Well...
I sent off the z4 and a support guy called me saying that everything looked fine to him. He said that red was 1/2 pixel off and he adjusted it the best he could. I told him how the edges of the text wasn't crisp and how I was upgrading from an x1. He said that's just kind of how it is with 3 panel lcd and there isn't much that I can do about it. Of course, everything should look fine in video, but I'm kind of put off on lcd if it's always going to look this uncrisp.
Let me qualify this...
It isn't bad, but it is noticeably lower in quality than the svga x1 dlp that I had a year or two ago. It is higher resolution and widescreen, but I think my next pj will probably be dlp, again.
JJ

Super customer service found nowhere else.
Very surprising to have a resolution complaint. My experience with the Z4 has been nothing else but sharp and sharper. The text on all the DVDs is clean and beautifully resolved. Even the older and sometimes softer DVDs are obvious in their resolution contrast to any of the later sources including local HD and standard satellite. My screens are 92 and 108 inch.
Can't wait for the Z6 and 1080P. Looks as though, the present circuits that scale the inputs are fully capable to handle the extra pixel count.
Are you using the lens offset? Can you experiment with focus over different parts of the screen and use other offsets? Are you pushing contrast or brightness?
What is the screen material and size? If it were the lamp focus, processor or scaling, the repair people would have seen it. It is positively not an inherant design defect. DLPs are NOT sharper [only noisier].

The one area that pretty much every review agrees on about Z4 compared to DLP is it's razor sharp picture. I've seen several DLP projectors and while they can excel in several other areas compared to LCD, overall sharpness has not been one of the areas I've noticed a big difference in. Would I rather have an Infocus In76 instead of my Z4? If my current projector mount location would work...probably. Is it a sharper image? Not from what I've seen. Better color and a bit brighter in more usable modes, but not sharper. And also double the price and no lense shift.

It's sort of puzzling how an svga x1 could be sharper unless there was some other unknown issue at hand.

I'm not referring to text on dvd.
I have it connected to an htpc using the same aiw9000pro. Now the differences are that I was using a dvi/vga converter, before. Now I'm using a dvi/hdmi cable. Also, I was running 800x480 and now I'm running 1280x720.
If I have text up (windows explorer for instance) it is especially noticeable. I have no problem with the quality of a movie or tv. I was just surprised at how uncrisp the flat edges of text are.
I wish I could give you an a/b comparison. I can see it, sitting 10' from a 74" screen. Other people think it looks great, but they don't really have a frame of reference, either. Again, it's not bad by any stretch, but I can definitely see a softness where it should be sharp.
I guess It could be the digital feed or the 28ag cable. My understanding was that the gauge of the cable was much less important on the digital side (I wouldn't want to use 28ag for vga). Thicker would only make it more of a pain to install (less bend and such). It's a 15' cable from monoprice. I guess I could try the dvi/vga adapter and vga cable that I used before.
Gil Arroyo...
I am using the lens shift, but only about 25% vert/horiz. I have noticed that focus fades from middle to edge.
JJ

My wish would be that the z4 could display as crisp a picture in "full" mode as in "through" mode.

If the picture is 720 or 1080 of course this cannot be changed. But turn off the upconversion feature and then the through mode is active. I find it crisper than even true 720 or 1080. I don't know if this is what you are referring JJ.

My wish would be that the z4 could display as crisp a picture in "full" mode as in "through" mode.

If the picture is 720 or 1080 of course this cannot be changed. But turn off the upconversion feature and then the through mode is active. I find it crisper than even true 720 or 1080. I don't know if this is what you are referring JJ.

I hate to be argumentative, Kiwi; but there is NOTHING sharper than the Z4. DLP or LCD at 720, you have the sharpest of all. There is probably an interface or display problem. I cannot imagine anyone talking about a "soft" picture with the Z4.

I replaced my Sony HTU CRT [$14000] with the Z4 and was blown away with the terrific resolution. You might argue about contrast ratios or color accuracy but NOT resolution. If Sanyo switched to 1080P tommorrow and used the same scaling, it would look great--the circuits are there and at my 108 i :eek: nch screen at 13 feet, I would be delighted to see more pixels for smoothness, but it needn't be any "sharper" than it is. You have a problem not related to the Z4 design/normal performance.

Help - Screen mode menu locked on my Z4.

When I go to the menue for screen selections (or press the screen select button) several choices are "grayed out" and unavailable. For example, the "normal" selection, and several others, are grayed out. "Normal" is what I need for standard TV broadcasts, of course.

I've tried every control I can think of on the remote, but can't seem to change this pattern. - What am I doing wrong, and how do I open the other selections?

Thanks,
Jim

When I go to the menue for screen selections (or press the screen select button) several choices are "grayed out" and unavailable. For example, the "normal" selection, and several others, are grayed out. "Normal" is what I need for standard TV broadcasts, of course.

Jim it might be the way you have the projector connected. What type of video connection are you using, hdmi or composite or component? If you are only using composite you will be restricted in some choices, ditto for the others. That would be where I would start. Does it act this way on all video inputs, ie, cable satellite dvd?

