[Woolygums]

Have decided I may need to up the ante from $1500 to $2,000.


I have an aging HD32 Optoma. Getting "Lamp replacement" messages on boot up. About 2k hours on lamp. Still working, but who knows for how long?

I have a completely light controlled room. Optoma PJ now hangs from ten foot ceiling.


Throw is 25 feet to a 144" x 96" Hi Power Daylight high performance roll-up screen. Diagonal is about 175 inches


PJ now 12v triggers roll up screen. 25 foot HDMI cable to DVD player.



Under $1,500 would be nice, but could go as high as $2,000.


I like the Panny PT-AE4000u, but so do a lot of other people = out of stock (currently).


Possibly the Viewsonic Pro8100


I may be ok to wait, but if the Optoma lamp fails, I will be watching on a 37" screen.

Any other PJ anyone could suggest?


Your help appreciated.

 

[curlyjive]

I'm very happy with my Epson 8100. The Mits 3800 is also a popular model. Those would be less than the Panny. If you have the $$ though, the Panny will be better. The Epson 8500 is a little more, but also very good.


I would avoid the Viewsonic. It is an older model and from reading the thread on it, their support is not very good.

 

[Meret]

I have the Pro8100 with a 126" high-power screen and it can toss out a lot of light but if I had your screen, I would go with the new LG or BenQ W6000 both can drive a lot more brightness with good color.


I'm quite happy with the Pro8100 as many of us think it's the best deal around right now if price is a driving factor, but that is a huge screen even if it's high-power and as I said, if it was me, I would cough up the extra and get the LG (don't think I can do DLP) for it's high brightness while still maintaining great color.


I'm surprised more projector people don't need stress pills after trying to make the purchase decision

One thing I have noticed this year is most people are happy with any of the major choices from this year's crop of projectors so unless you choose something just under-powered for your setup, I don't think you can really make a bad choice.


Good luck

 

[Woolygums]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Meret /forum/post/18202736


I have the Pro8100 with a 126" high-power screen and it can toss out a lot of light but if I had your screen, I would go with the new LG or BenQ W6000 both can drive a lot more brightness with good color.


I'm quite happy with the Pro8100 as many of us think it's the best deal around right now if price is a driving factor, but that is a huge screen even if it's high-power and as I said, if it was me, I would cough up the extra and get the LG (don't think I can do DLP) for it's high brightness while still maintaining great color.


I'm surprised more projector people don't need stress pills after trying to make the purchase decision

One thing I have noticed this year is most people are happy with any of the major choices from this year's crop of projectors so unless you choose something just under-powered for your setup, I don't think you can really make a bad choice.


Good luck

Hoe about the PT-AE4000u? I cam make my room totally dark. Or should I go for something with more lumens?

 

[BuffaloJim]

The 4000 is the most feature laden projctor out today. It's also a pretty competent projector in its own right and is the one I'd pick if I had an extra two grand burning a hole in my pocket right now.


Make sure that any projector you choose has a 12V trigger. I don't think that's a feature you want to give up. The Pro8100 and the HC3800 each have one. The Panny has two; I don't know what you'll do with the extra one, but it's there none the less.


Jim

 

[orion456]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Woolygums /forum/post/18202468


Have decided I may need to up the ante from $1500 to $2,000.


I have an aging HD32 Optoma. Getting "Lamp replacement" messages on boot up. About 2k hours on lamp. Still working, but who knows for how long?

Just as an alternative thought, I suggest the pj you already own.


$170 for a new lamp on your HD32, 720p machine, vs spending $2000 - if you like your old projector, it will look amazing with a new lamp. Sure the AE4000 is going to look somewhat better, but in many cases (HDTV, DVDs, compressed satellite, poor quality blurays) probably not $1800 better.


I'll just remind you what ProjectorCentral said about the HD70(HD32):


"Have you been dreaming of the day when you could get a high contrast, 1280x720p resolution DLP home theater projector - the HD70 has a remarkably noise-free picture - color was well saturated and accurate - shadow detail was nuanced and easily visible. I found myself noticing details that I had forgotten about in the two films, and I was very pleased with the HD70's dynamic picture quality"


I have an HD70, and it looks great on most materials and for the most part only on bluray do the more expensive machines look significantly better - unless you are planning to sit very close to the screen.

