I've been struggling over this for quite some time. I know the Pros and Cons of both but I'm on the fence and need some honest advice nudging me one way or the other.

* Basement viewing. Light controlled as far as direct sunlight but I have a massive reef tank anchoring one end of my bar across the basement. There is some indirect light during the day until about 8pm. Then it goes dark. Think light like an old crt from across the room.

* I already have an older generation 7G 50" pioneer in my bedroom, and a brand new Kuro 50" in my family room. I love both of these sets for their plasma like qualities.

* The area in the basement I'm looking at has the viewing area set into a niche. Its 130" wide but opens up into a larger area that houses the pub gathering area and a very large sectional. Ceilings are drop, just over 8' high. There is area above the drop to house wires, mounts ect.

* No back wall. Projector would have to be hung either 8, or about 15' back from screen.

* Seating is as far as 14' back, ranges to about 10' back.

* Upstairs I watch mostly sports, TV, and about 20% movies. The basement I wanted to watch more movies, but It will still be used if there are people over for sports viewings (Bar). Lights are dim-able in the basement but they won't be completely off when sports is on.

What I'm struggling with is basically this. I love the look and the texture of the Kuros. Call me uncultured AV wise but I like the bold colors and the pop. At least I'm honest :) The problem is downstairs the 60" Kuro basically looks like a big TV. Is its very nice. Yes. Is it a wow factor No. I masked out the 60" on the wall with tape and I'm less than thrilled.

One more complication. I AM an audiophile. This niche is a pita sonically but I build my own speakers (well I try at least ) and I can work with some of the boundary conditions. What I cant figure out is how to position fronts and a screen in 130" by 8'. even a 92" 16:9 screen is 54" high. I'm trying to figure out how to leave myself room for taller speakers, and have a larger screen and nor have the speakers smashed into the side walls thus causing bad boundary conditions. Speakers will have bass boxes underneath for dual subs, although I could move the bass boxes inward and put them under the screen thus shortening the towers some. I still want the tweeters around ear level when in a sitting position however.

I've never owned a projector. I could never afford (30k+) the ones that actually looked good to me. However the latest crop is starting to get to where they are acceptable to me. I saw the JVC RS2U and it was acceptable. The 20U looks even better?

The question is what screen size should I be looking at? What gain? does the current crop of projectors under 10k (I could push 12k.. you get the idea its not the money but a self imposed "you are being stupid" limit) fir the bill. Is any of this even workable?

Much thanks in advance for helping me gather my thoughts :)

If movies are your goal then projection is the only way to go. I also considered the flat screen idea before. However, if you really want to be immersed into a movie there is nothing better then a huge projected image that is measured in feet and not inches.

At 10K or 12K you have lots of options. I don't even know that you have to even aim that high really. The RS20 you mentioned is probably one of the most popular projectors on here. The planar 8150 is probably another strong option for your environment too. Sounds like you'll need something with some decent lumen output since you will use it with the lights up as well.

I'd get the projector first though and see what size image you're comfortable with. Then work backwards from there. Gain will depend a lot on what projector you end up going with. I'm quite positive you'll be very happy with your decision to go projection. It sounds like you already have nice assortment of flat screens to watch things on already. So why not go with something new and different? Rather then just another larger and better version of something you've already got?

Something else I just thought of... How in the world do you run a hdmi cable up 8 feet and over 16 or so feet? Do you have to use a hdmi repeater or something?

One more complication. I AM an audiophile. This niche is a pita sonically but I build my own speakers (well I try at least ) and I can work with some of the boundary conditions. What I cant figure out is how to position fronts and a screen in 130" by 8'. even a 92" 16:9 screen is 54" high. I'm trying to figure out how to leave myself room for taller speakers, and have a larger screen and nor have the speakers smashed into the side walls thus causing bad boundary conditions. Speakers will have bass boxes underneath for dual subs, although I could move the bass boxes inward and put them under the screen thus shortening the towers some. I still want the tweeters around ear level when in a sitting position however.


