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Need Projector Recs for Home Entertainment AND Home Office!

post #1 of 18
6/26/11 at 8:54pm
Thread Starter 
(also posted this in the <$3000 USD projector section, happy to look at most price points, except for crazy high ones!)

I spent like 20 minutes trying different searches, and then just browsing the forums, but couldn't find a question that matched what I'm trying to figure out.

The core issue I'm trying to resolve is: is there a projector that can work well for both home entertainment (30% of usage) and home office (70% of usage)? What are the crucial specs for each, and how are they different? My budget is flexible but ideally less than $3-4k.

Usage purposes:
- projecting presentations / screenshots of webpages to work on / analyze
- occasionally watching a movie or TV show, from my computer (HDMI out)

Room layout (sorry don't have dimensions):
- left side is a white wall
- direct opposite is a white wall (to project onto)
- right side is wall with windows (i can put blinds over but light will still come through)

I want to project onto the direct opposite, white wall. Since I'll ceiling mount, distance is flexible, but the projected image will be on a wall around 120" wide (and whatever is required height is available).

I'm relatively new to projectors, but am willing to spend on the right one. My plan is also to project direct onto the white wall, and if I'm unhappy with performance, then get a screen installed. Ideally recommendations aren't too obscure of models, since I am based in India, and the more obscure, the harder to procure (didn't mean to rhyme!). Plus customer service gets more difficult.

Any general guidance, or specific recommendations, would be GREATLY appreciated.

Thanks,
Satyan
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post #2 of 18
6/27/11 at 10:01am
I would probably go for a 1080p model, such as the Epson 8700UB (approx. $2,000 in the U.S.A.), that has a relatively wide zoom range and also vertical and horizontal lens shift (for maximum flexibility of the projector mounting location). The suggested Epson model has serveral pre-set modes that will cover both PC applications and movie viewing. It also has a full color management system (CMS) if you ever want to get it professionally calibrated for more accurated colors and grey scale. However, a DLP projector (using a single display chip plus a color wheel) will give you the sharpest image for displaying computer text since there is no chance of misconvergence of the red, blue and green picture elements. But many DLP projectors have a very limited zoom range and frequently have no lens shift capability (or very limited lens shift range) and as a result are frequently less flexible in the placement of the projector than most LCD (such as Epson) and LCoS (such as JVC and Sony) based projectors. If you want to consider a DLP model then I would suggest you start by looking at the BenQ W6000 (this model does offer lens shift and a 1.5X zoom lens). However this BenQ model will require a longer projector-to-screen throw distance, as compared the the Epson 8700UB, for the same image (or screen) size.
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post #3 of 18
6/27/11 at 10:44am
Thread Starter 
Ron - thanks for your advice. Between the Epson 8300, 8500 and 8700UB, what is the difference? It technically says that the 8700 has 1600 lumens, vs 2000 lumens in the 8300? clearly im not catching the big point, but what's the difference between them? I think I'll most likely one of these... I'm assuming that computer text will be displayed 'reasonably' well (meaning legible, even if not absolutely perfectly sharp). Is that correct?

Re the DLP projector (the BenQ), with a longer projector-to-screen throw distance, do I risk a less quality picture because the light has to travel further?

Thanks again in advance for your help!
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post #4 of 18
6/27/11 at 10:48am
Thread Starter 
Oh man - just checked out "Epson India" - none of these projectors look especially great... take a look here:

http://www.epson.co.in/epson_india/p...or_list.page?#

Looks like I might need to find another option...
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post #5 of 18
6/27/11 at 11:01am
Thread Starter 
All - sorry to be a pain. So in India, there's a limited selection of projectors available. After talking to some vendors and friends, they've recommended the following. Can you help me choose between this list (given my requirement, listed above?)

1) Panasonic 3LCD - PT-AE4000 - 1600 Lumens, 100,000:1 (full on / full off), 1080p
2) Epson EH-TW4500 - 1600 Lumens, 200,000:1, 1080p
3) BenQ SP890 - DLP - 4000 Lumens, 50,000:1, 1080p
4) BenQ W6000 - DLP - 2500 Lumens, 50,000:1, 1080p

