BenQ AH500ST vs. AH700ST: Which Short-Throw Golf Projector Fits Your Room?

Published 26 September 2026 · Updated 12 October 2026

Choose the AH500ST when the safe mounting point is about half the image width from the screen; choose the AH700ST when you have more throw distance and need optical zoom to adjust the image size. Both are 4,000-ANSI-lumen, 1080p laser projectors made for golf-simulator rooms. The AH500ST has a fixed 0.499 throw ratio and is designed to sit very close to the screen. The AH700ST has a 0.69-0.83 throw ratio and 1.2x optical zoom.

Same brightness, same resolution

Both are rated at 4,000 ANSI lumens, both use a laser light source, and both display 1080p natively. BenQ's AH500ST specifications and AH700ST specifications confirm those shared specifications. So the comparison starts with where each one can physically hang.

AH500ST: about 6 feet for a 12-foot image

With a 0.499 throw ratio, the AH500ST puts the lens about half the image width from the screen. A 12-foot-wide image needs roughly 6 feet of lens-to-screen distance: 12 multiplied by 0.499 is 5.988 feet. That is optical geometry, not a safe hitting distance or a guarantee that the projector body clears the club.

That helps when the golfer stands 9 or 10 feet from the screen and you want the projector in front of them. Don't assume the follow-through clears it, though. Before the projector goes up, make a slow practice swing under the mount point and see where the club goes.

The fixed lens is the catch. There's no optical zoom to rescue a bad mounting point, so measure carefully, and have someone who knows how your ceiling is built confirm the mount.

AH700ST: more room to fine-tune

The AH700ST's 0.69-0.83 throw ratio puts the lens roughly 8.3 to 10.0 feet from a 12-foot-wide image. Its 1.2x optical zoom gives you some slack on install day if the mount lands a little off the mark.

Both models have Quick Focus and Screen Fill presets for 16:9, 16:10, 4:3, and 1:1, as listed in the specifications linked above. Those help when the room sets the screen size and it doesn't match a TV shape. They don't turn the fixed AH500ST lens into an optical zoom lens.

Is a shorter throw better?

Neither one wins on paper. The AH500ST sits closer; the AH700ST adjusts more. What counts is where each lens lands relative to the golfer, an overhead launch monitor, lights, garage-door hardware, and the ceiling structure.

Six feet from the screen can work in one room and run straight into an overhead sensor or a beam in the next.

1920 by 1080, even from a 4K source

Both display 1920 by 1080 natively. BenQ lists input support up to 4K UHD for the AH500ST, but up to Full HD for the AH700ST on its US specification page. Set the simulator PC output to a supported resolution; a 4K source does not make either projector display a 4K image. The AH500ST downscales that higher-resolution input.

If the room doubles as a premium home theater, or you're filling a very large, smooth screen from a close seat, compare a 4K model separately. Price the projector, mount, and installation together; paying for zoom is useful when it solves a placement problem.

Start from image width

Throw ratio is calculated from image width. The screen diagonal doesn't come into it. Mark the image width you expect, work out where each projector would sit, and draw both points on the same floor and ceiling plan as the golfer and launch monitor.