Why don't you use an acoustically transparent screen? Screen research, SMX, Seymour AV, Screen Excellence all make very nice woven AT screens that perform very well audio wise. This way you can max out your screen size and have more optimal speaker placement.

Something else I just thought of... How in the world do you run a hdmi cable up 8 feet and over 16 or so feet? Do you have to use a hdmi repeater or something?

You don't need an hdmi repeator for that length. You should be fine running a 25' - 30' heavy gauge hdmi cable. If you;re worried, just test it out before installing it in the walls.

Size matters.

My space is only 135" wide so I am using a 128" wide acoustically transparent screen. My speakers sit behind the screen. I built the screen to swing up and lay against the ceiling when I want to listen to music. I would have gone with a roll up tensioned AT screen but the total width was too wide to acheive a 54" viewable height on a 2.35:1 screen.

I had a Pioneer Kuro as well (a 6020). If you want great black levels you need to look at the JVCs. The JVC RS20 is the best now for black levels. If you really want the picture to "pop" like a plasma you would need a screen like the DaLite High Power screen. However, for best results the projector would need to be near eye level and the screen also have a sweet spot (w/o hotspotting though). You won't find a projection setup that will pop like a Kuro but a JVC with an HP screen will likely come the closest to what you are looking for.

There are acoustical screens that let you put the speakers behind the screen, however my understanding that you will lose a little light output with an accoustical screen. Outside of an accoustical you won't be able to place the center channel's tweeter at ear level. You would have to put the center either lower or have it hang from the ceiling and aimed downwards towards the viewing area.

Thanks for all the replys. I'm not overly concerned about the center channels tweeters, but more the mains. Most of my audio listening is 2 channel anyways.

The acoustically transparent screens look interesting. Years ago when I looked into this microperf was the best option and it had a sound signature. Screen Research's response curves for their material look really really good. If I went with, say a 120 inch screen and I used its 0.95 gain material, with a 20U thrown from approximately 12-15 feet what kind of ft/lamberts am I looking at?

I'm thinking I'd have a tensioned screen come down 2 feet or so from the back wall. Unfortunately when I set the room up I ran all the speaker cables and terminated them to sit under where the plasma would be. Although I could build an equipment rack to live under the screen, the lights might be annoying. I could build a solid front on the rack though to cut out all the ambient light.

Something else I just thought of... How in the world do you run a hdmi cable up 8 feet and over 16 or so feet? Do you have to use a hdmi repeater or something?


I've had a 40' HDMI cable (MonoPrice.com - see above) installed for over 4 years. No problems at all (knock on wood).

First, I used speaker cloth on the door of the equipment cabinet I built to block light or mute it. This allowed air transfer but cut down on the distracting LED's.

Now, I made the same move. Couldn't be happier. Here's what I learned during the process.

Don't assume you have to use an AT screen. Use the AT screens only if you have no other option. I have in walls and spent the money to move them wider to allow the "big screen" rather than get an AT screen. The AT screens are nice I'm sure, but if given the option of a 1.3 gain solid screen or a .95 gain AT screen, everyone would choose the former. It just works better. So make sure you can't use a standard screen material first.

You need to first pick what size screen you want. Base this on seating distance and room size. I sit 12-13'' away and have a 120" dia. screen. Works great. After you choose the screen size you want, then you make the choice for what material you can use based on speaker arrangement, then you pick the projector that can light it up.

Pick a good size screen. Don't underestimate the screen size because you'll regret it later. Do this analysis, then come back.

The acoustically transparent screens look interesting. Years ago when I looked into this microperf was the best option and it had a sound signature. Screen Research's response curves for their material look really really good. If I went with, say a 120 inch screen and I used its 0.95 gain material, with a 20U thrown from approximately 12-15 feet what kind of ft/lamberts am I looking at?


It depends on what lamp mode and iris settings you use.

