Official Sony VPL-HW30(A)ES Owners Thread - Page 78

I was thinking about getting a 118" Carada BW but reading your recommendations for fL I'm wondering if dropping to 108" instead my be a better option.

It would give me 8fL after 500h, but then again in my bat cave it might appear brighter and I'm not sure how much 3D I'm going to watch (some for sure but not a ton).

Sorry... that was my initial approach I wanted to take, but I couldn't find a projector entry that appeared to have this defined. That is why I ended up with the pronto code and the tool to enter them into the harmony.

I noticed that Coderguy's calculator showed the same lamp % drop at 500 hrs for all the projectors I was looking at. What is our guestimate of what the actual % drop in lumens might actually be for the HW30 at 500 hrs?

Reports suggest the sony is a little better at "keeping it's lumens" compared to the average projector. I had an epson 6500 for 2 years, and it's lumens dropped pretty significantly over 800 hours...very saddening. It made me go so far as to purchase an HP screen to use with it/future projectors. The nice thing about the sony is that even when it does drop lumens, which every UHP lamp based projector will inevitably do, you have the power to set the iris (manual, or even auto limitations in the service menu), and open up as the lamp ages. This is an aspect that has always drawn me to the JVC's....having a high native contrast with a manual iris. Genius. Clamp the iris down, and as it gets dim, open the iris up. No saddening dim picture.

This of course relies on the gain of your screen and where you end up when you reach the fully open iris stage. At that point, you just have to watch the pic dim until the lamp dies, probably around 1500 or so hours.

I can't wait until LED or laser projectors are the norm, with numbers like 10% decrease in light output over the life of the bulb, which in itself is 20000 or so hours. I know these are out now, but the output at D6500 with good colorimetry is kind of limited (around 500 to 600 lumens), unless you get TWO and stack them--very costly. The vango is the most "reasonably" priced LED dedicated home theater projector I've seen advertised, and it's price alone is WAY over the average joe's budget, even exceeding the sony 95's price.

I have done a similar thing. I downloaded the HW60 codes to the Harmony for the direct inputs, then taught the codes to another learning remote, then used the learning remote to download the needed functions during the HW30 Harmony setup.

Sent a PM to Zombie about this but I think he is too busy to show me any love so if anyone else knows please share.

Recently purchased an HW30AES largely based on your comparison. I had a JVC RS-1 that I replaced with the Sony for 3D. I have just a quick question because I know you are an experienced MV3D guy.

Currently am using the MV3D with the Sony at it's default settings which for crosstalk seem to be quite good. I did update the firmware on the MV3D to I believe 1.05.4. Does the 3D Brightness Settings for the glasses do anything when using the MV3Ds and is there a way to change this otherwise when using the MV3Ds?

My experience showed that the brightness did not increase between MAX and MAX-1 using the MV3Ds. You can use the PC utility to adjust the delay between switching frames and the duty cycle (% of time the shutters are open) to help reduce ghosting. I am questioning though if my settings are saving correctly. When I tune out the majority of the ghosting and save the settings once I unplug the transceiver and plug it into its main power it seems to not have the same settings(ghosting appears like it did originally.)

I've been lurking for a while and am new HW30 owner as well. Have people posted their "best settings" for the Monster glasses? I tinkered with it some, but still haven't had the same results (lack of ghosting) I see in Zombies's 3D pictures. My picture is good, but just not great.

My current settings are Delay: 2520 duty cycle: 75 which I found in this thread a few months back.

Are all you guys buying your Sony's through AVS?

I did. Call Mark. Great guy.

I bought mine locally only because it was an open item purchase. Otherwise I probably would have bought from AVS.

Yea. Give him a call.


Thanks for the nice words.

can someone give me some positives of this vs lets say a hd33...I am not grasping why I would want a lcos over dlp (and this isnt putting lcos down, I really am just curious) also is crosstalk really that bad on this projector with the sony glasses and the x103's?

better blacks and contrast, no rainbows (if your sensitive to them), low lag time ~20 MS for gaming.

click on the link in my signature if you want to see screenshots through the glasses of real content, not test patterns. For SBS and 3D gaming, the DLP is going to provide a better 3D experience, but the HW30 can hold it's own with frame packed 3D BD.

