Guides · Projectors, screens and TVs
What Screen Size and Aspect Ratio Fit Your Golf Simulator Room?
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Choose the usable screen height first, then its aspect ratio, then the projector position. An 8 ft-tall picture is 10.7 ft wide at 4:3, 14.2 ft at 16:9 or 8 ft at 1:1, but the enclosure frame and installation clearance must fit around it.
Throw distance is the projector's throw ratio multiplied by the width of its full image. If a 16:9 projector fills the height of a narrower picture, the unused side strips still count in that calculation.
Confirm the enclosure's frame dimensions and clearance with its maker, and use the exact projector model's specifications. The worked room below is a planning example, not a measured installation or a safety certification.
Ceiling height sets the screen height
An impact screen hangs inside a frame, and the frame has to clear the ceiling. Before you measure, look for anything that hangs lower than the ceiling surface, such as joists, light fixtures, ductwork or a garage door track. Subtract the frame and top clearance from the ceiling height, and the remainder is the tallest screen you can use. That clearance depends on the kit's design, so take it from the maker's instructions. Don't copy another kit's number.
Check the outer frame dimensions, not the size name. Carl's Place sells its DIY enclosure kit with impact screen in six standard sizes, named 7.7 × 10, 7.7 × 13, 8 × 8, 8 × 10.5, 8.5 × 11.5 and 9 × 12, plus custom sizes. Its specification sheet calls those names simplified and gives the actual outer heights as 95.8, 95.8, 100, 100, 107.5 and 112 in. Every size is 59.125 in deep, and the rear fitting adds 8.25 in behind the frame (Carl's Place specification sheet, checked November 8, 2026). Carl's Place asks for at least 2–3 in between the frame and the ceiling, 2–3 in on each side, and at least 8.25 in behind the frame for the rear fitting, with 12 in recommended (Carl's Place sizing guide). The Indoor Golf Shop's product pages give the SIG8 and SIG10 as 8 ft 4 in high and the SIG12 as 9 ft 4 in high (SIG8, SIG10, SIG12). A 9 ft 4 in enclosure needs a ceiling higher than 9 ft 4 in.
Aspect ratio sets the width
Once you know the height, the width is multiplication:
- 16:9 width = height × 16 ÷ 9 (about 1.78 × height)
- 4:3 width = height × 4 ÷ 3 (about 1.33 × height)
- 1:1 width = height
The table runs that arithmetic at common picture heights.
| Picture height (ft) | Width at 16:9 (ft) | Width at 4:3 (ft) | Width at 1:1 (ft) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 12.4 | 9.3 | 7 |
| 7.5 | 13.3 | 10.0 | 7.5 |
| 8 | 14.2 | 10.7 | 8 |
| 8.5 | 15.1 | 11.3 | 8.5 |
| 9 | 16.0 | 12.0 | 9 |
Carl's Place's specification sheet gives each standard size's viewable picture and aspect ratio alongside the outer frame.
| Carl's Place size name | Viewable picture, H × W (in) | Aspect ratio | Outer frame, H × W (in) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7.7 × 10 | 83.1 × 110.8 | 4:3 | 95.8 × 124.8 |
| 7.7 × 13 | 84.0 × 149.3 | 16:9 | 95.8 × 163.3 |
| 8 × 8 | 86.0 × 86.0 | 1:1 | 100 × 100 |
| 8 × 10.5 | 87.2 × 116.3 | 4:3 | 100 × 130.3 |
| 8.5 × 11.5 | 94.7 × 126.3 | 4:3 | 107.5 × 140.3 |
| 9 × 12 | 99.2 × 132.3 | 4:3 | 112 × 146.3 |
Four of the six are 4:3, one is square, and the 7.7 × 13 is 16:9 with an 84 in (7 ft) tall picture. The frame runs about 12–14 in taller and 14 in wider than the picture, so the size name tells you neither the picture nor the frame. A taller 16:9 picture means a custom size.
