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The official Epson 8700UB thread - Page 5

post #121 of 2825
10/22/10 at 7:42am
Quote:
Originally Posted by jones2416 View Post

I purchased a 8500UB 5 weeks ago and over the past week it has been acting up. I tried to replace the splitter and hdmi cable and finally last night BOOM flashing red lights. I purchased this through ABT with the extended warranty. They came out today and replaced it with a 8700UB Back in Business baby.

There hasn't been much in terms of 8500UB vs 8700UB reviews. Since you have had both would you be able to comment on any differences you notice, if there are any.
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post #122 of 2825
10/22/10 at 7:57am
There is not a thing. You can choose Anamorphic now for Aspect. Without the lens it just streaches the picture up to fill a widescreen. There was a voucher for a bulb and that is it. All of the modes are the same.
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post #123 of 2825
10/22/10 at 10:46am
Quote:
Originally Posted by jones2416 View Post

There is not a thing. You can choose Anamorphic now for Aspect. Without the lens it just streaches the picture up to fill a widescreen. There was a voucher for a bulb and that is it. All of the modes are the same.

Great, thanks for the feedback.
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post #124 of 2825
10/22/10 at 7:48pm
Thread Starter 
Whats everyone using for a screen. I saw the 8700 on a dragonfly 1.0 gain matte white screen and you could leave half the lights on and the picture still looked amazing
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post #125 of 2825
10/27/10 at 8:56am
Now that the new has worn off and I've had more time with it, I'm seeing (and hearing) some things I don't like.

First, the iris has seemingly grown louder. To the point where I've turned it off. I have a white ceiling, and can tell absolutely no difference when it's on or off due the reflection back on the screen (I suppose, assuming it's working correctly). A lower gain screen may help the contrast issue and keep so much light from bouncing back and lighting everything up.

Second, focus is wavering. The movie can start with each pixel of the "cross hairs" pattern (from the remote) clearly visible, but by the time it ends the pixels are not nearly as defined.

Third, and probably worst, is image noise. It seems to be color specific as parts of the image are clean. I've come across some seriously disturbing stuff in certain scenes. Not grain, but noise. I thought perhaps my HP screen was simply revealing some artifacts that wouldn't be present on lower gain screens, but I put of a piece of blackout cloth as well as white poster board up and it's still there.

Sure, when you take away these issues the picture is great, but these aren't issues easily overlooked. Once I got over having a new projector the faults became more apparent. Closer inspection of white text has also revealed a convergence issue, with red being one pixel to the left, and green being one pixel to the right.

The last few nights are the first chance I've really had time to sit down and inspect things. We've shown a few movies, but with kids running around and me not really being in inspection mode with the picture. Now that I've actually been looking at the details, I could certainly be happier.

It's embarrassing to reveal that after nearly a year of researching what my next projector would be, I still made the wrong choice. However, since I've read about pretty much all these issues several times in other Epson threads (yeah, I thought I'd get lucky with mine), that people should know these issues are still very much alive and doing quite well. I view this post more as a public service message than a complaint.

*Note, I did not buy my 8700 from AVS.
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post #126 of 2825
10/27/10 at 10:49am
Quote:
Originally Posted by sb1 View Post

Now that the new has worn off and I've had more time with it, I'm seeing (and hearing) some things I don't like.

First, the iris has seemingly grown louder. To the point where I've turned it off. I have a white ceiling, and can tell absolutely no difference when it's on or off due the reflection back on the screen (I suppose, assuming it's working correctly). A lower gain screen may help the contrast issue and keep so much light from bouncing back and lighting everything up.

Second, focus is wavering. The movie can start with each pixel of the "cross hairs" pattern (from the remote) clearly visible, but by the time it ends the pixels are not nearly as defined.

Third, and probably worst, is image noise. It seems to be color specific as parts of the image are clean. I've come across some seriously disturbing stuff in certain scenes. Not grain, but noise. I thought perhaps my HP screen was simply revealing some artifacts that wouldn't be present on lower gain screens, but I put of a piece of blackout cloth as well as white poster board up and it's still there.

