The official Epson 8700UB thread - Page 12

Has anybody here gone from a panny 3000 to the epson 8700. I currently have a jvc rs40 on pre order. I t is going to be a bit of a problem mounting the jvc because it is so deep. I just thought the 8700 might be a good projector for the time being.

The Epson is generally known to be superior in overall performance to the Panny (even compared to the 4000). The Panny shines in features though. Neither are going to be in the same class as the RS40, but then again they are much cheaper too and if you cannot make the RS40 work...

Thanks jason i just I noticed the current sale on the epson. I will make the jvc work in my set up. I just have to move my 2nd and 3 rd row of seating back alittle to work with the jvc's depth. I have a low ceiling . I know if i changed my pre order with you to the epson i would always be wondering how much better the jvc is. Now I just have to wait.

Nobuyersremorse,

A 120" will work with a HP if the ambient light is not coming from within the viewing area. If the ambient light is coming from the same area as the PJ or viewing area it will be a bigger problem and then smaller is better. Smaller is typically better for audio as well as speakers can be placed more appropriately.

You can get decent performance with ambient light but it really depends on where the ambient light is coming from. If you use a lot of accent or focused lighting and keep diffuse lighting way out of the viewing area you'll be surprised how much light you can have.

Bob

No worries.

Here are some pics I just took, first time taking screenshots...

Pics look great. I think I am buying this projector tomorrow.

Expect a call from me AVS store

mine will be here tomorrow, great shots archer what is your screen gain

Grey Cup Screen Shots.....
SI Black Diamond Screen .8 Gain
Shots in Vivid Mode
Higher contrast lower brightness







Pics from the Far Side viewing Angle with Ambient Light...



Straight center pic

I think I am having buyers remorse about buying the 8350 now Has anyone actually had the chance to see the two of these projectors in person and compare them? I know what the reviews say but I was hoping to hear some real world views since the sale on these ends Monday.

Anyone?

You will be extremely happy today get it setup asap. The shots were of straight out of the box THX mode in Eco with high speed auto iris. My screen is a white 1.1 gain, I still haven't had time to complete my masking for the screen or the black out for the ceiling. I did get the framework put together yesterday just need to stretch the velvet over it.

Fraisa, I know you recommend the SI BD screen and I have a question. I have the 8350 which is working flawlessly so I am hesitant on upgrading to the 8700. I have it ceiling mounted and I will mostly watch movies with controlled lighting but want to be able to watch sports as well with some ambient light. I used AI's screen wizard and it seems to put me on the fence between the 0.8 and 1.4 screens on the 500-100- lumens range which is where this projector would be used in cinema/natural modes. I am leaning toward the 0.8 since the 1.4 might be too reflective. What do you think?

92-100" screen
white ceiling, 15' throw

All pics above are on the .8 gain screen
from the grey cup
I have done tests with sports Lights on and i lean toward the .8 gain screen..

Does anyone have the 8700UB with a HP screen and can share their calibrated settings? I got the 8700UB locally from Brandsmart this weekend for less than the best price I saw online (even including tax). I'm coming from an AE2000u that I sold over the weekend as well.

Right now I'm using the settings from Projector Review and I'm happy with them but feel there could be some improvement. The improvement from my older panny is great, the black-level is much better and I thinkt he shadow-detail is better as well. It's definately much briter and in some modes TOO bright on my HP... looks like a huge LCD with brightness cranked-up too high.. lol.

My Grey Cup SHots above are the following
Brightness -8
Contrast 8
Colour Staturation 6-8
gamma 2.3
this is what i use to watch sports.....

fraisa
wow, wow and wow....excellent screen shots of the 8700UB. Was debating on the 8350/8700UB. I think I will go with the 8700UB. Thanks for the shots-

Thanks for the feed back

Thanks fraisa, but your screen is on the opposite spectrum from mine... I have the 2.8gain Dalite HP screen... looking for someone that has done calibration with the HP screen.

you are absolutly right
didnt relize that your screen was that high gain..
my bad..
good luck

Today is the day

The projectorcentral.com calculator for 100" screen puts my throw at 13'4" for "recommended image brightness for low ambient light".

I was going to mount around a 11' throw right above seating position. Does that mean it will be brighter than recommended brightness for low ambient light?

The room is only 16' deep. I can mount at the 13'4 if I need to, just puts the FP on the other side of an AC vent and farther from where the cables/power are on the cieling.

I think you would be fine, as you can always adjust the brightness down for your individual setting.

excellent and THANK YOU for the quick response ptmurphy

I will point out (as I always do) that copying another persons settings has just as much chance of hurting the image as helping it...literally. In fact from my extensive testing of the Epson, ON AVERAGE the settings are no where near fraisa's...

If you want to do the basic settings, grab a test disc and run through the training. If you want to attempt grayscale and such, you need to hire a professional.

I will be the first to admit that my settings are Extreme...
But thats they way i like to watch sports and it offers a more Punchier Picture ...
When it comes to movies i lean toward the more traditional settings which would probley be similar to yours in the way of flesh tones and the evil red push....

So fraisa it looks like you have a white ceiling and a light brown for the walls? I am just in the process of painting....no dedicated HT room yet (sons' BR is downstairs). My pj will be ceiling mounted and in a LR/Family room. I have blackout shades, and a white ceiling and Burgundy walls. Room is roughly 13' x 22' x 8'. PJ can be mounted anywhere on ceiling first row of seats will be roughly 10' back. I have not decided on a screen as of yet. What do you recommend? It will have to be Acoustically Transparent, ceiling mounted....either electric or manual pull down just want to get the best buy for the dollar. Will have around 4000/4500 dollars for projector and screen..roughly 2000-2500 for the screen.

With your first row seats being 10 feet back i wouldnt go bigger than 90-100 inchs on the screen.
As for the screen you mentioned a pull down or electric
would you consider fixed frame?
As for your room i do have white ceilings and light brown walls thats why i went to SI Black Diamond
There greatly reduce Light scatter on the walls and ceilings...

let me know if you can go with a fixed frame screen ..
fr

I will testify to that... I've calibrated my 8700UB grayscale,color saturations etc.... a couple of times already. The screen (had a problem with it and got an "identical" replacement) change along with the bulb aging changes the color/grayscale.

Interestingly when I 1st got it grayscale was pretty good with default THX settings but now with about 300 hours on the bulb, the default settings has WAY too low of red (and it is noticable when watching).

I am glad I have a colorimeter to calibrate this thing. It appears thus far it needs to be tweaked every 300 hours or so.

And also, as stated before, DO NOT use someone else's calibration settings... I can virtually guarantee they will be wrong. At a minimum use DVE and the like to get the image as best you can and if you really want the best picture you can get learn how to calibrate it.

Ordinarily I would say hire a ISF calibrator to do the job... I myself have done so in the past to calibrate my display - and it was worth every single penny!; but what I am learning with projectors is the calibration is not stable enough to justify the cost - in my opinion. i.e. calibrated perfect @ 100 hours on bulb; @ 1000 hours it won't be close...... at least with the 8700. The bulb output just changes too much with time.

Cannot go fixed frame I also have a ceiling mounted 50" plasma that will stay up. Also have 3 towers across the front so it will have to be either pull down or ceiling mounted electric

Okay
SI is coming out with a Electric Ceiling Mount unit Late winter / Early spring 2011
I Definetly would go with that considering your room
just dont know if you can wait till then
if time is an issue i would buy a cheap pull down till the SI Electric black diamond comes out...
my thoughts

Thanks fraisa for the info. A couple 2-3 months will not be a problem.