Help!!! I need recommendations on a projector

[Anniemay]

I am new to the home theater stuff and dont know that much. If anyone could please recommend some projectors in the $2,000 range (Canadian) I would really appreciate it. Also if anyone knows of any sites that explain what all the technical stuff means that would be greatly appreciated as well.
Thnx alot.

 

[BMXTRIX]

Your first stop should be several hours of reading over at www.projectorcentral.com

While I don't know Canadian pricing, the Sanyo Z4 is an excellent choice at a very good price for actual home theater use. Well under $2K in the states... around $2K in Canada?

 

[BOSS10L]

Panasonic AE900U

 

[AAD]

I will second the Panny AE900U. I have had mine about a month now and love it!!!! The price, rebate and overall deal did not hurt but the picture is awesome! My wife and I looked at a Toshiba, Sony, Runco and Mitts before our purchase. In our opinion the Panny has a much better picture than any of the other projectors. No screen door effect at 12 seating distance with a 100" screen!

 

[RLA]

Hello
Take a look at our sticky at the top of this forum about the Optoma HD-72.
I don’t know what Canadian pricing would be but a quick phone call to Projector People regarding this projector would be in your best interest if you are looking at PJ's around the $2000 price point

 

[cthomp]

Happy Hunting

Some more reading for you! www.projectorreviews.com

Art, does a great job with his reviews. Many have comparisions with similar projectors. I have been looking at projector specs and reviews for about three months now. You may want to take a look at the following:

Panasonic-AE900U
Sanyo PLV-Z4
Sony VPL-HS51A
Optoma HD72
Epson Cinema 550

Hard to go wrong on any of these projectors. But, be advised the HD72 has
some pretty serious lens offset that makes it difficult to work on 100+ inch screens in a room with a ceiling height less than 8ft. Happy hunting! The thrill is in the chase. Keep the lumen output in mind in regards to your specific ambient lighting control. The HD72 does really well in this area!

 

[Bryce_H]

I just went through this and decided on the Epson 550. Love the projector, has a great picture, although pretty much anything would have been an improvement over my 10 year old Sony projector.

 

[JaceTheAce]

I'd recommend checking out Curt Palme's CRT primer before looking into an LCD or DLP!

http://www.curtpalme.com/CRTPrimer.htm

 

[SMM]

What about the new InFocus IN76...

This seems to get great reviews (including on this site). Is there a reason wh no one is recommending this unit?

 

[cthomp]

In76

You should be able to read a review at the site I mentioned above very soon!
Art, is testing it now. He is enjoying Hawaii at present, but will be back reviewing all our favorites soon.

 

[timn99]

IN76 has gotten good reviews too, but seems to be in a higher price range than 900U or Z4. I believe it is priced more closely to the Sony 51A around $3K. Tradeoff between performance and budget.....

You should be able to read a review at the site I mentioned above very soon!
Art, is testing it now. He is enjoying Hawaii at present, but will be back reviewing all our favorites soon.

 

[BMXTRIX]

Why is it when someone says $2,000 (Canadian) which means about $1,500 USA, people are listing projectors that cost $2,500+ in the USA quite often? I'm just curious as to why people immediately double the budget of others and assume that is appropriate.

 

[timn99]

Generally DLP are price slightly higher than LCD, but for the $2K CAN/$1500 US, you're looking at approximately a list of the following front projectors (prices in $US):

LCD Projectors
Sanyo PLV-Z4 - <$2K
Panasonic PT-AE900U - <$2K
Epson Cinema 550 - $2.5K MSRP, most likely less if getting direct quote


DLP Projectors
BenQ 7700 - <$2K
Optoma HD72 - around $2K

(just as an FYI because it is outside of the price range you mentioned, but I always like to know for the next price tier up what increase in quality do I get for the additional cost, you have to be the judge)
Between $2.4-3.5K DLP projectors
Optoma HD78DC3
InFocus IN76 (just released recently)
Samsung SP-H710AE
Mitsubishi HC3000
Sony VPL-HS51A - **LCD**

There are other front projectors definitely below your price range, but they are not 720p native resolution and therefore not considered true HDTV-ready. Hope that helps. Others can chime in and add to my list if I missed anything.

 

[Anniemay]

Thank you

Thanx for all the help. I must admit that I had a friend recommend the Panasonis AE900 and am thinking very seriously about buying it. Take care and I'll let you know how it goes.