The SIG kits follow the same pattern. Their product pages give the screen as 7 ft 7 in square on the SIG8 (1:1), 7 ft 7 in × 10 ft 1 in on the SIG10 and 8 ft 7 in × 11 ft 5 in on the SIG12, both 4:3 (checked November 8, 2026). The minimum room sizes for the SIG8 and SIG10 come from their assembly instructions (checked October 22, 2026; SIG8 instructions, SIG10 instructions). The "width left over" column is the room minimum minus the enclosure width.
| Kit (The Indoor Golf Shop figures) | Height × width × depth | Width ÷ height | Minimum room width | Width left over | Minimum room depth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SIG8 | 8 ft 4 in × 8 ft 4 in × 5 ft | 1.00 | 10 ft | 1 ft 8 in | 16 ft |
| SIG10 | 8 ft 4 in × 10 ft 10 in × 5 ft | 1.30 | 12 ft | 1 ft 2 in | 18 ft |
| SIG12 | 9 ft 4 in × 12 ft 2 in × 5 ft | 1.30 | — | — | — |
For the SIG12, ask The Indoor Golf Shop for the minimum room size. The wider SIG10 leaves less spare width than the SIG8 at their respective room minimums. Use the minimum for the model you are ordering.
When to choose 16:9, 4:3 or 1:1
For a fixed width, the ratio decides how much height you get. A 12 ft-wide picture is 6.75 ft tall at 16:9 (12 × 9 ÷ 16), 9 ft tall at 4:3 and 12 ft tall at 1:1. That's why the ceiling and the side walls pull in different directions.
A 16:9 screen suits a room with spare width and an ordinary ceiling, used with a projector whose native ratio is 16:9 so the whole panel lands on the screen. It's also the ratio that runs out of room first. In the table above, it reaches 14.2 ft of width at just 8 ft of height.
A 4:3 screen suits rooms where width is the constraint. It keeps more of the ceiling height in use, and most of the standard sizes from both makers in this guide are 4:3.
A 1:1 screen gives the most height for the narrowest footprint. Consider it when the room is narrow and the ceiling is the dimension you have to spare. With a 16:9 projector, a square picture leaves the largest unused strips at the sides, so you'll need to mask them carefully.
Width sets the projector throw
A projector's throw ratio is the distance from the lens to the screen divided by the width of the picture. Rearranged, throw distance = throw ratio × image width. Use the image width for the ratio and height you plan to project.
BenQ's US AH700ST specifications give a native 16:9 ratio and a throw ratio of 0.69–0.83 (checked November 2, 2026). For an 8 ft-tall full 16:9 image, its 14.22 ft width gives a lens-to-screen distance of about 9.81–11.80 ft. The TK710STi has the same 16:9 panel and 0.69–0.83 ratio (BenQ TK710STi specifications). The LK936ST is 16:9 at 0.81–0.89 (US LK936ST specifications, checked November 8, 2026), which puts the same image at about 11.52–12.66 ft. These are optical calculations, not cleared mounting positions. The table below shows how each 0.1 change in throw ratio affects distance.
| Image width (ft) | Where the width comes from | Distance per 0.1 of throw ratio |
|---|---|---|
| 8.0 | 8 ft-tall picture at 1:1 | 0.80 ft (9.6 in) |
| 10.7 | 8 ft-tall picture at 4:3 | 1.07 ft (12.8 in) |
| 12.0 | 9 ft-tall picture at 4:3 | 1.20 ft (14.4 in) |
| 14.2 | 8 ft-tall picture at 16:9 | 1.42 ft (17.1 in) |
The width in that formula is the width of the projector's whole picture, which may not match your screen's width. Suppose a projector with a 16:9 panel fills the height of a 4:3 screen. It's still projecting a 16:9 image, so the throw calculation uses the 16:9 width at that height. The 4:3 part uses three-quarters of the panel width (4/3 ÷ 16/9 = 0.75). A square picture uses 9/16 of it (1 ÷ 16/9 = 0.5625). The strips on either side have to stay black, or they'll land on the enclosure side panels and walls. On an 8 ft-tall 4:3 screen, the distance is the throw ratio × 14.2 ft with a 16:9 projector, but the throw ratio × 10.7 ft with a projector whose native ratio is 4:3.
A worked room example
For planning with the Room size calculator, take a room with a 108 in ceiling, 168 in width and 200 in depth. That's 9 ft high, 14 ft wide and 16 ft 8 in deep.
