I pulled the trigger today and bought the 3000, I'd like to know when I buy the receiver as long as it video up converts it wouldn't have to up convert to HDMI would it? If your DVD did that would most likely to care of it????

New to this please some INFO, greatly appreciated
Thanks! Frank

HI, I was wondering how the HC3000U has fared for dead and or stuck mirrors. I bought my RP DLP from a local dealer and they let me swap my first set after having stuck mirrors in the middle of the screeen. What has been the experience of people who bought the Mits mail-order? Are there any dealers to avoid who mostly ship opened/returned projectors that are likely to have stuck mirrors? Are there any dealers with no-defect guarantees? At this price there should be.

I notice return policies on most websites skip this subject when talking about RMAs.

First unit that I received had 15 stuck mirrors and it was promptly replaced through the dealer by Mitsubishi . Second unit would not focus properly , again promptly replaced by Mitsubishi (through the dealer) . Final unit that I still have is near perfect other than it has a single dust blob (which I intend to remove soon) . So I would say that even if you are as unlucky as I was you should be taken care of . I actually had 3 HC3000's sitting here at once and they never made me pay anything other than my initial purchase price (never even asked for a credit card to charge in case I did not return the defective units) . Mitsu has great customer service IMO .

----------- Jason

I pulled the trigger today and bought the 3000, I'd like to know when I buy the receiver as long as it video up converts it wouldn't have to up convert to HDMI would it? If your DVD did that would most likely to care of it????

New to this please some INFO, greatly appreciated
Thanks! Frank

Are you meaning that you wish to run a single HDMI cable to the HC3000 from an A/V receiver ?

If your DVD player does up-conversion then the receiver would not need to , it would just be passing the signal through .

Now if you want to be able to send any video source through the receiver and then to the HC3000 via a single HDMI cable regardless of connection type then you need a receiver that transcodes the other connections ( composite , S-Video , Component ) to HDMI (this is not the same thing as up-conversion) .

---------- Jason

Final unit that I still have is near perfect other than it has a single dust blob (which I intend to remove soon) .
----------- Jason

Murder your friendly dust blob? But then what would you do in a blackout scene if he was not there to pop up and say hi?! :p

I plan on just having my HD Satellite receiver and DVD, the DVD player will up convert HDMI. What do I need for a Receiver? I thought about the Yamaha 5960 that is HD compatible and up converts, but not to HDMI, would this work???
Thanks! Frank

P.s how do you get Dust blobs, I thought the filter took care of that (ha, ha) go figure!

Dead and Stuck Mirrors/Pixels

HI, I was wondering how the HC3000U has fared for dead and or stuck mirrors

I know firsthand about 40 HC3000s in my region that have been delivered.
Only one in the initial batch had an issue and was promptly replaced. No complaints from the other units and they were all inspected after setup.

The later production models seem to be enhanced in subtle slight ways. Not sure if the firmware was tweaked or if some production line issues were adjusted.

Well my new one sure seems pretty perfect..!

;)

We had our first movie night with the 3000 last night, 4 hour marathon of the Superbit Lawrence of Arabia. I used some ideas from this forum to get the image as good as possible before the showing but I found some problems with the image that I may have to bite the bullet and pay a calibration, maybe I'll wait for more burn in.

System is Sony DVPNS75H upconverting player connected with 25 foot HDMI cable, set for 720P output at YSetc color with DTS sound enabled.

Projector was set on Auto and 100% overscan, low lamp mode, no BC, user adjustments ala Jason from earlier post I believe. Here are my observations in a nearly darkened room with a Da Lite Matte White pull down screen.

1) The opening scene which is filmed with a vehicle mounted camera (no steady cam!) was really hard to watch, in fact my wife had to close her eyes she wanted to run from the room. I think this is maybe just the DVD chip not doing a good job keeping up? Maybe a better DVD player or a 480i setting would work better?

2) Colors were excellent in my opinion, but there were times when the image was too bright and times when shaded images in bright sun seemed wrong. Sorry I don't know how to use the white crush or whatever terminology I read here!

3) The movie had many scenes with people seen in the distance and of course the resolution didn't seem enough for these scenes to resolve details of people or camels or whatever. Faces from far away were pretty indistinct, not sure if this can be helped.

4) Dark scenes were gorgeous in general, but a few scenes with dark faces probably could have had better contrast.

5) This is the hardest part: As I had when I watched my first movie this week (Serenity) I had some nauseousness while watching (did not see RBE, nobody mentioned that). I am not sure what to do about this, my gut feeling is that maybe I need some more light in the room to help cut the brilliance of the image? Does anyone have a recommendation for a kind of light to use for dim footlighting like in theaters? Actual lamps seem too bright to have on.

People were thrilled with the image, and it's a great movie, an amazing experience. Suggestions and ideas welcome!

Ron,

I have the same set-up (Mits 3000 and the Sony 75 DVD player). I have not watched LOA on it but I will tell you, I had it calibrated and have never looked back.

I thought it looked good BEFORE the cal and after the cal, it was even better, especially the skin tones. I was impressed. I didnt have any remorse writing the check!

The DVDs and the HD material (Adelphia HD) have terrific PQ! My AVR is a Denon 2807 and the AQ is excellent. My screen is a 103" diag ClearPix2. I couldnt be happier with the combination.

Bottomline: Have your Mits calibrated! ;-)

Good luck and Enjoy every minute with your Mits 3000!



We had our first movie night with the 3000 last night, 4 hour marathon of the Superbit Lawrence of Arabia. I used some ideas from this forum to get the image as good as possible before the showing but I found some problems with the image that I may have to bite the bullet and pay a calibration, maybe I'll wait for more burn in.

System is Sony DVPNS75H upconverting player connected with 25 foot HDMI cable, set for 720P output at YSetc color with DTS sound enabled.

Projector was set on Auto and 100% overscan, low lamp mode, no BC, user adjustments ala Jason from earlier post I believe. Here are my observations in a nearly darkened room with a Da Lite Matte White pull down screen.

1) The opening scene which is filmed with a vehicle mounted camera (no steady cam!) was really hard to watch, in fact my wife had to close her eyes she wanted to run from the room. I think this is maybe just the DVD chip not doing a good job keeping up? Maybe a better DVD player or a 480i setting would work better?

2) Colors were excellent in my opinion, but there were times when the image was too bright and times when shaded images in bright sun seemed wrong. Sorry I don't know how to use the white crush or whatever terminology I read here!

3) The movie had many scenes with people seen in the distance and of course the resolution didn't seem enough for these scenes to resolve details of people or camels or whatever. Faces from far away were pretty indistinct, not sure if this can be helped.

4) Dark scenes were gorgeous in general, but a few scenes with dark faces probably could have had better contrast.

5) This is the hardest part: As I had when I watched my first movie this week (Serenity) I had some nauseousness while watching (did not see RBE, nobody mentioned that). I am not sure what to do about this, my gut feeling is that maybe I need some more light in the room to help cut the brilliance of the image? Does anyone have a recommendation for a kind of light to use for dim footlighting like in theaters? Actual lamps seem too bright to have on.

People were thrilled with the image, and it's a great movie, an amazing experience. Suggestions and ideas welcome!

Ron, how big a screen are you using and how close are you? My mits is VERY bright with the new bulb now. I have the lamp in low mode, iris closed down, Gamma at cinema, contrast at -29, brightness at -2, Brilliant color on and I'm using the RGB values from Art's review at Projectorreviews.com. http://projectorreviews.com/Manufacturers/mitsubishi/HC3000/index.asp

The bulb is VERY bright now but it should settle down in a bit. I have an optoma Panoview gray screen and it's super bright, I can't imagine a white screen with it! There are always NDh2 filters that will cut the brightness in 1/2. I used one on my old Optoma h57 PJ which was very bright too.
Try my values and see what happens?
Also, the SB Lawrence is good but not great. There are MANY DVDs with way better detail. Training Day for example. Sin City... SW ep. III

What were your settings?

:) d

Ron,

I have Lawrence on superbit also and everything you describe (except for #5) sounds like it might be just the DVD, not the projector. It's hard to say by just reading your observations, but remember that even though this movie was restored and is on superbit, it doesn't make it perfect. Remember this movie was shot about 45 years ago and had to be restored, so it's not coming from ideal conditions. Even so, it's still a remarkable picture and movie that stands the test of time.

Try the 5th element on superbit.

Fleaman

Will try some new settings. May spring for calibration, though my wife objects...

I use a 106" screen, the settings were in my note mostly (low lamp, cinema). It is a new bulb. I only watch a few movies a week so it will take me a while to hit 100 hrs (we do not have cable in this room yet).

Anyone know a way to broadcast HDTV from one room to another at full res?

Anyway, I'll try a different DVD soon. Seems to me the DVD player must have had something to do with the jitter in the opening scene....

I had a headache all day yesterday, hope that wasn't because of my viewing!

Ron

Ron,

I did have my Mits calibtrated with 100+ hrs on it.

My philosophy is one spends thousands of dollars for the projector, screen, etc.. why not spend another $300-350 for proper PQ ?! ;-)


Will try some new settings. May spring for calibration, though my wife objects...

I use a 106" screen, the settings were in my note mostly (low lamp, cinema). It is a new bulb. I only watch a few movies a week so it will take me a while to hit 100 hrs (we do not have cable in this room yet).

Anyone know a way to broadcast HDTV from one room to another at full res?

Anyway, I'll try a different DVD soon. Seems to me the DVD player must have had something to do with the jitter in the opening scene....

I had a headache all day yesterday, hope that wasn't because of my viewing!

Ron

Anyone with the Mits HC3000 have a Da-Lite High Contrast Matte White screen? If so, what are your impressions? What about waves - is this material susceptible to waves?

Anyway, I'll try a different DVD soon. Seems to me the DVD player must have had something to do with the jitter in the opening scene....



Just so you know, on the opening scene of Lawrence, the film was sped up...to make it look like he was going much faster than what they filmed it at. So it looks a bit strange, like they sped the film up...which they did!

I don't know if the jitter you are describing might just be how they filmed that opening scene, but if it's only on the opening scene, then it would seem so.

Fleaman

Hi, new to the forums & projectors in general. There is a wealth of info here & its great, but can anyone tell me how to find the best prices on the 3000? i am noticing you cant "advertise" for any particular vendor here, but can you point towards where to look?

Hi, new to the forums & projectors in general. There is a wealth of info here & its great, but can anyone tell me how to find the best prices on the 3000? i am noticing you cant "advertise" for any particular vendor here, but can you point towards where to look?

First click on AVS Forum Alliance Members above. I think you will probably find the best price there, really.

You can also try Froogle.com But be aware of the bait and switch internet stores. These tend to have the absolute lowest prices, but they will rip you off, really. Most tend to be located in Brooklyn NY and/or have aol, yahoo, etc. as their contact email addresses.

You're really better off with the alliance members at the top of this page....also don't forget AVS!! AVS tends to sell at a very good price too. With a PJ you want support, service, and price....and you don't want to get ripped off.

Fleaman

9 foot ceilings. 100 inch 16:9 screen. The top of my screen right now hangs down 18 inches from the ceiling. I have a low profile projector hanger, hangs about 3 inches from my ceiling..........Should i go with the MITS, or spend a few more dollars on a projector with lens shift?


Thanks

You're really better off with the alliance members at the top of this page....also don't forget AVS!! AVS tends to sell at a very good price too.

I second this recommendation. Contact the sales team right here at AVS and you might find a pretty good deal for you.

redline, welcome to the forum. Now read the rules before posting again.

I bought this projector a couple of weeks ago and I think it is great, but something strange happened a couple days ago. I rebooted my computer and in between the boot up bios test and windows splash screen the screen started flashing all different colors really fast. When windows came up, there was a lot of overscan on the left and some on the right, but the position and tracking settings on the projector were not changed from what I had them. I was able to adjust settings to correct the overscan, but now on a screen of text, some looks crisp and some looks fuzzy. Try to adjust the fine synching and the fuzziness just moves around but never goes away. Very annoying. When I first set up the projector, I didn't touch the fine synching at all. I just adjusted the position and tracking and it looked perfect.

Anyway, I'm wondering if anyone knows what happened here? And will DVI -> HDMI correct the problem?

I bought this projector a couple of weeks ago and I think it is great, but something strange happened a couple days ago. I rebooted my computer and in between the boot up bios test and windows splash screen the screen started flashing all different colors really fast. When windows came up, there was a lot of overscan on the left and some on the right, but the position and tracking settings on the projector were not changed from what I had them. I was able to adjust settings to correct the overscan, but now on a screen of text, some looks crisp and some looks fuzzy.

I've noticed that the projector has an annoying habit of resetting the overscan to its default 97% whenever my HDMI cable becomes dislodged. Perhaps your computer reboot caused the same problem. I've never had an issue with some text being fuzzy after changing the overscan back to 100%, though.

It's true, when I change resolutions on my oppo to go from PAL-NTSC it often goes back to 97%.

