Runco Vx 5c Projector User Manual

							While there are many different ways to connect your source equipment to your VHD Ultra Controller,
the examples shown above are the most common.
• COMPOSITE VIDEO INPUT:
Composite video is the most common type of signal used, but is also the lowest in picture quality. Many
sources have outputs that are limited to composite video, such as some VCR’s and camcorders; others
such as Laser Disc players actually produce slightly better results when using composite video. 
• S-VIDEO INPUT
S-video is the second-best type of signal that can be used, but is MUCH better than composite video.
Using such sources as Satellite receivers, high-quality VCRs and DVD players (with no component
output) will produce a MUCH cleaner and sharper signal.
• COMPONENT INPUT
Component video is the best type of signal that can be used. The most common sources that use com-
ponent outputs are DVD players, and it is highly recommended that component be used when possible.
Component video goes one step beyond S-video in picture quality; chroma (color) information is more
resolved and the overall picture appears more well-defined.
• PASS-THROUGH
This input is used to ‘pass-through’ any high-definition or computer signals that do not require process-
ing. The signal by-passes the VHD Ultra Controller’sprocessing and is sent directly to the display. The
pass-through may be used for COMPONENT outputs from a DTV decoder, a progressive-scan DVD
player or RGB outputs from a computer or other high-resolution sources.
QUICK SET-UP GUIDE
Connection Examples
12V TRIGGER
12V FUSERGB VIDEO OUTPUT VIDEO INPUTS
RS-232 IN
MADE IN USA
AC 120V 60Hz, 15W
RUNCO INTERNATIONAL
HAYWARD, CA
MASK
SCREENPASS THROUGH COMPOSITEV
HB G R Y Pr PbS-VIDEO
VX-5c ProjectorComputer or
DTV decoderDVD Player
Sattelite
receiver or
SVHS playerVCR, Laser
disc player,
camcorders
Reserved for 
future use
Automation 
System
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							When the MENU button is pressed on either the remote control or the front panel, the main menu will
appear on-screen. An example of the main menu is shown above.
The active source is indicatedby an arrow to the left of the source; note that in the example above,
Composite is the current source.
To select a source via the main menu,press either the up or down buttons on the remote or front
panel and highlight the desired source, and press ENTER. Otherwise, you may select a source by
pressing either the left or right arrow buttons (on the remote or front panel) when no menus are
on-screen, or by pressing one of the direct access buttons on the remote control
(recommended; see page 6-8).
If pass-through is selected,note that no on-screen menus will be displayed since the signal is simply
being looped directly to the output. When pass-through is the selected source, pressing MENU will
automatically select the last selected input before Pass-through was selected. If you wish to choose
another source, Runco recommends using the direct access buttons to select the desired source as
opposed to pressing MENU.
Aspect Ratioprovides selection of one of three aspect ratios: Anamorphic, Letterbox or standard 4:3.
To select an aspect ratio via the main menu, press either the up and down buttons on the remote or
front panel, highlight ASPECT RATIO and press ENTER. The aspect ratio menu will then appear with
the three choices; highlight the desired aspect ratio with the up or down buttons and press ENTER.
Otherwise, you may select an aspect ratio by pressing either the up or down arrow buttons (on the
remote or front panel) when no menus are on-screen, or by pressing one of the direct access buttons
on the remote control (recommended; see page 6-8).
Installationis where the image shift and blanking controls are located. A full description of this menu is
on page 6-13. 
NOTE:If INSTALLATION does not appear on the main menu, see page 6-13 for an explanation on how
to access the Installation menu.
MENU DESCRIPTION AND NAVIGATION
Main Menu
MAIN MENU
>
COMPOSITE       
S-VIDEO
COMPONENT
PASS THROUGH
ASPECT RATIO
INSTALLATION
Source selection and
picture quality adjustments
See installation section Aspect ratio selection
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							Picture quality adjustments (also known as Front Panel Controls) are the controls that change different
parameters of the image such as the amount of color, black level, etc.  While these adjustments can be set to suit
the needs of the user, there is a way to set these properly. This section will describe what each function does and
how to adjust them properly.
To access the picture quality adjustments, press MENU, highlight the active source (indicated by the arrow) and
press ENTER. The picture quality sub-menu will then appear (see above).
To make an adjustment to a particular function, highlight the function with the up or down arrow buttons and press
ENTER. Once the function is on-screen (i.e. brightness), pressing the UP arrow button on the remote or front
panel will increase the value of that function; pressing the DOWN arrow on the remote or front panel will decrease
the value of that function.
While each of the picture quality adjustments can be set to suit the needs of the user, there is a proper way to set
the adjustments.  For setting TINT and COLOR, please refer to the color bar test pattern below.
NOTE:Runco recommends that a BLUE FILTER be used so only the blue color bars can be seen. Blue filters are
provided with the Video Essentials or AVIA test DVDs, or can be purchased from the Imaging Science Foundation
(www.imagingscience.com).