I hate to be argumentative, Kiwi; but there is NOTHING sharper than the Z4. DLP or LCD at 720, you have the sharpest of all. There is probably an interface or display problem. I cannot imagine anyone talking about a "soft" picture with the Z4.


I just find the "normal through" mode much sharper than the same image of an upconverted sd dvd in "full" mode.
The first mode mentiioned only fills about 1/4 to 1/3 of the screen though, but the picture is fantastic. I find the full mode even at 720p not as sharp. Perhaps you are again correct and I have some sort of an interface or display problem. I can't imagine what it could be though.

It wont be the first or last problem with this set up, of that I am sure.

Could it just be cause the image is smaller and thusly has less pixilization? Or am I thinking of the wrong mode. I thought "though" was when the image is shrunk down just a little.

Jim it might be the way you have the projector connected. What type of video connection are you using, hdmi or composite or component? If you are only using composite you will be restricted in some choices, ditto for the others. That would be where I would start. Does it act this way on all video inputs, ie, cable satellite dvd?

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I have been using a component connection, and the same component cables, since I set up the projector two years ago. (It worked fine until last month.) - I must have pushed the wrong button, but I can't figure out what I did wrong.

Jim

Jim,
Have you changed your input into the Z4? If the input is 720p, 1080i or HDTV the only screen modes you can get are Full, Zoom, Caption in and Natural wide 2.

How many hours will I get from my Sanyo Plv Z4 Bulb?

How many hours will I get from my Sanyo Plv Z4 Bulb?

I don't know, but I have 2100 hours on my original lamp. I use it exclusively on econo mode since purchasing it 1 year ago.

I have over 4300 hours (high and eco modes combined) on my first lamp. The actual hours on the projector is 3600. I have an HP screen so I'm hoping to have it last a few more thousand!

Wow, that's a ton more hours than I was expecting for the bulb life!

Hello all.
New to this thread, and trying to learn/understand the volumes of info here!

A very newbie question: I'm trying to understand the difference between the "general" Red, Green, and Blue adjustments in the main Image menu, and the more "detailed" Offset, Gamma, and Gain of each color in the Advanced menu.

I'm assuming they're for adjusting gray scale, and I (think I) understand that Gain is for the "light" (contrast) of the the color, Offset for the "dark" (brightness), etc, but then how does the main Red, Green, Blue in the Image menu play into it? It would appear they do the same thing as the Gamma adjustments in the Advanced menu.
Do you set all the main colors to zero and then adjust everything in the Advanced menu?
Or set all the Advanced settings to zero first, then adjust the main Red, Green, Blue, then go back and tweak in the Advanced menu? What do you do first?

I'd like to understand, conceptually, what all these particular settings mean and/or do (if that's possible?). Or am I over my head?

I've read thru this forum and didn't see anything on this, other than seeing some of everything adjusted in various people's published settings.

Trying to learn. Thanx in advance for any insight, or if you can point me to a site that would have good background info that would help, too!

RobBob42 -- Welcome to the AVS Forum.

The best place to start is at the top of the "Calibration" forum. Here is the general page: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=585527. The first posts provide a lot of discussion of calibration tools (the link to Chris Wiggles "Go To" guide link in post #1) and Chris also provided, in post #3, Guy Kuo's presentation on how to use AVIA (in which Guy was a major contributor).

In post #6 of that thread, Ursa provides his PDF file on calibration basics (download it and read at your convenience), the link to this file is here: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=45623. Ursa is one of our calibration experts and has put this Adobe Acrobat (PDF) file together to provide a comprehensive discussion of calibration.

These should get you going to start with. Basically, the "Advanced" menu is for fine tuning and should be left at factory defaults (not "zero") to start with. With the Z4, the fine tuning is necessary, from what I've read.

If you need more calibration references, send me a PM, and I'll see what I can dig up for you.

Thanks CT! Will check it out.

FYI, on my Z4, if I pick a preset (at least CC, PC, and Living) I believe all the Advanced color setting are set to zero. I assume, then, that those are the factory defaults - at least for those presets.

Does anybody have HD-DVD and Blu-RAY setting for the Z4?

Does anybody have HD-DVD and Blu-RAY setting for the Z4?

Mine is based on Rone's Living Settings. It will also depend on your screen as I had a gray screen before now I have a white screen with 1.4 gain. Also I'm in a cave (mostly black walls and ceiling with no window.

These settings are the only differences. Also make sure to use the advanced color tool. I focused on a face in a bright scene to get the oranginess out of the flesh tone and also used it to get the purple out of lips (best scene to take care of this is at the beginning of the fifth element in the tomb where the kid with a slightly bloody nose is looking at amazement at the creatures.)

These hdmi settings I use for blu-ray/hd and games.