If you are not able to pixel map with an HTPC then you did not set the Overscan to 100% in the menu (look for it , it's there) . The HC3000 can map 1024x768 , 1280x720 , 1280x768 with no issues once you set the Overscan to 100% for each resolution . Be sure that you do not use the REAL setting for aspect , use 16:9 for 720p .


*** As a matter of fact you will want to be sure to set all your sources to 100% overscan for the best results , all sources come at 97% as default ***


----------- Jason

Hi,

Could somebody (Jason?) give some more facts about the 1:1 pixel mapping w/ HC3000?

I tried following:

DVI/HDMI cable high quality 15meters
===========================

1280x720p60 default (no special timing, just what the graphic-cards driver does)
perfect pixel mapping

VGA cable high quality 15meters
=======================

1280x768 can't remember, I think it maps 1:1

But since i've got a 16:9 screen, I'm more interested in the 720p resolution.

Setup: PC w/ ATI X300, XP, newest Driver, PowerStrip

First I tried the driver's setting for 720p. No 1:1 Mapping. Looks like 1280x720 is compressed to 1270x720 (every 200 pixel moiree)
I also tried all of the 1280x720 resolutions & timings, that PowerStrip has in its Database (720p HDTV, 720p LCD, etc). (The PowerStrip 720p resolutions are really different... my plasma handles them differently (w/ or w/out overscan))
The same here. Looks like 1270x720 all the time, I can shift the picture on the projector left and right.

So, is there anybody that could help pleeeaaase? Mitsubishi has not replied yet...

Muchas Gracias,
Ronny

PS: My English could be better, I know :-)
PPS: Of course I set the overscan 100% on the HC3000...
PPPS: I HAVE to use VGA for computer... HDMI is already in use

My HC3000 is connected by HDMI to an iScan VP30 scaler set for 720p. I get perfect 1:1 pixel mapping without needing to adjust any timing parameters. The VP30 has test patterns that confirm this.

RonnyW ,

I have not used the VGA input for VGA , I have been using it as a second Component input .

-- I will connect my HTPC to VGA and see what I can do ;) (my HTPC has been using the HDMI input : DVI -> HDMI) .

--------- Jason

Ok , add the HC3000 to the growing list of projectors that will not pixel map over VGA (Digital mapping only no analog) .

Sorry to say but I tried all the old tricks and nothing works . I was able to get close with 1280x768 but not mapped . With 1280x720 the tracking adjustment is disabled so no way to adjust for it . I think what we need here is a phase control to get better results but there is none .

--- Sorry ,

--- Jason

Hey guys!
How do you all watch non anamorphic discs on the Mits. I have an oppo player and with the zoom it looks awful. (the oppo even though it has the faroudja chip it doesn't do it correctly with the zoom) Now with the hdmi input at 720P, there is no zoom option on the mits. i tried it at 480p and the zoom options are there but they don't zoom correctly.

thanks

Hey guys!
How do you all watch non anamorphic discs on the Mits. I have an oppo player and with the zoom it looks awful.


In my experience all non anamorphic widescreen DVD's look awful on a PJ, at least the ones I've seen.

Zooming in would just amplify the awfulness.

I actually keep it at the smaller letter-boxed (all four sides) size since the smaller
size looks better. If it's really bad, I just watch it on my TV! There are some things that are just too awful of a source to watch comfortably on a PJ (at least for me).

Fleaman

Ok , add the HC3000 to the growing list of projectors that will not pixel map over VGA (Digital mapping only no analog) .

Sorry to say but I tried all the old tricks and nothing works . I was able to get close with 1280x768 but not mapped . With 1280x720 the tracking adjustment is disabled so no way to adjust for it . I think what we need here is a phase control to get better results but there is none .

--- Sorry ,

--- Jason

:-( That confirms what I've learned about the VGA-input too. Too sad.
The BenQ 7700 which was my alternative does 1280x720 via VGA perfectly :mad:

So if I want 1:1 pixelmapping I must use the HDMI for computer... but then I would have to connect the DENON 1920 with components, which obviously doesn't look as good as HDMI. (Then again... why did I buy the DENON 1920?!?!) Nevertheless I will give it a try...

Makes me think about a Gefen 4x2 again... why are these switches so expensive :(

Hey guys!
How do you all watch non anamorphic discs on the Mits. I have an oppo player and with the zoom it looks awful.

Video processor.

Thanks guys, interesting, on my humble optoma h57 even with a 720 input signal you could zoom 106,112 % etc... and it looked pretty decent provided it was a good non-annie transfer like Titanic. I'm definitely not going to spend $1k+ to watch my few old non-annie DVDs!
Why don't the Mits zooms work correctly with 480P? Zoom1 is like all the wau on the bottom and zoom 2 is on the top. Weird.

:-( That confirms what I've learned about the VGA-input too. Too sad.
The BenQ 7700 which was my alternative does 1280x720 via VGA perfectly :mad:

So if I want 1:1 pixelmapping I must use the HDMI for computer... but then I would have to connect the DENON 1920 with components, which obviously doesn't look as good as HDMI. (Then again... why did I buy the DENON 1920?!?!) Nevertheless I will give it a try...

Makes me think about a Gefen 4x2 again... why are these switches so expensive :(

If your Video card does Component out you could give that a shot , probably not going to work either but you just never know ;) . My card does Component out but I have not tried to use it as of yet . I know it will not pixel map but it might look better than the VGA connection (even though they are both analog) which honestly looked really bad IMO . The VGA input on the HC3000 does accept Component with the proper cable (so technically it has 2 Component inputs) .

-- I am about to buy an HDMI switch myself but I am going with the Monoprice 2x1 switch since it gets good feedback here on the forum and that is all that I currently need for my system (HD DVD player & HTPC) . I agree the Gefen's are too expensive even though they are supposed to work great .

** I noticed something really odd too , the Xbox 360 seems to pixel map over the VGA connection on the HC3000 even though a PC will not :( **

Best of Luck ,
---- Jason

hi guys, new member but long time reader of avs forums. i have a mits hc3000 and toshiba hd-a1. dedicated theater room with no ambient light. fairly well calibrated (or so i think). connected with hdmi, 1080i selected via the dvd player, 100% overscan,,,,,etc. my question is this when i watch star wars or other sci fi films including hd dvd of riddick, serenity, apollo 13 i just cant get the space (ie stars) to look right. yes i have great black levels but for some reason stars look phoney and it is very frustrating--anyone else experiencing this or have some thoughts on how to correct this for me? thanks

hi guys, new member but long time reader of avs forums. i have a mits hc3000 and toshiba hd-a1. dedicated theater room with no ambient light. fairly well calibrated (or so i think). connected with hdmi, 1080i selected via the dvd player, 100% overscan,,,,,etc. my question is this when i watch star wars or other sci fi films including hd dvd of riddick, serenity, apollo 13 i just cant get the space (ie stars) to look right. yes i have great black levels but for some reason stars look phoney and it is very frustrating--anyone else experiencing this or have some thoughts on how to correct this for me? thanks

How did you calibrate the HD DVD player ( AVIA/DVE/THX/HD Patterns/etc. ) ?

-- Could be your Contrast is set too high ...

-- Turn off Brilliant Color if it is on , it acts much like White Peaking and should not be used for properly calibrated HT .

What is your sharpness setting at ?

------ Jason

How did you calibrate the HD DVD player ( AVIA/DVE/THX/HD Patterns/etc. ) ?

-- Could be your Contrast is set too high ...

-- Turn off Brilliant Color if it is on , it acts much like White Peaking and should not be used for properly calibrated HT .

What is your sharpness setting at ?

------ Jason

right - BrilliantColor off, Gamma cinema then brightness/contrast/sharpness set with a test DVD (on both source and display) and you will see the stars that the director intended you to see . I am presuming that between SD and HD DVD the player does not change the output - which will have to do until there are HD DVD test patterns.

{OOPS I intended to quote the poster you quoted!)

How did you calibrate the HD DVD player ( AVIA/DVE/THX/HD Patterns/etc. ) ?

-- Could be your Contrast is set too high ...

-- Turn off Brilliant Color if it is on , it acts much like White Peaking and should not be used for properly calibrated HT .

What is your sharpness setting at ?

------ Jason
thanks Jason, I used both avia and thx. brilliant color is off. i have sharpness at -2. i am using cinema mode with contrast at -1, brightness at 0. so you think maybe i need to set the contrast lower? thanks for your help. roger

Could be. My contrast is at -28 and it's still almost burning my corneas out! Brand new bulb though! I do table mount with an Optoma graywolf and the screen fires it right back almost at eye level though.

lowering digital contrast is an easy fix - but keep in mind that you toss your contrast spec significantly out the window when you do that - and you can get banding of solid colors/greys. The idea of a digital contrast control is to match your source - it is not an analog "volume" control.

Much better to filter it down optically with a ND2 - or get two screen materials! Or literally burn in your lamp with a few movie marathons - they decay exponentially.

Could be. My contrast is at -28 and it's still almost burning my corneas out! Brand new bulb though! I do table mount with an Optoma graywolf and the screen fires it right back almost at eye level though.
thanks ill lowere the contrast more and see how it looks

Has anyone tried this to calibrate their Mits?

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=495385&page=125&pp=30

I'm buying one in the next 2 weeks, because my 4805 died on me. I'll be having mine ISF calibrated. I know a few other users on here have had their HC3000 calibrated as well

I'm buying one in the next 2 weeks, because my 4805 died on me. I'll be having mine ISF calibrated. I know a few other users on here have had their HC3000 calibrated as well
i'd love to have mine ISF calibrated but i think i live in an area where that would not be possible (north east PA). can anyone confirm this? thanks, Roger

Roger, several calibrators offer a mail-in service.

I'm buying one in the next 2 weeks, because my 4805 died on me. I'll be having mine ISF calibrated. I know a few other users on here have had their HC3000 calibrated as well


I'm getting ready to order mine too from AVS but I can't decide which screen to get... what screen do you have and what size?

Roger, several calibrators offer a mail-in service.

Yes and with the HC3000 ISF is very much needed in order to make it really shine . The HC3000 is not accurate out of the box and none of the factory pre-sets get it really close . I can tell you that my HC3000 was about 80% accurate out of the box (with the best factory pre-sets) and after krasmuzik's calibration I was very close to 100% . The HC3000 can be tuned to as near perfect as any projector on the market at this price range (and even some costing much more) . The HC3000 actually uses HD colorspace , even the excellent InFocus IN76 does not use HD colorspace (which is not to say it is a fault , just part of the design) .

I know that krasmuzik offers mail in calibrations at excellent rates . He spent many hours with my HC3000 and has all the bases covered on what gets the best results with this particular model . He uses reference level calibration gear and the results are fantastic . He calls the mail in calibration a "Re-Factory" calibration because he fixes what the factory settings could not achieve (D65) .

I want to say that I am not involved in krasmuzik's business in any way , I am just a very satisfied client (and have been for several years now as we live in the same area) .

I would suggest an ISF level calibration to any HC3000 owner and for what many of us have invested in our HT systems it really is a small price to pay for bringing the best out of the image and seeing how it was intended to be seen ;) .


Best Wishes All ,
------ Jason

Yes and with the HC3000 ISF is very much needed in order to make it really shine . The HC3000 is not accurate out of the box and none of the factory pre-sets get it really close . I can tell you that my HC3000 was about 80% accurate out of the box (with the best factory pre-sets) and after krasmuzik's calibration I was very close to 100% . The HC3000 can be tuned to as near perfect as any projector on the market at this price range (and even some costing much more) . The HC3000 actually uses HD colorspace , even the excellent InFocus IN76 does not use HD colorspace (which is not to say it is a fault , just part of the design) .

I know that krasmuzik offers mail in calibrations at excellent rates . He spent many hours with my HC3000 and has all the bases covered on what gets the best results with this particular model . He uses reference level calibration gear and the results are fantastic . He calls the mail in calibration a "Re-Factory" calibration because he fixes what the factory settings could not achieve (D65) .

I want to say that I am not involved in krasmuzik's business in any way , I am just a very satisfied client (and have been for several years now as we live in the same area) .

I would suggest an ISF level calibration to any HC3000 owner and for what many of us have invested in our HT systems it really is a small price to pay for bringing the best out of the image and seeing how it was intended to be seen ;) .


Best Wishes All ,
------ Jason


Interesting post, Jason.

I always thought it was best to have the projector ISF'd on site. I agree that calibrating a pj to "re-factory" specs will help but how would a mail-in calibration resolve unique on site issues? Perhaps, Krasmuzik can interject here.

Rich

Interesting post, Jason.

I always thought it was best to have the projector ISF'd on site. I agree that calibrating a pj to "re-factory" specs will help but how would a mail-in calibration resolve unique on site issues? Perhaps, Krasmuzik can interject here.

Rich

These posts were replying to 'cigarlee's post above about not being in a metro area...hence the mention of mail in calibrations.

Fleaman

Interesting post, Jason.

