Sony VPL-VW100 LCOS Projector,1080p-native,under$8000,some questions

[anyuse200]

Hi, there in planning my home theater I realized that if I buy a 100' inch screen from Carada for example for a mere $900 compared to a stewart screen for $2000(in audioholics it mentioned that there isn't much difference- ie the criteron screen was well rated), I have questioned whether a 720p projector would do a good job in a small living room.

I don't know and I really am starting to enjoy these audioholics forum where everyone is interested in what's going on. The Sony Sony VPL-VW100 LCOS Projector , I would really like people's thoughts on it. It seems way out of my budget, but I was wondering- is 1080p standardized, I woulnd't want to buy a projector that doesn't support 1080p in 3-5 years with all the new blu-ray players.

In any case , I was planning on spending 2-3 grand for a good quality 720p projector and using it for the next couple of years, but I am wondering if my small living room would make the image look way too big. One question I didn't think before is this. How does a projector and a screen work, no really. If you buy a 92' inch screen would all the image project in 92' inches or could you let's say only display 60'inches of the image.

Is there a way to control how much of a screen you want to use?

Things is Projectors in the 2,000-3,000 range have a lot of negatives so I guess Ill wait till the end of this year for more competiton, with the competitive market better projectors are falling in price. What is Lcos, and do you think this projector is future-proof? I've seen this sony for about $8,000 in some places, although I would question myself that I shouldn't spend so much money on one thing and not the rest of my equpment.

SVS-01 7.0 speaker set,16-46pcplus-self amplified,yamaha rx-v2600, cables my impact acoutics- cables to go(In case you didn't know you can by impact acoustics cables from a dealer marketed as cables to go).
I found out that after buying direct from impact, the second time around I could get their cables cheaper from places such as World of cables and Neutron express and Mega mall.

Your thoughts really appreciated,(newbie).

 

[BMXTRIX]

(sorry gene) - A good place to get a lot of good basic information on projectors along with a LOT of terminology is at www.projectorcentral.com Keep asking questions here as RLA and others have excellent information that can help you out.

There are many considerations for any front projection setup, including the size of the room - or more accurately, how far your seats are from the screen.

THX standards put primary seating about about 1.5x the screen width. This means that if you are sitting about 12 feet or so from the screen, then you want about a 96" wide screen - call it a 106" diagonal to go a bit under. That is 'normal' and is really where you want things to be. Will it be 'HUGE'? Yes, but this is also why you go to movie theaters and is what you want. It won't be overpowering though - it will be very similar to the effect you get by sitting right in the middle seats of the movie theater.

Now... 1080p vs. 720p...

It's a very good question and right now, my opinion is that if you are on any sort of budget, then 720p is the way to go right now. There are many 720p projectors on the market (1280x720 native resolution) and many of them are absolutely awesome. They are superior in quality to $15,000 projectors from just a few years back. So, projectors like the Sanyo PLV-Z4, Panasonic AE900U, the Optoma HD72, or the InFocus IN76 can all be had for under $3,000 (some about $1,700 or less).

How is the image? Absolutely awesome! Really - it is almost undescribably how incredible those projectors work in a dark room. Key word is DARK - you don't go into a theater and have them leave the lights on, you can't do it at home either if you want the best results, though minor lighting or recessed lighting in your ceiling can be done very well for low level light.

1080p? That's the next generation. IMO, it will be a couple of years before it starts to hit its stride and prices and performance is not quite where I believe it should be. I think in 2-3 years we will see 1080p projectors under $5,000 with all the capabilities of todays 720p projectors and then some. Blu-ray and/or HD-DVD will be a couple of years old and better understood and the projectors will then be 100% compatible.

I love the Sony - I think that for the money, if you have that money, it is one of the best buys out there right now. But, it lacks the competition it really needs and will be seeing later this year from several new 1080p DLP projectors coming out. Yet, even then, competition will be light and it will be more or less first generation products.

