How afraid should I be of RBE?

DLP projectors do not have deeper blacks. There is no affordable(under $3000US) DLP projector that can match the black level of the EH-TW9000 or even come close. As far as RBE goes that is really an individual situation and no one can accurately predict your response, You will have to seek out somewhere where you can see a DLP projector in operation and check for yourself. Most people are not bothered even by a slow color wheel...but no one can predict your response.

You must test it yourself! I never saw any RBE, even on a first generation DLP projector.

You'd need everyone who is going to watch it to be not bothered by rainbows, extremely not likely. I see rainbows, no DLP for me. Throws you out of the immersion while you're watching when you see it. It's jolting. The Epson 3020 is a great projector that comes with 2 3D glasses and extra ones can be gotten for $20- Samsung brand. The brightness and 50,000:1 contrast ratio are very pleasing to the eye, especially for 3D.

I'll echo the previous comments, and add that the Benq 1070 dlp, with a 6 segment speed color wheel was watchable for some people who were RBE sensitive, maybe only being seen during very bright scenes. A ND filter can be added sometimes, that reduces the brightness, and lessens the effect.
Edited by jnabq - 3/7/13 at 3:59pm

Maybe I is because I have a old higher end projector that is not a light cannon, that is fully calibrated, with 6 segment 4x color wheel, or am lucky, but No one has EVER mentioned seeing rainbows.
Funny, we were watching an episode of Miami Vise last night and there was a close up of a bad guys face and his eyes were moving left to right very slightly and rather rapidly. I though to myself, "I bet he sees rainbows!"

LOL, funny stuff man

Not being funny, I believe that is why some people see them, it is like blinking at the same speed as a strobe light..if you are in time with it, lights stay on, if you are out of time it is dark all the time.

Maybe another reason I have never seen them is my screen is small so no need to track objects with eye movement?

Quote from the below link
Most importantly, however, your own movement seems to trigger seeing RBE. For example, someone reported that they only saw it when munching on popcorn or other snacks. Basically head and eye movement can make it more visible to you. I can confirm that chewing increases my ability to see it, as does shaking my head, or even moving my eyes quickly from one side of the screen to the other. Remember though, you also need the right conditions - white across dark, or the other way around. You aren't going to see it on a bright scene of sunny fields, but watching a car chase on a wet night is going to have a very high probability.

http://www.projectorreviews.com/advice/HomeTheaterProjector-FAQs/ProjectorsRainbowEffect.php

I dunno, sounded funny to me. Thanks for the laugh anyway.

I experience RBE, but its mild. When I first bought my projector (Viewsonic PRO 8200) I saw it quite frequently, but now that I've had it awhile, I rarely see it. I think you do get used to it a little, and from what I've read the Viewsonic is decent for having the RBE effect. Just my experience.

You see fewer as time passes because the lamp gets dimmer, our eyes do not really get used to it. I would only worry about RBE if someone buys a projector with a color wheel slower than 6x and/or is going to watch the image way too bright. As noted, get an ND filter if the image is over 20 fL, a lot of people will see RBE (even those not very sensitive) if the image is way too bright.

Someone said 6-segment, but they meant 6-speed. A color wheel has segments and a speed, most color wheels are 6-segments / 4x speed in the budget segment (Viewsonic Pro8200 is 7 segments which reduces RBE more than a traditional 4x wheel). However, the newer budget projectors like the Benq w1070 are 6-speed and 6-segment (which is as good as it gets under $5k for low RBE), and it is unlikely to see RBE unless you are watching the image overly bright. Some really high-end DLP's are 3-chip and have ZERO RBE ($15,000+), or some of the middle-high DLP's like some Runcos have 7 segments with 6 speed, which is slightly better than the 6-segment/6-speed. More speed, good ---- More segments, good ---- More speed and more segments = best.

I agree RBE is awful, I can still see it on any DLP. I'ts just there in your subconscious, you can't watch the movie without it being distracting. I bought one and sold it a week later and then never looked back from LCD. I don't want others in my home cinema experiencing it either which is why I went LCD.
My current Epson 5010 has fantastic blacks. Until 3 chip DLP is available for the same price as an LCD equivalent then no DLP for me.

