Just closed the deal on a new house with a dark basement rec room, perfect for a projector!
Congrats!
But I've got a question for you projector people. What's the difference between a 2K, 3K and 5+K projector? Basically what does all the extra money get you in terms of performance?
Performance, firstly. Features after that. However, some feature loaded units are less bang for buck, generally, IMO. (Think Epson 6500 vs 7500 for instance).
Not intending to sound sarcastic at all, but the difference between 2k 3k and 5+k is, well, the price. What I mean is that you can find deals, refurbs, bstocks, open box, used, if you are patient. Therefore, it's quite possible you can get a PJ at roughly 2-2.5k that is better than new units costing more. Patience and luck are factors, I do admit.
Or, to frame the question differently: What's going to suck about buying a sub $2K projector and not buying the $5K job?
ok, thinking in terms of brand new only for the moment, the first thing that obviously comes to mind is when something like this happens. "OMG, this is AMAZING, I LOVE this thing" . . . and a couple of months later, you ask yourself, "Since I love FP sooooo much, why on Earth didn't I get the better unit??".
Otherwise, everything that makes a good pic. Color accuracy, saturation, absolute blacks, black detail, native contrast, ansi contrast, pixel structure (or lack thereof), etc. Like 1st reflection said, it's the same stuff as with regular tv's.
Does anyone play video games (especially FPS) on a projector? Are there any latency or 'darkness' issues when using a projector for gaming?
I don't sorry. However, I've read an interesting thread or two about CIH using the zoom method. I don't think I'm sold, but what I do like is even more extreme, and that is using the zoom method for whatever darn size + AR I want at any time, but with a masking system. Granted, such a masking system is a lot of money. Which is why I don't do it.
However, if you got a scope/2.35 screen, and you don't mind taking 2-5 min to adjust zoom, focus, and lens shift, you can have your gaming be a smaller size than with widescreen AR movies. Now, sometimes with a beautiful 16:9 pic, you might miss going bigger with the same AR screen, and I know I would (hence my attraction to masking), but it's something to think about, and it wouldn't cost you a cent more.
What you should do regardless is just get the PJ first, fire it at the wall with both movies and gaming, and you'll see clearly how you feel. From there you can even decide if my proposal is even worth the hassle of adjusting for CIH. People's feelings on doing this vary to extreme extents. From "what a royal PIA", to "wow it's so stupidly easy, what's all the complaining about".
While the last few paragraphs are topically examining a very specific solution, it should still serve as an example that setup cannot be underestimated, and is at least as important as the choice of PJ itself. After all, a 3k PJ in an excellent room still outperforms a 10k unit in a bad room. (And I feel the same way about speakers too).
People have investigated creating macros to do all the shift/focus/zoom, but it doesn't work reliably, for reasons ranging from delay before motors ramp up, or that the increments of movement are not consistent enough.
Counter-intuitively, manual adjustments could be argued as easier. Some PJs require delving into the menu to do such adjustments. I'm pretty certain I could do manual shift/zoom/focus in a minute flat. YMMV.
If I were to buy today, right now, I would get the Epson 6500UB.
I wouldn't. The 8500 is right around the corner. At which point, the only reason is if the 6500 is significantly cheaper. However, believe it or not, when the 6500 came out to supercede the 1080 UB, it did so at a lower price.
JVC for the best PQ, filmic presentation, black levels + detail, native contrast, you name it. They make for the best PQ at anything less than $40,000 price tags.
Cons: bit louder than some other units. Not as bright as the competition, most particularly in brightest mode, but because the PQ is naturally very good, it's still quite competitive in best/calibrated mode.
And particularly for you, some people complain about how motion looks.
The RS20, probably streeting a bit above 5k comes with CMS (color mgmt system). Therefore, you should get the best color accuracy with this unit compared to anything anywhere near its price.
Less that, RS10. Less contrast, less black performance, but brighter, way less expensive. The biggest factor IMO is the lack of CMS. (Note that to add CMS will cost you $4,500 as an outboard device just by itself). My guess is a hair over 3.5k.
Of course, the rs15 & rs25 are also right around the corner.
Otherwise, Epson is an excellent choice at a lower price point. You give up the contrast abilities, black detail, but you get a lot more brightness.