I always thought it was best to have the projector ISF'd on site. I agree that calibrating a pj to "re-factory" specs will help but how would a mail-in calibration resolve unique on site issues? Perhaps, Krasmuzik can interject here.

Rich

Obviously there would be other calibrations that could be done 'on-site' but a D65 calibration only requires the display (and calibration gear) . You start with reference calibration at the display and then fine tweak from each source . Mail-In calibrations can have a particluar dvd player sent along if desired . If you are dealing with a display that does not have accurate greyscale then you will not be maximizing your image .

ISF level calibration may not be for everyone as some are just content with factory settings and still blown away by the resulting image . I would like to think that many of us here are well beyond that and want the most out of our HT's (I know I push my gear as far as it can go and I have been doing that since my first Pro-Logic/CRT/LaserDisc based HT) .

--------- Jason

These posts were replying to 'cigarlee's post above about not being in a metro area...hence the mention of mail in calibrations.

Fleaman


Yes but it goes a step beyond in that people can also have a trustworthy , experienced calibrator do the job and save a couple bucks in the process ;) .

--------- Jason

Jason is about the most critical videophile I have ever met beyond myself. He would be a calibrator himself if the gear, seminars and generators were not more expensive than the projectors!

Generally if you find a calibrator posting in specific projector threads - ask them if they will do a mail-in. I am not the only one that does it - most of them don't brag about it because it is not considered an ISF service if it is not done at home. They don't want to get kicked out of the ISF club I guess!

The advantage of the mail-in is the same advantage Infocus has - they calibrate at the factory so you know it is right and you get the reference image the projector is capable of. Which is why I call my service ReFactory - you know that you have perfect greyscale and you know what your reference settings are. In that sense it is like sending it back to the factory for repair!

If you are comfortable doing the basic video adjustments and find the greyscale tuning beyond your capability - plus you realize every projector is different when peoples posted settings posted in threads do not work - then mail-in calibration is for you.

While I do charge standard ISF rates for in-home service because you do get your entire system tuned - and I can even get your room tuned with HAA services - plus I carry a SPL meter if you have not done that yet. With a mail-in though I can calibrate when I prefer to - late at nite when I can get into that calibration zone! I don't feel rushed, no kids with sticky fingers, no light control issues wacking my sensor, no dogs sniffing my dogs smells. I charge less because it is not a system tune - it is a greyscale tune. Plus there are no travel hassles - and I have had many AVSers ask me when I will travel to their town yet I am not a touring calibrator.

The reality is in the budget projector forum - I see crazy tweaking threads and uncalibrated screenshots that just disgust my professional eye. When in-home ISF costs 25% of your system - it often does not get done - but if it costs more like 10% of your display - then people might consider it - especially if it can be shown the result is greater than 10% improvement. The only downside is projector withdrawal just like having to send it in for service!

The reality is that greyscale is a function of the display panel (except for VGA/RGBHV inputs) - it is not a function of your sources! Only the basic video adjustments are for your sources - and anyone that reads my posts knows I have been always happy to help people figure out the basic adjustments. That should be done on any display the instant you get it.

People pay me to come to their house to do even just the basic adjustments only because I am better than they are at it - even if they already have the test DVD and gave it a go. At least with the mail-in you know the display basics adjustment is right - and can fix the source - this really helps with digital sources. With the greyscale right it is even easier to get the color/tint right.

There are only a few ISF certified screens - others can color your image slightly - just not as much as the marketing depts when they got their hands on the engineers display presets. But I have screen samples, and likely anyone screen shopping has samples. Not a problem for a mail-in to consider the screen - just put the sample in the box!

For those that are not sure - my website can be found in my profile - I have an educational page on there that shows what improperly calibrated pictures look like. And if you contact me I can send you the comprehensive calibration charts of the Mitsu in ALL projector modes - so you know how much improvement it is worth. Eventually these will be posted as reviews on my site - I am just busy with a masters degree thesis at the moment (people missed that I first promised the reviews done on April Fools day :D)

I enjoy calibrating the Mitsu because it is the only display I have found that is perfect after calibration - and I've done rubies and runcos. I measure not just greyscale - but gamma, color gamut and color decoders - and I use charts of my own design that matches what you perceive and objectively grades the display performance.

commercial over madpoet - back to giving calibration advice - it's not like AVS loses any calibration biz - if anything they will sell more Mitsubishi!

Well had to send mine back, because its a japan import I get one ship back free option.

The flickering on standard mode became ridiculious, i seen someone else had this problem, Im worried the one there going to send back is going to have the same problem.

I love the vibrant picture on standard lamp mode, especially for HDTV.

Had only 120 hours on it.

Looks like I'll be doing the same thing. I just noticed flickering on the left side of the screen in low mode. I've not switched it yet to standard to see if it is still there.
Mine was purchased in January and we've used it regulary for about 2 to 3 hours every other day..... :(

A theater I am advising on is in the final design stages. The projector is an HC3000 (naturally :) ). The room is 20'-6" long x 21" wide x 10' high. The screen will be on a 21' wall. There are three rows of seats, with the closest row 12' from the screen to the center of the seats. Using the PPD calculator ( http://home1.gte.net/res18h39/calculator.htm ), I've determined that the largest screen size that avoids SDE for the front row is 120" (diagonal, 16:9 AR). While rows 2 & 3 are on 8" risers and the rows are staggered, the highest location of a 120" screen will result in some obstruction of sight lines to the bottom of the screen for rows 2 & 3. A 100" screen could be high enough on the wall so all three rows have unobstructed views of the entire screen (although the best view, 1/3 up the screen for a horizontal sight line, would be from the middle row). Would it be better to have a larger screen and some obstruction or a smaller screen and no obstruction? (Also, normally, the theater won't be full, so someone sitting in the best seats in the middle row won't have anyone in front of them.)

The Screen Size and Projection Distance table in the HC3000 User Manual (Page EN-12) for a 16:9 screen gives projector distances for a 100" Diagonal screen (143-174") and a 150" Diagonal screen (216-262"), but not a 120" screen (and no formulas for calculating non-listed screen sizes...or is there an HC3000 calculator I haven't found yet?).

Can anyone tell me what the range of distances from the screen to the projector lens are and what an optimal distance might be? We will be installing an AC outlet and an HDMI cable outlet in the ceiling and I need to tell the electrician where to put them.

Another issue are the actual dimensions of the screen. If the screen is 104" Wide and 58.5" High, the diagonal distance will be 119.3" (close enough to 120" for this discussion). In this case, what would the offset from the centerline of the projector lens to the top of the screen (Hd) be? Is this value fixed, regardless of the zoom factor (i.e. the Projected Distance (L)) for a given screen size?

Finally, one of the features of the HC3000 system that was attractive to me was the ability to display 1024 x 768 images (at least in theory) from a PC. But the latest spec sheet on the HC3000 states, for PC Compatibility, the resolutions are only 640 x 480 to 1024 x 576. Is this correct? Assuming there is a way to display a full, direct mapped 1024 x 768 image from a PC, then the screen would actually have to be a little taller than strictly 16:9. If 720 pixels will fill a screen that is 58.5" high, then there are 720/58.5=12.307 pixels/inch. To have enough height for 768 pixels I would need a screen height of 768pixels/12.307ppi=62.4", or an additional 1.95" above AND below the 58.5"H 16:9 screen. Is this correct?

If it is possible to get a 1024 x 768 display, would it be a "good idea" to enlarge the height of the screen slightly to do so, given that the primary use of the theater would be showing DVDs and broadcast Television in HD. Would regular 16:9 AR material look too letterboxed if displayed on a screen with about 2" of extra height at the top and bottom? There will be a 2-3" wide flat black mask around the periphery of the screen. Unfortunately, a movable mask is not feasible for this installation.

Thanks for your assistance,

Les

Just heard that the MSRP just dropped another $300 on the HC3000.

Just an update....

There is a good throw length calculator at the Projector People site on the HC3000U page. Its' results are consistant with the tables in the HC3000 User Manual. The only thing it doesn't report is the vertical offset (Hd).

The User Manual tables on Page 12 give only a single value of Hd for a range of throw lengths (that correspond to different zoom settings). I assumed the value of Hd given in the tables is for the middle of the zoom (and thus throw distance) range. It could just as well be for one of the extremes. Using linear interpolation, I calculated an Hd for a 120" 16:9 screen to be 19.78". Can anyone confirm this?

I realize the final screen size and location on the wall must be dertmined by projecting an image with the projector in its' mount in the ceiling, but I am trying to optimize sight lines as well as possible on paper before the precise projector location and screen size are determined on site.

Thanks for any assistance.

Les

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=707065

A custom installer, small retailer near me just told me the (edit) MAP (lowest aallowable advertised price) of the Mitsubishi HC3000 has just dropped another $300 to $2195.

(edit) MSRP remains at $2495.

http://mitsubishi-hometheater.com/press_021606.asp $2495 announcement

Hey Les: If you have not done so check out http://www.mitsubishi-hometheater.com/hc3000u.asp At the bottom of the page you can download the Mits projector calculator which should give you what you need. I assume its accurate because Mits is providing it but I have not used it myself.

Good luck
Peter

Just an update....

There is a good throw length calculator at the Projector People site on the HC3000U page. Its' results are consistant with the tables in the HC3000 User Manual. The only thing it doesn't report is the vertical offset (Hd).

The User Manual tables on Page 12 give only a single value of Hd for a range of throw lengths (that correspond to different zoom settings). I assumed the value of Hd given in the tables is for the middle of the zoom (and thus throw distance) range. It could just as well be for one of the extremes. Using linear interpolation, I calculated an Hd for a 120" 16:9 screen to be 19.78". Can anyone confirm this?

I realize the final screen size and location on the wall must be dertmined by projecting an image with the projector in its' mount in the ceiling, but I am trying to optimize sight lines as well as possible on paper before the precise projector location and screen size are determined on site.

Thanks for any assistance.

Les

I think the Hd is 30% of the screen height. So for 120" diagonal, the screen height is 59" so the Hd should be 17.7"

I received the HC3000 last week but was unable to connect it until after Christmas. I finally did so last night. I have some mixed feelings about it, unfortunately. Maybe some of you can help.

The projector seems capable of producing a very sharp, vibrant, and colorful picture at its best, but on the other hand the picture is frequently very noisy, much more so than my last DLP. Even on "reference" discs like The Fifth Element Superbit, random shots will look so bad as to be unwatchable.

I'm connected to an iScan VP30 scaler by HDMI. With a YCbCr signal, the projector will not display blacker-than-black or whiter-than-white at all. In fact, on the Avia test patterns, even the above-black and below-white moving bars are completely crushed beyond display. Switching to RGB fixes this, but then I get terrible macroblocking on all of my DVD sources, even using players that are not supposed to be prone to it. Basically, any movie shot that has any small amount of grain in it at all turns into gigantic ugly macroblocks. Has anyone else experienced either of these problems with this projector?

I'm going to play around with some more settings in the next day or so as I decide whether to keep the projector or return it. Am I missing something in my settings or calibration that might help? When it looks good, the picture is so good that I am just in love with it, but then about 30 seconds later there will be another shot that looks unwatchably poor. And this is occurring on DVDs that I know to be consistent in quality during the scenes I'm watching.

Also, I did get the projector to successfully sync with 48hz, but the color wheel noise increases in pitch so loudly that I find this basically unusable.

Hey Josh,

I know this is an old post and in subsequent posts you mentioned you got some pic improvements, but I could not find any mention of improvements with the "noisy picture".

Is your pic quality now noise free (or close to it?). Have you seen the H78DC3 before and could notice any differences in the noise/dithering (dark scenes) between the two?

Fleaman

With HDMI and my Sony upconverting DVD player and overscan at 100% and a bunch of adjustments to get what looks like good color to me. Cinema mode, Low Lamp, no BC. Still, like the opening shot in Lawrence, all major movement seems less than smooth to me on this projector (720p, Auto aspect). I never notice this kind of less than smooth DVD video on my Sony 36" CRT...

Is my DVD player just not good enough?

Ron

The HC3000 actually uses HD colorspace , even the excellent InFocus IN76 does not use HD colorspace (which is not to say it is a fault , just part of the design) .

Jason/Kras,

Slightly OT for the HC3000 thread, but as an IN76 owner that statement caught my eye. Can you clarify that? Clearly the IN76 offers REC709 conversion and it automatically identifies HD content as such. Are you saying the REC709 conversion it uses is somehow wrong?

EDIT: Nevermind guys. My minds a little clearer this morning than it was last night when I asked this. ;) I assume you're saying that after calibration the HC3000 can hit the HD color space coordinates on the good ole CIE chart and the IN76 can't.

With HDMI and my Sony upconverting DVD player and overscan at 100% and a bunch of adjustments to get what looks like good color to me. Cinema mode, Low Lamp, no BC. Still, like the opening shot in Lawrence, all major movement seems less than smooth to me on this projector (720p, Auto aspect). I never notice this kind of less than smooth DVD video on my Sony 36" CRT...