DLP can also produce headahces and nausea on slower color wheel projectors. I had a Mitsubishi hd1000 that would give me a headache after 45 minutes of watching. I switched to an Infocus 7210 with a faster color wheel and I no longer experience any of those problems. One of the problems with budget projectors is RBE/headaches/nausea due to slower color wheels so you have to watch out for them. Apparently the Benq w1070 is pretty good in this area. I also read the Sharp XV-z30000 is excellent in this area and can be had for under 2k right now.

Problems with RBE effects for some people, while real, are grossly exaggerated on this website....if it was as bad of a problem as characterized here the technology would have never gained any traction in the marketplace. Remember the first DLP projectors had 1X color wheels and even with that grew to be a very popular technology, Each person has to learn for themselves...don't believe any of the posts here. It has to be looked at individually on a case by case basis. There is no consensus.

The RBE effect is also really bad on some LED projectors without any color wheels. I just wish manufacturers would publish specs on how fast the LEDs cycle with their products.

BE VERY AFRAID...

Because once you see it then it will nag you into getting another projector sooner than you planned!

It never goes away, and then you notice it when you should be enjoying the show your watching intstead.

Then you start looking for it all the time even when it's not there.

RGB or the possibility is a deal killer period.

CONSIDER YOURSELF WARNED!

RBE is a problem for you...fine...but it is not for millions of other people...most people have no issue or have never even heard of RBE....

It is a mistake to use the term most, when in fact there is nothing but anecdotal evidence one way or the other. The percentage of people who do or do not see RBE is purely conjecture. In my small corner of the world, more people see them than those who don't.

My first projector was an LCD as I was afraid of the dreaded RBE. When the polarizer went out at 2200 hours, my next projector was DLP. I do occasionally see RBE-- mostly in high contrast scenes. I can't say I look for it, it doesn't bother me, since it lasts for such a short time and no one who has watched the projector as ever said anything-- like what are those rainbow artifacts.

I think it's something that might be a problem for a few very sensitive people, and if you are one of them-- well you'll think it's a big problem, but I suspect the universe of those sensitive people is fairly small.

Be afraid of LCD panels that don't line up perfectly. It will drive you crazy.....

Be afraid of low ansi contrast. It produces a dull picture.

Other things to consider when getting a DLP:
1. Fan is typically louder than LCD projectors
2. Color wheel whine - this might get masked with audio volume but sometimes the pitch still cuts through
3. Light leakage from case

I will say the Benq w6000 I had for a few weeks had a very crisp, sharp picture but once myself and others seen rainbows, I had to get rid of it.
It never did give me headaches but the flashes of rainbows/color blurs was bothersome.
IMO, I believe everyone sees rainbows. It's a matter of tolerance to seeing it where it's not bothersome or no one informed you that those weird color blurs you see periodically is the RBE.

A good test is to watch a black and white movie like Sin City.
If its not bothersome watching a b&w movie, you should be good to go but keep in mind that guests may be bothered by it.

Just make sure the vendor you purchase from has a good return policy.

It doesn't take long for "real" problems(meaning widespread) to become known to the public...don't forget DLP was once a popular technology for TV's so literally millions of people have been exposed to DLP technology. Outside of an AV forum you rarely see RBE being discussed. It is is a real problem to those who are sensitive to RBE, but the majority of people are not...otherwise DLP technology would have never succeeded in the marketplace...if the majority of people were sensitive to RBE this discussion would not be happening because DLP technology would have failed and not exist today. DLP projectors began shipping in 1996...that is 17 years ago..it is just not a problem for most people. In 2006 DLP technology reached over 50% market share for front projection. For those who think it is a problem for most people please explain how this so called horribly flawed technology has been such a success in the market.

Nobody has ever claimed it is a problem for "most" people. It is a pretty major problem to the 1 in 10 (or less) people who buy a projector they can't use. Odds are the OP will be ok.