Iris -30
Bright -5
Contrast +15 (+12 is better but I like bright scenes brighter)
Gamma 0
Blue -8
Green -1
Sharp +1


Play with bright/contrast/gamma. It will be room/screen dependent. What I like to do is turn the contrast as high as you can till you start to lose detail then back down a little. Then when adjusting black level overexpose the image and then back down to see what is black enuff for you without losing all the detail. Then I adjust gamma lastly for the overall picture. I am no expert but this seems to work for me and I'm happy with my picture.

I hope this is of some help to you. Ultimately you'll have to adjust to your liking.
Let me know what you think. Seems tho that some movies require different settings as they are either too dark or too saturated or to much contrast to begin with.

great projector but it needs a lens for anamorphic material. However ,it's a keeper...for a week or so.

Just picked up a new Z4 for a steal to replace my Z1. Looking forward to the tweaks and improved PQ!! Thanks all for the info.

Hello all,

Not sure if this is relevant to this thread, but there's been such a wealth of info here I thought I'd give it a shot. If not, please forgive...

I have a VCR's composite output hooked up to the composite input of the Z4 and it plays fine, but when I want to FF ahead commercials, pause it, etc (where you should still be able to see an image), the picture goes blank in about a second. If I wait long enough the 5-minute "no signal" timer starts up. If I run the video thru the receiver (VCR composite output to composite input on receiver, then "monitor" output to the Z4) it does the same thing.

This happens with 2 different VCR units, one a Sanyo (no less), the other a Panasonic. Both units work fine when plugged the same way into a standard CRT/tube type TV.

Not sure why this is happening. I'm left to believe the video signal coming out of the VCR is somehow "different" when FF or pausing, and that the Z4 can't "digest" it. But a video signal should be a video signal, right(?). The Z4 has no way of "knowing" it's a FF'd or paused image. Is the signal coming out of a VCR different in these modes?

I've gone thru every Z4 menu setting I could lay my hands on but there doesn't seem to be anything relating to this. Is there something I'm missing? Any ideas?

Thanx!

I have a VCR's composite output hooked up to the composite input of the Z4 and it plays fine, but when I want to FF ahead commercials, pause it, etc (where you should still be able to see an image), the picture goes blank in about a second.

No problem there, it is just that the Z4 does not "see" the fast forward and shows no signal. I found the same problem when changing channels on my satellite reciever through the Z4. Nothing wrong with the unit.

Hi All,

I spent several hours reading through this post and several others on the forum. I'd like to see if someone has compiled all the different "settings" that everyone has posted over the years in one place? Everyone has done a great job posting up options that have been calibrated for something specific (like through an HTPC, or utilizing an Oppo player, etc...) does anyone have basic settings for using it with HD cable and a standard DVD player, etc?... I totally understand there will need to be tweaks but I'd like to try them all and see which ones look best for my setup. Most of my equipment is run through HDMI with only a couple items using component (not to worried about them at this point) If anyone has a good starting point for regular viewing via HDMI or know where there is a compilation of all the settings let me know. TIA!!

No problem there, it is just that the Z4 does not "see" the fast forward and shows no signal. I found the same problem when changing channels on my satellite reciever through the Z4. Nothing wrong with the unit.
Hi Kiwi,

Just to clarify I'm referring to FF'ing thru commercials and Paused images, not the straight/"normal" FF - for that I know the VCR cuts the image.

In the case of your satellite receiver, the receiver itself is probably shutting off the signal between stations so you don't get "static" (or whatever) - likely a designed feature. But the VCR has to be sending out a signal at that point or there wouldn't be any point to those functions. And an image will show up fine on a standard tube-type TV, even my PC, just NOT on the Z4.

What puzzles me about this is why the Z4 doesn't "see" the image. I could understand that internally, inside the VCR, the signal is "processed" differently for different playback modes, etc, but once the video signal hits the output port/composite jack it should be a standard video signal. At that point a signal should be a signal, so that it's compatable with whatever device you're inputing it to (i.e a TV, another VCR, etc). How would the Z4 have any way of knowing whether that particular signal is a FF'd or Paused image from a VCR?

Bizarre... What's different between a TV and the Z4 (besides the obvious CRT vs LCD technology) that one shows an image and the other doesn't?

RobBob

any new settings out there with pictures to match?

I too would like to see if there are any new settings. I've imported the three that I pulled from the beginning of the thread and have been satisfied with the results. I have found the detail is so much better on this machine (my original is a Z1) that I'm toggling between settings on every show I watch. I still would like some additional "generic" settings that weren't reliant on an HTPC or specific DVD. I know this is tough but it would be good to have a compilation post similar to what RONE started.

Hey, for those of you with Toshiba HD DVD players, do you use 1080i or 720p output from the player? I know 720p output was broken before 2.0 firmware which fixed it...but how does the Z4 handle 1080i? Is it true it scales it to 1920x540 before scaling to 1280x720?

