What Projector?
Discussion
OK, having given up on the big TV idea, I'm going to stick with my 28" Widescreen for general viewing and treat myself and my wife for Christmas to a new DVD player and projector. Surround sound is already sorted via a Yamaha DSP-E800 and my current stereo (Naim/Shahinain).
Budget isn't really fixed, but I don't want to go too mad, been thinking about
Infocus Screenplay 4805 + bracket, screen, cable, etc
Either Pioneer DV-575 or Denon-1910 DVD players.
But
a) Should I go DVI-D (or HDMI) which I can with the Denon?
b) Should I get a better DVD player (Denon 2910?) ?
c) Should I get a better projector (the 4805 is 480 line, I could stretch to a 5700 (576 line) or an end of line 7200 (720 line)?
If I go for a better projector I almost certainly should go for the better DVD player and this is where my budget is getting a bit stretched (7200 £2500, 2910 £600 + brackets, cables, etc)
But the 7200 will support HDTV, broadcast by Sky from 2006 and the new higher format DVD stuff when it comes.
Or I could just save the money and go for the original solution.
Screen size, I can go quite large up to 108in diagonal (room is 18' x 15') and will be viewed from about 12ft.
Any ideas PHers??
davidy
Oh and BTW in January I'm replacing the floor of the bedroom upstrairs, so its a golden opportunity to run cables in, component or DVI
Budget isn't really fixed, but I don't want to go too mad, been thinking about
Infocus Screenplay 4805 + bracket, screen, cable, etc
Either Pioneer DV-575 or Denon-1910 DVD players.
But
a) Should I go DVI-D (or HDMI) which I can with the Denon?
b) Should I get a better DVD player (Denon 2910?) ?
c) Should I get a better projector (the 4805 is 480 line, I could stretch to a 5700 (576 line) or an end of line 7200 (720 line)?
If I go for a better projector I almost certainly should go for the better DVD player and this is where my budget is getting a bit stretched (7200 £2500, 2910 £600 + brackets, cables, etc)
But the 7200 will support HDTV, broadcast by Sky from 2006 and the new higher format DVD stuff when it comes.
Or I could just save the money and go for the original solution.
Screen size, I can go quite large up to 108in diagonal (room is 18' x 15') and will be viewed from about 12ft.
Any ideas PHers??
davidy
Oh and BTW in January I'm replacing the floor of the bedroom upstrairs, so its a golden opportunity to run cables in, component or DVI
I will be wathcing this thread very closely as that's exactly what I intend to do 
I've been looking at the panasoninc PT-AE300, looks faily good and the end of line stuff is coming up at well under a grand
I was going to go with s-video cabling. It will be interesting to see what everyone else thinks
>> edited to say, I've also been told to stay clear of these and go for a digital rather than LCD but haven't realy had any conclusive reason why
>> Edited by Incorrigible on Wednesday 15th December 14:20
I've been looking at the panasoninc PT-AE300, looks faily good and the end of line stuff is coming up at well under a grand
I was going to go with s-video cabling. It will be interesting to see what everyone else thinks
>> edited to say, I've also been told to stay clear of these and go for a digital rather than LCD but haven't realy had any conclusive reason why
>> Edited by Incorrigible on Wednesday 15th December 14:20
vixpy1 said:Yes, but the difference in picture quality won't be as dramatic and the leads will run you an extra £150 (depending on length obviously)
Any projector these days should take component cables, and most dvd players have the outputs.
It also depends on how you're going to switch the inputs, I want mine for the pooter, tv, DVD and playstation, so it'll all go through the amp. Amps with component video switching are well pricey
I have an Hitachi PJT-X10 and am very happy with it. I use it with a 2.8m x 2.8m screen though the screen is never pulled down to it's full height.
The projector is really good for the price (I paid £1100 over a year ago, but they're a bit less than that now). Picture is bright and sharp and I don't have too many problems with the dark banding that some projectors seem to have.
I'd be wary of the Screenplay projectors though. My friend bought one a couple of months ago (not sure of the model) and while the picture is clear and bright (a little brighter than mine) it has some problem with light colours. If you have an area of white on the screen, particularly if it's surrounded by a dark colour, when you move your eye you get a flash of rainbow where the white area is. After a while it gives me a headache. It's not just me, he can see it to, but it seems to bother me more. I watched the extended edition of Return of the King round there the other day and by the time it finished I thought my head was about to melt!
The projector is really good for the price (I paid £1100 over a year ago, but they're a bit less than that now). Picture is bright and sharp and I don't have too many problems with the dark banding that some projectors seem to have.
I'd be wary of the Screenplay projectors though. My friend bought one a couple of months ago (not sure of the model) and while the picture is clear and bright (a little brighter than mine) it has some problem with light colours. If you have an area of white on the screen, particularly if it's surrounded by a dark colour, when you move your eye you get a flash of rainbow where the white area is. After a while it gives me a headache. It's not just me, he can see it to, but it seems to bother me more. I watched the extended edition of Return of the King round there the other day and by the time it finished I thought my head was about to melt!