Ooops. I'm confident that everyone at AVS is great, but I must admit a mistake. I incorrectly typed Mark when I should have written Mike.

Mike took many calls from me prior to purchase and was even the guy that initially suggested the HW30 for my specific situation. He was very helpful during the progress.

No doubt Mark is a good guy also! (I'm sure I'm not the first to goof up their names!)

I read in the posts here that people have been using different mounts (from sony's recommendation). Will any mount that's big enough work? I'm worried about the fact that most universal mounts have 4 legs/screw mount locations and this projector has 3 in a triangle (with the fourth in the middle).

So will any mount work? Is it just aesthetics if my 4th leg on the mount just kinda hangs there, or does the projector NEED to be secured in all 4 screw holes?

Here's what I'm considering:
http://www.amazon.com/VideoSecu-Univ.../ref=pd_cp_e_2

http://www.amazon.com/Peerless-PRGUN...1832806&sr=1-1

Don't really know the answers for those mounts. However, the RPAU works great. It comes with 4 arms but you don't need to install the 4th, so it doesn't look like a hack job when done.

There are trade offs between any of the micro display technologies and price range considerations as well.

DLP with even an average lens will throw a sharp image with a perfectly aligned colors because the same pixels are used on the DLP to create each color. So provided there is little chromatic aberration (CA) each color travels the same light path. The disadvantage especially with the lower end DLPs is that they typically have slower color wheels, usually 3x, which makes rainbows easily viewable especially on high contrast images. Some of he pricier units move up 5x CWs which reduces rainbows but some are still sensitive. Also dithering is an issue with DLPs. The pixels that are in the darker portion of the image tend to noticeably bounce between shades of gray.

SXRD, Sony's version of LCOS, is another reflective display type, but instead of relying on one chip for all colors they use a 3-chip design similar to LCD. I think LCOS is capable of single chip designs, but I am guessing their switching speed is limited so it would have the same issues as low speed DLP units. I can't remember but I think it was Philips that had a rear projection single-chip LCOS HDTV a few years ago that used a spinning prism instead of a color wheel, but conceptually it was a similar approach.
All consumer and professional based LCOS units are now 3-chip designs. The primary advantage is no RBE( rainbow effect), wide color spectrum capability and also lower power consumption since it takes less wattage to produce the same amount of lumen output in a 3-chip system vs. a single chip. The disadvantages are the same for any 3-chip system which mainly boils down to panel alignment. It is hard to maintain alignment of the 3 colored subpixels for making one properly colored pixel across the entire image considering that a projection system is essentially lighting a large magnified image. Even with tight tolerances and state of the art manufacturing the end result is usually a unit where the subpixels are out of alignment by the time the edges of the image are reached due to average quality lenses. HT enthusiasts fret over this and become extremely anal retentive about. As long as the image is in relatively good shape in the middle of the image (pixel drift <0.5 pixels) then don't worry about it. Even if it is noticeable within a couple feet of the screen you most likely will not notice it at your viewing position. Also LCOS has tighter pixel density makes it harder to see a defined image of a single pixel. Some think this gives LCOS more of a CRT like image. I like because the image just seems smoother and you can sit closer without getting a sense of the screw for effect.

Back to the HD33 vs the HW30, I don't think its fair to compare them directly. The HD33 was designed to get the budget DLP crowd that wanted 3D. It doesn't have lens shift which is critical for those with tough mounting situations. Sony is still pushing SXRD as a premium over DLP and all of Sony's SXRD units now fall under their premium ES line. I don't know if the HD33 is any good, but I am going to say if it was directly compared to the HW30 that I don't think it would fair very well. If you want a cheap unit to to try out 3D on, then take a chance. If you are replacing an older dedicated home theater projector, then you might want to take a look at the HW30.

