Home Theater projectors
04-20-2009, 05:24 AM
#1
Pro Pumpkin Carver
Thread Starter
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Oakland Cali-****en-fornia
Posts: 2,160
Home Theater projectors
The bro and I are looking in to buying a HD Home theater projector and i was curious if anyone here has some experience with them. From what i gather the most important factors are resolution, contrast ratio and lumens rating. Were looking at machines that typicaly have a res of 1080, contrast of 10-20k:1 and a lumens rating of 1200 and up. Also, any preference between LCD and LCoS projectors like the Sony SXRD series? The last time I was in the market for a projector they CRT units were still rampant . .
04-20-2009, 03:42 PM
#3
Super Siver & Black Stud
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Hayward Ca
Posts: 1,526
04-20-2009, 08:41 PM
#5
The Cake Is A Lie!
Join Date: May 2003
Location: WA
Posts: 5,690
haha, he said Runco!
most important thing to remember: never trust stated contrast ratios. they are total 100% BS. I've got tons of material to back that statement up too.
My personal favorite: LCoS. It takes the best qualities of LCD and DLP and puts them together. the black levels are great. the colors are accurate. you don't get any screen door effect. they are just awesome. the drawbacks are that they cost a lot and are not terribly bright. i've seen most of the variations of LCoS, and i prefer the JVCs. sonys are overpriced and i don't think they look as good as the JVCs.
Second Choice: 3 chip LCD.
The price is good, the color accuracy is good and the brightness is good. the drawbacks are reduced black levels and possible screen door (not really an issue at proper viewing distance, especially on 1080p units).
3rd: DLP.
Good black levels. good contrast. bad color accuracy. single chip DLPs fall on their face when it comes to color accuracy. badly.
The exception in the DLP world is the 3 chip DLPs, which have excellent color accuracy and make very nice images, but they start at $30k.
what would i buy? currently, i would go for the Epson 7500UB. it's a 3 chip LCD 1080p projector. it's rated at 1600 lumens (though lumen ratings should always be taken with a grain of salt like contrast). it comes with a ceiling mount and a spare bulb ($400-500 value). the color accuracy is great, i've calibrated one personally and was very pleased with the results. i would put this up next to the JVC LCoS units i've seen in just about every aspect. the LCoSs have slightly better black levels, but unless you see them side by side you will never know this. the Epson retails at around $4000 or so, and last i checked they had a $500 rebate going.
if you are looking for something cheaper, look for the Epson ProCinema 1080. it's the model the 7500UB replaced. the specs are not quite as good as the 7500, but it still makes a damn nice picture for the price.
most important thing to remember: never trust stated contrast ratios. they are total 100% BS. I've got tons of material to back that statement up too.
My personal favorite: LCoS. It takes the best qualities of LCD and DLP and puts them together. the black levels are great. the colors are accurate. you don't get any screen door effect. they are just awesome. the drawbacks are that they cost a lot and are not terribly bright. i've seen most of the variations of LCoS, and i prefer the JVCs. sonys are overpriced and i don't think they look as good as the JVCs.
Second Choice: 3 chip LCD.
The price is good, the color accuracy is good and the brightness is good. the drawbacks are reduced black levels and possible screen door (not really an issue at proper viewing distance, especially on 1080p units).
3rd: DLP.
Good black levels. good contrast. bad color accuracy. single chip DLPs fall on their face when it comes to color accuracy. badly.
The exception in the DLP world is the 3 chip DLPs, which have excellent color accuracy and make very nice images, but they start at $30k.
what would i buy? currently, i would go for the Epson 7500UB. it's a 3 chip LCD 1080p projector. it's rated at 1600 lumens (though lumen ratings should always be taken with a grain of salt like contrast). it comes with a ceiling mount and a spare bulb ($400-500 value). the color accuracy is great, i've calibrated one personally and was very pleased with the results. i would put this up next to the JVC LCoS units i've seen in just about every aspect. the LCoSs have slightly better black levels, but unless you see them side by side you will never know this. the Epson retails at around $4000 or so, and last i checked they had a $500 rebate going.
if you are looking for something cheaper, look for the Epson ProCinema 1080. it's the model the 7500UB replaced. the specs are not quite as good as the 7500, but it still makes a damn nice picture for the price.
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