Extrapolating using GregR's numbers at 12.75' throw, on a 120" .95 gain screen, it can range anywhere between 7ft/lamberts (low lamp closed iris) - 17ft/lamberts (high lamp max open iris). If you want more brightness, you can try a smaller screen size and/or I think SMX and Seymour AV have gains on their screens.

...If I went with, say a 120 inch screen and I used its 0.95 gain material, with a 20U thrown from approximately 12-15 feet what kind of ft/lamberts am I looking at? ...

Go here and select your projector, screen size, and throw distance and it will give you your answer:

http://www.projectorcentral.com/projection-calculator-pro.cfm

I have a Pioneer FPJ1 throwing a 106" pic with an 11' throw (shorter than ideal) and it would give me about 17fL on neutral gain screen. I believe a calibrated Kuro puts out in the 25-35fL range. I just wanted to point out that on a neutral gain screen the brightness of a projector isn't going to look quite the same as a plasma (though it will still look very good). Thus that's why I mentioned the DaLite HP screen which will provide you plasma like brightness and if you got a projector like a JVC the black levels will still be excellent.

Also, keep in mind that CEDIA is about a month away and news will be coming out about up and coming projectors. New projectors could start to show up late fall so keep that in mind when making your purchase.

SMX and SeymourAV are 1.16 gain.

I love my SMX screen... though SeymourAV now has a very competitive fixed frame option for less $$$. Granted... with a 10-12K budget, you could afford an RS20 and an SMX screen without a problem.

I run a Panasonic AE3000 from a 17' throw on my 129" wide (111" diagonal 16:9 area) 2.35:1 SMX screen. We often watch TV with some ambient light and have no issues with brightness.

Sounds like the possibility of JVC having new and improved projectors coming next month (in Europe). You might want to wait if you can(brighter pic and better contrast):

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=16948727#post16948727

SMX and SeymourAV are 1.16 gain.

I love my SMX screen... though SeymourAV now has a very competitive fixed frame option for less $$$. Granted... with a 10-12K budget, you could afford an RS20 and an SMX screen without a problem.

I run a Panasonic AE3000 from a 17' throw on my 129" wide (111" diagonal 16:9 area) 2.35:1 SMX screen. We often watch TV with some ambient light and have no issues with brightness.

We used to use a comparitive material, but the new Center Stage XD is quite different: 3x the hole density, 1.2 gain, +0.5db AT from 8k-20k, closer sitting/speaker requirements. Request a sample if you want to compare.

Cheers,
Chris

Ok I think I've made up my mind to go projector. The wife was a bit iffy but I then pointed out screen can roll up thus having a wall of art work and she was suddenly all over the idea :) I never mentioned that I'm planning on sports related "bar" artwork, but then again she never asked :)

I'm in no rush to install this thing. Wife wants it up before football season (Shes a huge ND fan believe it or not) but I won't rush it. I'm going to mock up some speaker boxes and play around with the room arrangement and screen sizes. If I went with an AT screen I can easily get 120" diagonal based on fast measuring. I can actually go larger but playing around with the THX calculator I'm already over the recommended viewing size at the viewing angle.

I'll request samples when the time comes from all the screen manufacturers. Thanks for the offer Chris. The problem with AT (and it seems all things acoustical) is that EVERYONE says theirs is the best. I'm an engineer. I recognize that there is no absolute best, its always a matter of compromises. I'll map out whats important to me and try and fit those in. A true AT screen with a slightly positive gain looks attractive.

I'll continue slogging on.

Oh something else. My limited research for 2.35 AR shows 2 ways. Either throw a 2.35 image on 16:9 screen and have part unused with black masking or use an anamorphic lens with a preprocessor to correct for image distortion. Optionall also go curved screen to help with said distortion.

Question: Is this correct? are there other ways? Are there any projectors with built in 2.35 lenses and correction? Are there any holy grail solutions where the projector takes care of all the magic either way?