Is my DVD player just not good enough?

Ron

That opening shot in Lawrence is jerky 'cos the film was sped up to make it look like he was riding much faster than what it was shot at. It's possible that it's just more obvious on a larger screen. If you can move the PJ close enough to reduce the screen size to 36", see if there is a difference. But really, that opening shot is a very bad example to use for smooth movements!

I notice less than smooth movements on fast pans in film theaters....partly due to the size of the screen and also due to the film frame rate being only 27 frames per second.

Fleaman

Jason/Kras,

Slightly OT for the HC3000 thread, but as an IN76 owner that statement caught my eye. Can you clarify that? Clearly the IN76 offers REC709 conversion and it automatically identifies HD content as such. Are you saying the REC709 conversion it uses is somehow wrong?

EDIT: Nevermind guys. My minds a little clearer this morning than it was last night when I asked this. ;) I assume you're saying that after calibration the HC3000 can hit the HD color space coordinates on the good ole CIE chart and the IN76 can't.

There are two considerations for the HD (REC709) and SD (SMPTE-C) colorspaces - one is the color decoding matrix for proper color brightness. That is the menu option on the Infocus - and that is reference. However Infocus green may still be brighter due to the optical design - even with a reference color decoding matrix.

The reason it is brighter is because of the color gamut which is the other part of the specs - Infocus instead designed for SMPTE-C on Red/Blue. They chose to bring the deep forest Green over a bit towards yellow - which is a brighter color. I do mean a bit - this is something you notice only in side by side evals and detailed measurements - in fact the SMPTE-C Green can be considered Yellowish compared to the HD-green. Infocus is a similar distance further from the SMPTE-C Green - so nobody should misinterpret that as Yellow instead of Green.

Many of the top calibrators insist on adjusting display gamut when controls are provided from REC709 to SMPTE-C - even if the REC709 color decoding matrix is in use. The reason is that the mastering engineers - don't have different monitors with different color space for HD yet. So one could argue the Mitsu supporting REC709 gamut without adjustment is not practically correct just as well.

So it is not a bad thing that Infocus uses SMPTE-C - it is a design choice. And if they used the HD green - then it would not be twice as bright as the Mitsu - everything is a tradeoff! They have similar contrast after calibration - so do you want a larger picture - or do you want your HD forest greens? Or do you want to buy a High Power and try for both (which is what DaGamePimp did!). Or do you want a 11' widescreen with Infocus (like my last project!)

The Mistu native gamut exceeds the REC709 specs - especially when BC is turned on. Excess is not a good thing - but it pulls into specs when the greyscale is calibrated. It does not even have color gamut/decoder controls - it just shows Mitsu engineers had REC709 as the calibrated design point - despite marketings best attempts to blow past it.

Peter, Shagn,

Thanks for the responses.

I checked out the projector calculator on the HC3000 web page. It took me a while to figure out where the SETUP.EXE actually installed the program (in Program Files | Mitsubishi).

The calculator gave me the information I was after (subject to the disclaimer in the program that the figures may have a "margin of error").

Apparently the value of Hd (and thus, the location of the top edge of the projected image, does not vary with projector throw distance/zoom ratio for a given screen size. According to the calculator, for a 120" Diagonal, 16:9 image, Hd is 19.7" (image dimensions are 104.5W x 58.8H).

19.7" is 33.503% of 58.8". For a 100" diagonal Hd is 16.4", 33.469% of the 49.0" height. So it looks like Hd is roughly 33.5% of the screen height for a 16:9 image (based on these two samples, both equal to 33.5% when rounded to three significant figures).

Thanks again for your help. I think this is the best I can do short of actually mounting the projector and measuring the image on the wall.

Les

I know this is an old post and in subsequent posts you mentioned you got some pic improvements, but I could not find any mention of improvements with the "noisy picture".

fleaman, turning off BrilliantColor and sending the projector RGB rather than YCbCr took care of all my noise issues.

Hey Les: You can also move the picture up and down on your screen about 2" or so because the chip is actually 16x10 so that should give you enough latitude for fine adjustements.

Peter

Peter,

A good point. The extra pixels do give some fine adjustment or allow the image to be moved up the wall. Under the current plan, a 120" image ends up low enough on the wall to have its' lower edge potentially obscured for the viewers in the 2nd and 3rd rows by those in front. Moving the image higher on the wall, even a couple of inches, would help this problem.

The attached layout shows the relative positions of a 100" screen and a 120" screen. The 100" screen has the extra pixels within the wide outline.

Do you (or anyone else) know if it is possible to display 1024 x 768 images via the VGA input (or any other input) one-for-one?

Thanks,

Les

Can anyone recommend some reputable dealers to buy the HC3000 from online? Does anyone trust 6th Ave, I don't feel too comfortable ordering from them unless I hear possitve feedback from you guys...

i would question this from the 6th ave webpage on the hc3000

Specifications

• Warranty Information: Manufacturer’s 90 Days Parts & Labor, 1 Year Parts

they could be refurbs

i bought mine from jason at avs and it has a 2 year warranty


muncey

Can anyone recommend some reputable dealers to buy the HC3000 from online? Does anyone trust 6th Ave, I don't feel too comfortable ordering from them unless I hear possitve feedback from you guys...


I just ordered a HC3000U from Jason. Got a great price too! :D

Can anyone recommend some reputable dealers to buy the HC3000 from online?

Contact AVS sales. They're your best option.

I am continually amazed by my new Mits!
The color black has never looked....blacker!!

;)

Contact AVS sales. They're your best option.

Thanks, I'll be in contact with Jason soon. Just waiting for him to give me a call.

I have a feeling the HC3000 is about to have another wave of new owners due to the recent price drops ;) . There is no doubt that it is a great choice and still one of only two projectors that I would consider buying at this price range (the other being the InFocus IN76) .

Best of Luck to all those new HC3000 owners (and those about to be) , I hope you all enjoy this unit as much as the rest of us have been .

----- Jason

Has anyone seen the web site pricing starting to reflect the new price drops?

My fiancee and I are selling a condo and this was going to be our little pre-wedding splurge. We're looking at buying in the next week, or should we just kick back and wait till after CEDIA?

Has anyone seen the web site pricing starting to reflect the new price drops?

My fiancee and I are selling a condo and this was going to be our little pre-wedding splurge. We're looking at buying in the next week, or should we just kick back and wait till after CEDIA?


Contact Jason of AVS. The MSRP has dropped to below $2K! :eek:

I have a feeling the HC3000 is about to have another wave of new owners due to the recent price drops . There is no doubt that it is a great choice and still one of only two projectors that I would consider buying at this price range (the other being the InFocus IN76) . Count me in as a new owner of an HC3000U (should be receiving it tomorrow). I was seriously considering a 1080p PJ but decided to wait it out a few generations. In the meantime, I wanted to upgrade my NEC HT1000 to something with 720p and the 3000U seems like it will do very nicely. I can't wait to see what thing can do...

I have joined the club (just purchased a HC3000).

I haven't set-up anything yet but have found that the blacks are not as black as I expected. I have turned off BC, put it on Low Lamp, and closed the iris but the blacks (including the black test image) seem more grey than I expected. This was in a completely dark room with a 92" diagonal grandview white screen. I will attempt to calibrate the unit later in the week with the Digital Video Essentials DVD (PAL version). Hopefully this will improve the black levels. Currently, my old Toshiba DLP data projector (2000 lumens) seems to have better blacks.

Overall, I am happy with the performance, but was hoping for better blacks.

Has anyone else had a similar issue with the black levels and what was done (settings etc) to solve the problem?

I just went to BB tonight and viewed the Sharp XV-Z2000. I was generally pleased with the picture, which was projected onto some grey screen (forgot to check what kind it was). Black levels were better than my Z2 (no surprise there). I thought I noticed some brightness uniformity issues, but I think it may have been the screen and not the projector. Have any of you with the HC3000 viewed the XV-Z2000 also? How do they compare? Even though I've never seen the HC3000 I'm leaning towards it...

Also, anyone care to share their reasons why they went with the HC3000 over the HD72?

The Z2000 you viewed was on a Stewart Firehawk Screen

I have joined the club (just purchased a HC3000).

Overall, I am happy with the performance, but was hoping for better blacks.


Factory brightness and contrast control settings are off from spec - and your sources are most certainly off spec unless they are professional gear! There is no way an ancient high lumen datagrade DLP is better!

Absent the DVD test patterns - set your DVD player for a 4:3 TV and do the same on the Mitsu. Now you can get your letterbox blacks to match the projectors pillarbox blacks - get close to the screen and you will see the dark DLP dithering in the black - make that go away!

My blacks are outstanding. I've been watching the restored Season one of Space 1999 from the UK and I am floored by the amazing inky black levels...

:)

My blacks are outstanding. I've been watching the restored Season one of Space 1999 from the UK and I am floored by the amazing inky black levels...

:)

Hi Dave:

I'm getting one too from AVS! How did you calibrate your Mits?

Edited. Read the rules.

Also, anyone care to share their reasons why they went with the HC3000 over the HD72?


I got one from AVS and I chose it because according to Projectorreviews.com the Mits has better blacks than the Optoma HD72 if optimally calibrated.

Hey guys, I just received my HC3000 today and was wondering if you could help me figure out something. The box and all documentation indicates the PJ as "LVP-HC3000" when in fact I thought I had purchased an HC3000U. Are they one in the same? Another question: how do I determine the build date on this PJ? I didn't see a date anywhere; in fact, the only thing I saw that might indicate a build date is a serial number. My particular unit starts with 6.

I want to make sure I received a 3000U and also ensure it's a recent build, so if you can help me out I'd appreciate it!

Thanks!

I currently have a long run of DVI cable to use with my Z2. Can I just get an adapter like this one:

http://www.lindy.com/us/productfolder/04/41227/index.php

to use my HTPC with the HC3000?

Hey guys, I just received my HC3000 today and was wondering if you could help me figure out something. The box and all documentation indicates the PJ as "LVP-HC3000" when in fact I thought I had purchased an HC3000U. Are they one in the same? Another question: how do I determine the build date on this PJ? I didn't see a date anywhere; in fact, the only thing I saw that might indicate a build date is a serial number. My particular unit starts with 6.

I want to make sure I received a 3000U and also ensure it's a recent build, so if you can help me out I'd appreciate it!

Thanks!

As long as it says HC3000 on the side of the unit next to the serial # then it is an HC3000 . None of these actually say HC3000U on the unit from what I have seen/heard , it is my understanding that the U signifies it as being a USA model . I recall the build date being on a label on the box , not certain of it now as my box is in storage .

-------------- Jason

I currently have a long run of DVI cable to use with my Z2. Can I just get an adapter like this one:

http://www.lindy.com/us/productfolder/04/41227/index.php

to use my HTPC with the HC3000?


Yes , should work fine .

------ Jason

Thanks, I just wanted to make sure there weren't any weird issues I was not aware of.

As long as it says HC3000 on the side of the unit next to the serial # then it is an HC3000 . None of these actually say HC3000U on the unit from what I have seen/heard , it is my understanding that the U signifies it as being a USA model . I recall the build date being on a label on the box , not certain of it now as my box is in storage .Thanks Jason; good to know. I couldn't find a build date on the box, however, and now that I've looked a little closer the manual is in Japanese. So, clearly this was shipped over from Japan. I imagine that once I change the language of the interface to English, I'll be all set. Did others have to do this as well?

Thanks Jason; good to know. I couldn't find a build date on the box, however, and now that I've looked a little closer the manual is in Japanese. So, clearly this was shipped over from Japan. I imagine that once I change the language of the interface to English, I'll be all set. Did others have to do this as well?


Oh, great! I'm getting mine soon and I hope I don't get a Japanese manual with it! :eek:

My manual is multi-lang that starts with english first ;) .

---- Jason

Well, I just double-checked, and my manual is definitely all-Japanese. The remote is in English, and I downloaded the English manual. I guess this means my unit was shipped to me from Japan. Does this matter? Is this PJ going to be any different from the USA version? I'm getting a little nervous, here...did I make a mistake?

What about warranty? Did you buy from authorized dealer? If you have any questions I would contact Mits service and confirm that it is covered?

Yes, I have a full factory warranty on it, and everything is in English except the manual (which the distributor emailed to me in English). I don't have a problem with this as long as the specs on this unit are the same as any other unit. Can anyone confirm this and put me at ease?

I just ordered my new HC3000U :) With 3 day shipping I hope it will be here by friday or monday

Dumb question that I should know since I own the projector, but I'm not at home at the moment. Can someone confirm the projector's throw ratio at minimum zoom? I'm trying to figure something out about lens compatibility. Thanks.

fleaman, turning off BrilliantColor and sending the projector RGB rather than YCbCr took care of all my noise issues.

Digital RGB on the HDMI input?

The YCbCr was over the component (analog) inputs?