 

[Woolygums]

Orion,


The HD 32/70 does a respectable job. I don't, however, see a big difference in Blu Ray and regular HD DVD.

I was hoping for a more significant difference, at least in Blu Ray with a Panasonic PT-AE4000u.


I probably will buy a new lamp for the HD32 and keep it as a backup.

 

[dogone]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Woolygums /forum/post/18202468


Have decided I may need to up the ante from $1500 to $2,000.


I have an aging HD32 Optoma. Getting "Lamp replacement" messages on boot up. About 2k hours on lamp. Still working, but who knows for how long?

I have a completely light controlled room. Optoma PJ now hangs from ten foot ceiling.


Throw is 25 feet to a 144" x 96" Hi Power Daylight high performance roll-up screen. Diagonal is about 175 inches


PJ now 12v triggers roll up screen. 25 foot HDMI cable to DVD player.



Under $1,500 would be nice, but could go as high as $2,000.


I like the Panny PT-AE4000u, but so do a lot of other people = out of stock (currently).


Possibly the Viewsonic Pro8100


I may be ok to wait, but if the Optoma lamp fails, I will be watching on a 37" screen.

Any other PJ anyone could suggest?


Your help appreciated.

The Panny is "not" out of stock....you can get it for 1999.00 at PP and quite a few other stores for the same price.

 

[Woolygums]



Quote:
Originally Posted by dogone /forum/post/18207652


The Panny is "not" out of stock....you can get it for 1999.00 at PP and quite a few other stores for the same price.

Thank you, I will find and order one today!

 

[kicks]

Panasonic AE4000U case closed.

 

[danieledmunds]

I'd re-open that case and suggest the Sharp Z15000, according to Art from projectorreviews - black levels close to the AE4000 with DLP pop and sharpness

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...2#post18018012

 

[kicks]

Go here and compare projectors on your short list, based on their features.

http://www.projectorcentral.com/projectors.cfm

 

[Woolygums]

Om Shanti Shanti Shivaji,


I thought as much. I did open the PJ and take a look at the lamp. Put it back together and reset the lamp hours. But then it worked very well. Maybe something made better contact. Anyhow it is working fine with no warning of "Lamp Replacement . . . "


Nameste

Bill

 

[Woolygums]



Quote:
Originally Posted by dogone /forum/post/18207652


The Panny is "not" out of stock....you can get it for 1999.00 at PP and quite a few other stores for the same price.

PP is out of stock. The only people I can find who have it want $2200 to $2495. PM me if you know a source at $1999. Thanks in advance, Bill

 

[Mupi]



Quote:
Originally Posted by kicks /forum/post/18208777


Panasonic AE4000U case closed.

what about all the dust blob issue people are having.


It is ridiculous that after spending $2000 I have to deal with dust blobs

 

[BuffaloJim]



Quote:
what about all the dust blob issue people are having.


It is ridiculous that after spending $2000 I have to deal with dust blobs

It's called maintenance. By the same reasoning, after spending $20,000 on a car, one certainly should not have to change the oil.


Dust blobs are simply one of the LCD cons that must be weighed before choosing a technology. The closed optical path of a DLP is nice, but they also have their cons. LIfe's a compromise; choosing a projector just happens to be one of those compromises.


Jim

 

[hipertec]



Quote:
Originally Posted by kicks /forum/post/18208777


Panasonic AE4000U case closed.

How would the AE4000U compare to the Epson 8500UB?


Im shopping around too so any idea would be great.

 

[danieledmunds]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Mupi /forum/post/18217602


what about all the dust blob issue people are having.


It is ridiculous that after spending $2000 I have to deal with dust blobs

Sealed light path on the Sharp....


I have about 600 hours on mine, no issues at all

 

[Woolygums]

Anyone know a seller who has the PT-AE4000u in stock for $1999?


Bill

 

[Alex solomon]

I don't think there is a PJ out there that will beat the AE4000 under $2k. Dust blob is another issue though. It's optical path is partially sealed but still it is prone to dust blob, it seems. I wonder though why they don't seal it completely like DLP PJs.