Digital Video Projectors

[Christopher Go]

Dan, that Panasonic PT-LC76U looks like a great projector, wonder how its LCD technology will look compared with the Infocus' DLP. Projector Central's review can be found here, and they have only good things to say about the sleek designed PT-LC76U.

In all honesty I really like the image of the Infocus X1. I can't even imagine how much better it can get from more expensive models, makes me curious to see what the differences are between the price ranges. Unfortunately, there's not too many places I know of that have projectors on display.

Mike, if you go for the Infocus X1 I think you're going to be very happy. Everyone I've shown the projector and screen to are amazed by the image and image size. Other than the fact that I didn't really need a new home theater, I find it very difficult to fault my purchase decision. It's just great to have.

Now that I've had some time using the screen and projector, one thing I notice is that you have to be very careful when lowering the screen back into its case. Slow and even, keeping the pressure level is best. Don't want to allow one side to feed down before the other or else you could risk a fold or worse. This almost happened to me, thought I'd let you know.

Even then, in a way I like the screen more than the projector - it really is a remarkable design, and a wonder how it maintains its shape.

[Mike Butler]

Having worked with many different projectors of many brands for conferences and corporate theater (i.e. sales meetings), I'd have to say that I would prefer the LC76U and LC80U for roadwork, simply because brightness is the king where you are working in incompletely darkened rooms, and 2K lumens is my minimum comfort level, especially when rear projecting from backstage. Plus the light weight and low profile help with the logistics, and the more sophisticated keystoning contols can help in this type of environment.

Having said that, for home theater, I would veer toward DLP technology over LCD. For one thing, the X1 is capable of 2000:1 contrast versus 300 or 400:1 in the Panasonic LCD. I'm not sure that this offsets the Panasonic's edge of having XGA resolution over the Infocus only being SVGA. It would be cool to see an actual demo of them side-by-side, but yeah I know, I gotta get real. Prolly splitting hairs at this point, I should just go get the Infocus...just can't argue with the price.

Hah! The concept of needing a new home theater is my biggest obstacle. Of course, my daughter is just dying for me to buy a new plasma so I can give her my 36" Mitsubishi tube for her condo. But that's hard to justify. Easier to make sense of is a $999 box that I can just pick up and bring to a party etc.
Thanks Christopher.

[Alfred Okocha]

I'm kind of in the market for a projector too.. Has anybody seen the SONY VPL-HS3 in the flesh? It's got a nice price at B&H... the specs look alright too. (from the little I understand..)

thanks.

[Mike Rehmus]

I'm gettiing ready to buy a projector in the next 30 days. What do you think of the X1's now? Would you select another model/brand? What about the X2?

[Yi Fong Yu]

is there a way to edit using big screen? i mean modern video cards have dual output (like i have). for example if i'm editing on vegas and i want to preview it on the 'big screen' would it would be possible? have people dont this? after all in hollywood the big studios have this capability.

[Mike Butler]

Hey, if your video card has an NTSC output, it really doesn't care what size you use for a monitor, whether it be a 13" Trinitron, a 42" plasma or even a DLP or LCD projector. It's more a matter of what fits in your studio space. But the risk is that using something other than a broadcast-style NTSC monitor won't give you the "whole story" (an accurate picture). And of course, the quality of the signal going to the monitor depends on what kind of outputs the card has...composite video won't be as high quality as S-video, which is not as good as component video.

[Yi Fong Yu]

what i mean is if i have a dual dvi output video card. i use one for my regular LCD editing and the other for big screen. taht would be SOME preview eh?

[Mike Butler]

Yeah, lots of real estate to look at.

[Christopher Go]

Mike, when I purchased the Infocus X1 and Da-Lite screen it did occur to me that I may have been spending my money too quickly, and that maybe I should be using that hard earned dollar elsewhere. As you said some time ago, there really is no need for something so elaborate.

But you know what? I am still extremely happy with my purchase, and use my projector every chance I get. In fact, I think its the best thing I've purchased in a while, in that it exceeded all my expectations. The image is always amazing, and I've had great fun with the projector.

Everyone enjoys watching it, and having the projector around makes family gatherings more like an event. I haven't looked into any other projector of late, but if you get one, you won't be disappointed.