As far as filling your screen (www.carada.com) - Typically you will fill your screen entirely. You MUST put your projector where the projector allows it to go for a particular screen size. Like if you have a photographic camera with a zoom lens. If you are want to take a photo of your friend and you want to get him from head to toe - you do not want ANYTHING under his feet or ANYTHING above the top of his head. So, you stand 3 feet from your friend, but you can't do it - either his head is cut off or his feet are cut off. So, you back up... At 7 feet you are far enough back so that you can do it - any closer and you start cutting off his head/feet. You keep backing up... At 11 feet you find you can't take a picture of your friend without getting some stuff either above his head or below his feeet. So, you get a bit closer. At 10 feet you find that is as far back as you can be to capture your friend from head to toe with no extra stuff above or below.

The zoom range, for a person the height of your friend, is from 7 to 10 feet away. If your friend were taller, you would have to move back a bit. If your friend were shorter, you would need to move up a bit. If you switch to a different camera, you have to start ALL OVER AGAIN to find out what range works for the new camera. Maybe it allows the same picture to be taken from 6 to 12 feet. Or from 9 to 18 feet. Or from 11 to 12 feet. Don't know until you test it - or READ THE OWNERS MANUAL.

This is similar to how it works for projectors. They have a lens and can zoom in or out on the screen. Some can zoom in and out more than others. Some can be closer, others further away. But, every projector tends to be a bit different. For a 100" screen size, a very typical distance from the screen for the projector is about 12 feet. But, it depends on EVERY PROJECTOR!

How do you find out where you can put your projector?
http://www.projectorcentral.com/Sanyo-PLV-Z4-projection-calculator-pro.htm

Then select a projector model - I have the Sanyo Z4 already selected in the link.

Read lots of reviews, and do a fair bit of planning. Audioholics has some great reviews here:
http://www.audioholics.com/productreviews/avhardware/index.php
Sanyo Z4
http://www.audioholics.com/productreviews/avhardware/index.php
Panasonic AE900U
http://www.audioholics.com/productreviews/avhardware/PanasonicPTAE900UProjectorReview1.php
Optoma HD72
http://www.audioholics.com/productreviews/avhardware/OptomaHD72p1.php
InFocus IN76
http://www.audioholics.com/productreviews/avhardware/InFocusIN76DLPprojector.php
Sony VPL-HS51A (also worth considering)
http://www.audioholics.com/productreviews/avhardware/SonyCinezaVPLHS51Ap1.php

KEEP IN MIND LAMP REPLACEMENT COSTS!

 

[anyuse200]

What projector/setyp do you have

I was looking for a slightly more upscale projector than the ones you mentioned, perhaps audioholics should also be a videoholic and review more of them. There are many superior projectors than the plz-4,hs-51a,and the panasonic(the plz-4 has been rated better than the panny in some instances but the plz-4 has been critized for its deinterlacing cability-althought is is cheap).

What setuo do you have?

 

[LEVESQUE]

Forget 720p. The Sony VPL-VW100 and HD-DVD at 1080i is superb, particularly when paired with a Gennum VXP processor performing true 1080i inverse telecine to 1080p.

You can have 1080p now. Why wait?

My friend has a Panasonic AE900, and after calibrating it fully with OpticOne, there is no comparison when playing HD-DVD titles. 720p projector are out. 1080p is in.

If you can afford it, go buy an HD-DVD player and a Sony VPL-VW100. My friend can't believe how much better the Sony is compared to his AE900 when using the HD-DVD player.

 

[BMXTRIX]

I personally find the AE900 to be way to soft and the Sony projector is not only much sharper, but has better black levels.

If your budget ALLOWS for the Ruby (VPL-100) then that is an awesome way to go. But, if your budget only allows for $5K or if the $10K price of the Ruby is a bit rich, then you really want to seriously consider the 720p options that are there.

In my experience, the sub $10,000 720p projectors tend to look very similar. The Panasonic I don't like due to image softness. The Z4 I love, but I would strictly feed it a good source or use an outboard processor.