I have been going back and forth, and the two outputs look basically the same to me but you can't exactly do a quick A/Bing as it makes you stop playback when you adjust the setting. Since they look the same to me I know I shouldn't be too concerned but without A/Bing there might be a small difference that you couldn't see otherwise....and we all want the best picture possible. ;)

Yeah I know this question was asked about a year ago, but a lot fo us have bought 2nd or 3rd gen players since. So for peeps with an A2... do you output the player at 720p or 1080i? I've read the scaler on the A2 isn't all that, so is the Z4 the better machine to do the scaling?

Yeah I know this question was asked about a year ago, but a lot fo us have bought 2nd or 3rd gen players since. So for peeps with an A2... do you output the player at 720p or 1080i? I've read the scaler on the A2 isn't all that, so is the Z4 the better machine to do the scaling?

Question: Are you more sensitive to "jaggies" or resolution? I usually have the Z4 set to 720P for resolution. Jaggies fade in an upscale to 1080P and I suspect, but annot verify that the resolution may be less. Cannot see this on 100 inch screen. Both upscales entirely acceptable for both jaggies and resolution.
I am going to sell this 2952 hour Z4 cheap with 2 brand new Sanyo lamps if you are interested. buying the new Z2000.
GILCANYON@MSN.COM

Question: Are you more sensitive to "jaggies" or resolution? I usually have the Z4 set to 720P for resolution. Jaggies fade in an upscale to 1080P and I suspect, but annot verify that the resolution may be less. Cannot see this on 100 inch screen. Both upscales entirely acceptable for both jaggies and resolution.
I am going to sell this 2952 hour Z4 cheap with 2 brand new Sanyo lamps if you are interested. buying the new Z2000.
GILCANYON@MSN.COM

I already have a Z4 with a couple extra bulbs, but thanks for the offer :)

The A2 can only output up to 1080i, so it seems like you aren't using an A2. I am just seeing from the owners what they output the A2 at, 720p or 1080i.

Better late than never I guess.

As requested by many members throughout this thread including myself, here are the calibrated settings for both Component and HDMI. Included are the base preset information, both were started on Creative Cinema. The HDMI setting in the Sanyo is also listed.

The calibration process has made my machine like a new display again. It is very much better and I should have done it earlier. Hence the first line.

Settings for a Dalite Imager with CinemaVision

HDMI

Preset creative cinema

Brightness -4
Contrast 0
Color +7
Tint +5
Color temp user

Red +6
Green 0
Blue 0

Sharpness 0
Lamp low
Gamma 0
Lens Iris -40
Lamp Iris Auto
Ato Black off
Contrast enhance Off
Transient response off
Hdmi setting L2

Gain
Red -3
Green +1
Blue +3

Offset
Red +3
Green 0
Blue +1

Gamma
Red +3
Green 0
Blue +1


Component

Preset creative cinema

Brightness -15
Contrast -13
Color -3
Tint +1
Color temp user

Red 0
Green 0
Blie 0

Sharpness 0
Lamp control low
Gamma 0
Lens iris -50
Lamp iris Auto
Auto black off
Contrast enhance off
Transient off

Gain
Red 0
Green +3
Blue +8

Offset
Red -3
Green +2
Blue -14

Gamma
Red +2
Green -2
Blue +1


Click here (http://www.flickr.com/photos/22564140@N08/) to see my theatre!

Hello!!

Sorry but my english is not very good. Have any one a tweak for XBOX 360 for the Z4?

for component if is possible

I have a Z4 and a Greywolf II screen. For 18 months my source was SD DVDs played on my Sony Megachanger. I used the Z4 out of the box and have really enjoyed it. I have found the single biggest factor on PQ to be the DVD / movie transfer itself. Quite simply, garbage in-->garbage out; just look at 2010.

I recently added a Toshiba A3 HD DVD player. Some DVDs look spectacular (e.g., 2001, The Searchers). I also have used the setting posted here (thankyou) but did brighten it up a bit to counter my gray screen.

So...with the recent HD upgrade and not feeling totally wow-ed...I am thinking:

1. of upgrading to the DaLite HighPower screen in search of the 'POP'
2. Our Z4s do a pretty good job upconverting, dont they?

-----I mean, is that why I'm not blown away by HD? I watched Bourne HD the other night and a bit of Gladiator SD last night and Gladiator blew it away in every way.

Donvituzzo, I use ROnes Living settings and am I very happy with it. Lots of colour, pop, and the picture is bright enough.

everytime I try to get rid of my Z4....IT KEEPS BRINGING ME BACK INTO IT!

Have any Z4 owners tried or moved up to the RS1 or RS2?

I like my Z4 - using a dalite high power screen and if anyone has a dalite HP with one of these new high contrast projectors i'd love to hear back some comments?

btw, projecting on a 120diagnal..1800 hours on bulb. Picture still looks fantastic. Using ROnes creative cinema settings and ffdshow to upscale content.

Cheers

flying saucer wrote

-----I mean, is that why I'm not blown away by HD? I watched Bourne HD the other night and a bit of Gladiator SD last night and Gladiator blew it away in every way.

Must agree with you there, a well done sd DVD is just as impressive as my hd cable.

