Q: Isn’t the regular matte grey material the best for enhancing contrast? If not what material should I consider and why?
Matte grey was an earlier effort by projection screen manufacturers to enhance projector performance when projectors had limited performance ranges in need of a little help. Matte grey materials added a darker shade to projected images that would enhance black levels to a degree. The down side is that a projector with a high lumens output and interior light control was required. The next generation materials we offer now are CineGrey 3D / CineGrey 5D. The CineGray materials are ambient light rejecting. This means that the new materials will give you flat panel display brightness even with high levels of interior lighting. The old matte grey materials are washed out by interior lighting. Also, the Cinegrey series of ALR and ceiling light rejecting (CLR) screen materials give reference grade quality that is world class certified by the Imaging Science Foundation (ISF) for its professional grade abilities to provide accurate color rendition, contrast, and black/white dynamic range. The CineGrey 3D® has a wider diffusion range while the CineGrey 5D® is brighter. Comparing either CineGrey 3D/5D materials to the old matte grey is like comparing a couple of souped-up Ford Mustangs to a Model T.