MAIN MENU
>
COMPOSITE
S-VIDEO
COMPONENT
PASS THROUGH
ASPECT RATIO
INSTALLATIONTINT
COLOR
BRIGHTNESS
CONTRAST
SHARPNESS
LUMA ENHANCE
CHROMA ENHANCE
Picture Quality Adjustments
Tall color bars
Short color bars
Tint
Color
white
yellow
cyan
green
magenta
red
blue
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							TINT(also known as hue) is essentially the ratio of red to green in the color portion of the image.
If TINT is decreased, the image will appear redder, and increasing it will cause the image to appear
greener. To set TINT properly, look at the color bar pattern through a blue filter (or mute the red and
green outputs). Adjust TINT until the middle two tall color bars match the middle short color bars
(see color bar drawing).
COLOR(also known as saturation) increases or decreases the amount of color in the image. To set
COLOR properly, look at the color bar pattern through a blue filter (or mute the red and green outputs).
Adjust COLOR until the outer two tall color bars match the outer short color bars
(see color bar drawing).
For setting CONTRASTand BRIGHTNESS, please refer to the PLUGE pattern below:
CONTRASTadjusts the white level of the image. To adjust this properly for CRT projectors, adjust
CONTRASTuntil there is no blooming (or distortion) in the brightest bar in the PLUGE pattern (see
above). For Fixed-pixel displays, adjust contrast until there is a distinct definition between the two
brightest bars.
NOTE:For best results, Runco recommends that CONTRAST be set to 0 or very close to it.
BRIGHTNESSadjusts the black level of the image. To adjust this properly, adjust BRIGHTNESS until
the below black bar JUST disappears, but the above black bar is still barely visible. 
NOTE:Some DVD players cannot pass the blacker than black bar (they wont pass PLUGE), and that
bar will never be visible. In a case like this, adjust the above black bar until it is slightly brighter than
the background that surrounds it.
Below black
Above blackSet contrast
untill there is
no blooming
in this bar.
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							SHARPNESSadjusts the amount of high-frequency detail in the image. This can be adjusted to the
preference of the user. Keep in mind that when SHARPNESS is decreased, fine details in the image will
become soft; when it is increased, fine details will become sharper but will also make the picture
appear noisy if adjusted too high.
LUMA ENHANCEacts as an edge enhancement, especially around black to white transitions in the
image. Essentially, this has the same characteristics as sharpness but affects the edges of objects far
more that the rest of the image.
FREQUENCIES HIGH/LOW affect the overall range of the LUMA ENHANCE feature. For example, if
using a lower-quality video source such as a VCR, the FREQUENCIES should be set to LOW. For a
good quality source such as a DVD player, set FREQUENCIES to HIGH. To set FREQUENCIES, press
ENTER while LUMA ENHANCE is on-screen.
CHROMA ENHANCEacts as an edge enhancement, especially around color transitions in the image.
Essentially, this has the same characteristics as sharpness but affects the edges of objects far more
that the rest of the image.
FREQUENCIES HIGH/LOW affect the overall range of the CHROMA ENHANCE feature. For example,
if using a lower-quality video source such as a VCR, the FREQUENCIES should be set to LOW. For a
good quality source such as a DVD player, set FREQUENCIES to HIGH. To set FREQUENCIES, press
ENTER while CHROMA ENHANCE is on-screen.
The Installation menu is where you can adjust the type of screen (4:3 or 16:9), shift the image or set
blanking.
When the VHD Ultra Controlleris turned on for the first time, the INSTALLATION item will not appear
in the main menu. To enable the INSTALLATION menu, there are two options:
·With the processor ONand no menus on-screen, simultaneously press the ENTER, UPand LEFT
buttons (you dont need to hold them down). Release the three buttons and press MENU, ensure
INSTALLATION is now on the bottom of the main menu.
·With the remote control, press button 6 (with no menus on-screen).
After pressing 6, press MENUand ensure INSTALLATION is now on the bottom of the main menu.
After INSTALLATION has been accessed, press MENU, highlight INSTALLATION and press ENTER.
This will bring up the INSTALLATION MENU, shown below:
Installation Menu
INSTALLATION
4:3 SCREEN
16:9 SCREEN
IMAGE SHIFT
BLANKING
>
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							When you are installing the system for the first time, the first order of business is to define what type of
screen will be used with this system. If a 1.78:1 (16:9) or 1.85:1 screen is used, highlight 16:9 SCREEN and
press ENTER. If a standard 4:3 screen is installed, highlight 4:3 SCREEN and press enter.
The purpose of defining the screen type is to tell the processor how to create aspect ratios (see page 6-16
for a definition of aspect ratios). For example, on a 16:9 screen, the letterbox and anamorphic aspect ratios
will use the entire 16:9 screen, and the 4:3 aspect ratio will be displayed in the center of the 16:9 screen
(youd have black bars on the left and right sides of the image). 