Thanks :)

I never mentioned that I'm planning on sports related "bar" artwork, but then again she never asked :)


If your wife is anything like mine, that trick will only last about as long as it takes for her to walk down the stairs and see them hanging there…

-Suntan

Question: Is this correct? are there other ways? Are there any projectors with built in 2.35 lenses and correction? Are there any holy grail solutions where the projector takes care of all the magic either way?


With a lens, your CIH options are:
- slide lens in for 2.35, slide out for 16:9.
- keep lens in place all the time and scale as needed for 2.35 and 16:9
- keep a prismasonic lens in place all the time and vary the stretch of the lens
*all these options will require an electronic vertical stretch

Without a lens, your CIH options are:
- zoom in and out between 2.35 and 16:9
- keep zoomed in at 2.35 all the time and scale for 16:9 (effectively a 817p native 2.35 projector).

New projector specs are being leaked... just in time:)

I masked out the wall again last night and I think I've decided to get an AT screen (probably that new 4k material... .98 gain) and mount it motorized in the ceiling about 2 feet infront of the wall. This gives me 24 inches behind to play with my speaker options. I think 24 inches is enough, but I might bump it to 30. I'm looking at going with a 120" diagonal 16:9 screen. Since I'll be watching around 50% non movie 16:9 content I think it makes sense to skip the 2.35 native screen. If I watch 2.35 I'll just deal with the letter-boxing and slightly smaller image.

Question though. If both the new jvc machines (like the old ones) are Lcos machines, why does the smaller(chaper) version put out more light output? Is the cheaper one really a dlp? I know the cheaper one doesn't have the black levels the more expensive one does...

If I went with an AT screen I can easily get 120" diagonal based on fast measuring. I can actually go larger but playing around with the THX calculator I'm already over the recommended viewing size at the viewing angle.

THX is rather conservative on their HT recommendations. I think they're based on a 16:9 HDTV, not 2.35:1 front projection. Quite a lot of us sit closer than THX's HT recommendations, more in line with SMPTE/Fox/THX cinema recommendations, 2-4x screen height.
Question: Is this correct? are there other ways?

Some people go with the 2.35:1 screen and no lens and then zoom/shift the projector optically between the two sizes. Some also zoom the projector for 2.35:1 width and then use a video processor to shrink smaller ARs to fit.

Are there any projectors with built in 2.35 lenses and correction? Are there any holy grail solutions where the projector takes care of all the magic either way?

There are no projectors with "built in" anamorphic lenses. The Panasonic AE3000 has lens zoom/shift memory to do the "zoom method" easier. Also a few manufacturers bundle lenses (though they're usually just rebranded).

If you look, a lot or most projectors these days provide the basic scaling modes to work with an anamorphic lens, thus not requiring an outboard video processor.

Question though. If both the new jvc machines (like the old ones) are Lcos machines, why does the smaller(chaper) version put out more light output?

I think they either open up the light path, or use different settings on the manual iris steps, sacrificing contrast (probably to distinguish between the models) and thus are left with higher light output.

Can't compare.

Little Kuro 60 inch tv is like a gray mouse in the room - front projector is like a elephant in the room.

Can't compare.

Little Kuro 60 inch tv is like a gray mouse in the room - front projector is like a elephant in the room.

I hear this being said a lot. Its all about perspective, to a person who has viewed a 27" TV their whole life (like my parents, and they have no desire to go bigger), a 60" is monstrous.

Here is my question, and I've been thinking of creating a seperate topic on this...

If only 1 person is going to be viewing movies most of the time, why not just sit closer to the TV, and get a larger viewing angle? Is projection even necessary unless you have a large group of people? Sit closer to a 50 or 60 inch, and it seems plenty big to me.

I hear this being said a lot. Its all about perspective, to a person who has viewed a 27" TV their whole life (like my parents, and they have no desire to go bigger), a 60" is monstrous.

Absolutely. Good point. I remember when my 42" plasma felt huge after my 27" TV.

Here is my question, and I've been thinking of creating a seperate topic on this...