I would think hard about a switch to the high power screen. You will lose the contrast because of the black issue with high power. I am not familiar with grey wolf but can I assume it is somewhat like Dalite high contrast Cinema Vision? When I was purchasing I recieved samples of many screen materials. Give that a try before you take the leap.

Have any Z4 owners tried or moved up to the RS1 or RS2?

I like my Z4 - using a dalite high power screen and if anyone has a dalite HP with one of these new high contrast projectors i'd love to hear back some comments?

btw, projecting on a 120diagnal..1800 hours on bulb. Picture still looks fantastic. Using ROnes creative cinema settings and ffdshow to upscale content.

Cheers


I tried ,but I keep coming back to the Z4 because I think prices will drop more sooner then later.:D

pushing 4000 hours on my first bulb, makes me want to wait a while longer to change.

The Z4 doesn't seem to be selling for much on ebay these days...as someone who may be selling my Z4 and upgrading to the Z2000, thats not a good thing.

$500 -650 seems to be the going rate for mint used units...man, I'll keep mine before selling it that low.

It will either move into the bedroom, or become a "WOW!" X-Mas gift for the in-laws who have been coveting it (and score me major points).

...Not much going on in this thread these days. I've had my Z4 now for a year (bought 3/2/2007), still on my first lamp, 900 plus is the count.. I've read the entire thread completely at least once and at other times just glanced through various pages of the thread. I don't think I ever thanked RONE for all his hard work calibrating the Z4 and sharing his findings with all of us... RONE was heavily involved early on, and then just faded...RONE, are you still out there? Any way, thanks for all your hard work man! In the past year I have tried many calibration settings, and ended up staying with RONE's Living settings for the PS3 and Toshiba's A1 using HDMI. I do want to add that my set-up NOW is similar to RONE's, using an 80 inch wide 1.0 gain screen projecting from 13ft... I do want to add that at first, I was projecting onto a 96 inch wide 1.0 gain screen with same throw and was never satisfied with the image...a 1.0 gain screen for that size just doesn't give good results...plug in those numbers on the projection calculator at projector central, and you'll see what I mean. For some that aren't satified with the image you are getting from the Z4, you may want to re-evaluate your set-up...I know I did, and it paid off! I am heavily considering the Z2000 as an upgrade to the Z4, and would like some feedback from any previous Z4 owners who have already made that switch. Interested in feedback regarding the jump in image quality...RONE, are you still using the Z4 or have you upgraded to 1080p?

Ok, so I had my lamp at 3500+ hours. It was quite dim, so I figured it was a good time to replace it. I plugged in the free lamp I got from Sanyo when I bought the projector. Followed all of the instructions to the letter. It looked beautiful. Then, 4 hours later, it turned off. Power and Lamp Replace lights were flashing. I waited 10 minutes. Turned it back on and it worked until bedtime (~3 more hours). The next morning, it went off after an hour, Power and Warning lights flashing. Cleaned the filters again. Started it back up. It worked for an hour. Went off. Power and Lamp Replace lights flashing again. Left it off for over an hour and reinstalled the lamp just in case I didn't have it seated properly or something. Retightened the screws and everything. It's been on for an hour or so now. If this doesn't work I'm going to put the old lamp back in.
Anyone run into this before? Any idea what this could be? Bad lamp? Did I screw something up with the projector?

Ugh.
Thanks,
Joe

Please correct me if I'm wrong but does this projector accepts 1080p?
The manual says it doesn't.
I want to get a Bluray player and I think only a few output 720p or 1080i.

Right now I can only recall the Pioneers BDP-50FD & 51FD

Everyone experiences with bluray players are welcome
Thanks.

According to Sanyo it does not, however, I don't know that anyone has actually tested and reported back here. Once in a while a device will do things that the manufacturer says it won't do. I had a Westinghouse TV that accepted 1080p via component even though the manual said it didn't.

I thought that most Blu-rays could do 720p and 1080i? PS3 can and Samsungs say they output at other resolutions than 1080p. Not trying to be a jerk at all, but r u sure that most Blu-Ray can't output at 720P? With all of the 720p TV's, Rear Proj 1080i HDTV's, and 720p projectors out there that can't accept a 1080p signal, it would be very surprising to me if most Blu-Ray players can't output at anything other than 1080p. I was going to get one and I still have my Z4 so that would be a total buzz-kill! Although I'd probably just get the PS3. Maybe there's different resolutions for DVD output vs. Blu-ray disc output. Anyone here using Blu-ray with their Z4 wanna chime in on this?

According to Sanyo it does not, however, I don't know that anyone has actually tested and reported back here. Once in a while a device will do things that the manufacturer says it won't do. I had a Westinghouse TV that accepted 1080p via component even though the manual said it didn't.