Fleaman

Heh,

This may sound stupid, Who the heck is jason? I Keep reading on these last 2 pages about Jason, I am interested in ordering this projector (was sold on the AE900 until today, I live in canada and we don't get those rebates that the US is getting on the AE900, so basically these projectors cost pretty much the same in Canada).

How do I get ahold of Jason?

Heh,

This may sound stupid, Who the heck is jason? I Keep reading on these last 2 pages about Jason, I am interested in ordering this projector (was sold on the AE900 until today, I live in canada and we don't get those rebates that the US is getting on the AE900, so basically these projectors cost pretty much the same in Canada).

How do I get ahold of Jason?


This is Jason:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=664655

Give him a call.

Thank you!

Am I making the right decision about switching to this HC3000? I Have a 16 foot distance to the screen and am planning to have a screen around 100 - 120" and will ceiling mount the projector with joists that are 7'8" high. I just finished the basement this weekend, I AM PUMPED! According to reviews I should be able to mount that projector no problem to get the screen size that I want (between 8 feet and 15 feet or something).

-Robb

Digital RGB on the HDMI input?

The YCbCr was over the component (analog) inputs?

YCbCr is digital. YPbPr is analog. Component Video connections would send YPbPr.

The HC3000's HDMI input will accept either RGB or YCbCr. If the latter, the projector converts the signal to RGB for display anyway. My iScan scaler can output in either format over HDMI, and I found that it does a better job converting to RGB than the HC3000 does.

YCbCr is digital. YPbPr is analog. Component Video connections would send YPbPr.

The HC3000's HDMI input will accept either RGB or YCbCr. If the latter, the projector converts the signal to RGB for display anyway. My iScan scaler can output in either format over HDMI, and I found that it does a better job converting to RGB than the HC3000 does.

Thank you.

Fleaman

Hi Guys just received my Mit 3000. Question. In the box was a filter cover that you have to attach with a screw. Do you need to use this filter cover? I was under the impression that the Mit was a filter free pj which I considered a benefit of not having to remember to clean it (as opposed to the Panny 9000). The manual says the filter needs to be cleaned once a month

Oh, Averhoff definately give us a quick review of your first impressions of the machine. Both setup and picture quality if you could. I know many are on the fence right now, between buying a HC3000 and an AE900 with $500 difference between the two.

EDIT: Rephrased my last line to remove the prices I had, though it was the MSRP's.

Guys remember no price discussion other than MSRP , and certainly no mention of prices that are from Un-Authorized dealers .

Simply saying that the HC3000 can be purchased below current MSRP is enough ;) .

------- Jason

Guys remember no price discussion other than MSRP , and certainly no mention of prices that are from Un-Authorized dealers .

Simply saying that the HC3000 can be purchased below current MSRP is enough ;) .

------- Jason


Sorry :(

quetis, have not got my screen yet.

Anybody help with this?
In the box was a filter cover that you have to attach with a screw. Do you need to use this filter cover? I was under the impression that the Mit was a filter free pj which I considered a benefit of not having to remember to clean it (as opposed to the Panny 9000). The manual says the filter needs to be cleaned once a month.

Thank you!

Am I making the right decision about switching to this HC3000? I Have a 16 foot distance to the screen and am planning to have a screen around 100 - 120" and will ceiling mount the projector with joists that are 7'8" high. I just finished the basement this weekend, I AM PUMPED! According to reviews I should be able to mount that projector no problem to get the screen size that I want (between 8 feet and 15 feet or something).

-Robb


Did you check the projector calculator at:

http://www.projectorcentral.com/Mitsubishi-HC3000U-projection-calculator-pro.htm

You should mount your projector at the middle of the zoom range for optimal image for a particular screen size.

Also, looking at your ceiling height I'm not certain the Mits will work because of the offset of the projector. It might work if you don't mind that the image will be fairly low down and close to the floor. See:

http://www.projectorcentral.com/mitsubishi_hc3000.htm

quetis, have not got my screen yet.

Anybody help with this?
In the box was a filter cover that you have to attach with a screw. Do you need to use this filter cover? I was under the impression that the Mit was a filter free pj which I considered a benefit of not having to remember to clean it (as opposed to the Panny 9000). The manual says the filter needs to be cleaned once a month.

Technically you do not have to use the filter but I would suggest it , much better than clogging up the internals with dust . I do not even remove the filter to clean it , I just use vac extentions and pull the dust out through the vents .

--------- Jason

DaGame do you attach the cover then or just leave it off and clean the filter once a month.

Did you check the projector calculator at:

http://www.projectorcentral.com/Mitsubishi-HC3000U-projection-calculator-pro.htm

You should mount your projector at the middle of the zoom range for optimal image for a particular screen size.

Also, looking at your ceiling height I'm not certain the Mits will work because of the offset of the projector. It might work if you don't mind that the image will be fairly low down and close to the floor. See:

http://www.projectorcentral.com/mitsubishi_hc3000.htm

I checked the calculator at the Mitsu site, i can easily get a 100" screen with the bottom of the screeen 21" off the floor (which is fine for me).

According to a review i read somewhere (not sure where) your head should be in the bottom 1/3 of the screen (directly in front). So being 21" off the ground will work great.

I am still waiting for Jasons call. I have no idea how cheap i can get them here in Canada. I am constantly going back and forth between these three projecotrs:

HC3000, Z4, AE900. The more i research the more I am going crazy, i would love to get the HC3000 because i know that it is superior to the rest. It will all depend on how cheap I can get it in Canada. Anyone know any cheap great retailers in Canada? Please pm.

-Robb.

Technically you do not have to use the filter but I would suggest it , much better than clogging up the internals with dust . I do not even remove the filter to clean it , I just use vac extentions and pull the dust out through the vents .

I leave my filter on, but the few times I've checked it I've never found anything on it worth cleaning.

I checked mine last night after being on for 6 months...very little dust in the cover...enough that I was able to "blow" it right out and have the filter clean.

Ok, new house ready in 4 months. Can I expect the price on the 3000u to drop anymore or is it usually a 1x per year drop in price? I have 3 models that I am considering but, this Mitsu has climbed to the top. I am wondering about pulling the trigger now and storing it till the house is ready or wait a few weeks before the new house is ready and buying it then.

Top 3 choices:

Mitsubishi 3000u
Optoma 7100
Sony HS51-a

Any suggestions?? Thanks, Ian B

I just had a thought, I know it's rare, but hey.... What was I saying?

Anyway, with CEDIA just a few weeks away, is Mitsubishi likely to drop the price on the HC3000 again? It just dropped in the last week a significant amount, but with new models out there can we expect it to drop a bit more?

DaGame do you attach the cover then or just leave it off and clean the filter once a month.

I have the filter & cover on at all times , I do not clean it once a month but I have cleaned it a couple times in the last 6 months and it had a very small amount of dust on it ( I do check it about once a month ) . A quick vac over the vents where the filter is and it looked like new again . The level of dust will obviously depend upon your environment (my room can get pretty dusty) , but on average I would suggest that everyone put the filter on (can't hurt) ;) .

--------- Jason

I doubt the price (MSRP) will drop again until 07 , my guess is that the recent drop was due to CEDIA and the new products that are about to be announced/released . I don't see it making much sense for them to drop it right before CEDIA and then again right after .

Just my opinion of course ;) .

--------- Jason

Thanks DaGamePimp;

I have been reading your posts on this Mitsubishi and have pretty much convinced me on this unit. I think I will wait a week or 2 after CEDIA and check the price. If it does not drop, I will buy it at the lowest price available.

Thanks for all the info in your posts, they sure are worth reading and full of info.

Mr Ian B



I doubt the price (MSRP) will drop again until 07 , my guess is that the recent drop was due to CEDIA and the new products that are about to be announced/released . I don't see it making much sense for them to drop it right before CEDIA and then again right after .

Just my opinion of course ;) .

--------- Jason

Yay, I got my PJ today. We're watchin 24 right now. So much better than the Optoma EP719 we had. Out of the box I tweaked the brightness up and increased the contrast. Nothing other than that and it's as watchable our CRt if not better.

As we don't have optimum viewing situation and the screen is to be replaced, I don't want to pay an ISF guy to come set it up.

What would you guys recommend for calibrating it?

Settings here, DVE, AVIA, SpyderTV? Any of those work well?

Hi!

Does the Hc 3000 has any problems, like lcds have (vertical bending, shading etc.) ?
I currently own a sanyo z4 and would like to have an improvement!
And: I'm a right that the HC 5000 will not replace the HC 3000?

Thx for youre replies!

Uncalibrated my HC3000 does really decent shading. I've got a couple calibration discs I plan to run tonight and see if I cen get it much better.

Does decent mean "little"? Sorry, I'm Kraut!

I am looking at the mits 3000 to go on back wall shelf about 31 feet in length to hit wall at about 90 inches high and 165inches wide.Do you think it will work with offset issues and how do you think it would compare to sanyo and other s like panny 99 in this application?I currently have sony hs10 in same room lloking for upgrade would like some feedback.

It's $1999 at Best Buy after a price drop in this week's flyer for anyone interested.

I am looking at the mits 3000 to go on back wall shelf about 31 feet in length to hit wall at about 90 inches high and 165inches wide.Do you think it will work with offset issues and how do you think it would compare to sanyo and other s like panny 99 in this application?I currently have sony hs10 in same room lloking for upgrade would like some feedback.


Did you check the projection calculator to see if your setup will work? At that distance (31ft) your image might just end up on the floor instead of the wall due to the projector's offset! Plus at that distance the image will be really dim! :eek:

I was just gonna write what Ikari wrote.

Now maybe it can start giving the optoma more of a run for it's $$.

Still floored by my mits.

;)

They also sent 12% off coupons to their reward zone and preferred customers for this weekend. I took advantage of it and took the plunge. Now, I have 4 months for my new house to be finised and the new home theater set-up to take full advantage of this projector.

Ian B




It's $1999 at Best Buy after a price drop in this week's flyer for anyone interested.

I was just gonna write what Ikari wrote.

Now maybe it can start giving the optoma more of a run for it's $$.

Still floored by my mits.

;)


Dave:

I'm getting my Mits from AVS on Wednesday but I was wondering what did you do for calibrating yours?

Now maybe it can start giving the optoma more of a run for it's $$.

;)

If you are meaning the Optoma HD72 then the HC3000 has always been the superior PJ but , yes , now it falls more in line with HD72 prices and should be the obvious choice between the two . The tough choice comes between the HC3000 and the IN76 where there are small trade-offs for each one (examples would be : slightly better CR with the IN76 vs. quieter operation of the HC3000) .

------------ Jason

Now I'm blanketing other threads.. :)

Can someone tell me whats the Image throw offset of the HC3000? :)

Now I'm blanketing other threads.. :)

Can someone tell me whats the Image throw offset of the HC3000? :)


http://www.projectorcentral.com/mitsubishi_hc3000.htm

So the way I'm reading this..

Mits 3000U has about a 33% offset
The H31 that I own now is right about the same
The Optoma HD72 is about 33% as well
The Infocus IN76 is less at 15%, but price wise is still higher than anything else in the list.

Hmmmm

They also sent 12% off coupons to their reward zone and preferred customers for this weekend. I took advantage of it and took the plunge. Now, I have 4 months for my new house to be finised and the new home theater set-up to take full advantage of this projector.

Ian B

I was thinking of this too, but the 12% coupon states on the back that it can't be used for projectors.

I was thinking of this too, but the 12% coupon states on the back that it can't be used for projectors.

The guy looked it over front and back and still gave me the 12% off. I also got a massage chair that was being offered for free on their website. It stated it has a $300.00 value. Free is always welcomed in my book.

Ian B

Did a search and could not find a tweak thread. Read most of this link and could not find one. Anyone got settings to share with everyone or pm me?

Thanks,

Ian B

I used the settings from Art's review at Projectorreviews.com

I used the settings from Art's review at Projectorreviews.com


Thanks, Dave. :)

I got a chance to see a friends new 3000 this week-end and the only thing that concerned me was the sharpness. I previously saw a Yamaha 830 with the same chip set that appeared much sharper.

Can anyone comment on the sharpness of the unit or is this perhaps a calibration issue.

Thanks. First post on a great forum.

Carl

I got a chance to see a friends new 3000 this week-end and the only thing that concerned me was the sharpness. I previously saw a Yamaha 830 with the same chip set that appeared much sharper.

Can anyone comment on the sharpness of the unit or is this perhaps a calibration issue.

Thanks. First post on a great forum.

Carl


The Yamaha is in a different category. It has a Dark Chip 3 whereas the Mits has a Dark Chip 2.


http://www.yamaha.com/yec/products/productdetail.html?CNTID=200520

Thanks FremontRich. Even the Yamaha dealer told me it was DC2 so that explains some of the difference.

I'm still interested in the sharpness of the Mits 3000 though.

Thanks FremontRich. Even the Yamaha dealer told me it was DC2 so that explains some of the difference.

I'm still interested in the sharpness of the Mits 3000 though.