If only 1 person is going to be viewing movies most of the time, why not just sit closer to the TV, and get a larger viewing angle? Is projection even necessary unless you have a large group of people? Sit closer to a 50 or 60 inch, and it seems plenty big to me.

Sitting closer helps with a sense of immersion but only a little in the "size" department. Our brains work off of many different cues and are quite good at letting us know the size of the objects in front of us. It's why your brain doesn't think a spoon is as big as a car just because you are moving it closer to your mouth. Lean closer to your computer monitor and it's not going to fool you the monitor has grown in size to that of a huge cinema screen. Your brain will register simply being closer to a smaller screen.

Your brain knows when an image is actually BIG and big things have a sense of dominance that smaller objects don't. So it matters if your screen is actually big or not.

I found this out through years of watching my favorite movies on my 42" plasma, like Alien. I kept wanting more immersion so I moved my chair closer and closer. But objects still registered as they size they were on the screen. So the spaceships and landscapes in Alien looked model-sized.
Once I got a really big projected image the whole sensation was different. Now when a spaceship passed by on screen it seemed HUGE, more like it does in the movie theaters. It makes the whole experience that much more convincing and compelling.

If only 1 person is going to be viewing movies most of the time, why not just sit closer to the TV, and get a larger viewing angle? Is projection even necessary unless you have a large group of people? Sit closer to a 50 or 60 inch, and it seems plenty big to me.

As R Harkness says, even with the same viewing angle, there's a big difference between a small screen and a large screen. If not sitting two feet from a 24" computer monitor would look the same as sitting 2x back in the theater.

I've got a viewing angle at home that's pretty close (if not bigger) than what I usually end up with at the theater, but the theater is still a bit different experience because you know it's bigger.

I'd like to know ways to hide/reduce whatever it is that causes us to realize that ;).

We have a Kuro 50" 720 plasma and an epson 6500 ub with 106" HiPower screen and do comparisons all the time.

The plasma has a better image hands down. Better color, smoothness, contrast, black levels, the works. However, having said that we are both completely blown away by the projector for movies, particularly good blu rays. The immersion is fantastic, much better than a movie theater, never mind the plasma. It's not the same thing at all, but it's not the image quality alone, although the source quality is very important.

I agree with the R Harkness, you mind knows what's big. This seems to have an interesting effect with different material too. We generally don't watch TV shows on the PJ because they are shot so tightly you get 4' high heads which is a bit weird. On the other hand, movies with a lot of interior shots are excellent, such as the Harry Potter series. It's as if the movie screen is just an extension of the living room and you're watching the action in an adjoining room. It's extremely compelling.

All this makes me think that as PJ's get better, approaching the plasma quality, the days of movie theaters are limited. Even a $2K PJ is now a better experience IMHO and better images are noticably better, so I don't think we're near any kind of plateau in perceived quality.

I hear this being said a lot. Its all about perspective, to a person who has viewed a 27" TV their whole life (like my parents, and they have no desire to go bigger), a 60" is monstrous.

Here is my question, and I've been thinking of creating a seperate topic on this...

If only 1 person is going to be viewing movies most of the time, why not just sit closer to the TV, and get a larger viewing angle? Is projection even necessary unless you have a large group of people? Sit closer to a 50 or 60 inch, and it seems plenty big to me.
When home alone, I love to stand right up close to my 50" Panny plasma and become 'immersed' in the scene.

To be 'immersed', you need to have your screen wide enough to cover your peripheral vision - ie wider than +/- 30 degrees.

If you accept the peripheral vision/30deg argument, then this makes a 60" display waaaay to small.

New projector specs are being leaked... just in time:)

I masked out the wall again last night and I think I've decided to get an AT screen (probably that new 4k material... .98 gain) and mount it motorized in the ceiling about 2 feet infront of the wall. This gives me 24 inches behind to play with my speaker options. I think 24 inches is enough, but I might bump it to 30. I'm looking at going with a 120" diagonal 16:9 screen. Since I'll be watching around 50% non movie 16:9 content I think it makes sense to skip the 2.35 native screen. If I watch 2.35 I'll just deal with the letter-boxing and slightly smaller image.