I thought that most Blu-rays could do 720p and 1080i? PS3 can and Samsungs say they output at other resolutions than 1080p. Not trying to be a jerk at all, but r u sure that most Blu-Ray can't output at 720P? With all of the 720p TV's, Rear Proj 1080i HDTV's, and 720p projectors out there that can't accept a 1080p signal, it would be very surprising to me if most Blu-Ray players can't output at anything other than 1080p. I was going to get one and I still have my Z4 so that would be a total buzz-kill! Although I'd probably just get the PS3. Maybe there's different resolutions for DVD output vs. Blu-ray disc output. Anyone here using Blu-ray with their Z4 wanna chime in on this?

Thanks for you answer Dweezilz, and don't worry about your comment, the truth is that I don't have any experience with Bluray players, only with a HD-DVD that output up to 1080i, so I must had the wrong idea about how bluray players work, I'm happy to see that I can buy almost any player and don't have compatibily issues.
Thanks again.

To jdfrietze

Please reporot back if you find a solution to your new replacment lamp problem. I am sure many on this thread will be in the same boat as you soon in regards to the extra lamp that came with the projector.

If all else fails contact Sanyo and let us know the reply!

OT: All Blu-Rays are supposed to output 1080i(@30). Some output 1080p@60; some output 1080p@24* or 1080p24sf*.

As far as I know, all HDTV's accept 1080i.

You will have to shop for a Blu-Ray player that outputs 720p. Even though you really should get a review or do viewing tests, chances are that getting 720p out of the player will yield better results than feeding the projector 1080i and letting the projector convert (to 720p).

Video hints: http://www.cockam.com/video.htm

* Slightly different formats each containing the same material.

Well, that's not necessarily true about needing a 720p Blu-Ray player. While in theory I do agree with you, the execution of each Blu-Ray unit isn't always the same, thus 720p may or may not look best. My old up converting Zenith DVD player that I use to have looked considerably better feeding the Z4 1080i than it did 720p. It all depends on the device and how well it renders any particular resolution. I've compared my Time Warner SA8300HD cable box at both 720p and 1080i and while it depends on the content of the show I think 1080i tends to look a bit more colorful to me.

At any rate, from what I can tell, most Blu-Rays can output more than just 1080p so read some reviews, download some user manuals (don't rely on website specs or in store sales people to tell you) in order to see for sure what the units are capable of and get the best one for the money. To me, Playstation3 still is one of the best deals out there for Blu-Ray.

Please correct me if I'm wrong but does this projector accepts 1080p?
The manual says it doesn't.
I want to get a Bluray player and I think only a few output 720p or 1080i.

Right now I can only recall the Pioneers BDP-50FD & 51FD

Everyone experiences with bluray players are welcome
Thanks.

I own a Z4, and I use a Samsung BD-UP5000 for playing Blu-ray, HD-DVD and standard DVDs. I have the Samsung set to 1080p, so I can verify 100% that the Z4 WILL accept a 1080p signal. I used to have a 40GB PS3, and I used to set it to 1080p as well.

To my eyes, setting the Samsung to 1080p instead of 720p, or 1080i, provides an image that is slightly sharper. It seems to me that the scalar in the Z4 is responsible for this difference, slight as it may be.

When inputting a 1080p signal, the information screen shows "DVI" at 60hz.

As a matter of fact, the Z4 will even accept a 1080p/24 signal. In this case, the information screen shows "DVI" at 24hz. Unfortunately, however, the image shows frequent tearing, and doesn't smooth out panning shots. It seems to me that although the info screen shows 24hz, the Z4 is using some kind of pulldown and converts the image to 60hz internally.

I highly recommend trying High-def media at 1080p/60 on the Z4...just forget about 1080p/24.

now this is an interesting subject once again for Z4! Just when I thought the subject was pretty much dead. :)

First question is how do you get your Z4 to show 'DVI' when it only has an HDMI input? The best you can do is take a DVI device (like my HTPC is) and get an adaptor box to send HDMI to the Z4 (like I do). Mine only will say D-720p or D-1080i. Do you guys have a older firmware that's displaying differently? Or a different model that has a DVI input? I've never seen it say DVI for anything.

So time for the experiment. I still have a 1080p player in a box waiting for me to setup my new receiver with HDMI switching so that's out for testing until I get it going. So I do have my HTPC which can output 1080p. From everything I've read the PC outputs 1080p, not not 1080i, so I think it's a legit 1080p test. I don't know how I can tell on the HTPC to see if it's sending i or p...just going to assume p. So, I set it to do 1080/60...and the Z4 accepts it, yet displays D-1080i. Not sure what to make of that... It would appear that somehow the Z4 is displaying my HTPC's 1080 signal, yet it shows 1080i @ 60 not DVI @ 60 as you are seeing. So I don't really know if it's the Z4 that's converting 1080p to 1080i and I just have a different firmware than you guys (newer??) or if the HTPC is really just sending 1080i (which I don't think is the case). Any thoughts?

This week when I setup my Oppo 1080p DVD player I'll report back when happens when it's set to 1080p.

To jdfrietze

Please reporot back if you find a solution to your new replacment lamp problem. I am sure many on this thread will be in the same boat as you soon in regards to the extra lamp that came with the projector.