Yi Fong Yu, I wouldn't edit with the projector per se, but it is a great way to view footage just because of the magnification. I'd shoot something then hook the projector up right to my DV deck and watch. You get a good idea of lighting and composition right away on a screen that large. I'm not sure about color accuracy of course, since this depends on how you calibrated the projector, and whether the projector is reliable enough for this, which I don't think it is, but this is the largest most of us will ever see our work projected.

[Yi Fong Yu]

chris, with hawaii as the backdrop, surfing just a walk away, hot models abound, home cinema rivaling local ones, and a job as a videographer? what more can you ask of a man? ;).

[Giroud Francois]

the problem with most cheap projector is they come with resolution around 800x600 pixel , even if they claim some HD capabilities.(like the infocus X1 or X2)
Many projectors designed for computer resolution are able to go up to 1024 and really good projector should go around 1280 to support HD or 16/9 wide screen DVD.
Anything else is a trade-off with quality, something discutable if you are looking for home cinema, where the first goal is to have something better than what the good old TV set can give.
Personally i got several projectors (CRT and LCD) and i would never go to such low resolution like 800x600 even for very cheap.
1024x768 is the bare minimum.

[Kyle "Doc" Mitchell]

Gang:

I agree with Giroud re: his points on resolution. Plus, make sure to determine whether or not you want native 16:9 or 4:3 chips in your unit before purchasing.

Also, if you're going to edit using a projector, then don't forget that color and contrast issues will be affected by the type of screen you buy. Stewart and Da-Lite (two reputable marketers) have many grades of reflectance on their materials. Some can even absorb light. So, make sure to know what kind of reflecting material you'll be throwing images on and editing to -- you might be making unsatisfactory gamma corrections based on those images.

Regards,

Kyle "Doc" Mitchell

[Chris L. Gray]

I bought the Sony VPL-HS10 a year or so ago and I'm overjoyed!.

I think that this thing can throw a 25ft diagonal image at the top end. My living room turned theatre is about 22x12ft and the projector looks excellent against an offwhite wall. The image is about 11 feet wide and 6+ft high or so.

I have some dark, velvet drapes on both windows to help with outside light and similar velvet panels at each doorway to give that theatrical feel.

I fretted over screens before I received it but after showing a ton of movies, it looks great, even in the reduced "cinema black" mode.

I got it for $2,300 a year ago online (shipped from Electronic Express down in Nashville), so it's probably cheaper.

I'd probably opt for the HS20 these days, but here are some specs for both:

http://www.projectorcentral.com/Sony-VPL-HS10_Cineza.htm
http://www.projectorcentral.com/Sony-VPL-HS20_Cineza.htm

[Christopher Go]

Mike Rehmus, did you purchase a projector as planned? Which model did you end up with?

As I've mentioned before, I am very happy with my purchase, and a better model can only mean even greater quality. Since this was my first projector setup, and because I wanted it to be a portable one, I refrained from investing too much. At the time, $1500 for both projector and screen was a stretch for me, especially since the purchase was not planned, and because I was already investing heavily into DV gear (3 AG-DVX100s, Chrosziel mattebox, 16:9 Sony monitor, Miller DS-10 tripod, etc).

I do look forward to upgrading one day though, to something more than 800X600. For now, I'm too ignorant of how those better models look like since I've never seen a digital projector save for the one I first purchased. I'll probably wonder how I managed with the Infocus X1 this long when I do get that HD capable, high resolution projector but for now the Infocus will do. And don't forget, that Canon XL2 is very tempting, I'd rather get one of those first! Kyle, Giroud, which model projectors do you have?

Chris, show us pictures of your setup!

Yi Fong, I do feel lucky living here. I think us locals take it for granted regularly though :)

[Mike Butler]

Christopher,
I'll have the opportunity to check out the scenery there next July, my daughter will be married in a small private ceremony in Honolulu (where she met her Marine while he was stationed there). I'll be shooting footage there to cut into a video to be projected at the "reception" back here. Any "must-shoot" places I gotta acquire?

I'm thinking about the X2 at this point, but who knows what might be out on the market next year! That's when I'll actually need a projector.