It appears the Yamaha is a new projector so I'm thinking not too many people may be able to compare it to the Mits.

http://www.projectorcentral.com/Yamaha-DPX-830.htm

There's also a heck of a price differential. The Yamaha lists for $4500 and the Mits is down to <$2000 MSRP

Thanks, Dave. :)

Me too, thanks Dave.

Mr Ian B

Both ProjectorCentral and Audioholics state 830 is DC2 not DC3.

Both ProjectorCentral and Audioholics state 830 is DC2 not DC3.


So who are you going to believe, Yamaha, the manufacturer, or the other two sites? :rolleyes:

Can this projector give you that "looking out a window" sense with a good HD source? That's all I want. For under $2k of course.

So who are you going to believe, Yamaha, the manufacturer, or the other two sites? :rolleyes:

Just looking for the facts. On the specifications page of the Yamaha it shows DC2. On the front page DC3????? There is a misprint somewhere.

Can anyone comment on the sharpness of the HC3000? Does it require a lot of adjustment out of the box to sharpen the picture?

The default sharpness is actually TOO sharp. I think Da Game stated that it should be set at -2 for hdmi. Sharp as a tack, (with a good source, of course)

Thanks Dave

Glad to have the encouragement. I can't wait to exerience it in my own room.

"Looking out a window" sharp?

Just got my HC3000 up and running last night. So far I'm pleased but I can't hook up my HTPC yet cause I'm waiting on a dvi to hdmi adapter to show up. Picture through component looks good, can't wait for dvi.

I got mine up and running fully lastnight. DVI -> HDMI, connected to my HTPC via a 2ft cable and a 25ft extension. Working beutifully. Now I need to replace the receiver for a decent price in the next month or so. DVD via the HTPC is great, but the receiver is old and I'm pumping HDTV cable through Svideo (ugh).

Any decent dual HDMI input recievers for under $500 that people would recommend?

One minor issue though I have with the Mitsu 3000. The picture is too big. My old 100" 4:3 screen I made wasn't large enough for the 97" widescreen. Now I've got to build a new screen. This time professional fabric probably instead of just stretching and painting artist's canvas, it does look good though.

IMHO it is breathtakingly sharp. We have comcast HD which is pretty good, (ALOT better than DirecTV HD reportedly) Can't wait to get an HDdvd player!

IMHO it is breathtakingly sharp. We have comcast HD which is pretty good, (ALOT better than DirecTV HD reportedly) Can't wait to get an HDdvd player!

Lol, I was seriously looking at that $500 Toshiba HD-DVD player this weekend. I just couldn't justify it with a perfectly good PC I could use. As soon as I can get a laptop style HD-DVD-ROM (too many hyphens?), I'll slap that in and buy myselt a dozen movies.

That Yamaha had better be DC3 at $4500 otherwise it is priced way out of range for a DC2/DC2+ .



After having 3 different HC3000's I can say there was a difference in sharpness between them . Probably due to optical alignment so if you are not satisfied with the sharpness then exchange the unit for another one . I had one of the three that just could not get a tight focus no matter what . My current HC3000 can focus tight enough that I see the dimples from the dmd mirror pivots and text from a pixel mapped HTPC is razor sharp . Once again I will bring up the Overscan setting since there are many new users , don't forget to set this to 100% for all sources (it comes at 97% for all inputs by default) . Things will look less sharp/detailed until you set the overscan to 100% .


------------ Jason

That's true. And whenever you change resolutions like I have done with my oppo it defaults back to 97%.

:)

That Yamaha had better be DC3 at $4500 otherwise it is priced way out of range for a DC2/DC2+ .

I called Yamaha. The 830 projector is a DC2 not a DC3. Retail is $4000. Way too much!

Can anyone comment on the sharpness of the HC3000? Does it require a lot of adjustment out of the box to sharpen the picture?

The "Sharpness" setting is an artificial electronic adjustment that just adds edge enhancement and noise. There's no need to use it on a digital projector. Best to keep it suppressed to the minimum setting. If you want a sharper picture, adjust the focus ring.

That Yamaha had better be DC3 at $4500 otherwise it is priced way out of range for a DC2/DC2+ .

I called Yamaha. The 830 projector is a DC2 not a DC3. Retail is $4000. Way too much!

Good grief, for $4000 MSRP it should be a DC3! Get a Mits HC3000 - you won't regret it especially now that it's MSRP under $2K! Of course your room has to fit the offset required for the Mits!

Yeah, the Yamaha really seems to be a DC2. On that Yamaha page link it says in the same paragraph that it has a DC3 engine (???), not the actual chip. Then mentions it has the HD2+ chip.

From the Yamaha link:
DLP
720P DarkChip3™ Engine This DLP chip is Texas Instruments’ most advanced Digital Micro Mirror Device. As the name implies, it provides deeper blacks, while improving contrast in dark areas. Projector is equipped with the latest DMD HD2+ device, which uses narrow mirror gaps to improve contrast. Video processing is 10-bit from A/D conversion through to DMD output.

Also, I have not heard of a DC3 chip that is 1280x768 and with brilliantColor features. DC3 seems to be only available as 1280x720 and w/o BC.

Fleaman

Yeah, the Yamaha really seems to be a DC2. On that Yamaha page link it says in the same paragraph that it has a DC3 engine (???), not the actual chip. Then mentions it has the HD2+ chip.

From the Yamaha link:
DLP
720P DarkChip3™ Engine This DLP chip is Texas Instruments’ most advanced Digital Micro Mirror Device. As the name implies, it provides deeper blacks, while improving contrast in dark areas. Projector is equipped with the latest DMD HD2+ device, which uses narrow mirror gaps to improve contrast. Video processing is 10-bit from A/D conversion through to DMD output.

Also, I have not heard of a DC3 chip that is 1280x768 and with brilliantColor features. DC3 seems to be only available as 1280x720 and w/o BC.

Fleaman


This must have been written by Siamese twins who didn't know what either hand was writing! LOL :eek:

I used the settings from Art's review at Projectorreviews.com


Dave:

What screen do you have?

Setup problem:

I just got my 3000 last friday and I am just now having time to set it up properly. I was looking at my DVE disk and the THX optimizer on Attack of the Clones and I've discovered a problem. On the THX optimizer, I cannot see the 8 white squares. I have tried on both component and through DVI (two different players) and cannot change the brightness and contrast settings to make them appear. What am I doing wrong?

I have the Optoma Graywolf Panoview 92" screen. We rent so we have ambient light issues, white walls and celing. Works well for us.

:)

I have the Optoma Graywolf Panoview 92" screen. We rent so we have ambient light issues, white walls and celing. Works well for us.

:)


Thanks, Dave. I have an Elite 92" High Contrast Gray screen which has a gain of 1.1 so I think the gain on your screen is higher than mine.

Rich

Problem solved. It wasn't the projector, it was my dvd player and computer. They both were washing out the picture. I adjusted contrast and brightness on them and all is well :)

Josh Z or Dagamepimp or anybody else?

I have a friend who just got a Toshiba HD XA1 HD DVD player for their new HC3000.

They have been using component and love the picture. I told them to try to use the HDMI input to connect to the HD DVD player, to enable full SD upconversion.

They reported back that the player defaulted to OFF instead of the 3.75 black setting when the HDMI was engaged. They though the picture looked to light, ie the blacks weren't as black.

Is there a setting I am missing on either the player or the HC3000?

Kosty ,

Re-calibration is required for the HD DVD player , there is no setting in the HD DVD player that will alter HDMI black level . If there is any HDMI to DVI conversion in the mix then the wrong colorspace is being sent from the player .

------------ Jason

As Jason says, the "Enhanced Black Level" setting in the Toshiba's setup menu has no effect on its HDMI connection, which always outputs at 0 IRE. Your friend just needs to recalibrate the HDMI separately and all should be well.

They might want to keep in mind that if they've never used the projector's HDMI input before, the HC3000 defaults to the factory settings even if they calibrated earlier via component. If they aren't expecting that, they may think that their previous calibration settings are in effect when they're not.

Thanks guys. That makes sense to me.

Just checking, there is no setting on the HD XA1 to adjust, if there is I can't find one.

Also, I have not heard of a DC3 chip that is 1280x768 and with brilliantColor features. DC3 seems to be only available as 1280x720 and w/o BC.



Now you have (http://global.mitsubishielectric.com/bu/projectors/products/homeuse/hc3100/index_b.html) ;)

(and HC1100 with new 1280*720 0.62" DC2 here (http://global.mitsubishielectric.com/bu/projectors/products/homeuse/hc1100/index_b.html))

Now you have (http://global.mitsubishielectric.com/bu/projectors/products/homeuse/hc3100/index_b.html) ;)

(and HC1100 with new 1280*720 0.62" DC2 here (http://global.mitsubishielectric.com/bu/projectors/products/homeuse/hc1100/index_b.html))

Wow pacman, it looks like you stumbled onto a scoop...the new HC3100 :D , successor to the HC3000.

It looks REALLY nice. Download the pdf brochure (catalog) on that link.

This is gonna make things interesting.

Fleaman

Now you have (http://global.mitsubishielectric.com/bu/projectors/products/homeuse/hc3100/index_b.html) ;)

(and HC1100 with new 1280*720 0.62" DC2 here (http://global.mitsubishielectric.com/bu/projectors/products/homeuse/hc1100/index_b.html))

The HC3100 sounds identical to the HC3000 and unless TI is actually building a true DC3 1280x768 DMD panel this is just a typo . Many other PJ's have been listed as being DC3 because they use the newer TI chip , but they do not use a DC3 DMD panel . So we shall see ...

-------- Jason

The HC3100 sounds identical to the HC3000 and unless TI is actually building a true DC3 1280x768 DMD panel this is just a typo . Many other PJ's have been listed as being DC3 because they use the newer TI chip , but they do not use a DC3 DMD panel . So we shall see ...

-------- Jason

I really don't think so Jason.

Download the pdf catalog (actually brochure) in that link he gives. The HC3100 is a new machine with many new features. The brochure (pdf) even says 'new publication, Aug 2006.

And this: http://global.mitsubishielectric.com/bu/projectors/

and this: http://www.avp-newsletter.com/ (scroll down to #2)

excerpt from the avp link:

...the HC3100, a new DLP® projector, will premiere on IFA 2006. This HD ready certified successor of the winning HC3000 consists of the latest DMD/DC3 panel offering a contrast ratio of 5000:1 and a WXGA resolution (1280 x 768). IFA: Hall 26, Booth 101/102

I think pacman actually got the scoop on this :)

Fleaman

Fleaman ,

It is certainly possible but like I said , if TI is not building an actual 1280x768 DC3 DMD then it would have to be a typo . I have seen nothing mentioned from TI as of yet that would indicate they are building such a DMD (which is not to say that they are not) ;) .

Keep in mind that the HC3000 was thought to use a DC3 panel when it was announced due to a similar typo .

Should be interesting if it is real and the MSRP is sub $3K (like the HC3000 was when it launched) since the actual DC3 panel does offer better performance .

---------- Jason

DaGamePimp, I can't believe Mitsubishi would make a mistake like that for this new model. According to a Japanese site, there are two new models being released: the HC1100 and the HC3100. The 1100 specs look similar to the 3000 and this new 3100 model has a higher contrast ratio and we see Mitsubishi tout the Darkchip3 in the PDF on their website (link above). Here is the link to the Japanese site:
Sound Visual Communication Shop (http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=ja&u=http://www.ippinkan.com/lvp-hc1100.htm&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=10&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DMitsubishi%2BHC3100%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG)
According to the site, the MSRP in Japan for the HC3100 will be around $2k and the HC1100 will be around $1.5k.
These prices don't seem too extraordinary considering that Mitsubishi is going to release a new 1080P projector soon for about $4k. 1080P is a very good thing for those who want 720P now :D

Additionally, the availability in Japan for the HC3100 will be September 11. Hopefully we will be seeing it in North America soon.

These prices don't seem too extraordinary considering that Mitsubishi is going to release a new 1080P projector soon for about $4k.

Is that just speculation, or do you have a scoop?

http://global.mitsubishielectric.com/bu/projectors/download/catalog/hc3100_catalog.pdf

I think its real, This brochure for the HC3100 is basically the same as the HC3000 brochure except it states info on a new DMD and has this box. DarkChip3TM
The new DMD (DarkChip3TM process) uses smaller mirror concavity diameter to
enhance effective aperture rate, along with changes in the mirror lower wiring that
achieve impressive reductions in diffuse reflection. The result is contrast far more
crisp and clear.

I love how the prices keep falling though. It makes me personally glad I bought the 720P Mitsubishi when I did at such a good priice. Now when the 1080P projectos drop to under $3K, all of the money I saved by buying the 3000 can be put towards a 1080P model :D

It looks real to me.

The HC3000 has the 4,000:1 contrast ratio DC2 15:9 DMD , the new HC3100 is an upgrade using a new Darkchip3 version of the 1280x768 15:9 DMD, and the HC1100 has a DC2 16:9 1280 x720 DMD.