Sure, when you take away these issues the picture is great, but these aren't issues easily overlooked. Once I got over having a new projector the faults became more apparent. Closer inspection of white text has also revealed a convergence issue, with red being one pixel to the left, and green being one pixel to the right.

The last few nights are the first chance I've really had time to sit down and inspect things. We've shown a few movies, but with kids running around and me not really being in inspection mode with the picture. Now that I've actually been looking at the details, I could certainly be happier.

It's embarrassing to reveal that after nearly a year of researching what my next projector would be, I still made the wrong choice. However, since I've read about pretty much all these issues several times in other Epson threads (yeah, I thought I'd get lucky with mine), that people should know these issues are still very much alive and doing quite well. I view this post more as a public service message than a complaint.

*Note, I did not buy my 8700 from AVS.

I completely agree with you that once the PJ honeymoon period is gone, you will discover all the non-ideal stuff... I do not have 8700 though, but I also have a PJ that I think is pretty good but turn out there are a few things I don't like much (convergence and sharpness is also on the list). However, once you realize that at this price point, you are never going to get perfect alignment, blackest black, perfect IRIS etc... In fact, even at $10,000, you will just get better, but never perfect. So, I then settled in, and focus on the positive and enjoy the movies.. Hopefully, after a few more years, when I upgrade, I will have a better appreciation and enjoyment when it comes.
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post #127 of 2825
10/27/10 at 11:10pm
guys, can anyone tell me if there's a real difference between the epson 8350 and the 8700 and the 8500 ?
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post #128 of 2825
10/28/10 at 9:48am
[quote=fight4yu;19397629]I completely agree with you that once the PJ honeymoon period is gone, you will discover all the non-ideal stuff... I do not have 8700 though, but I also have a PJ that I think is pretty good but turn out there are a few things I don't like much (convergence and sharpness is also on the list). However, once you realize that at this price point, you are never going to get perfect alignment, blackest black, perfect IRIS etc... In fact, even at $10,000, you will just get better, but never perfect. So, I then settled in, and focus on the positive and enjoy the movies.. Hopefully, after a few more years, when I upgrade, I will have a better appreciation and enjoyment when it comes.[/quote

The epson noise is a deal breaker for me. The fact is Lcd Epsons are inferior to JVC RS1 from 2007. With there new 21000 series I would
be interested if they addressed the noise issue as I want to buy epson. Are you running in low power or hi?
I sell the Epson and seems to have less noise in low lamp.
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post #129 of 2825
10/28/10 at 9:51am
Cleanest picture and best blacks 8700UB new budget king 8350 all depends
on price,screensize,room set. We could help you more with more information.
8500ub why buy an old model?
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post #130 of 2825
10/28/10 at 10:40am
Turns out I am getting a free upgrade to the 8700UB, from my 6500UB. I have had a lot of issues with the 6500UB, but Epson has taken care of me well through the issues. It did suck not having a working projector at times, but it seems it was worth the hassle.

Has anyone gone from a 6500UB to an 8700UB, or seen both in action? I know the 8500UB is better than the 6500UB, but not by a huge margin. Is the 8700UB better than the 8500UB, maybe comparable to the example above?
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post #131 of 2825
10/28/10 at 9:34pm
my room is 22*13 .. it will be mounted probably on the half of the room .. I want to get the biggest screen I can get probably 130? price matters of course .. any suggestions?
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post #132 of 2825
10/29/10 at 4:37pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by slantsflood View Post

Whats everyone using for a screen. I saw the 8700 on a dragonfly 1.0 gain matte white screen and you could leave half the lights on and the picture still looked amazing

I have mine on a DaLite Da-mat. I can leave every light on in my room and still be ok in THX mode (as long as it is a bright picture. Go with something darker and it gets a bit dicey but you can still see it). Flip it to Living room and it's great but the whites are extremely white. Watching hockey the ice appears bright white when in reality it's more grey.
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post #133 of 2825
10/30/10 at 11:43pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by fiji4118 View Post

I have mine on a DaLite Da-mat. I can leave every light on in my room and still be ok in THX mode (as long as it is a bright picture. Go with something darker and it gets a bit dicey but you can still see it). Flip it to Living room and it's great but the whites are extremely white. Watching hockey the ice appears bright white when in reality it's more grey.