On the other hand, on a 4:3 screen, the 4:3 aspect ratio would fill the screen, but the letterbox and
anamorphic aspect ratios would be displayed in the center of the screen vertically (there would be black
bars on the top on bottom of the image).
Screen Type
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Image Shift
Hstart: 268
Vstart: 131
Image Shift
IMAGE SHIFT moves the entire image up, down, left or right. If the image is slightly off-center on-
screen after installation, using IMAGE SHIFT can center the image on your screen or display. 
While using IMAGE SHIFT will not cause any problems with your display, it is possible to use too much
image shift, which could cause the image to shake or disappear. Therefore, Runco recommends that
image shift be done with the display device itself whenever possible. 
						

							The BLANKINGfunction allows you to cut off part of the image to fit the screen properly, or to elimi-
nate anomalies on the extreme outsides (usually the top) of the image. This can be done to the top,
bottom, left or right sides individually.
To adjust BLANKING, highlight the desired area you wish to blank (top, bottom, left or right),
and use the left and right arrows to make the adjustment.
Most CRT projectors themselves have blanking controls, and it is recommended that you use the
controls on the projector as opposed to the processor, if possible. In the event that your display device
does not have blanking controls, however, use the blanking controls provided in the processor.
In the event that your VHD Ultra Controllerappears to have a software problem, or adjustments have
been made so far out of range that the image is no longer on-screen or discernable, you can reset the
processor back to factory values. This sets ALL settings back to factory values, so any adjustments
made previously will be lost.
T
o reset your VHD Ultra Controller, follow this procedure:
·Turn off the MAIN POWER switch on the back of the processor
·Hold down the DOWN ARROW button, and turn the MAIN POWER SWITCH back on.
Continue holding the down arrow button until the LED on the front panel blinks,
then release the down arrow button.
Once this is done, your processor has been completely reset to factory values.
After resetting the unit, Composite video will be the active source.
SYSTEM RESETis not on any of the menus; it must be performed using the instructions above.
Blanking
Top 131
Bottom 707
Left 241
Right 1292
Blanking
System Reset
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							An ‘aspect ratio’ is simply the ratio of the width vs. the height of the screen. For example, the current
aspect ratio standard is 4:3 (or 1.33:1), where the image is 4 units wide and 3 units tall.
ASPECT RATIOS
4 units wide
3 units tall
All of our ‘regular’ televisions are this aspect ratio. You have probably noticed that occasionally you’ll watch
a movie that does not fill the screen vertically. This is because the movie was filmed in WIDESCREEN
(letterbox), and the result is ‘black bars’ above and below the image:
Obviously, watching a movie like this does not lend itself to a truly cinematic experience!
This is why Runco invented the first-ever multiple aspect-ratio projection system back in 1991,
so true movie-lovers can watch actual widescreen (letterbox) movies on a WIDESCREEN!
A WIDESCREEN can be a number of aspect ratios; many movies are either 1.85:1 or 2.35:1, and
HDTV is always 1.78:1 (16:9). The way we create a widescreen (or LETTERBOX) aspect ratio is to take
a full 4:3 image, then ‘blank’ (or cut off) the top and bottom so the displayed image is in a widescreen
format. For movies recorded in ‘letterbox’, there would be no information above and below the screen
anyways, so we’re not losing any of the picture. However, if you were to watch standard television
broadcast this way, you would lose some information (see next drawing).
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							As you can see, our screen in this example is a 1.85:1 ratio. The dashed lines show the area that we
‘blanked’. If you recall, watching a letterbox movie on a 4:3 screen gave us black bars; therefore with
letterbox movies, we’re not losing any information!
The ‘other’ type of widescreen is called ‘ANAMORPHIC’. The image is still a widescreen format, but
instead of ‘blanking’ the top and bottom, we simply reduce the overall height of the image:
Blanked (cut off)
areas Active image area
(Actual screen area)
As a result, all objects will be ‘short and fat’ (like the circle above), right? Well, not if you’re using
software that is anamorphic. Most (but not all) DVD movies have an anamorphic option.
Anamorphic material will always produce a better image when using a high quality scaler such as the
VHD Ultra Controller.The reason is that you will actually get more lines of resolution (and ultimately
more detail) when using anamorphic titles. Basically, a TV image is made of 480 lines. When using
LETTERBOX (the drawing at the top of the page), we’re ‘throwing away’ information by blanking the top
and bottom. The end result is that there will only be around 360 lines of information on the screen and
480 with anamorphic.
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							MULTIFILM
Menu
12v Fuse
Mask ScreenRS-232 IN
VH BGR
Pass-through
Pb
Pr YRUNCORS-232 OUT
S-VIDEO
COMPOSITE
3.5
17.45
17
17.45
17
16
3.5
16
RUNCO
3.025
DIMENSIONS
Front Panel
Side
Rear Panel
To p
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