I second what MadMyers said. Although the RPA-U does come with 4 arms it comes unassembled so you just toss the extra one aside. I will add though as a user that has had several Chief Mounts I strongly recommend adding the ceiling plate and a NPT. It makes adjusting the mount a little easier because you are not tight against the ceiling and you can easily pivot on the NPT for one of the adjusts when lining up the projector. Just make sure you have threaded the NPT enough on the ceiling plate, the RPA and tighten the lock nut on the ceiling. I should have never sold my original ceiling plate and RPA. I would have just needed the universal projector plate of the mount. One note though: although the RPA comes with screws that work with the threads on the HW30 they are a little longer than needed. A single washer between projector and the hardware attached for the arm connection was a sufficient enough spacer.

Does anyone know:
1. Is there a Sony website that has information on the HW30 - I can't seem to find anything.
2. How do I search for a local dealer that might have the HW30? I'm looking for a place to view it in action.

Hi guys,

Sorry to ask this in this thread but I know there is a lot of knowledge about the VW95 here too:

I just bought a Sony VW95 and the Optoma RF glasses with the emitter (type-BC100).

How can I connect the emitter to the Sony and where are the arrows buttons for on the BC100 emitter??

EDIT:
Am I correct that I will need this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNWqXq4WDFA cable to be able to use the Optoma emitter on the Sony? (Don t need the Sony glasses to work, only 2 pair of Optoma glasses which I bought with the VW95 instead of the Sony glasses).

Someone know where to get this cable in the Netherlands? Is it a custom made cable or a cable that can be sold in special stores?

EDIT2 :
I only have this http://hstrial-jrodriguez996.homestead.com/IMG_5274.JPG thing that came with the (secondhand) Optoma glasses I bought and not this http://hstrial-jrodriguez996.homestead.com/IMG_5278.JPG one. Is the BC-100 (first pic) enough to make it work or will I also need the other part (pic 2)?

Thanks!

1. esupport.sony.com
Do a search on HW30ES or AES

2. https://dealersource.sel.sony.com/ds...its.htmlCached
Enter your zip and search for a local dealer.

Thanks. I am surprised there is no specific product page for it or their other projectors. Is that a sign of things to come? (or rather go?)

You will need either the IR receiver "other part (pic 2)", or a custom cable.

You can order the IR receiver (provided by MonsterVision) by calling AVS.

Otherwise, be prepared to make the custom cable yourself. There are 2 options for the cable, 1 - the more complicated w/circuit board, or 2 - a simple cable + an external USB power supply.

see my post here which discusses both options and the references to the other posts for the complicated cable:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...7#post21722797

I'm finding the HW30 a bit too bright in 2D mode in my current setup (15'3" throw to a 110" 1.3 gain screen) and my HT plans are to move it even closer (an even brighter position) at a 12' throw. To reduce brightness, closing down the DI open/close range seems like a good idea as AFAIK it will only improve the overall contrast and black floor.

I'd still like to keep maximum brightness for 3D mode, but tune down (ie: reduce the DI range) somewhat for 2D.

Does anyone know if FatDave's DI open/close range adjustment (via service menu) hack would also effect the iris's open state when DI is off (ie: in 3D mode, or DI=off)?

I want one of these so badly! Just saving up...

Ok, i know this post added nothing to this thread...but i cant wait to be an 'owner' with you all

Thanks for your replies!!


But how can this work?? I mean, how will the IR receiver and BC-100 emitter get power??


Why go with the complicated option of you say that 2 is the more simple option? And can you explain 2 in more detail: you say 'a simple cable' + an external USB power supply. What simple cable do you mean

EDIT: could it really be that simple and can I just use my charger for my Samsung Galaxy S phone?

Sorry, yes the RF emitter always needs 5VDC power supplied by either the mini plug, or via the USB port, regardless of whether or not the IR receiver is used.

For more detail about the 'a simple cable', go read the post/link provided.

Mine just started flickering, 219 hours and ran in low lamp. Mine started during a calbration sesson and adjusting the contrast offsets.

Did Sony replace it for you under warranty?