[kenreau]

Helping out a friend narrow down a few choices for a new projector and screen.  I'm not a videophile and know next to nothing about projectors, other than I imagine 1080P should be on the list.  He wants a fixed screen and can fit 9' diagonal on a wall.

His budget for the projector and screen needs to be $4k to $5K range.

Any short list recommendations out there?  Or web best of 2008 gear reviews to recommend?

Thanks,
Ken

[ajzepp]

If he's got a dedicated wall, I highly recommend Screen Goo. I have a 133" screen goo screen, and it'll compete with just about anything else you can put up against it.

www.goosystems.com

Use the savings and put it toward that new Epson projector 

[randytsuch]

Hi,
First let me say that I don't actually have a projector, but I have spend the last month researching one, waiting until I have to money to buy it.

That said, a little more information would be helpful.

Is the room light controlled?  

Is the projector going to be ceiling mounted?

How far away will the projector be from the screen?
Different projectors have different throw ratios, so they have to be different distances away from the screen to throw the same image.
But, they also have zoom lenses, to give you some flexibility in placement.

Is the 9' diagonal at 16:9.  If so, you would be talking about a 94" wide screen.
How far back is the seating?

In general, DLP's have better blacks, but less flexibility in placement.

LCD's can be brighter, can have more zoom, and also can have "offset".  Offset lets you adjust the image placement, versus where the projector is positioned, with the projector pointed straight ahead.  This is considered better then pointing the projector so it is not square to the screen, and using "keystoning" to fix the picture.  Oh, and you can have vertical and horizontal offset.

These sites
http://www.projectorcentral.com/
http://www.projectorreviews.com/
are helpful, as well as avsforum.

There is a calculator at projector cental that will show you, for any projector, the distance from projector to screen, to throw the image size you want.

I guess this is a long way of saying that with projectors, you can't just pick the "best" projector for you budget.  You need to find a projector that works in your room.

But, your friend's budget is high enough to get a nice 1080p projector, and a good screen.

Randy

[Bob in St. Louis]

Ditto what Randy said. Well spoken Sir. 
Ken, I've got a Sanyo I've VERY happy with. The model has long been considered obsolete, but I think highly of it.
Like Randy said, ProjectorCentral is a wealth of information. They've got a Top Ten Popular Home Theater Projectors - 1080p that has reviews, prices and all the info you could possibly need. A few seconds of research and you'll discover the MSRP is artificially high. The 'real' price is often much lower (at least it was when I was PJ shopping).
Some online places often have deals where you get a free lamp (bulb) with the purchase of a PJ, or a free screen.
Look for those too.

Bob

[Big Red Machine]

Carada screens are a bargain.

[walkern]

Best looking projector I've seen under 5K is the newest JVC DILA unit (don't remember the model number).  If you can get a modest discount on it that should leave you with enough extra cash for a modest screen (or paint as was suggested earlier).

Neil

[zybar]

If the JVC is too rich for your blood, I would strongly encourage looking at these models:

Panny AE3000 (around $2500 street price)
Epson 6500UB (around $2700 street price)

Both have received universal praise from all the usual sources (projector review, projector central, AVS, etc...)

George

[kenreau]

Excellent.  Thank you guys very much!   

I will share this with him and see what we can figure out.

I may be back with more questions.

Kenreau

[mvwhiting_83]

I know the Mitsubishi HC 5500 or 6000 is priced right around there.  You can pick up a pull down screen for for a few hundred bucks... I found an Elite screen 120" for about 125$

[RAW]

Hi,
First let me say that I don't actually have a projector, but I have spend the last month researching one, waiting until I have to money to buy it.

That said, a little more information would be helpful.

Is the room light controlled?  

Is the projector going to be ceiling mounted?

How far away will the projector be from the screen?
Different projectors have different throw ratios, so they have to be different distances away from the screen to throw the same image.
But, they also have zoom lenses, to give you some flexibility in placement.

Is the 9' diagonal at 16:9.  If so, you would be talking about a 94" wide screen.
How far back is the seating?

In general, DLP's have better blacks, but less flexibility in placement.

LCD's can be brighter, can have more zoom, and also can have "offset".  Offset lets you adjust the image placement, versus where the projector is positioned, with the projector pointed straight ahead.  This is considered better then pointing the projector so it is not square to the screen, and using "keystoning" to fix the picture.  Oh, and you can have vertical and horizontal offset.

These sites
http://www.projectorcentral.com/
http://www.projectorreviews.com/
are helpful, as well as avsforum.

