Hi, all. I came to this board two years ago when I first wanted to set up a home theater. Your advice was invaluable.

We bought the Mitsu HD1000 and have loved it. A month ago, we had bad storms, and I guess that's what caused the main board of the projector to fail. I sent the projector back to projectorpeople for estimated repair, and this is their answer:

We have evaluated your projector and have determined that the main board needs to be replaced. If you approve the estimate, we will have to ship your projector directly to Mitsubishi for this repair as the main board will need to be aligned and Mitsubishi does not allow anyone except their technicians to do this. The estimate for the repair is $619, plus shipping to and from Mitsubishi, and then back to you. Please let me know if you wish to proceed at this point. If you approve the repair, the approximate turn-around time is about 2 weeks.

I realize it makes no sense to have the projector repaired, right? The bulb has about 1100 hours on it.

What should I do? Should I try to locate another HD1000? Or what other recommendations would you give me? I can't afford to spend over $1000 for a new projector at this time.

Also, our projector was ceiling mounted. Will I be able to simply mount a new one right in? Or will I have to rebuild and repair?

Please help.

You're stuck. The cost of the main board is expensive, as with any projector. But that repair estimate is in line.

Can you get a used one and do it yourself? Not easily, there are electronic adjustments that have to be made with a new board and if you don't have the right tools and experience, you're wasting your time.

Can you simply replace it? As long as what you put back up there has similar specs in the optics for image size vs distance, sure. The lens on your projector is dead center in the unit. The projector you replace it with should also have the lens in the center, or have horizontal lens shift.

You might want to look at putting the projector on surge or power protection to keep this from happening again.

would it be stoooopid to repair this projector at this cost when it has 1100 hours on the bulb? I love the projector, but don't want to throw good money after bad. I was also wondering if Mitsu and/or projector people might be willing to negotiate a free bulb with the repair. I guess that would be worth a try anyhow. Nothing ventured....

Should I replace with another projector? If so, what are your recommendations?

Damn straight about the surge protector....

The projector is 2 years old. If it were working, I would say keep it. But given that you can get a new one with better specs and considerably brighter, I say replace it.

I'll let others chime in with their own experiences and preferences on which ones to consider. But I would start with this website (http://www.projectorcentral.com/projectors.cfm) for a list of candidates. Just plug in the image size specs of your projector for current matches.

I honestly think you are better off getting a new projector.

For the $619 plus shipping they would charge you, you could pick up a 720p unit with a full warranty most likely.

You could go with an Optoma HD65 maybe or even a new Mits 1500/1600 for around $700.

It may also be a good time to jump up to 1080p and go with the X10 at tigerdirect for a tad over $1000 or wait on this new Optoma HD20 everyone is excited about.

That's too bad what happened to you, but I think you have a ton of options to look at. I just personally feel the least promising option would be the repair since it's already out of warranty. I just did a quick peek and you can pick up a brand new HD1600 for around $750.

eBay for parts, or just eBay the lamp, then get a new PJ.

Good excuse for upgrade.

Good idea, Dragon!

Projector People recommending the Panasonic PTAX200U: $949 as a replacement. What do you think? I haven't researched this projector yet, but did look at the HD1600. Some people seem to think Mitsu messed up with this model.

I had the 1000u for about 1 year prior to my Epson 400 due to wife complained about the RBE, noise and light leakage. 1000u is slightly sharper and better contrast.

I would not go to a 1600 2X wheel but that is me. Also had Panny ae100u (old timer), ae700u and ae900u. For some reason, VB was worse in the Panny's than my Epson, though they are all Epson panels. My old Sony HS51 has less and with excellent flesh tone, but rather dim; it's for movie lovers.

So if RBE does not bother you based on the 1000u, I would go with the DVD camp (assuming placement is not an issue) BenQ or Optoma for the money. With BenQ, I had the 6200 and the 8700+, so I was lucked out and had no quality issues.

For the price of the Panny ax200, I would wait for the Optoma HD20 - 1080p which is due out in US for about 5-6 weeks. You could pre-order from a NYC based photo shop.

Good luck with your hunting.

You could pre-order from a NYC based photo shop.

Be very, very careful if you go this route...

Could someone pm me regarding this "store that shall not be named" and reasons why it is so evil.

I am positive I know what vendor everyone is referring to, and I've even ordered from them without issue, so I'm curious as to what the issue is.

Thanks,
Bill

+1. I bought from them since the 1900's, so is my child.

If you're talking about the place I believe you're talking about, nothing is wrong with them. However, there are MANY scammers that sell PJ's without lamps or just lie to you about availability/pricing that happen to be based in Brooklyn. Those are who I was referring to...

Back a few years when photography was the big thing, there were a number of unscrupulous dealers in NY that stripped the camera package of everything that came with it and sold them separately. A few also sold "grey market" equipment, cameras that did not come into the US through official channels, and as such, did not have a US warranty. Instead, they had a warranty that was only good in Europe or wherever.

I have no doubt that some of those scammers are still around. Make sure you ask the right questions, read all the fine print, etc.

Cool, thanks for the feedback.

I was mistaken in my assumption, so I'm glad I asked.

Thanks, everyone. I called Mitsubishi directly today just to see what they would offer me. They have no problems with Projector People, but they thought it might be a good idea for them to take a look at the projector before I make a final decision. They will look at the projector for free, I pay for shipping, so I guess I am going to take one more stab at it and pay the shipping out to them. The fellow I talked with really seemed to like the HC1500, but they are out of production now.

I'm going to take this step. If I'm really screwed, I'm going to start doing the legwork on researching my options for a new projector.

I might hold out for that Optoma too.

TF and Sheridan,

Yes, there are lot of scummies out there. It's always good to ensure that the bulb comes with the PJ. Thanks.