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Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 400 Discussion Thread, MSRP 1599 available now - Page 3

post #61 of 1356
10/2/06 at 2:39pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by htme123 View Post

I was aware of the 4.4% cash back program and almost used it, but instead opted for a 10% off coupon (using one excluded the use of the other apparently). The coupon was found using a google search for Target and Coupons. The projector hasnt arrived yet but i just ordered it on Friday. I'll post some first impressions as soon as I get it up and running.
-Jones


Thanks, I did not know that this 10% off existed! I don't have any more excuses to wait now ( I was planning on Pearl but will wait for a 1080P with more lumens down the line).
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post #62 of 1356
10/5/06 at 10:19am
Projector:

Case is a nice curvy white pearlescent color. It has IR sensors on the front and the back of the case. There are 3 feet on the bottom with the front 2 being adjustable. The lens shift knobs are large and easy to move. There are indents for the fully centered position. The lens shift worked as advertised with no apparent image degradation at any point. The zoom and focus rings operated smoothly. Overall it is a very solid and well built projector.

Remote:

The remote is a nice ergonomic design. There is a backlight button that will light up the buttons for you. All of the inputs have dedicated buttons on the remote. There are also Menu, Aspect, Color Mode, contrast, gamma, brightness, and separate on and off buttons. This makes it easy to get to most of the important image features without having to plow through the menu system.

First Impressions:

I have a Dalite Model C normal 1 gain white vinyl manual pulldown screen. It is a 4:3 format screen that is 127 wide. This is useful to test lens shift positioning and various zoom settings. If you are interested you can see pictures on my web site. I currently have an older 800x600 LCD projector (specs on my website) that I use for the theater room. The room is not totally light controlled and I am just starting the process of making it more theater like. I get seasick when I view single chip DLP projectors so I only look at LCD projectors. In the family room I have an ISF calibrated Mits 65869 CRT RP TV. For this test my source was the Toshiba HD-A1 HD-DVD player over both HDMI and Component with FW 2.0 outputting 720p. I have not tested with any other sources at this point.

I loved the picture right out of the box. It was bright and punchy. I did not see any vertical banding. I watched parts of several HD-DVD's on it. I really did not notice a huge difference between the HDMI and Component inputs. I settled on Theater Mode 1 with no other adjustments.

Initial Conclusions:

The main reason for this short test was really only to test to see if the projector would do any scaling on its HD inputs to support a constant height setup. It will not and this is really a deal killer for me. Let me repeat this. There is no scaling or zoom functions that work on the image when feed a 720p or 1080i signal via HDMI or component inputs.

I have the new Panny PT-AX100 on order to test this exact same feature so I will have both projectors at the house to test for a very brief period of time. I will update this post after I get a chance to see the Panny in action.

For the record let me just state that I was very pleased and impressed with the Epson and if the scaling worked I would not be looking at another projector.

If anyone has any questions I will try to answer them as best I can.

Laters,
Jeff
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post #63 of 1356
10/5/06 at 10:59am
Quote:
Originally Posted by eq_shadimar View Post

Projector:

Case is a nice curvy white pearlescent color. It has IR sensors on the front and the back of the case. There are 3 feet on the bottom with the front 2 being adjustable. The lens shift knobs are large and easy to move. There are indents for the fully centered position. The lens shift worked as advertised with no apparent image degradation at any point. The zoom and focus rings operated smoothly. Overall it is a very solid and well built projector.

Remote:

The remote is a nice ergonomic design. There is a backlight button that will light up the buttons for you. All of the inputs have dedicated buttons on the remote. There are also Menu, Aspect, Color Mode, contrast, gamma, brightness, and separate on and off buttons. This makes it easy to get to most of the important image features without having to plow through the menu system.

First Impressions:

I have a Dalite Model C normal 1 gain white vinyl manual pulldown screen. It is a 4:3 format screen that is 127 wide. This is useful to test lens shift positioning and various zoom settings. If you are interested you can see pictures on my web site. I currently have an older 800x600 LCD projector (specs on my website) that I use for the theater room. The room is not totally light controlled and I am just starting the process of making it more theater like. I get seasick when I view single chip DLP projectors so I only look at LCD projectors. In the family room I have an ISF calibrated Mits 65869 CRT RP TV. For this test my source was the Toshiba HD-A1 HD-DVD player over both HDMI and Component with FW 2.0 outputting 720p. I have not tested with any other sources at this point.

