Basically it says to go with the Epson 6500 or the JVC's (Panasonic runs well in there against the Epson aswell. It doesn't tackle the 6500 vs. the 7500, though.
The 6500 & 7500 are the same model, but the 7500 is in black, carries a longer warranty, and is only available through custom dealers - which means there is a premium placed on the exact same level of performance.
1) We are still in the pre-construction arena. If I am sitting 15' back and get a 106" - 110" screen, assuming I havent picked out my projector yet where should I have the electrician place the projector pre-wiring? If i get the Espson, Sony, JVC..etc...Does it matter where I place the prewiring on the ceiling or are they all the same in placement?
You want to use the Projection Calculator for every projector you are considering located at
www.projectorcentral.com - Find your projectors of choice, then go to the calculator, and you can find the range of LENS to screen distances.
Typically, for about 110" you are from 11 to 22 feet or so with super zoom projectors.
I would recommend that you go right around 16-17 feet for wiring as the entry point for the connections is at the back of the projector, and the measurements for zoom range are from the lens to the screen.
Also - make sure they pull conduit to the projector!
2) I will have 11' ceilings in this room (again...28'x18'x11'). Will a projector be able to come down far enough from the ceiling to place a picture tightly on the 110" screen?
You may need to extend the projector down from the ceiling on a pole mount depending on how far up/down the wall your screen is, but I wouldn't expect you to need to lower it to much.
3) Is the Epson 7500 worth the extra money over the 6500? How about the extra $$$ for the JVC? I will watch some sports and have some ambient light during the games, if that makes any difference.
The JVC is a better overall home theater projector by most reports. But, I haven't heard about it being the brightest out there. If I had a smaller room, with a smaller screen (100" or less) and it was entirely dedicated to home theater, and I had a pretty significant desire for perfection, I would likely go with the JVC. But, for top shelf product which has both brightness, and performance, and about 95% or more of the best quality that JVC can offer, I would choose the Epson. In almost all cases I would choose the Epson over the JVC for its flexibility. I would never choose the 7500.
4) For the screen, I believe Brilliant white Carada was recommended (1.78 to 1). But the Projectorreview.com likes the HC grey. Just want to make sure that with some ambient light I better go with the Brilliant White, correct?
There is no reason to go with a grey screen if you are controlling your ambient light to keep it off the screen directly and are typically watching SPORTS when you do have those ambient lights on. Grey screens can help with contrast of low contrast projectors, and when you do critical viewing of dark movies in less than controlled environments. But, with the lights out, grey screens do not improve contrast at all and you lose the extra punch that a slight gain pure white screen can offer.
I chose 106" - 110" because that is what projectorreview.com recommends as a max for the epson 6500.
From 15'? That is small. No matter how I look at it, I would not recommend a screen less than 120" and I would likely go closer to 133". The Epson has modes that can handle that size with some ambient light, and in 'best' mode will look excellent with a 1.4 gain screen in the dark.
Keep in mind, from that review, the person writing it is a home theater perfectionist, yet does not have dark walls in their setup. So, for CRITICAL viewing and 'perfect' results, that is when they recommend the 106" size and grey screen. If you are building new, then go with dark carpet, and dark paint (ceiling included!) and then go with the size that is appropriate for your seating distance. Keep in mind a 1.4 gain over a 1.0 gain offers 40% increase in perceived brightness on the same screen size. So, adding 20% to the screen size will still look perfect.
I think people are often scared of going with the size that's appropriate for their viewing distance, then regret it very quickly. They either go to small, or they try to fill an entire wall. If you want to do home theater, then I would start with the standards that most theaters work with.