Question though. If both the new jvc machines (like the old ones) are Lcos machines, why does the smaller(chaper) version put out more light output? Is the cheaper one really a dlp? I know the cheaper one doesn't have the black levels the more expensive one does...

If you can wait, give the Vivatek 1080p LED DLP Projector serious consideration.

- no colour wheel
- outstanding contrast and colour

This is the new generation tech.

http://www.trustedreviews.com/tvs/review/2009/07/28/Vivitek-H9080FD-LED-DLP-Projector/p1
http://translate.google.ca/translate?hl=en&sl=de&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cine4home.de%2FSpecials%2FVivitekLED%2FVi vitek%2520LED%2520Preview.htm
http://translate.google.ca/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fcine4home.de%2FSpecials%2FVivitekLE D%2FVivitek%2520LED%2520Preview2.htm&sl=de&tl=en&hl=en&ie=UTF-8

The thing is it's not just that the projected image is bigger than a flat screen. It's all the things that come with it. I've already mentioned one - things like spaceships actually look big. Another is that the experience, the attention, is just different. When everything is much bigger to see, all those little details that go unnoticed on a smaller display become more noticeable - sets decor, crowds, background characters, far shots of characters. It can take a walk-into-that-world vibe. I just feel I appreciate all the effort and detail that went into making a film much more when I see it on a big screen.

Lower end JVCs=brighter, Higher end JVCs=better blacks. Both are LCOS.

I am also looking to replace a Kuro with a projector. But I do a lot of PC and console gaming on this display which looks fantastic.

Any idea on how bad the lag is with the RS10?

Is there any good PJ that can give a comparable PQ to the Kuro and NOT have lag?

Trying to keep it under $5K, but am open to suggestions.

Thanks!

I'm still playing with screen size. I keep bouncing between a 2.35 on wall screen (which will allow me to have my speakers under the screen as the 2.35 is constrained by width at that point and not hight... Wall is 133" wide. Or, to go with a drop down 16:9 which will yield a taller screen.

Got the MSRP for the Screen Excellence EN1 at a 110 and 120 inch widths. Although its a bit steeper than I thought, its still doable. The En4k material is not available with a motorized drop down atm as it takes a tensioner which they don't have in production.

Its going to be a lot of going back and forth on the screen.

As far as projectors go I'm going to wait till the new JVC's are readily available. At that point I'll compare everything out there and pick one. I'm betting it'll end up being one of the JVC's though at this point.

I'm also replacing my 60" Kuro with a FP. I've pretty much narrowed it down to the RS20. I already ordered the HDMI cable. I have 50' of BJC Series-1 collecting dust, just waiting for me to git-r-done.;)

I'm also replacing my 60" Kuro with a FP. I've pretty much narrowed it down to the RS20. I already ordered the HDMI cable. I have 50' of BJC Series-1 collecting dust, just waiting for me to git-r-done.;)

Just in case you didn't know, JVC may have 2 projectors above the RS20 available as early as next month (HD950 and HD990).

Just in case you didn't know, JVC may have 2 projectors above the RS20 available as early as next month (HD950 and HD990).

I appreciate the heads up.:) I actually stumbled onto the HD950/990 shortly after I posted. Needless to say, I'm gonna hold off buying a projector until I see what these new JVCs can do. Which happens to be just fine as I still need to sell my Kuro and this gives me a little more time to get the right screen.

I appreciate the heads up.:) I actually stumbled onto the HD950/990 shortly after I posted. Needless to say, I'm gonna hold off buying a projector until I see what these new JVCs can do. Which happens to be just fine as I still need to sell my Kuro and this gives me a little more time to get the right screen.

Good luck. I sold my 6020 a few months ago and bought a Samsung LCD for games and TV and spent the rest on an HP Dalite screen and mount. I got a lowly RS2 clone though(Pioneer). :) My Kuro was great but i haven't missed it since.