If all else fails contact Sanyo and let us know the reply!

Well, that lamp caused me more aggravation, so I put the original back in. Did a lot of googling and many of the reviews for the Z4 were showing up with revised reviews saying, "Great projector but the free lamp from Sanyo sucks." Several people with apparently the same problem, and whenever they contacted Sanyo they would get a nice reply of "the lamps only have a 30 day warranty, and you have had it for over a year. Sorry, nothing we can do."
Luckily I got one of those extended lamp warranties from my projector dealer at cost. I called them up and told them my lamp was doing these weird things. (Ok, so maybe I didn't mention it wasn't the original lamp they had warrantied. Sue me.) And they shipped out a replacement in under a week. I supposedly have one more replacement if anything happens to this one within the original ext warranty period.

To jdfrietze

Thanks for the reply. I wish the news was better.

Dweezilz wrote.

First question is how do you get your Z4 to show 'DVI' when it only has an HDMI input?

It shows DVI when the 1080p signal is input.

This week when I setup my Oppo 1080p DVD player I'll report back when happens when it's set to 1080p.

I switched the oppo to 1080p. Yes, it displays a picture. No, I dont think it is any different than the 720P setting on the oppo.

When I had my system calibrated by an isf tech he recommended that the settings into the sanyo be the same resolution as what the sanyo outputs to avoid any scaling errors.

I switched the oppo to 1080p. Yes, it displays a picture. No, I dont think it is any different than the 720P setting on the oppo.

When I had my system calibrated by an isf tech he recommended that the settings into the sanyo be the same resolution as what the sanyo outputs to avoid any scaling errors.

This is a different case though. Your Oppo is scaling a 480i/p signal up to 1080p and then the Z4 is scaling it back to 720p. As you said, it's better to set the Oppo to 720p instead of 1080p in that case. Otherwise, it's being scaled above and then down to the Z4's native resolution, which really isn't necessary. It's not really a problem either way, since you won't see much, if any, difference.

However, I was referring to sending a 1080p source from a Blu-ray player out at 1080p, which the Sanyo scales down to 720p, as opposed to having the Blu-ray player scale the 1080p image down to 720p and then outputting that to the Z4. I've done it with a PS3 and my current Samsung BD-UP5000, and I've found that the Sanyo Z4 does a better job of scaling down to 720p than either of the two players I mentioned. Not a HUGE difference, but a difference nevertheless. Since the original source in this case is 1080p to begin with, it needs to be scaled down to 720p, but I think the Z4 does an excellent job of scaling, so I let it handle the scaling.

Best thing is to try it and decide for yourself which you prefer. You can't hurt anything.

Other possible options to an addition of a blu ray player for the sanyo are the new apple device which allows 720 video and 5.1 audio on demand for the price of a rental with no monthly fee or contract. The cost of the apple is less than half of a new panansonic blu ray.

Various U.S. satellite providers are now touting 1080p video on demand.

It seems as though the blu ray market segment might be short lived.

Is anyone using the Panasonic bd-35/55 blu ray player with the z4?

Does anyone have a problem with the bd 35-55 not keeping the selected output resolution when the unit is powered on when connected via hdmi to the display?

I have tried a couple of units now and they all do the same thing. I set it for the native resolution of the display,
the next time the system is powered up the output resolution is changed back to auto in the player menu and the resolution is incorrect on the display.

Anyone know a way to lock this feature in the player?

I am trying to determine if this is a handshake issue with the projector or a problem with the player itself, if there is any question why I am posting a blu ray quesiton in the z4 thread.

I have one more while at it. When the projector is powered up if I am listening to a cd via hdmi the sound will mute and not return unless the reciever is turned off/on agian to reslect the cd source. the dealer is pointing the finger at the z4.

Has anyone experienced this problem with multiple hdmi sources and the z4 projector?

re: BD35 -

maybe a firmware update? latest is 1.6. just give it a LAN connection and it will check/update automatically.

i use a v1.6 BD35 through an HDMI switching receiver and experience no such issues (never ran earlier firmware, as soon as i powered it up out of the box it updated 1.1 to 1.6).

i have output locked at 720p, as i think the player does a better job of scaling than the receiver. receiver accepts any res, so should 'look' as flexible as the projector in that regard.

not quite the same as your setup i realize, but just another data point...

My Z4 has 2300 hours on the lamp and I have a brand new one waiting. I've had many projectors over the years and this one have been up the longest. Are there anymore happy Z4 members out there?

After a power outage caused my Z4 to stop working at around 1300 hours, I discovered that opening it up and resetting the thermal switch got it back to working. It's now well over 2000 hours and looking very good....if a little dimmer. Can't say that I haven't been thinking about one of those new 1080P models though.

My Z4 has 2300 hours on the lamp and I have a brand new one waiting. I've had many projectors over the years and this one have been up the longest. Are there anymore happy Z4 members out there?

On my 3rd lamp! 1st 2 both made it over 2500 hours. Still happy but the upgrade bug gets worse as time goes by. I use it for TV, sports, movies, games - everything.