The FI on the 8700 on low is a lot more noticeable than on my 6500UB. It seems a lot worse, anyone else having this issue?
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post #134 of 2825
10/31/10 at 9:50pm
Epson gurus, I have a question.

Threw in the DVD release of "The Thing". This release is presented in 2:35:1.

Well, when I turned it on, it insisted on presenting the movie in a small box surronded by black.

What is the reason for this? I see that in my settings 4:4 or whatever pulldown is set to on, However making any change to this setting is greyed out in the menu. I had tried a bunch of different things, but wondering why it doesn't just display in the correct 2:35 format on my 16:9 screen/Epson PJ. I don't recall having an issue with other movies.

There has got to be some reasonable explanation. I tried with two different players, both connected via HDMI. Thanks!
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post #135 of 2825
11/1/10 at 12:29am
I just got my 8350 but couldn't really make it work in my living room environment so I am moving it to a dedicated light controlled theater room. But I still have time to return it and upgrade to the 8700. This is my first projector. Do you guys think the PQ jump from the 8350 to the 8700 is definitely worth it?

I assume the two biggest differences are the black levels and the motion blur reduction, but I have no point of comparison of the two.
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post #136 of 2825
11/1/10 at 12:51am
Quote:
Originally Posted by kdog750 View Post

I just got my 8350 but couldn't really make it work in my living room environment so I am moving it to a dedicated light controlled theater room. But I still have time to return it and upgrade to the 8700. This is my first projector. Do you guys think the PQ jump from the 8350 to the 8700 is definitely worth it?

I assume the two biggest differences are the black levels and the motion blur reduction, but I have no point of comparison of the two.

The black levels, contrast, and color is better on the 8700UB. The FI is to be determined. The FI feature on the unit I have is horrible, on the 6500UB it was really smooth set to low. I am waiting for Art's review on the FI.
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post #137 of 2825
11/1/10 at 2:28am
I'm about to pull the trigger on the 8700ub - very excited.

Trying to make one decision though - what type of fabric/fixed frame to go with this most excellent PJ. I typically have football parties with lots of ambient light, so I'm thinking probably something in the 1.5 gain would be required. FWIW, I think I read another person talking about using the 8700ub with a Da-Lite Da-Mat screen, which only has 1.0 gain, saying it looked great to him in lots of ambient light. Obviously beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I'm sort of aiming for this project to be "somewhat close" to an LCD in terms of brightness with lots of daylight bouncing around. Any recommendations?

Thx
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post #138 of 2825
11/1/10 at 7:38am
Quote:
Originally Posted by eiger View Post

Epson gurus, I have a question.

Threw in the DVD release of "The Thing". This release is presented in 2:35:1.

Well, when I turned it on, it insisted on presenting the movie in a small box surronded by black.

What is the reason for this? I see that in my settings 4:4 or whatever pulldown is set to on, However making any change to this setting is greyed out in the menu. I had tried a bunch of different things, but wondering why it doesn't just display in the correct 2:35 format on my 16:9 screen/Epson PJ. I don't recall having an issue with other movies.

There has got to be some reasonable explanation. I tried with two different players, both connected via HDMI. Thanks!

If it is standard def DVD I'd bet it is not anamorphic, rather just letterboxed...
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post #139 of 2825
11/1/10 at 8:16am
So I got my 8700 mounted and watched a few movies over the weekend. Love the picture, blu ray is definitely better than HD cable. One issue that I have noticed is the fan noise. I see everyone saying that they can't hear theirs unless they are right up next to it and thats even with high lamp mode. I have mine set to eco and can still here it during quiet scenes from anywhere in the room. I know its the fan as when I set it to normal it gets loader.
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post #140 of 2825
11/1/10 at 10:56am
People saying you "cannot hear it" is an exaggeration. There is some fan noise. That being said, whether what you have is normal or not is hard to say. How close are you to the projector?
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post #141 of 2825
11/1/10 at 10:58am
Quote:
Originally Posted by usarcher View Post

So I got my 8700 mounted and watched a few movies over the weekend. Love the picture, blu ray is definitely better than HD cable. One issue that I have noticed is the fan noise. I see everyone saying that they can't hear theirs unless they are right up next to it and thats even with high lamp mode. I have mine set to eco and can still here it during quiet scenes from anywhere in the room. I know its the fan as when I set it to normal it gets loader.