There is a calculator at projector cental that will show you, for any projector, the distance from projector to screen, to throw the image size you want.

I guess this is a long way of saying that with projectors, you can't just pick the "best" projector for you budget.  You need to find a projector that works in your room.

But, your friend's budget is high enough to get a nice 1080p projector, and a good screen.

Randy

I agree !
Over our move to our new home my wife purchased the Epson 6100 and a 106" screen as my Christmas gift

And i can say without a doubt the Epsons come threw in every way. I had a local THX calibration company come calibrate it with 80hrs on it and will do the same thing again this summer after months of use.

Theater black 1 is great with my calibration set up and screen all in a light controled room with only one window.
I also found switching from the sony 350 BR (moved that to the Panasonic 50 plasma) to the Panasonic 35 the colour changes in calibration were shocking the difference between the 2.
So the Panasonic 35 stayed in the HT room.

Look at the new Epson 6500 I also liked the Epson warrenty as well!!



Ikea cabinet I used above with free HDMI cables then below after my Bluejean cables were installed.

[randytsuch]

I agree !
Over our move to our new home my wife purchased the Epson 6100 and a 106" screen as my Christmas gift

And i can say without a doubt the Epsons come threw in every way. I had a local THX calibration company come calibrate it with 80hrs on it and will do the same thing again this summer after months of use.

Theater black 1 is great with my calibration set up and screen all in a light controled room with only one window.
I also found switching from the sony 350 BR (moved that to the Panasonic 50 plasma) to the Panasonic 35 the colour changes in calibration were shocking the difference between the 2.
So the Panasonic 35 stayed in the HT room.

Look at the new Epson 6500 I also liked the Epson warrenty as well!!

I am also considering the Epson 6100, it's the front runner of the projectors on my list, at this time.
What screen did you get with it?  I am thinking of a da lite high power, but this screen is called retro reflective, which means it reflects the light back to the source.  Which means, it works best with either table mount or shelf mount projectors.  If you ceiling mount the projector, it reflects the light back to the ceiling.

Ken,
I also wanted to mention Epson support.  From what I read at AVS, their support seems top notch.  If an Epson projector breaks, they send a replacement, you don't have to wait for them to repair yours.  I was looking at a Panasonic thread on their 720p projector, and people were complaining about long repair times.  The Panny 720p projector appears to have some issues, not sure about their 1080p projector.

So, if I had that kind of budget, I would be looking hard at the Epson 6500ub.

Randy

[RAW]

I am also considering the Epson 6100, it's the front runner of the projectors on my list, at this time.
What screen did you get with it?  I am thinking of a da lite high power, but this screen is called retro reflective, which means it reflects the light back to the source.  Which means, it works best with either table mount or shelf mount projectors.  If you ceiling mount the projector, it reflects the light back to the ceiling.

Yes the 6100 for my room is GREAT sitting 12ft away the 106" screen which is a M white 1.0 from some local supplier who Audiovideo unlimited purchases from.The screen had no brand name on it rather just the size and M White 1.0 on the label that was it.
http://www.projector.com/reviews/epson/powerlitehomecinema6100.php#specs
I could have pushed the Epson 6100 to a 120" screen but many I have talked to all said to stay around 106 for the best picture quality. So I took the advice and stayed at 106" Just as well now I have room for my HT8 speakers were if I went to a 120" I would have to use my Apex LCR across the front. Not that that is a bad thing but I wanted to use my Figured Koa HT8's something bad.

Again the warrenty made it a easy pick for me. Exchange that is 

[Bob in St. Louis]

I just stumbled on an unbelievable price for a MOTORIZED screen at Monoprice.
Almost seems too good to be true, maybe it's a piece of crap? 

Bob

[Gmach1]

I did some research on this about 3 months back. From What I have seen out there in my opnion I SONY VPL VW60 is the best bang for the buck. It is also rated as one of the best in the mid range by Homethetre magazine.
Looked at the Panasonic it is pretty compareable to VW60 but the picture on the Sony was much smoother.
Hope this helps.

[howburger]

With that budget, my next upgrade would be to a slightly used JVC RS-2 and a Carada screen. JVC can be had for under $4k  and has the vertical stretch function needed to work with an anamorphic lens for a 240:1 screen. Used anamorphic lens for $500.00 to $600.00. If you were somewhat industrious, you could also build yourself a nice 240:1 screen with Wilsonart Laminate framed with black velvet covered MDF for a couple of hundred dollars.

Harold

[kenreau]

Great suggestions guys.  Thank you!