Laser projector help

[jollymolly]

Hello,

Looking for advice on a cheap, safe laser for a beginner.

My aim is to make a laser projector by scanning the beam and switching it on and off real fast.

Don't want to blind myself so only need a low power safe for the eyes laser that is capable of being modulated (brightness).

Would like to order today so any help is much appreciated.


Jomo

[jollymolly]

will 5mW do?
green or red?
do I need glasses at this power?
What about blanking?
what about modulation?

[Bradfo69]

http://www.idjnow.com/StoreModules/P...--SRCH=x-laser

Here is a safe, cheap laser. An excellent choice.

[Displaser]

http://www.idjnow.com/StoreModules/P...--SRCH=x-laser

Here is a safe, cheap laser. An excellent choice.

Brad,

I agree... it is a nice choice I'm looking forward to seeing one of these someday.

Jomo,

Where are you located? What do you plan to use this projector for? (home use only?) You want to order one today? - what's the rush? Hmm.....

Greg

[jollymolly]

HAHAH very funny!

are all the cheap green lasers DPSS?

[Bradfo69]

Yes. 532nm is the typical wavelength of green that you see in a majority of projectors and they are DPSS. There are some new green diodes on the horizon and some sources at other wavelengths that are prohibitively expensive but, for cheap green - and even a lot of expensive greens, they're DPSS. If you're going to build a projector, you probably want to get something more than 5 mW as you can buy all kinds of off the shelf laser projectors at 5mW from companies such as Chauvet and American DJ. I don't what your need is. What are you trying to use it for? That will help determine what kind of power you need. If it's just for home use, you don't necessarily need much. If you have bigger plans, then you need more power which corelates to more money. When you get into modulation, there are two types - analog and TTL. TTL is simply on or off which means full brightness or nothing. Most of the greens you're going to come across at low powers - say under 100 or 150mW are going to tend to be TTL. If you want to really have control of brightness, then you want analog which usually puts you over 200mW. Yes, at that power, you "should" have goggles but, many people that are careful may not bother with them but, it's always a good idea to use them in theory. If you have aspirations of building a projector, you've got a ways to go and, this is NOT a cheap hobby by any means. The laser itself is but a small part of what you're going to be investing in. There is galvos, a case, power supplies, other electronics, optics, some sort of control software and equipment. The list goes on.... Eventually, you will come to appreciate that the Dimention from X-Laser I mentioned above is a good starting point!

I see you've added your location and there are an awful lot of excellent members and resources right in your backyard. I'd seriously begin looking through Rob Stanley (stanwax's) web site. http://shop.stanwaxlaser.co.uk/

I just noticed he's got some web site issues but, there is still a lot of good things to study.

[jollymolly]

Yes. 532nm is the typical wavelength of green that you see in a majority of projectors and they are DPSS. There are some new green diodes on the horizon and some sources at other wavelengths that are prohibitively expensive but, for cheap green - and even a lot of expensive greens, they're DPSS. If you're going to build a projector, you probably want to get something more than 5 mW as you can buy all kinds of off the shelf laser projectors at 5mW from companies such as Chauvet and American DJ. I don't what your need is. What are you trying to use it for? That will help determine what kind of power you need. If it's just for home use, you don't necessarily need much. If you have bigger plans, then you need more power which corelates to more money. When you get into modulation, there are two types - analog and TTL. TTL is simply on or off which means full brightness or nothing. Most of the greens you're going to come across at low powers - say under 100 or 150mW are going to tend to be TTL. If you want to really have control of brightness, then you want analog which usually puts you over 200mW. Yes, at that power, you "should" have goggles but, many people that are careful may not bother with them but, it's always a good idea to use them in theory. If you have aspirations of building a projector, you've got a ways to go and, this is NOT a cheap hobby by any means. The laser itself is but a small part of what you're going to be investing in. There is galvos, a case, power supplies, other electronics, optics, some sort of control software and equipment. The list goes on.... Eventually, you will come to appreciate that the Dimention from X-Laser I mentioned above is a good starting point!

I see you've added your location and there are an awful lot of excellent members and resources right in your backyard. I'd seriously begin looking through Rob Stanley (stanwax's) web site. http://shop.stanwaxlaser.co.uk/

I just noticed he's got some web site issues but, there is still a lot of good things to study.

Thanks for the info, checked Stanwax's website but there are no laser modules shown.

Anyway why can I not modulate a 5mW laser?
Ideally I would use PWM to control brightness.
Aim is to create laser projection of grey(green)scale image :P

[araugh]

What is it you're trying to accomplish? Are you looking to put on shows professionally, just mess around in the garage, "roll your own", display specific text/graphics or you just think lasers are cool? The level of projector you need from one task to the next can vary dramatically. The dimension is a nice laser (full disclosure, I work at X-laser) but it isn't for most laserists that aren't doing for-hire work or complex graphics. If all you want to do is mess around with a simple beam in your home, a stepper motor unit like the caliente or building something from components available from other sellers here might be the way to go. It's all a question of application.

[jollymolly]

What is it you're trying to accomplish? Are you looking to put on shows professionally, just mess around in the garage, "roll your own", display specific text/graphics or you just think lasers are cool? The level of projector you need from one task to the next can vary dramatically. The dimension is a nice laser (full disclosure, I work at X-laser) but it isn't for most laserists that aren't doing for-hire work or complex graphics. If all you want to do is mess around with a simple beam in your home, a stepper motor unit like the caliente or building something from components available from other sellers here might be the way to go. It's all a question of application.

I am not planning on doing for-hire work.

My plan is to use a polygon mirror for x-axis and another mirror connected to galvo/stepper motor for y-axis.

I need a laser that allow analog modulation.

I was asking why a 5mW green laser is not suitable for analog modulation.