What picture mode are you in? THX, Theater, Theater Black 1 and 2 on eco are all nearly silent for me. Dynamic and Living Room, even set to eco, have noticeable fan noise because of the higher power needed for the brighter picture.
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post #142 of 2825
11/1/10 at 11:21am
Quote:
Originally Posted by sb1 View Post

What picture mode are you in? THX, Theater, Theater Black 1 and 2 on eco are all nearly silent for me. Dynamic and Living Room, even set to eco, have noticeable fan noise because of the higher power needed for the brighter picture.

Theater Black 2 on eco is what I have been using. I tried all the modes though and yes there is more noise on the brighter settings as to be expected. When you say nearly silent do you mean you can still hear them from where you sit or do you have to be right next to the projector?
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post #143 of 2825
11/1/10 at 12:03pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by usarcher View Post

Theater Black 2 on eco is what I have been using. I tried all the modes though and yes there is more noise on the brighter settings as to be expected. When you say nearly silent do you mean you can still hear them from where you sit or do you have to be right next to the projector?

I can still hear it. I'm about four feet directly under the projector and it's shelf mounted (which may dampen the sound). I'm picky about noise and the fan on eco isn't enough to bother me. The iris on the other hand...
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post #144 of 2825
11/1/10 at 12:11pm
Man...I am patiently awaiting Art's review on ProjectorReviews.com. I want to know if the FI is an issue with this model, or if the unit I received is faulty.
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post #145 of 2825
11/1/10 at 12:14pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by dysfunction26 View Post

Man...I am patiently awaiting Art's review on ProjectorReviews.com. I want to know if the FI is an issue with this model, or if the unit I received is faulty.

I just found your post where you mentioned how noticeable it was. Can't say it has bothered me yet. On low I can barely tell that something is at work....just a slight smoothing of motion.
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post #146 of 2825
11/1/10 at 12:49pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by sb1 View Post

I just found your post where you mentioned how noticeable it was. Can't say it has bothered me yet. On low I can barely tell that something is at work....just a slight smoothing of motion.

I think it may be my unit, the 6500UB was very smooth in low. It is very noticeable in low, a lot of judder. I would wonder if it was the firmware version, but it just released. Unless they already have more than one version. Or maybe one of the other settings is causing an issue.
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post #147 of 2825
11/1/10 at 2:48pm
I called Epson, and they were very helpful again. I think I must be very unlucky...lol. They are sending another 8700UB, hopefully everything is OK with that one. They said that if it's not working right, it is just an issue with that particular unit. I know what it looks like when it is working properly, and none of the settings on FI look near as good as it did on my 6500UB.

Other than the FI issue, it looks amazing. As Art said about the 8500UB, it looks similar to the 6500UB, it just does everything a bit better. I noticed the color was a lot more accurate, the depth of the image was better, the black level and contrast were improved over the 6500UB.

Once I get a unit with the FI in proper working order, I can judge it better. I loved having the FI on low on my 6500UB, it helped a lot with fast action, and the image looked better overall to me.
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post #148 of 2825
11/1/10 at 5:10pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by sb1 View Post

I can still hear it. I'm about four feet directly under the projector and it's shelf mounted (which may dampen the sound). I'm picky about noise and the fan on eco isn't enough to bother me. The iris on the other hand...

I can notice the iris on mine from time to time. Good to know you can actually hear the fan, I thought everyone said it was dead silent which made me think there was something wrong with mine. It is not a noise that is obvious, only during quiet scenes and not really obtrusive at that.
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post #149 of 2825
11/1/10 at 9:42pm
I also just noticed a yellow spot that shows up when the area of the screen is white, or a light color. It's about the size of a round coaster. At first I thought it was a dirty spot on my screen, but when I moved the projector, the spot moved with it. Would that be a dust blob, or something else? They are exchanging it, so I am not worried. I would just like to know what it is, for future reference.
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post #150 of 2825
11/2/10 at 6:12am
If the noise you are hearing sounds like a coffee pot percolating, that is how they normally are.
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