I don't know...that's not my read of the anti-DLP comments here.

not only I experience RBE, I can also see the pot of gold at the end of it.......it's that bad!!!!!!

ok, but I think leckian brings up a good point. His comments have for the most part responded evenly to numerous posts that emphasize this problem. His comments were challenged as statistically unsound or unproven. Yet, the marketplace can be cited as a reliable source for something that is an intricate part of what people purchase and use. I have read several comments including on this thread that it affects everyone to a small extent. So, his comments rebutting this concern over RBE are well placed in my opinion.

I personally have never seen a DLP projection (or think I've seen one) beyond walking by a display in a store. I don't live in a cave ;-) but I am one of the very few that just have not come across it. So, I am interested in reading the debate.

Just buy the projector from somewhere that allows returns. Seeing rainbows on a 6-speed color wheel WHEN the projector is at a reasonable brightness at any distracting amount is very rare, and this is not anecdotal. If you go to slower color wheels (4x or 5x) then more will start to see it, but again it really depends how bright the image is. 3x speed color wheels are where it really starts to get common, probably 1 in 2 to 1 in 3 if you train someone and then run a test pattern, but in normal viewing probably 1 in 4 to 1 in 6 is bothered. The odds of seeing it with a 6x color wheel to the point of being bothered are less than 1 in 10. These are not anecdotal numbers, people have tested it.

A lot of people in this forum make the incorrect assumption that because they saw RBE too much on a certain projector, or because they saw too much RBE watching a very bright image that they are very RBE sensitive and can never use a DLP. This is wrong, again RBE depends on how bright you watch the image, and since most newer projectors start out way too bright, even people that are not that sensitive will see them at first unless you tame the brightness. This is the biggest mistake in this forum evaluating RBE, a huge number of the RBE complaints in this forum are just because people are watching it too bright and they never used an ND filter to correct.

RBE also has to do with how much contrast a projector has. It's a combination of color wheel speed vs. contrast and image brightness.

I can see lots of RBE on the Mits hc4000 (because high native on/off as a 4x color wheel), almost none on the Benq w7000 when it's at a normal brightness (it has lower contrast and lower RBE than the Mits even though I use it in the 4x CW speed mode, well it can go to 6x but noisy). When I change the Benq w7000 into 6x speed, I see ZERO. If I crank the brightness way up on the w7000 in 4x mode, then I can see it quite often, but this is higher than a normal and reasonable "watching brightness" before it starts to show itself.

Judging RBE by just glancing at too bright of an image on any random projector is not a good indicator of how much you will see it.
Edited by coderguy - 3/10/13 at 4:04pm

I've had a PJ for ~11 years. I was fortunate enough to be able to check out a DLP before I bought. I saw rainbows all over the place, got eye strain, and even wound up with a headache. I've been on the LCD ever since. I am looking to buy my 4th PJ and after seeing a few of the more recent DLPs am seriously considering a BenQ W1070. My concern is that a big reason I have the theater is to have the guys over for sporting events, to give the kids a place to play where I can monitor, etc. A lot of people come through. I don't want anyone to suffer needlessly. So while RBE is better than it once was its still a real issue, even if I am symptom free.

And based on my large group of family and friends I REALLY think the people who are affected in some fashion by RBE is understated, though if it was genetic it would explain my experience of higher incidence.

I was happy with my DLP projector untill I found this forum.

So many complaints about RBE? What could they be talking about?

After learning how to see them I could never unsee them again.

Most consumers are like an ostridge with it's head in the sand.
If your happy then just prefer to stay that way and don't look!

The DLP manufactures count on this.

Just like being shown what macroblocking or banding is in PQ, you can easily point out RBE to someone and once they have seen it, like you said, it's hard to unsee it.
Once you see it, it's a matter of can you tolerate it enough where it's not bothersome.

I never knew what RBE until 3 years ago, thanks to this forum.
Now I even notice it during presentations at work if the conditions are right and this is on still images.