I loved the picture right out of the box. It was bright and punchy. I did not see any vertical banding. I watched parts of several HD-DVD's on it. I really did not notice a huge difference between the HDMI and Component inputs. I settled on Theater Mode 1 with no other adjustments.

Initial Conclusions:

The main reason for this short test was really only to test to see if the projector would do any scaling on its HD inputs to support a constant height setup. It will not and this is really a deal killer for me. Let me repeat this. There is no scaling or zoom functions that work on the image when feed a 720p or 1080i signal via HDMI or component inputs.

I have the new Panny PT-AX100 on order to test this exact same feature so I will have both projectors at the house to test for a very brief period of time. I will update this post after I get a chance to see the Panny in action.

For the record let me just state that I was very pleased and impressed with the Epson and if the scaling worked I would not be looking at another projector.

If anyone has any questions I will try to answer them as best I can.

Laters,
Jeff

Jeff, you realize now that you will be bombarded with questions on picture quality comparisons/differences don't you? Brightness, contrast, sharpness, screen door, colour, vertical banding, and noise (ie. how loud) comments will likely be the most requested. You are doing us all a tremendous service, thanks in advance for your time.
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post #64 of 1356
10/5/06 at 11:22am
Yeah I am not too concerned with noise and brightness which i feel art explained well, but i would love to know more about screen door, color, black levels and sharpness. This is the comparison i've been waiting for. awesome.
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post #65 of 1356
10/6/06 at 9:20pm
I stopped in at a hifi shop that moved into a bigger building but wasn't sure what they carried as it has been a year or two. Anyways they had the Epson 400 / 800. I checked out the 400 and was very impressed with it. No screendoor effect until I stuck my face very close to the screen. The projector was not very noisy at all. Though I can't say for sure but I feel that the FP might be a little big/bulky compared to my Sanyo Z1. I am trying to convince my wife it is time to upgrade. This is on my list as well as the Z4/Z5, and Panny 900/AX100U. I spoke with someone and they mentioned if it was them spending my money they would opt for the Epson though it seems like from reviews the Panny is the way to go.
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post #66 of 1356
10/8/06 at 2:17pm
first impressions wow why did i wait. this being my first pj i have no comparisons to share but as far as ease of setup great looking pic out of the box i am one happy camper. hd looks great. jets and giants nice. . in brillant setting, lights on in basement still a fine pic.watched a bit of the incredibles in theater 1 setting, as my wife said it looks almost 3d. if your better halves are judging any pj by the demos in the b&m stores you will have a hard time convincing them. ten minutes in the wife sat down eyes open thrilled. going now to watch xmen 3. p.s. oppo 970 and 96 inch carada ccw screen. yeah
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post #67 of 1356
10/8/06 at 10:08pm
What would be a great low profile mount for this projector? My Basement ceiling is going to be 7'11" and I am hoping for a 110" inch projection and have 27' from screen to back wall. may be limited to 106" by speakers.

edit: i understand from the reviews that the Panny is superior, but am leaning towards the epson on previous quality and service issues. Am I being stupid? Anyone else put a premium on those? The review of the Panny 100 was great but for some strange reason my heart tells me go epson.
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post #68 of 1356
10/9/06 at 5:59am
I too am torn between the Epson and the Panasonic. I'm leaning toward the Epson because of price. I just found a discount code (6ZTCAXFP) to use at the Epson site that gives you an additional 10% off. It's really tempting to pull the trigger now but I'm going to wait a while and hope the Panasonic goes down a few hundred more.
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post #69 of 1356
10/9/06 at 2:36pm
Does anyone know if the Epson accepts 1080p24 like the Panasonic? It would be nice to be able to feed a pure signal off a next gen HD player and not worry about 3:2 pulldown and all that fun stuff.
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post #70 of 1356
10/10/06 at 8:42pm
I got my epson 400 last night and thought i would post some initial impressions. I havent calibrated it yet, but i have had the opportunity to use it in a variety of lighting conditions and my first impressions from watching HDTV are extremely positive, the image is bright and vibrant and the skin tones are dead on. The blacks leave a little to be desired but hey, its LCD and they are still pretty decent. The image really pops, its got tons of brightness for viewing with some light in the room, but when you can control the lights it really shines. The incredibles in hd and narnia in hd both looked wonderful. I was glued to the screen for about 3 hours watching a discovery hd show about sharks. Truly, awesome. The image is great and i'm very satisfied with my purchase, and with hd content i really havent noticed SD as i feared i would. The best part is, i dont have a screen for it yet... i should in a few days, i am just using a white wall... so the image will only get better. Great image, peace of mind, i'm one extremely satisfied customer.
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post #71 of 1356
10/11/06 at 6:59pm
Greetings all!