I remember a lot of speculation, mine included, when the HC3000 came out on whether or not it was a Darkchip 3 design, with Darkchip 3 improvements or not, that was being labeled a DC2.

The HC3100 looks like a upgrade of the HC3000 using a new Darkchip 3 version of the 15:9 DMD instead of the older DC2 version.

I remember a lot of speculation, mine included, when the HC3000 came out on whether or not it was a Darkchip 3 design, with Darkchip 3 improvements or not, that was being labeled a DC2.

The HC3100 looks like a upgrade of the HC3000 using a new Darkchip 3 version of the 15:9 DMD instead of the older DC2 version.


Not that I didn't suspect, but it would explain why the HC3000U price was dropping like a lead balloon! :D

What upscaling dvd players are you guys using with your 3000's? I'm currently using my Desktop via DVI and it works well, but I'd kind of like to have a standard dvd player to use instead.

My concern is macro blocking and image cropping.

I just got a new LG-DN191H, seems to work nicely. I've only watched half a dozen movies so far, but it plays Divx/Xvid directly from CD, it also has nifty card readers for movie files and pics. Plus it has the standard 720/1080 upscaling. It will be a great hold over till there is either a drop in the HD/Bluray players, a format that is settled on, or a decent dual format player. I won't buy a new whatever till at least the second round of equipment, the first is always expensive and bug ridden.

Had not really used any upscaling players just a progressive Denon and had the HC3000 do the upconversion itself.

Recently have seen and heard about excellant results using the new HD DVD players at 1080i output to upscale the SD DVD's into the HDMI input of the HC3000. The Toshiba HD A1 and the HD XA1 and the rebadged RCA and wal-mart models have the same guts.

A lot of posters said the HD DVD players upconversion rivaled that of the $200 Oppos.

The HD DVD players list for $499, but of course you get the HD DVD playback too.

http://global.mitsubishielectric.com/bu/projectors/download/catalog/hc3100_catalog.pdf

I think its real, This brochure for the HC3100 is basically the same as the HC3000 brochure except it states info on a new DMD and has this box.

Well, the brochure says the HC3100 has a switchable 4 to 5 speed color wheel now.

Another thing in that brochure that I couldn't make sense of:

"The shutter function eliminates unwanted vertical image domains (floating dark spots, etc.) on cinemascope screens."

Anyone know what this is? What are floating dark spots??

Fleaman

So someone needs to start an official HC3100 thread....I nominate Jason :) (DaGamePimp).

While Jason may not get the "unofficial" perks that Guitarman gets from Optoma, at least he can be the starter of the thread...since it doesn't seem like anyone here will have an advanced HC3100 unit to evaluate (like Guitarman gets from Optoma).

Start that thread Jason :D

Fleaman

HC3100 DC3 is probably the real deal but I will still have some doubt until I see something official from TI on a 1280x768 DC3 DMD ;) . Which is not to imply that Mitsubishi has made a typo , it's possible that TI has just not announced that particular DMD as of yet (at least there is nothing that I can find on it) .


-------------- Jason

What upscaling dvd players are you guys using with your 3000's? I'm currently using my Desktop via DVI and it works well, but I'd kind of like to have a standard dvd player to use instead.

My concern is macro blocking and image cropping.

Best image out there from a standalone under $500 is the Toshiba HD-A1 HD DVD player . This players upconversion rivals a tweaked HTPC for SD DVD playback .

-------- Jason

Well, the brochure says the HC3100 has a switchable 4 to 5 speed color wheel now.

Another thing in that brochure that I couldn't make sense of:

"The shutter function eliminates unwanted vertical image domains (floating dark spots, etc.) on cinemascope screens."

Anyone know what this is? What are floating dark spots??

Fleaman

Switchable color-wheel speed could just mean that it accepts other refresh rates like 48Hz , 72Hz , etc. and actually adjusts the color-wheel speed as it should (like the InFocus models do) . I doubt there is a setting that can be adjusted but it would be interesting to see if true .

The HC3000 has the shutter function as well , not much mention of it being used however . The shutter function can actually shut off/block the unused sections of the DMD panel (on all 4 sides) so that there is no light bouncing off those unused DMD mirrors .

----------- Jason

Best image out there from a standalone under $500 is the Toshiba HD-A1 HD DVD player . This players upconversion rivals a tweaked HTPC for SD DVD playback .

-------- Jason

That's interesting and of interest to us projector nuts.

My logic would tell me I'm buying a Std Def DVD player for the best upconverting dvd output to my PJ....and getting an HD dvd player for free!

I live in a funny world. A world where a bright light is always above me and controlling my thoughts.

I wish this HD format war will end soon.

Fleaman

So someone needs to start an official HC3100 thread....I nominate Jason :) (DaGamePimp).

While Jason may not get the "unofficial" perks that Guitarman gets from Optoma, at least he can be the starter of the thread...since it doesn't seem like anyone here will have an advanced HC3100 unit to evaluate (like Guitarman gets from Optoma).

Start that thread Jason :D

Fleaman

Actually I think pacman should get the 'thread' honors since he found it , but thanks just the same ;) .

I'm sure that if I became a Mitsu dealer I could get some demo units as well :cool: . Actually I would have no problem putting an HC3100 through its paces and report back my honest opinions ( if Mitsubishi is reading :D ) . I am pretty sure that I could get krasmuzik to ISF it and see just how much real world gain there is over the HC3000 ;) .

---------- Jason

Switchable color-wheel speed could just mean that it accepts other refresh rates like 48Hz , 72Hz , etc. and actually adjusts the color-wheel speed as it should (like the InFocus models do) . I doubt there is a setting that can be adjusted but it would be interesting to see if true .


Well, at least that what it says in the brochure:

"Color wheel speed in four and five speed settings. Chose the preferred speed setting 5 speed when color-breaking noise is a concern, or 4 speed when the stress is on gradation."


The HC3000 has the shutter function as well , not much mention of it being used however . The shutter function can actually shut off/block the unused sections of the DMD panel (on all 4 sides) so that there is no light bouncing off those unused DMD mirrors .

So what are floating dark spots? I guess it might just be the Japanese translation of dark bars? When I think 'spots' I think of round things.

Fleaman

Nuts, I just started the new thread, kudos go to my_pacman for finding it.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8221988#post8221988

Well, at least that what it says in the brochure:

"Color wheel speed in four and five speed settings. Chose the preferred speed setting 5 speed when color-breaking noise is a concern, or 4 speed when the stress is on gradation."


Very cool feature if true !



So what are floating dark spots? I guess it might just be the Japanese translation of dark bars? When I think 'spots' I think of round things.

Fleaman

They are probably meaning dithering in the black bars , which when properly calibrated should not be there anyway ;) .

------- Jason

I just posted over the open questions to the new HC3100 thread I just started. You guys are invited to continue the discussion there.... or here...wadda I know?? ;)

Hope I started the new thread in an appropriate manner. I thought I'd save Jason and my_pacman the trouble. :)

Good catch guys. :D


New HC31000 thread:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8221988#post8221988

Ok, I've moved my future HC3100 comments to the new thread...seems appropriate :)

Fleaman

Had my HC3000 now for almost a week in a temporary set-up(no audio) just image, and I can't believe I waited this long to buy this projector. My new house won't be ready till December so, I have it on a table shooting at a flat white wall with 96" diag display. God, the colors, what can I say. I went through some dvds and Spiderman 2 Superbit, was ridiculous, the reds and details in the suit where almost 3-d like. Return of the King also looked magnificent. Other dvds that I went through scenes were: The Lion King, T2 Extreme Edition, King Kong 2005, Polar Express and Titanic. On Titanic-Extended Edition, I could not get the skin colors just right, it had more yellow than I expected. I previously did color adjustments based on projector reviews' recommendations. I will do a final calibration when I move to the new house. By the way, I am using a low end dvd player through component cables as my Toshiba A1 and most of my dvd/hdvds are sitting in boxes waiting for the move.

Thanks to everyone for all the input and recommendations. Got the unit at a great price with a 12% discount coupon.

Mr Ian B

Hehe, I used the same coupon Ian. That and the PJ was $100 less at the store than the web was advertising, I didn't argue though =)

Glad y'all are liking it! The color red on this PJ, (after calibrating mind you) is just mind blowing. Even my gf noticed the improvement over the old optoma h57 which was pretty nice. But the black levels and the color depth on the hc3000 are just amazing to me.

:)

I wish there was some way to stop the projector from changing to 97% overscan and vertical shift of zero (usually nothing else shifts, though last night the lamp mode was back to normal instead of low) all of this after switching from my iMac on HDMI back to my Sony DVD player.

I am still finding that hand held camera shots are far from film-like and tend to make me and my wife nauseous, she ends up sitting 20 feet away from the 106" HD screen which helps her. Maybe I need a better DVD player with smoother playback, or will calibration help? Parts of Squid and the Whale were especially choppy.

Ron

I am still amazed on how the reds are. I am going to Cedia to see the new stuff, but with the price drops on the HC3000 it just keeps on getting to be a better and better value.

I saw it mentioned that the HC3000 uses the HD standard colorspace as opposed to the olded SMPTE standard. I searched and can't find the reference.

Can anyone enlighten me?

Kosty you are correct - however that is only after it has been calibrated by a professional. However some professional insist that SMPTE-C be used even with HD (REC709) since the HD monitors used to master HD are not updated. There are no color standard gamut/decoder adjustments to do that- it just lines up to HD when the greyscale is carefully done.

Anyone using this for HD-DVDs? how do the HD-DVDs look on this projector? anyone have any screen shots

I wish there was some way to stop the projector from changing to 97% overscan and vertical shift of zero (usually nothing else shifts, though last night the lamp mode was back to normal instead of low) all of this after switching from my iMac on HDMI back to my Sony DVD player.

I am still finding that hand held camera shots are far from film-like and tend to make me and my wife nauseous, she ends up sitting 20 feet away from the 106" HD screen which helps her. Maybe I need a better DVD player with smoother playback, or will calibration help? Parts of Squid and the Whale were especially choppy.

Ron

Ron, on the overscan just set it in each mode and it worked fine for me. I set it and forgot it, no changes after the initial ones.

Anyone using this for HD-DVDs? how do the HD-DVDs look on this projector? anyone have any screen shotsLooks great. Rivals 1080p projectors. Use 1080i output from player to feed the HC3000 and let it convert the 1080i to 720p internally.

[QUOTE=Kosty]Looks great. Rivals 1080p projectors. Use 1080i output from player to feed the HC3000 and let it convert the 1080i to 720p internally.[/QU


Kosty:

I'm a newby. I'm putting up my Mits and I have a RCA HD-DVD Toshiba clone. If I follow what you suggest won't I get 1080i out of my Mits when I play HD-DVDs? :confused:

FremontRich

All digital displays reformat the source using deinterlacing and scaling as necessary to fit the resolution of the display panel. The reason you send 1080i out of that player is the player itself is horrible at downconverting to 720P - the display is much better at this - the difference is like watching DVD vs. HD it is that bad.

FremontRich

All digital displays reformat the source using deinterlacing and scaling as necessary to fit the resolution of the display panel. The reason you send 1080i out of that player is the player itself is horrible at downconverting to 720P - the display is much better at this - the difference is like watching DVD vs. HD it is that bad.

Hi Krasmuzik:

So what you're saying is that the Mits will downconvert the 1080i to 720p and then upconvert to 1080i? Or am I still confused :rolleyes:

Hi Krasmuzik:

So what you're saying is that the Mits will downconvert the 1080i to 720p and then upconvert to 1080i? Or am I still confused :rolleyes:


Yes you are a little confused ;) , you cannot resolve native 1080i/p on a 720p display . Only CRT displays can do native 1080i as digital displays are Progressive in nature (480p/540p/600p/720p/768p/1080p) . So scaling has to happen at some point , the question is what scales better , the source or the display . In the case of the Toshiba/RCA HD DVD players the answer is the display because they do not downconvert 1080p from the HD DVD disc to 720p properly (they do great at going from 1080p to 1080i however) . The HC3000 does a great job with 1080i to 720p so you want to send the best resolution out of the HD DVD player (which is 1080i) to the HC3000 .

----- Jason

Yes you are a little confused ;) , you cannot resolve native 1080i/p on a 720p display . Only CRT displays can do native 1080i as digital displays are Progressive in nature (480p/540p/600p/720p/768p/1080p) . So scaling has to happen at some point , the question is what scales better , the source or the display . In the case of the Toshiba/RCA HD DVD players the answer is the display because they do not downconvert 1080p from the HD DVD disc to 720p properly (they do great at going from 1080p to 1080i however) . The HC3000 does a great job with 1080i to 720p so you want to send the best resolution out of the HD DVD player (which is 1080i) to the HC3000 .

----- Jason

Thanks, Jason. :)

I am just about to purchase the HC3000, but here is my situation. I have a room which is 12 1/2 ft by 12 1/2 ft. I have a 72" diagonal screen and I sit back about 12 ft. (couch against the wall) The bottom of my screen is 25 inches above the floor. Floor to ceiling height is 7 1/2 ft.
If I ceiling mount the HC3000 is the offset going to be ok? I could raise the screen if needed.
Any advice would be appreciated!

