[Augie]

Aside from test DVDs like Video Essentials and Avia, what DVDs should I use to test the Sharp 9000 DLP projector's capabilities? What movies and chapters provide good test material?


I'm going to see two Sharp 9000 DLPs this weekend, one on a matte white screen and another on a Greyhawk. I'm going to bring my own non-progressive DVD player and an IBM ThinkPad T22 laptop to play DVDs on. I will also use the player that the showroom provides; hopefully it's progressive.

 

[Huey]

Pitch black (contrast), U-571 (contrast), 5th Element (colors and contrast), What dreams may come (colors), Anna and the King (colors), Akira (to see how it handles anime type movies), Friends or Stargate SG-1 (to see how it handles TV/video base material).


------------------

Huey ;-]

 

[Grant Smyth]

To test the internal processing (using an interlaced signal to the projector) try Rules of Engagement Chapter 6 or 7 where Tommy Lee Jones walks onto the porch of Samuel A. Jackson's house. As he walks to the door the camera pans across some blinds in the window - carefully watch how this scene is handled (are the blinds rock steady?). A few seconds later after he enters the house the camera again pans across a wicker chair - watch closely for any wavering.


For how well dark scenes are handled try - opening chapter of City of Angels, cave scene in Castaway, cellar scenes in Fight Club etc.


Cheers,


Grant

 

[Augie]

Anymore advice? I'm going to audition a Sharp DW100U tonight and several others tomorrow: Sharp 7000, Sharp Z1U, and a Seleco 200DM I hope. I could really use some advice as to which scenes to watch and what to watch for in those scenes. Thanks to those that have already responded!

 

[Jon S]

My suggestion is Dark City for black levels (whole movie is very dark), Austin Powers for colors (the color range is immense), Dinosaur for details (look at the dinosaur skin for details). Fifth Element is excellent as an overall viewing material. Titanic is a great non-anamorphic test. Look at the surveillance ship's deck railings in chapter three as the camera pans over it, thats a tough test.

 

[David Wallis]

Try the Haunting for black detail, Titanic for artifacts, the black and white interviews in "Steely Dans Two Against Nature", Sleepy Hollow, Gladiator chpt 21.


DavidW

 

[videonut]

This is a great test to check for pixelation noise.


Starship Troopers, the beginning of chapter 4.


Watch the soldiers' faces closely as the camera pans across the troop formation. You will either see a tremendous amount of pixal distortion or normal motion blur. Hopefully the projector will show the latter.


Ciao,

Peter M

 

[Augie]

Thanks for everyone's suggestions. I primarily used Gladiator ch. 21, The Fifth Element ch. 8, and Titanic ch. 3.


In the last three days I've spent 9 hours looking at the Sharp DW100U LCD, Sharp 7000 LCD, Sharp XV-Z1U LCD, Zenith Pro 900 CRT, and the Sharp 9000 DLP. With regards to these models there's no contest -- the 9000 is superior. I couldn't live with LCD -- not enough contrast. The 900 CRT looked great but it's just not bright enough. For me, the 9000 is the best of LCD (brightness) and the best of CRT (contrast) all in one package.


Anamorphic DVD on a progressive scan DVD player fed directly to the 9000 looked great. Non-anamorphic (Titanic) via progressive scan DVD looked okay. Now that I've seen DVDs on large (7' and 9' wide) screens, I understand why anamorphic DVDs are the only way to go.


Before I run out and buy the 9000, a couple of things still need to happen:


* When will the Seleco 300 DLP come out and, more importantly, how much more than the 9000 will it cost?

* Do I need to show the 9000 on a Greyhawk or will the MUCH cheaper Da-Lite Matte White screen do?

* Can an HTPC output a 1280x720 to the 9000 via it's computer input?


Thanks again.

 

[Spizz]

Before I run out and buy the 9000, a couple of things still need to happen:

Quote:

* When will the Seleco 300 DLP come out and, more importantly, how much more than the 9000 will it cost?

The Seleco HT300 will run for $14,900 and is out November while Seleco are still working on the Faroudja software.

Quote:

* Do I need to show the 9000 on a Greyhawk or will the MUCH cheaper Da-Lite Matte White screen do?

Again were you happy with the Screen you saw it on? A Greyhawk will produce better contrast at the cost of Brightness. If you can do so audition the Sharp XV-Z9000U on both Screens do so and decide.