Regarding Rainbows, I belive this is with older models such as the 4800, I understand that its vastly improved on the current range as the colour wheel spins faster.
I will probably run DVI, Component and an S-video cable to the unit (for the SKY+ box). Its worth hedging my bets as £2,000 of oak floor will be going down upstairs!
davidy
I will probably run DVI, Component and an S-video cable to the unit (for the SKY+ box). Its worth hedging my bets as £2,000 of oak floor will be going down upstairs!
davidy
Go for as high a resolution as you can afford. This gives you the option at a later date to add a line doubler which will improve most signals you send to it. www.crtprojectors.co.uk/ are the people that I used for my second hand 808 which still had 10000 hours left on its tubes and would just fall into your budget. The picture is unbeatable but it is pretty big and ugly. The Sim2 Domino range is also very impressive and are a hell of alot smaller and pretty much portable.
In theory it doesn't matter what DVD player you use if you are using the digital connections as long as it has a good mechanism and power supply, though that appears to be a bit of a bone of contention amongst videophiles.
In theory it doesn't matter what DVD player you use if you are using the digital connections as long as it has a good mechanism and power supply, though that appears to be a bit of a bone of contention amongst videophiles.
davidy said:I would say you definately only need the higher quality one, they can all be switched from downstairs (by the amp, there are all sorts of options on the input type there and it's all switched from one place)
I will probably run DVI, Component and an S-video cable to the unit (for the SKY+ box). Its worth hedging my bets as £2,000 of oak floor will be going down upstairs!
Have you priced decent component wire yet, the one I was reccomended came in at over £200 (5m (well 3x5m)) you can always leave string in place if you need to pull through more at a later date
Any more arguments on the digital vs LCD ??
I have a Hitachi PJ-TX10 which has all the inputs available, but I just use s-video for watching DVD's and the video inputs for watching normal TV.
Screens 8ft wide and the projector has a 16ft throw. I'm pushing the projector right to its limits and there's a little bit of chicken mesh but its not too bad.
I paid about £1100 for the projector, then my Mother went out and bought exactly the same one but for £750
Screens 8ft wide and the projector has a 16ft throw. I'm pushing the projector right to its limits and there's a little bit of chicken mesh but its not too bad.
I paid about £1100 for the projector, then my Mother went out and bought exactly the same one but for £750
Incorrigible said:
Have you priced decent component wire yet, the one I was reccomended came in at over £200 (5m (well 3x5m)) you can always leave string in place if you need to pull through more at a later date
Myn are 5.5 meters long custom built, and they cost $80 including postage from Blue Jeans cable in the states, they are top quality!
I shall try and find a link
Incorrigble
My Yamaha DSP E800 will only switch S-video, its fairly old in design (although a current model) and you know from a previous thread that I'm happy with it. I don't want every surround sound effect, and I'm certainly not replacing the Naims with a boggo AV amp, the Shahinian speakers would wilt - they need amps and lots of them!
My local dealer recommends Cinemax Component Cable approx £100 for 10m, a DVI cable is about the same, S- video will be as cheap as chips as its only for the Sky box. (The DVI cable can be converted to HDMI so that with component should cover the new 2006 Sky Boxes! - I really don't want to rip up the floor once its laid! can't really go the string route, as its an oak floor supported by the beams in the living room, so their no interfloor spacing, to put the cables in I will probably have to notch the beams)
davidy
>> Edited by davidy on Wednesday 15th December 15:04
>> Edited by davidy on Wednesday 15th December 15:15
My Yamaha DSP E800 will only switch S-video, its fairly old in design (although a current model) and you know from a previous thread that I'm happy with it. I don't want every surround sound effect, and I'm certainly not replacing the Naims with a boggo AV amp, the Shahinian speakers would wilt - they need amps and lots of them!
My local dealer recommends Cinemax Component Cable approx £100 for 10m, a DVI cable is about the same, S- video will be as cheap as chips as its only for the Sky box. (The DVI cable can be converted to HDMI so that with component should cover the new 2006 Sky Boxes! - I really don't want to rip up the floor once its laid! can't really go the string route, as its an oak floor supported by the beams in the living room, so their no interfloor spacing, to put the cables in I will probably have to notch the beams)
davidy
>> Edited by davidy on Wednesday 15th December 15:04
>> Edited by davidy on Wednesday 15th December 15:15
Incorrigible said:
Any more arguments on the digital vs LCD ??
I assume you mean DLP vs LCD ?
If so then www.projectorcentral.com/lcd_dlp.htm
Byff said:
I have an Hitachi PJT-X10
Snap!
A man of taste
How do you find it for bulb life? My first bulb went a couple of days ago. I was a bit miffed since it'd only clocked up about 450 hours over the course of a year. Looking at the warranty it says they're covered for 6 month or 2000 hours which ever comes first. I had read that around 2000 should be average. I guess I'm just unlucky. New one should be here any day now.
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