the region they are sold in. If you are in the US, please ensure the 3D blu-ray player is Region 1 and the blu-ray disc is a Region A or Region Free ABC. We only import 3D blu-rays with “region free” in the description and all three letters on the back.
We also suggest subscribing to the YouTube channels of Brass Tax, SpareChange, and Tommy Boy. Each of these YouTube channels produce quality videos and reviews of region free 3D movies. We are huge fans of their YouTube channels and watch them daily.
Regardless of the negative internet discussion declaring 3D movies and technology are dead, we will continue to purchase 3D movies and 3D equipment as long as we can. 3D is not dead in our home theater. We sincerely enjoy the immersive experience it provides.
We are looking forward to watching Aquaman 3D, Avengers Endgame 3D, Black Panther 3D, and Alita: Battle Angel 3D in the future. As we watch our 3D movies, we will always use the four factors of using the right equipment, a completely dark room, sitting a good distance from the screen, and region free discs. Using these four factors will continue to create the immersive 3D experience we cherish.
If you have tips on using 3D, please comment below and tell us about your equipment set up and what tips you use to get the best experience from your 3D movies.