Suppose the frame leaves an 8 ft-tall picture. At 16:9 it would be 14.2 ft wide, which is wider than the 14 ft room before you allow anything for the sides. If you fill the room's full width at 16:9, the tallest picture is 14 × 9 ÷ 16 = 7.875 ft (7 ft 10.5 in), with no side allowance at all. At 4:3, the same 8 ft height gives 10.7 ft and leaves 3.3 ft of the room's width for the frame and both sides. In this room, 16:9 only works if you accept a picture shorter than the ceiling allows.
Against the listed kits:
- Carl's Place 9 × 12: the frame is 112 in tall, 4 in taller than the ceiling. It doesn't fit.
- Carl's Place 8.5 × 11.5: the 107.5 in frame leaves 0.5 in under the ceiling, short of the 2–3 in Carl's Place asks for. It doesn't fit either.
- Carl's Place 8 × 10.5: the 100 in frame leaves 8 in above it, and the 130.3 in width leaves 37.7 in across the room. The picture is 87.2 × 116.3 in at 4:3 (about 7 ft 3 in × 9 ft 8 in).
- Carl's Place 7.7 × 13: the 163.3 in frame leaves 4.7 in of width, about 2.35 in a side, inside the 2–3 in Carl's Place asks for. It's the one standard size here with a 16:9 picture, 84 × 149.3 in (7 ft × 12 ft 5 in).
- Depth for any Carl's Place kit: the 59.125 in frame plus 8.25–12 in behind it takes about 5 ft 7 in to 5 ft 11 in from the back wall. Carl's Place says not to stand closer than 10 ft to the screen, which leaves roughly 5 ft 8 in to 6 ft behind the ball in this room.
- SIG8: 100 in tall, 8 in below the ceiling. The room exceeds the recorded 10 ft minimum width and 16 ft minimum depth, with 8 in of depth to spare.
- SIG10: the width clears the recorded 12 ft minimum, but the room is 1 ft 4 in short of the recorded 18 ft minimum depth.
- SIG12 (9 ft 4 in high): at 112 in, it's 4 in taller than the ceiling.
Now the throw. The 7.7 × 13's picture is 149.3 in (12.44 ft) wide, so the AH700ST's 0.69–0.83 ratio puts the lens about 8.58–10.33 ft from the screen. On the 8 × 10.5, a 16:9 projector filling the 87.2 in height projects a full image 87.2 × 16 ÷ 9 = 155.0 in (12.92 ft) wide, so the same projector needs about 8.91–10.72 ft. That distance has to fit within the 16 ft 8 in along with the enclosure, the hitting area and swing clearance. Run the result back through the Golf simulator room fit checker. These numbers are planning arithmetic. They don't confirm that the room is safe to swing in.
What to order once the numbers are fixed
To compare kits by size, write down the picture height, aspect ratio and picture width, along with the projector's native ratio, throw ratio and resulting throw distance. For a masked picture, calculate throw from the projector's full image width rather than the screen width. Golf simulator enclosure size covers the side-by-side kit comparison. Screen material is a separate choice.
For the sizes named in this guide:
- Carl's Place DIY enclosure kit with impact screen: compare the outer dimensions above. It includes the impact screen (choice of four materials), the BlackStop enclosure, steel corner fittings and zip ties. Pipes are sold separately, or as Carl's Place's Pipe Framing Kit. The starting price was $999.95 on November 8, 2026, for the 8 × 8 with Standard material; size and material change the price, so price the size you chose (Carl's Place kit page).
- The Indoor Golf Shop SIG8, SIG10 and SIG12: their product pages listed $1,799.99, $1,999.99 and $2,499.99 on November 8, 2026, with no sale price shown (SIG8, SIG10, SIG12). Confirm the price at checkout. The SIG12 page describes a frame of color-coded push-pin poles with the enclosure and impact screen; ask the seller for the full box contents before you order.
Shipping and sales tax aren't included in any of these figures. If none of the listed sizes matches the ratio your projector produces, either change the ratio to fit a listed size or ask about a custom size. Buying a kit and masking a large part of the picture is the third option. If you already have a frame and only need the screen, Omaha Sports & Games lists two sold in several sizes: the GolfBays Pro+ Golf Simulator Impact Screen at $550 to $1,010 and the Elite Screens GolfSim DIY ImpactWhite 1145 Projector Screen at $673 to $1,333 (October 23, 2026). Pick the size from the height and width you wrote down, and check its stated dimensions before you order.