Thanks!!!
Satyan
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post #6 of 18
6/27/11 at 11:06am
What do you mean doesn't look great? These are big projectors and not very portable but give great picture quality. It depends on your use, is size a concern? The distance for light to degrade is not going to make a difference with the relatively short differences between projector throw distances. The LCD projectors will be plenty sharp and legible for text and PC graphics, DLP will just seem more crisp.
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post #7 of 18
6/27/11 at 11:09am
Thread Starter 
Portability not a concern at all, will ceiling mount. Really just want the best picture for both video playback and for presentations / text / PC graphics. Of the 4 i listed, which would you recommend?
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post #8 of 18
6/27/11 at 11:27am
I like the Epson over the Panny unless you need some of its unique feature like lens memory. I don't have a lot of experience with the BenQ so can't comment.
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post #9 of 18
6/27/11 at 11:44am
Quote:
Originally Posted by satyan View Post
Ron - thanks for your advice. Between the Epson 8300, 8500 and 8700UB, what is the difference? It technically says that the 8700 has 1600 lumens, vs 2000 lumens in the 8300? clearly im not catching the big point, but what's the difference between them? I think I'll most likely one of these... I'm assuming that computer text will be displayed 'reasonably' well (meaning legible, even if not absolutely perfectly sharp). Is that correct?

Re the DLP projector (the BenQ), with a longer projector-to-screen throw distance, do I risk a less quality picture because the light has to travel further?

Thanks again in advance for your help!
Quote:
Originally Posted by satyan View Post
Oh man - just checked out "Epson India" - none of these projectors look especially great... take a look here:

http://www.epson.co.in/epson_india/p...or_list.page?#

Looks like I might need to find another option...
The model numbers in the series 8300, 8700UB, 9700UB Pro are actually for the North American Epson models. The international versions sold in many other parts of the world have model numbers such as EH-TWxxxx. The EH-TH4500 seems to be the equivalent to the 9500UB, which was replaced by the 9700UB in the 4th quarter of 2010. The EH-TW3600 seems similar to this year's 8350 and the EH-TW3500 seems to be similar to last year's 8100 (that has now been replaced by the 8350 in North America). Of these models the EH-TW4500 will produce deeper blacks and better constrast ratio than the lower-end models. If my speculation is correct that the EH-TW3600 is equivalent to the 8350 and the EH-TW3500 is equivalent to the 8100, then the EH-TW3600 will be a step up in terms of contrast ratio and deeper black levels room the EH-TW3500. Neither of these lower models include some features. such as frame interpolation, found on the more expensive EH-TW4500.

In any case do not get concerned about any modest difference in claimed lumens (e.g., 1800 vs. 2000) since Epson specifies lumens for the projector's dynamic mode which has poor color and is not the mode you will really want to use most of the time. All of these models have very similar actual light output when set to produce a image with more or less accurate colors and grey scale.
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post #10 of 18
6/28/11 at 5:03am
Well first things first you're going relatively big, and since you say it's going to be 70% work, and I assume you don't want to work in the dark, your going to need a LOT of light. You're basically going to want the brightest thing you can find, and I'd toss the Home Theater projectors out from the get go, they're not bright enough.

Of the ones you listed, I'd go with the SP890 since it's the brightest, by far. And I don't know if you can get them, but it might be worth investigating a screen, maybe something like the Black Diamond, to combat the ambient light issues.
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post #11 of 18
6/28/11 at 5:16am
Thread Starter 
Wait so just help me understand. Presentation projectors, like the sp890, offer high brightness, compared to home theater projectors.

What do HT projectors have that Presentation ones don't?
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post #12 of 18
6/28/11 at 5:40am
I'd really love to see the SP890 and Black Diamond G3 0.8 combo.
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post #13 of 18
6/28/11 at 6:58am
Quote:
Originally Posted by satyan View Post

What do HT projectors have that Presentation ones don't?

Higher contrast and better color accuracy. Basically a better, more accurate picture, but with the requirement of a dark room to utilize it.
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post #14 of 18
6/28/11 at 11:15am
If its business\\pleasure 70/30, then you are going to have to give up quality in order to get the brightness necesaary. I would look for a high lumen projector that can do HD and has decent levels of contrast.
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post #15 of 18
6/28/11 at 4:07pm
I just hung the BenQ SP890 in my office at work to use for tech demos with our IT group. We needed 1080P for the workspace and all of our thinkpads are 1080P native res, so no re-arranging of icons on the desktop when it syncs.

This was a refurb we bought at a good price. the first was DOA, the 2nd much better but the front fan shifted making a loud noise which would die down as it heated up. I fixed this myself by re-seating the fan.

We use it with a fair amount of ambient light on a white painted wall and it's quite bright in presentation mode. I would estimate the 'screen' size to be about 110-115". I took it home one night to compare to my JVC RS50 which isn't fair, but needless to say the BenQ was a magnitude brighter than the JVC even in 'cinema' mode which tones down the brightness quite a bit. I watched some of my reference material and was overall impressed with a business projector that doesn't have an iris. The black floor is nothing to brag about, but overall it was quite pleasing with mixed contrast scenes.