Long time DLP owner here considering moving to this unit as my multi-purpose room has some real install challenges- 7'2" ceilings, throw distance of under 10' due to support beam. I don't want my 92" screen down by the floor like the high offset DLP's will force. I've read that you should keep the lens within the vertical extents of the screen when using the Panny's, that won't work either. In his Epson 400 review at Projector Reviews- Art said he thought that you could lens shift the image above the lens (table mounted) or below it (ceiling mounted) but he didn't measure it when he had the projector.

Could someone who has this unit verify that you could indeed shift the image above or below the lens and not get any bowing of the image, etc? Is something like having the bottom of the displayed image 10" above the lens possible with a 92" screen?

Thanks!
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post #72 of 1356
10/12/06 at 10:26am
For a minute i thought was the HIDEOUS attempt of a DV10, i saw a Epson cinema model at Sams Club it was a square white box with a dvd drive, UGLY!!!!!!!!
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post #73 of 1356
10/16/06 at 10:21am
I purchased the Epson 400 last week. If you mount it on the ceiling you should will have no issues in regards to shifting the image to the top of the ceiling. I'm currently using a short mount . The projector is located directly over our seating area, and their is no noise from the projector in the theatre modes.

The picture quality is outstanding, with no screen door visible unless you are about 6 feet away. I'm currently using a 98 inch diagonal screen. This is my first projector and I'm extremely satisfied. Also, the warranty promises a replacement unit through overnight shipping should something happen to the unit.
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post #74 of 1356
10/16/06 at 11:00am
Thanks for your impressions Peter. The 400 is on my list and I was worried about screen door, but if it's not a problem after 6' I should be ok. I plan to have a screen size of about 88-92" sitting from about 9.5 feet with the pj at full zoom right above me. I have a pretty small living room.
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post #75 of 1356
10/16/06 at 11:51am
Sounds good Peter, thanks for the review. How far would you guess (or if you could measure) you can get the top of the image to move below the lens center when you're using maximum vertical shift? Do you think you can get the top of the image 10-12" below lens center??

Thanks much!
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post #76 of 1356
10/16/06 at 11:59am
Quote:
Originally Posted by gottahavapj View Post

Sounds good Peter, thanks for the review. How far would you guess (or if you could measure) you can get the top of the image to move below the lens center when you're using maximum vertical shift? Do you think you can get the top of the image 10-12" below lens center??

I sent a PM hoping he'd measure. I need a shift of about 24". Looking at Epson's specs, this looks doable for a 96" screen (48" high).
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post #77 of 1356
10/16/06 at 1:39pm
Does anyone know if it is isf calliberated
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post #78 of 1356
10/16/06 at 1:41pm
Just set up my projector over the weekend. I have it ceiling mounted 15' away from the wall/screen projecting a 92" image. I "tested" it out with My HD-A1 via HDMI for about 1 hour and I was amazed. Colors were fairly accurate and will be better once I get a screen. SDE was not an issue at 10 feet back. I went through all of the color settings and the livingroom and dynamic made ambient light a non-issue.

The warranty was also a big plus...my luck I would have a problem Super Bowl weekend...but with the extra care service a replacement is shipped at no cost.

jwhitta
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post #79 of 1356
10/16/06 at 4:13pm
The center of the lens of my Epson is eight inches from the ceiling. By using the lens shift I can move the picture until it is actually showing on the ceiling about eigteen inches towards the seats away from the screen. This projector has plenty of lens shift.

I was concerned at first because the manual states that is is best to mount the projector parrellel to the top or bottom of the screen. This is not the case with the lens shift. You can even set the projector on a table to the side of your viewing area and shift the picture over to your viewing area.

I used the advise from the forum and used the discount code to buy it through Epson, it shipped in two days.
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post #80 of 1356
10/16/06 at 5:22pm
Great stuff Peter, thanks... That is a lot of shift range.
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post #81 of 1356
10/16/06 at 8:15pm
Can anyone confirm that this unit will do 1:1 pixel mapping on RGB and HDMI connections? Just need to know before I pull the trigger.
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post #82 of 1356
10/16/06 at 8:54pm
Hi PeterJ / jwhitta

How far DOWN can you move the picture ( how far below the lens on your wall ).

