Sony VPL-HW50ES Focus Nonuniformity - Page 2

The issue with QC is what specs Sony requires the lens to meet. I suspect but don't know that most of the lens imperfections some are err bitching about are within the spec and would not be rejected in QC. The RC I suspect was put in to compensate for the lens less than steller performance.

I do and Thanks. My post was not meant to express an opinion as to whether your first was within spec. Rather, that many of the comments re the less than stellar lens performacre of the 30 and 50 lens would probsably be about Sony lenses that were within spec.

Re replacement of ES projectors, once you convince the help desk that something is wrong, they ship an advance replacement without actually inspecting the unit being replaced.

Thanks for your posts, sarangiman, I'm definitely following with interest.

For what it's worth, I am upgrading from an AE7000 and I always felt that the focus was off in areas.

I ended up using the focus test pattern that is on the Disney WOW disc to confirm and it clearly showed that the left side was out of focus. I actually had the optical block replaced, and it seemed to actually then make the left more focussed than the right! There is definitely a problem. Unfortunately I wasn't aware of the NEC pattern at the time but it would have really helped demonstrate the issue clearly.

On the AE7000 ghosting made 3D unwatchable, which is a shame because it was one of the main reasons I upgraded from an older Epson.

I viewed a HW50 yesterday after reports of its inferior lens but to be honest I was very impressed with sharpness, coming from the 7000. So your post above is very relevant to me. I was also very impressed with the 3D. Definitely some ghosting on tricky scenes in comparison to a DLP I viewed as well, but way better than the 7000 ever was.

Out of interest, are you looking at selling you HW50? I've narrowed down my choices to the HW50 and RS46. I'm still waiting for reports on the 3D on the JVC, but my expectation is it won't be great. The HW50 is looking like the best all rounder so I'm interested that you're potentially looking at replacing it.

Just to clarify, I meant I'm interested as to why you are looking to replace it. Not looking to purchase yours myself (I'm not in the US).

I'm interested to know, anyone report similar findings on sony vpl-hw30es projector?

what is lamp flicker issue can you please give some extra info, sorry for my english

Ah oke I got it thank you very much btw are you happy with sony s 2D performance, image quality, colours are rich,sharpness oke or it is dull? thank you

I also have this lamp flickering but it also does this at high lamp mode although I have to look better since the extra light seems to make it somewhat more difficult to see (iris in my eyes shuts down).
This looks to me as some sort of problem with the modulation of the lamp and I hope Sony will soon release a firmware update for this problem. The easiest way to see this flickering is pause a movie with a large light evenly coloured content, for instance a large light sky.
In a movie I don't notice it that much unless such scenes are in it.

I hope not! Normally with standard UHP lamps the flickering starts at low lamp mode after a few hundred hours and this is a sign that the arc is not steady between the electrodes (the arc dances around at one of the electrodes). If you then apply high lamp mode for a couple of hours the higher current (voltage is constant with an uhp lamp but rises with age) will let the arc grip on another place on the electrodes After some hours the electrodes are worn and switching back to low lamp mode results in a new place on the electrodes where the arc stays stable.
What I see here is that it starts right out of the box and that is not normal, a new lamp should have a steady arc. So I suspect it is another phenomenon we are seeing here and my best guess is the modulation of the lamp to have a higher lumen output.Another clue is that the flickering is much more subtle then with a normal low lamp mode flickering which is more bothersome to watch (almost unwatchable).
My hope is that this message reaches Sony and that they investigate the problem and hopefully can update the firmware of the lamp driver.

I will try to have another look tonight the only way to judge this is to freeze the picture. I don't think you can judge it on moving pictures since that introduces other variables like the auto iris and FI.
What we actually need is a very fast optical sensor that can determine the frequency and amplitude.

Would like to chip in.

Just installed my new JVC-DLA-RS56 and ran the test pattern.
Extreme left lower corner is a tiny bit out of focus and cannot be completely focused, but certainly better than Panasonic AE-8000 (the unit that I returned was horrible and was deemed "within spec") and certainly not as pronounced as the pictures of the first Sony projector in this thread.

At this point I think I am done swapping projectors - they are heavy and it's really not an enjoyable activity. Mounting the 34 pound JVC monster was not fun...

I had no idea you were having problems with both your projector AND screen. I knew about this thread but didn't realize you were the author of it. Wow...

How much vertical and horizontal lens shift are you using? If you're using a considerable amount of either, or a modest amount of both at the same time that could explain why one corner is hard to focus. As a test try and re-position the light to come out of the middle of the lens and see if there is still a problem.

I think it has more to do with the fact that most people don't know the difference or don't know any better to check. I'm sure there are tons of units like yours that people own but are ignorant to their unit's defects. Misconvergence from a certain seating distance and a difference in peoples' visual acuity can explain why people don't see it and most of the time it's no where near as obvious as texture on a screen. You know the saying... ignorance is bliss.

I'm lucky I only spent ~$400 on my Da-Lite Deluxe Model B with the HCHP material. I'm currently in the works with my dealer of either a trade for the same screen to see if it's any better, or getting a new screen.

I do a considerable amount but it doesn't make things any worse. Before I mounted the projector, I put it on a bench and aimed it almost squarely at the center of the screen with lens centered.

Interestingly, unlike my previous focus problems with previous projectors where there is focus non-uniformity but by changing focus you can focus on various parts of the picture, with this one it is never fully in focus and looks the best when the rest of the picture is focused. So I wonder if this is not a lens issue but something else.

It is so minor so I am certain that this will be declared "within spec".

My wife rolls her eyes and says that I should stop spending money to entertain my OCD because she says that I will always find something wrong. Then again, she is the person who will watch horrible looking SD (the one with a blurry square in the middle of your TV screen) because she can't be bothered to find the corresponding HD channel.
Edited by durack - 1/9/13 at 9:43am

The fact is the projector manufacturers have cut as much cost out of the units as possible to maximize profit/unit since they are low demand products to begin with.

Like any CE device I recommend to not go looking from problems because you are bound to find them especially with display technologies.

3-chip units will always have some panel alignment or chromatic abberation problems.

DLP units have rainbows and dancing pixels in darker image areas.

All the lower cost units have low grade lenses. If 4K does make into this segment of the market I don't know if any of the current lenses that most units use would be able to fully resolve a 4K image.

Generally I say if you can't see alignment, CA or focus issues from a typical viewing distance don't go looking for them because you will find issues.
Edited by Toknowshita - 1/11/13 at 2:47pm

OK, couldn't resist so I played with it a bit more, just out of curiosity (yeah, watching test pattern instead of movies like I should).
Interestingly, if you go into options and decrease the aperture of the lens, the unfocused corner becomes more and more focused, at the very end the picture is obviously quite darker but the focus is near perfect.
Anyone who knows optics care to comment?