Once back at work, I ran a few blurays through it. I would say this could easily pass for a decent HT projector and makes one heck of a bright business projector. I'm not sure of the exact native contrast, but it's a light year ahead of these awful VGA DLP's we have around the office.

summary -
  • great business projector for 1080P desktop viewing & plenty of brightness in ambient office light
  • decent HT projector with limitations such as so-so black levels. The brightness is blinding on my 142" 2.8HP screen even with all the lights on in the room.
  • I would buy it again, but ONLY at the refurb price. The new prices BenQ wants for the 6000 and SP890 are outrageous for what I would consider just middle of the road build quality. Everything is plastic, lens looks cheap, etc.

If you can get in on the refurb deals, it's hard to beat for the 1.5k we paid for it.
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post #16 of 18
6/28/11 at 4:33pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by zombie10k View Post

I just hung the BenQ SP890 in my office at work to use for tech demos with our IT group. We needed 1080P for the workspace and all of our thinkpads are 1080P native res, so no re-arranging of icons on the desktop when it syncs.

This was a refurb we bought at a good price. the first was DOA, the 2nd much better but the front fan shifted making a loud noise which would die down as it heated up. I fixed this myself by re-seating the fan.

We use it with a fair amount of ambient light on a white painted wall and it's quite bright in presentation mode. I would estimate the 'screen' size to be about 110-115". I took it home one night to compare to my JVC RS50 which isn't fair, but needless to say the BenQ was a magnitude brighter than the JVC even in 'cinema' mode which tones down the brightness quite a bit. I watched some of my reference material and was overall impressed with a business projector that doesn't have an iris. The black floor is nothing to brag about, but overall it was quite pleasing with mixed contrast scenes.

Once back at work, I ran a few blurays through it. I would say this could easily pass for a decent HT projector and makes one heck of a bright business projector. I'm not sure of the exact native contrast, but it's a light year ahead of these awful VGA DLP's we have around the office.

summary -
  • great business projector for 1080P desktop viewing & plenty of brightness in ambient office light
  • decent HT projector with limitations such as so-so black levels. The brightness is blinding on my 142" 2.8HP screen even with all the lights on in the room.
  • I would buy it again, but ONLY at the refurb price. The new prices BenQ wants for the 6000 and SP890 are outrageous for what I would consider just middle of the road build quality. Everything is plastic, lens looks cheap, etc.

If you can get in on the refurb deals, it's hard to beat for the 1.5k we paid for it.

@Jason
I believe the SP890 has a 2x CW. How was the RBE for you Jason?
The SP890 doesn't have a dynamic Iris? I thought it did.
If not, the W6000 will certainly look more dynamic in those mixed scenes.
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post #17 of 18
6/28/11 at 4:43pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Joesyah View Post

@Jason
I believe the SP890 has a 2x CW. How was the RBE for you Jason?
The SP890 doesn't have a dynamic Iris? I thought it did.
If not, the W6000 will certainly look more dynamic in those mixed scenes.

the CW speed is pretty low and I could see RBE here and there, but it wasn't a deal breaker. Considering how insanely bright it is, it was to be somewhat expected. For some reason, it doesn't bother me at all when running windows desktop, yet the VGA DLP's will give me an instant headache in 10-15 minutes.

Maybe the removal of the iris is how the 890 is so much brighter than the W6000, but i'm fairly certain it doesn't have an iris. the menu systems look identical from I can tell, and the physical appearance as well compared to the W6000.

for the price we paid, it's a great business projector and I would use it at home as a 2nd projector for when guests come over and want to watch in full ambient light. it can light up my 142" 2.8HP like a torch.
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post #18 of 18
6/28/11 at 4:53pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by zombie10k View Post

the CW speed is pretty low and I could see RBE here and there, but it wasn't a deal breaker. Considering how insanely bright it is, it was to be somewhat expected. For some reason, it doesn't bother me at all when running windows desktop, yet the VGA DLP's will give me an instant headache in 10-15 minutes.

Maybe the removal of the iris is how the 890 is so much brighter than the W6000, but i'm fairly certain it doesn't have an iris. the menu systems look identical from I can tell, and the physical appearance as well compared to the W6000.

for the price we paid, it's a great business projector and I would use it at home as a 2nd projector for when guests come over and want to watch in full ambient light. it can light up my 142" 2.8HP like a torch.

Yeah the 2x CW has a lot to do with the brightness differences. Also the SP890 uses a more powerful lamp than the W6000. I have a little w1000 here, it also has the 2x CW and I find the RBE no different than some of the 4x CW DLPs I've seen. It will burn up the screen as well! lol
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