In the end, have no doubt you can SPEND a lot more. But "upscale"? Upscale is a matter of actually getting more performance, not actually spending more cash. In the world of 720p projectors, you can spend a LOT more money and see only very marginal improvements in overall quality. That seems silly to me. But, that's my opinion only.

Upscale IS the Sony Ruby. If it is within your means and $1,000 replacement lamps don't bug you, then you will get an incredible image for that money. Period.

I personally have an older Panasonic PT-L300U setup (960x540) which replaced a 3-gun CRT, and am waiting as patiently as I can on the new crop of 1080p projectors and Blu-ray players to come along. I want to see how the Ruby compares with the new offerrings from InFocus, Optoma, Sim2, and others that are coming along before making any decisions. I also want to see 1080p compatibility put to the test.

If you want to spend more on a projector that gives you a marginal improvement over the Z4 then I would consider the new Samsung model (710?) or the Optoma H78DC3. Tons of others around $5K or so as well... but if you haven't seen the Z4 or AE900 in person, then don't sell them short. I've seen several of the new projectors and have installed the Z4 and AE900 models and if I were to buy, on a budget right now, I would get the Z4. I ONLY feed my projector DVD and HD content, so interal processing of 480i by the Z4 is not a concern to me.

 

[anyuse200]

Just worried about compatbility issues

Well if the Sony works with the Hd-dvd player than compatibility shouldn't be an issue, but of course I would hate to spend a lot of money on a projector only to not see it work.

Thanks for the opinion on 720p projectors, you know I was thinking of buying a 720p benq from costco and returning it before 6 months for a full refund just to evaluate it and check for rainbow effects.

A 92' inch screen with a 1080i or 1080p resolution, would that negate the need to sit further back from the screen. I was informed that 720p is sufficient enough if your screen isn't larger than 50-60 inches, I am thinking about computers, if you have a very large pc monitor then you would sit your monitor to a high resolution, most pc users have their monitors around 1280-x768 about 720p.

More thoughts appreciated, hopefully by the end of this year the sony may approach around 6,000$, and more compeition go figure, maybe we should all wait till the end of this year. People say why wait, I agree but blu-ray is just going to be on the horizon and a projector is an expensive investment- I'd better make the right choice(especially - my parents would get mad if a couple years later I say well i need a 1080p projector after buying a 720).

More thoughts appreciated.

 

[BMXTRIX]

Viewing distance should be about 1.5x the screen width with HD material using a HD projector. This is to THX specifications.

Screen size by itself is meaningless.

That is, a 48" wide screen viewed from 6 feet is the same as a 96" wide screen viewed from 12 feet. Your eyes will see no difference between the two setups for image quality.

A 1080p projector allows you to be a bit closer, but overall it just makes the image smoother and better looking. I have not gotten to into the exact specs on the Sony Ruby, but I believe that as a 1080p native projector, you really may want to wait for the Sony HD disc player (Blu-ray) as that is likely going to be a better match for that projector than HD-DVD. The 1080p output that is expected to work with the Ruby should be about as close to ideal as you can get for movie viewing.

As far as waiting... It ALL depends on a person's budget. If you are close to Ruby land right now, but do care about your money and think it is a lot to be spending (some people just go 10 grand, no problem)... then I think waiting a few months is an awesome idea. Not sure how much the Ruby will come down in price, but we will at least see some new 1080p DLP models hit the floors which will be interesting. Throw in that Blu-ray will be out so some real head-to-head comparisons of HD-DVD vs. Blu-ray can be done, and it even makes more sense.

But, if your budget simply puts the Ruby out of your price class, and you likely would be saving for 2 years to afford it, then I would go with a budget 720p model today. Just because they look awesome, and because they are a great price. It allows you to enjoy now, and start saving for the replacement. In 2-3 years 1080p pricing is likely to be in the $3,000 area I would expect. From here on out we may see price dropping at $2,000 every year on quality 1080p front projectors - including the Ruby. That's NOT something I can afford personally. But, others can and the image quality from the Ruby is pretty much undeniable.

I have not read a BAD review of that projector yet.