Thanks in advance

Jonathan
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post #83 of 1356
10/17/06 at 3:11am
The center of the projector lens is 7'8" up from the my basement floor. The lens is located 11 feet from the screen and I'm projecting and image that is about a 98" diagonal. I can shift the image downward until it is 17 inches off the floor using just the lens shift. I have not used Keystone correction.
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post #84 of 1356
10/17/06 at 5:01am
Is there any bowing of the image at such a lens shift?
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post #85 of 1356
10/17/06 at 10:05am
There is no bowing of the image, that would happen if you pointed the projector at an angle other than 90 degrees towards the screen and you would have to use keystone correction to remove the bowing.

By keeping the projector pointed perpendicular to the screen plane, the lens shift can be used and will not cause bowing of the image.
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post #86 of 1356
10/17/06 at 11:26am
Thanks for the quick answer.

Just wondering because the Panasonic AX100 and AE900 users are saying that lens shift does cause bowing on these units even when placed ideally otherwise.
If the Epson does not, there is a distinct advantage there. The Pana units would have a rather limited placement comparatively.
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post #87 of 1356
10/17/06 at 11:37am
So hard to choose. It looks like in Canada the difference between the Epson 400 and the Panasonic AX100U is $600CAD after all shipping duties taxes are included. However the Panny includes a free bulb and the fact that it won't ship until late November.

So with the Epson I get more lens shift, better warranty service with longer coverage period and savings that can go towards a nice fixed frame screen.

With the AX100U I get more input resolutions, brighter image modes, quieter operation plus I don't have to worry about the first bulb replacement.

This needs some further thought.
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post #88 of 1356
10/17/06 at 11:41am
Hi PeterJ

Thanks SO much for taking the time to test and measure this. I ( and others ) have been trying to get this data for a while.

To extrapolate PeterJ's results, this is what I did.

His lens is 7.8' above the floor, so that would be 92"

His screen is 98" diagonal, so that would be 48" high.

So, if the top of the screen was level with the lens, that would put the bottom of the screen at 44" off the floor.

PeterJ said he could shift the image down to 17" off the floor, so the delta is 27"

Finally, if you divide the delta by the screen height, you get a WHOPPING 56% !! This is great news if you want to mount your pj flush to the ceiling, or low, under a table.

Now, that 56% may be affected by the throw distance as well as the image height, but, it's a huge number, so I'm sure it will suit lots of people's configuration.

BTW, for others like me who have been bamboozled by offsets, it is a truly confusing issue as 'fixed offset' projectors ( like most low cost DLP's ) are usually expressed in a % of screen height offset from lens-at-top ( or bottom ) of screen. Projectors with lens shift, however, usually express it as vertical shift in screen-heights ( amongst other even more confusing representations ). The shift is usually ( but not always ) symmetrical about the centre of lens at centre of screen position. Manuals that are clearly wrong ( like Epsons ) make matters even worse. Even when the a manual or review states lens shift in 'screen heights', they usually don't explicitly specify if that's 'total travel' or 'above AND below'.

I see this question pop up over and over again on the forums. If any of the reviewers are reading this, testing offset specifically, and expressing it in a common format ( like %offset from level-at-lens, so we could compare fixed and lens shift pj's ) would help out tons of people!

Jonathan
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post #89 of 1356
10/17/06 at 12:20pm
Oh, man. This sure is a great (and confusing) time to buy a projector. I was all set to get the AE900 a few months back but decided to wait. I have been looking seriously at some of the new projectors.

Like many people, I find the low price of the Optoma HD70 very attractive, but its high offset and lack of lens shift keeps me from buying it.

The relatively high price of the AX100 keeps me away also.

The Z5 is priced nicely and has 2 HDMI inputs and the longest warranty. It's not very bright though.

The Epson is the second brightest. It has the lowest price of the LCD projectors and a good warranty.

Although it's a tough choice between the Z5 and the Epson 400, I will go with the Epson because it hits the sweet spot with its relatively low price, high lumens and a good warranty.

A special thanks to those Epson owners who have been posting their impressions of the 400.
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post #90 of 1356
10/17/06 at 2:06pm
It looks like this projector will accept no form of 1080p signal??

Is that something worth being bummed about or not? How will that work with HD-DVD and BluRay players?
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