Good luck. I sold my 6020 a few months ago and bought a Samsung LCD for games and TV and spent the rest on an HP Dalite screen and mount. I got a lowly RS2 clone though(Pioneer). :) My Kuro was great but i haven't missed it since.

Thanks. I love hearing stories like that.:) This will be my first FP and my wife thinks I'm off my rocker, but I'm quite excited. And I agree, the Kuro has a great picture, but I want something measured in feet not inches.:D

Thanks. I love hearing stories like that.:) This will be my first FP and my wife thinks I'm off my rocker, but I'm quite excited. And I agree, the Kuro has a great picture, but I want something measured in feet not inches.:D

My wife's reaction was exactly the same when I decided a coupld of yrs ago that I wanted to go FP (from a 73" rptv)--BUT she likes movies a lot and has decided it's a winner.

This is my first projector as well. My wife and I went to my friends house who had a 1080UB and a 92" screen and it looked good but darker scenes looked a little washed out to me and I told my wife I wasn't going the FP route yet. LOL

However, I looked at an RS20 setup a couple of months later and when the Pioneer fire sales came I gave it a shot. My wife really likes the setup now. One of my 7 year old nephews told his friends that his uncle has a movie theater in his basement. :D I think you'll be happy. I could dig up a few posts of mine where I said less than a year ago that FP just didn't cut it compared to a Kuro but I've totally changed my mind since. ;)

My wife's reaction was exactly the same when I decided a coupld of yrs ago that I wanted to go FP (from a 73" rptv)--BUT she likes movies a lot and has decided it's a winner.

I remember your posts in the RPTV forum when you wanted more than a 73" TV. Your dream finally came true and the viscous cycle continues and you'll just want a better projector some day when it's worth the upgrade. Projectors at this point don't seem to make the improvement jumps quite like TVs did though.

I remember your posts in the RPTV forum when you wanted more than a 73" TV. Your dream finally came true and the viscous cycle continues and you'll just want a better projector some day when it's worth the upgrade. Projectors at this point don't seem to make the improvement jumps quite like TVs did though.

My, your memory is better than mine! Re upgrading, I'm now limited by my room size, but I'm not complaining. I think I'll be content with the RS20 until something--led or lasers-- is established that replaces the lamp in projectors. Yes, the this year's models--and probably next years--will have nice enhancements, but I don't think anything will be that significant until the lamp is replaced.

If I were thinking about getting into FP at present, I would say go ahead with one of the good current products. (And it's actually more impressive what one can get for ~ $3K now that what twice that will get you.) I think it will be 3 yrs or so before leds or lasers are practical and reasonably priced enough to replace lamps.

Wow, it looks like we all have very similar stories. This being our first adventure into FP and our wives think we're slightly off kilter.;) xb, we both had (have) Kuros, and millerwill, a few years ago I had a 73" Mitsubishi DLP. I forget the model number, but it was their first 1080p DLP I believe. Unfortunately, I saw the RBE and back it went. It makes me happy to hear how satisfied you both are with your FP setup.:) Now I'm getting antsy and can't wait to eventually get mine up and running. Come on CEDIA, get here so I can see the new JVCs!:D

Having been in a similar situation, I would actually recommend you by both a projector and a plasma I have a panny ae-3000 and a sammy 63" plasma behind it and am very happy, and combined I only paid about 6k for both total (guessing you can do well on large plamsa now given the economy).

The main problem with a FP is that while they are great for movies, it's not a great setup for social situations or when people are moving around a lot, or when you simply dont want to be sitting in the dark the whole time, which you have to do in order for the picture not to be washed out. We use the plasma for sports entertaining.

I know it sounds extravagant, but shockingly it was my wife's idea, and she was just saying last night how much she enjoys the combo (needless to say i didnt hesitate to pull the trigger once che opened the door.....)

I agree parksar. I have a 55" Samsung LCD for TV viewing, gaming, and for a PC monitor. Using the projector specifically for movies makes movie watching a special event now. :)