I had 7.8 ft ceilings and my screen is a 110in and 30in off the floor.I could not get the hc3000 to work.If i placed the screen 7in above the floor it worked.But i did not want my screen that close to the floor.It looks bad plus my cat's might pissed on it.Wished i could of though,It has a killer pic.It makes me mad they can't put lens shift on all FP.DOES NOT MAKE SINCE,BUDDA

Would this projector work mounted on a ceiling for a 92' inch and ceiling being around 8 feet.? how far back would the projector have to be?

Question for all the owners of the Mits who had it longer. I read in Art's review, (and saw a screenshot) that the PJ has color temp. settings with numbers like 6500K... Mine is different. Has settings of low, medium, high, high brightness and user only, no numbers at all. I assume it's the same just with the labeling different but in Art's review he said he set the temp at 6500 and THEN went in and adjusted the RGB values. On my Mits the only way you can adjust the RGB values is when you select color temp. USER.
Is mine different? Am I not doing something right? I am using HDMI for the dvd player and component for my cable. On both inputs I am using AV memory 1 like in his review.

Thanks! d

Question for all the owners of the Mits who had it longer. I read in Art's review, (and saw a screenshot) that the PJ has color temp. settings with numbers like 6500K... Mine is different. Has settings of low, medium, high, high brightness and user only, no numbers at all. I assume it's the same just with the labeling different but in Art's review he said he set the temp at 6500 and THEN went in and adjusted the RGB values. On my Mits the only way you can adjust the RGB values is when you select color temp. USER.
Is mine different? Am I not doing something right? I am using HDMI for the dvd player and component for my cable. On both inputs I am using AV memory 1 like in his review.

I bought the projector when it was first released, and mine works like Art's. The color temperatures are listed numerically, and you can start with say 6500k and adjust from there; your final settings will become User1.

Thanks, I guess they changed it a bit. I have Low, Medium, High, High Brightness and User. To adjust RGBs you have to click user first. odd...

Hi.

I have just bought the CalMan SpyderTV bundle and thought you would like to see how I got along with it?

The colour temperature was too high in cinema mode and the greyscale tracking wasn´t very good either. The Spyder is however on the limit on the lower readings and therefore you should not pay too much attention to that. Comparing before after is of course subjective, but it has got a better depth in the picture and the skin tones looks even better than before.

Thanks, I guess they changed it a bit. I have Low, Medium, High, High Brightness and User. To adjust RGBs you have to click user first. odd...

Dave Mack

If your firmware changed it is a very good bet that someone else settings would not even be in the ballpark. Of course with a different lamp those settings are still a foul ball (technically in the ballpark) - but that is besides the point.... And on top of that skill of the calibrator providing the settings....who should know such things that it is pointless to provide settings (otherwise I could calibrate one and sell my numbers and live on easy street)

Those new labels are more descriptive than the K labels which were not even close to indicated K - though of course one wishes the would spend energy on firmware updates that involved factory calibration - rather than relabeling to avoid it!

Gotcha! Thanks man!
I have my tricks to eyeball and get an initial good greyscale with avia and I have several reference DVDs I use. I;m sure it's not 100% but for now it's good. The suggested color temps the Mits default too are hallucinatorily off and anyone can tell that.

:)

Gotta save some dough for a calib...

How's the SDE (Screen Door Effect) on this PJ?

One quick question to HC3000U owners:

I noticed that a door panel is missing which is found underside of unit (next to the lamp access panel). Is this normal? Can you please check yours? I don't think the panel is needed but I'd like to know if all units are shipped this way. It seems odd. Thanks.

-Canela

Edit: Pic added.

Sorry I posted this in the wrong thread. Looking for a new proj and I have a Z2 so placement pretty easy. I have trey ceilings so was thinking about putting the projector upside down in a hole cut out of the trey. Was thinking of putting rubber feet on the projector top of projector cause it would essentially be a ceiling mount and I assume you can access all features from the remote so having to hit any controls on the proj wouldn't be necessary. I used the calculator so the offset looks to my advantage once I mount it in the trey cause I have a ceiling fan flush with the trey ceilings and it looks like you have about give or take 18" throw down, want to do about a 106" screen. I can see where this would be a problem for a lot of people but looks like it should work. Would this work and by the way whoever posted that site for pricing it is quite a deal.

My ceiling is about 8 feet high, and I want a 92inch screen is this possible at a distince of around 12 feet throw distance? I am close on getting this but I am worried about Rainbow effect and some people saying DLPs give them headaches. should I be worried about this or is it VERY rare? Is anyone using a HD-DVD player with this projector, how do they look, the image still really detailed and crisp?

Possibe HTPC issue with HC3000. I was having issues at first with setting up my projector with my dvd player and with my htpc. Black and white were being crushed severely. Since then I have changed settings in my dvd player (lowered contrast and brightness) and the problem has been mostly solved. I'm still experienceing some white crush with my dvd player (pioneer 578). The htpc needed similar tweeking (lowering contrast and brightness). I'm using an ATI 9600 SE via dvi and using the latest catalyst drivers.

Should I be using different drivers or perhaps a different dvd program all together? I'm currently using Power DVD 6.0 I believe, have to check on that when I get home...

I guess the root of my question is, are these crush issues I'm having my dvd player and htpc, or the projector?

Sorry for the convoluted question, thanks for your help.

Would this projector work mounted on a ceiling for a 92' inch and ceiling being around 8 feet.? how far back would the projector have to be?

Did anyone have an answer to this question? My set-up is very similar once I move to the new house. My ceiling is 8 or 9ft tall, I will measure again tonight. I will have it ceiling mounted at 12-12.5 ft from the screen shooting at a 92" diag screen.

How low will the bottom of the screen be from the floor? Will that be too low?

Thanks,

Mr Ian B

I'm also curious about the offset. I'll be mounting the unit 14-15 feet from the wall on a 9 ft ceiling, hoping to get a 110" screen. I'm really concerned that the screen would be too low, as ideally it would be less than 20" from the ceiling.

8 ft ceiling... mounting unit anywhere from 11 to 12.5 feet back on the ceiling... hoping for a 92-100" screen as well...

From what I've seen regarding the digital shift I might be ok with a snug mount... I was wondering if there's a mount that will keep the PJ closer to the ceiling than the Chief?

Hoping to buy either this or the HD72 next week... thanks!

Those of you that use the Oppo 971, how does the image cropping look? I hate not to have 1:1 pixel mapping, but everyone seems to like the Oppo. Anyone not like the Oppo for the HC3000?

Those of you that use the Oppo 971, how does the image cropping look? I hate not to have 1:1 pixel mapping, but everyone seems to like the Oppo.

The HC3000 will 1:1 pixel map with a 720p input signal, which the Oppo can provide.

But the oppo has image cropping, so you cannot get a true 1:1 mapping. You would be getting a 1:1 mapping of a scaled image right?

Well my HC3000 started getting what I consider the flickering that has been talked about here on this thread. It ocuurs in Low Lamp mode and it's most noticeable on white or light scenes. So I call up Mitsubishi and the tell me to take out to a local repair center called Intech. I It's been there for two weeks and two techs told me they can't see a thing :(

Has Mitsubishi been good about repairing or replacing these units? Or am I in for a definite run around :confused:

ifeliciano,

My guess is that the repair center looked at the projector for less than a minute, once, and left it at that. My experience with local repair centers is ABYSMAL. (In two different cities, I have NEVER had a positive experience with a repair facility and neither has anyone I've known.) They're dishonest and irresponsible and probably don't know as much as many AVS Forum members who consider themselves hobbyists.

I'd go straight back to Mitsubishi and complain. I read this ENTIRE thread yesterday (I'm thinking about getting an HC3000) and in other situations, the Mitsubishi support appears to be pretty good. You should call again and talk to another customer service rep.

So I call up Mitsubishi and the tell me to take out to a local repair center called Intech.

Initech? Make sure they fill out their TPS cover pages. That could be the source of the holdup. :)

But the oppo has image cropping, so you cannot get a true 1:1 mapping. You would be getting a 1:1 mapping of a scaled image right?

Yes, but it's hardly noticeable.

Hi HC3000 Owners:

I'm in the process of mounting my Mits and I am using the Chief RPA-U mount and SLBU adapter. I noticed that the screws provided by Chief to secure the projector to the adapter legs are bottoming out and are a bit too long. Would it be correct for me to use a washer to make up the slack when securing the projector to the adapter legs? Thanks!

Did your Chief mount come with little white plastic standoffs as spacers?

Did your Chief mount come with little white plastic standoffs as spacers?

No plastic standoffs but Chief did provide washers. Also, I noticed when replacing the standard screws with the security screws it seems like a tight fit when inserting the security screws into the tapped holes. The threads seem similar but I'm concerned about cross-threading. Upon closer inspection the screws I'm replacing are self tapping! It explains the difficulty I have installing the security screws which are fully threaded! :eek:

Initech? Make sure they fill out their TPS cover pages. That could be the source of the holdup. :)

Ha ha ha.... :D I love Office Space. My co-worker and I watched it at the theater when it released and we called in sick to work for three days afterwards.

I work for a tech company in the Dallas/Fort Worth, TX area and I swear that every character in that movie works with me. From Samir to freaking " I believe you have my stapler" Milton.....

Damn, Im watching it tonight again

I just ordered my Mits HC3000U what screen are you guys using? Here is what I'm looking for:
* less than $700 street (not MSRP)
*100% light controlled room
*88" or 92" 1.78 screen
*13'X12' room
*Viewing distance about 11'

I'm leaning toward a Carada Classic Cinema White, but am also interested in what Dalite has available. I must admit the main reason I'm posting this is because I'm confused by all of the Dalite offerings, I found the description of all of their screen types, but what is the "standard" for DLP projectors in a light controlled room.

Thanks! :)
Daniel

I just received my HC3000U last week and so far love it. I was surprised to see that I have the ability to vertically shift the image up or down (and there is a considerable amount of shift in either direction). Is this normal, or is there some other setting I've missed that works in conjunction with this one (I have overscan set to 100%)? It just strikes me as unbelievable that there could be around 7-8" of shift up or down...

Scott:

I suspect what you've encountered is the difference between the height of your 720p image and the 768 pixel resolution of the HC3000. Because there are those "extra" 768 pixels when you're viewing 720p, you have the ability to move the image up and down on the DLP chip within that 48 pixel range.

Cool, huh?

I just ordered my Mits HC3000U what screen are you guys using? Here is what I'm looking for:
* less than $700 street (not MSRP)
*100% light controlled room
*88" or 92" 1.78 screen
*13'X12' room
*Viewing distance about 11'

I'm leaning toward a Carada Classic Cinema White, but am also interested in what Dalite has available. I must admit the main reason I'm posting this is because I'm confused by all of the Dalite offerings, I found the description of all of their screen types, but what is the "standard" for DLP projectors in a light controlled room.

Thanks! :)
Daniel

So any suggestions on a screen for the HC3000U? I'm still very interested! :(

Daniel

You can't go wrong with a Carada bw screen.Excellent service and killer product,BUDDA

Scott:

I suspect what you've encountered is the difference between the height of your 720p image and the 768 pixel resolution of the HC3000. Because there are those "extra" 768 pixels when you're viewing 720p, you have the ability to move the image up and down on the DLP chip within that 48 pixel range.

Cool, huh?Yes, that feature is very cool, and it's one I knew about prior to buying the PJ. What surprised me was the amount of vertical shift in both directions (up and down). Can the 48 extra rows of pixels really amount to 7 - 8" of shift in either direction (on a 96" x 54" screen)? That seemed like a lot to me, so I wanted to check to make sure there weren't some other settings that were causing this.

So any suggestions on a screen for the HC3000U? I'm still very interested! :(

Daniel
Hello Daniel,

I've been in the same boat as you agonizing over the myriad of choices available... I finally pulled the trigger today.

I'll go ahead and sing the praises of Mark at Projector USA for taking his time with me on the phone going over projector and screen options. He was very courteous and knowledgeable discussing this projector and the current competitors... taking into account all the details of my personal environment that I threw his way.

In my discussion with Mark we decided that a Da-Lite High Contrast Matte White would be a good match for this projector. I'll be ceiling mounting the projector about 11-12 feet back, and decided on going with a 92" Deluxe Model B. In going through the numbers this is the largest screen I can fit into my room environment comfortably. My room has blinds on the windows for during the day (sporting events), and good light control at night (movies).

I don't know if this helps much, but I feel pretty confident that I'll be happy when it's up and running.

Good luck with it!

Tiber,
Thanks for the reply! I bought my projector at ProjectorUSA.com too. I got an e-mail from Mark, so maybe that will be a good resource to talk to. I would still like to hear any other opinions of people on this forum.

Thanks again,
Daniel