I'm extremely happy with my Z4 and SANYO's warranty. Last summer my HDMI input stopped working after our house took a lightning strike. Shipped it overnight on a Friday on SANYO's dime, they fixed it Monday and I had it back Tuesday! Great service!

Still happy with mine, but the urge to go 1080p is getting the better of me.

The upgrade bug always bits me ,but when I look at the Z4..welll.....lets just say...I brush the bug off. if I go with one it will be a sanyo.

I've got Analog / VGA from an HTPC and I've tried ROne's writeup and find myself wondering if I've made things better or worse.

Within this thread, I've searched for references for somebody tuning Analog / VGA and I've not seen anything...

Does anybody know if the same principles apply to Analog / VGA too? Is there a writeup for that?

I've got an nVIDIA 9600 card, if that makes any difference.

Thanks in advance.

Better late than never I guess.

As requested by many members throughout this thread including myself, here are the calibrated settings for both Component and HDMI. Included are the base preset information, both were started on Creative Cinema. The HDMI setting in the Sanyo is also listed.

The calibration process has made my machine like a new display again. It is very much better and I should have done it earlier. Hence the first line.

Settings for a Dalite Imager with CinemaVision

HDMI

Preset creative cinema

Brightness -4
Contrast 0
Color +7
Tint +5
Color temp user

Red +6
Green 0
Blue 0

Sharpness 0
Lamp low
Gamma 0
Lens Iris -40
Lamp Iris Auto
Ato Black off
Contrast enhance Off
Transient response off
Hdmi setting L2

Gain
Red -3
Green +1
Blue +3

Offset
Red +3
Green 0
Blue +1

Gamma
Red +3
Green 0
Blue +1


Component

Preset creative cinema

Brightness -15
Contrast -13
Color -3
Tint +1
Color temp user

Red 0
Green 0
Blie 0

Sharpness 0
Lamp control low
Gamma 0
Lens iris -50
Lamp iris Auto
Auto black off
Contrast enhance off
Transient off

Gain
Red 0
Green +3
Blue +8

Offset
Red -3
Green +2
Blue -14

Gamma
Red +2
Green -2
Blue +1


I used your settings and in my opinion there is still way to much red. Now I'm not sure if it's my Z4, but it's leaking red in the lower half of the screen. Turning red way down fixed it for me, and the picture looks superb!

I am glad you are enjoying the settings and the Z4!
When you say leaking red, that does not sound good though. But if you tweaked it out great.

I am glad you are enjoying the settings and the Z4!
When you say leaking red, that does not sound good though. But if you tweaked it out great.

Yea I'm not sure what it is. There is just way more red on the lower half of the screen than any other color. Could there be something wrong with the red lcd panel? If so, anyway to properly take care of the problem?

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1231682&highlight=kiwi2000

Please see this post for your problem.

I have not used my z4 for approx 1year while building my theater.

recently calibrated using rones settings and also with dve
set brightness and contrast according to dve

picture looks ok but very dark overall even with manual iris at 20 and above

pushing gamma to +4 makes image much more watchable.

I don't remember havong to set gamma that high previously. remember trying
+1 or sometimes +2

using oppo 83 dvd- diy light gray screen (n9) projecting from 12 feet away
on 96" screen. Screen color and size unchanged from previous use.

I only have about 600 hrs on original bulb but do have a lot of on/off usage

could my bulb be that dim/goin bad?? have others increased gamma setting to compensate for dim bulb?


tried calibration using hdmi L1 and L2 doesn't seem to make a diff.

appreciate any thoughts
Doug

So I just picked up an old PLV-Z4 from Craigslist for $75 for outdoor viewing. Lamp had over 3k hours on it, so I replaced it for $150 and with the help of this thread got it looking really good. I'm quite impressed by this little gem. Anyone out there still using theirs?

$75 (projector) + $150 (new lamp) + $25 (black out cloth and some PVC) = Very nice, super cheap outdoor theater

Even hooked it up in the basement with good results. Makes me wonder why I'm currently looking to spend $5k on a projector for the basement.

I still use mine after almost 5 years.

I still use mine after almost 5 years.

I just passed five years in May, and I still use My Z4. I've been tempted to upgrade to a 1080p projector, but the Z4 picture still looks fantastic!

I sold my last projector Hitachi TX-100 3 years ago. and got a nice 46" flatscreen.
But, I have realized that 46" does not give that WOW experience, even if you got Full HD. So, I've just picked up a Z4 for 300$ and bought an original Philips bulp for 260$ and bingo the home cinema is up and running again.

Wow, surprised to see this thread revived!

I still use mine (semi) regularly - 10 hours a week at the most. I have had it 5 trouble-free years, and I am still impressed by the picture. I have been targeting a 1080P projector for 3 years but have not been able to pull the trigger. My Z4 likely has quite a bit of life with the current bulb, so I don't know when I will take a serious look at an upgrade.

And I have upgrade-idis as much as anyone.....