Quote:

* Can an HTPC output a 1280x720 to the 9000 via it's computer input?

It works with a Faroudja Scaler outputting at 1280x720 so one would say yes. However working out the timings etc. to achieve this via PC seems the key unless Faroudja want to disclose this http://www.avsforum.com/ubb/smile.gif


Spero D.



[This message has been edited by Spizz (edited 09-29-2001).]

 

[Tom Bley]

Hi, I believe the Seleco HT300 is due out in November. The msrp is said to be $14,995. I think it would be in your best interest and wait a couple months to check this projector out. The Marantz DLP will also be coming out soon.

As for the Greyhawk screen, it would be good if you could compare it to the matte white screen, you may not find the Greyhawk necessary. Da-lite also makes a light grey screen, I believe it's called the hi-contrast.


Take care.

 

[Augie]

I want the Sharp 9000 for $8,000 if I can find it for that price. If the Seleco 3000 lists for $4,000 more than the 9000's list ($11,000), I can rule it out. Even if the internal Faroudja scaler is great, I just can't afford it.


I saw the 9000 on a 9 foot wide 1.2 gain microperf screen today. I saw it on a 6 foot wide Greyhawk last Sunday. When I saw it on the Greyhawk, I wasn't prepared for a serious look so I can't easily compare the two screens in my mind. However, the 1.2 gain microperf looked great to me. Certainly the blacks looked black enough and I was happy with the contrast. $400 or so for a Da-Lite Matte White and $1,200 for a Greyhawk... I don't think it's worth it the stretch.


The Marantz will have the 1280x720 chip? Does anyone have price and date on it? If I remember, Stereophile Guide to Home Theater hated the current Marantz DLP. Comments?

 

[Spizz]

Augie contact Jason at AVS refer Sharp pricing. I think you may have answered your own question on the Greyhawk http://www.avsforum.com/ubb/smile.gif Did you notice any Moire effects etc with the Microperf screen? Any banding on images? From memory I think the Marantz will list for $12,900.


Spero D.

 

[Augie]

I had never watched a video projector on a microperf screen before. I didn't even know it was a microperf until about 30 minutes into viewing when I asked where the center speaker was located. I'm no expert, but I didn't notice anything that could be attributed to the microperf.

 

[JustMike]

Augie, which microperf screen did you see it on?


I saw the 9000 on Friday at LaserLand in San Jose, and I was absolutely FLOORED! It was simply fantastic.


If I could find it for $8k, I'd buy it, EXCEPT for one possible hiccup: the lack of either a 1394/5C or DVI/HDCP input. I'm not comfortable shelling out a Kia's worth of cash for a projector whose HD capabilities may be denied to me.


------------------

Mike Kobb

(Formerly "ReplayMike", but no longer affiliated with the company; these opinions are mine alone.)

 

[Spizz]

Mike great to hear from yet another person whom loved the Sharp. What Screen were they using it with? What source? What were they showing? Fan noise? Black Level?


Spero D.

 

[Tom Bley]

Augie, where did you see the Sharp 9000 on the Greyhawk screen? I saw it on an 80" wide Greyhawk at The Great Indoors last Sunday.


Tom

 

[Augie]

I think it was a Draper microperf, but I'm not 100% sure.


Tom, I saw it at the Schaumburg Great Indoors last Sunday! Were you the guy in there watching Cast Away with a rainbow-effect-sensitive friend? I walked in with my wife. Did you get one? How much? What screen did you go with?


[This message has been edited by Augie (edited 09-30-2001).]

 

[JustMike]

Hey Spizz,


They were showing it on a very high-gain 106" 16:9 DaLite screen (I think they said it was a 2.5 gain!) because the Greyhawk hadn't arrived yet. The room was totally dark when I arrived, but I asked them to bring the lights up as bright as possible (still far from daylight) to see how it looked, and it was still quite good.


DVD's were Fifth Element and Toy Story 2. Other source material included HDNet baseball, and an HD recording (on the much-lamented Panasonic HD deck) of the Superbowl.


At the request of one of the other viewers, they switched the Panasonic DVD player into 480i so we could see it with its internal scaler, and it still looked quite good.


We also tried some standard NTSC TV off of DirecTV. It looked pretty bad, but that's just because it was crappy NTSC to begin with, then MPEG'd within an inch of its life by DirecTV...


Fan noise was VERY quiet in my opinion. They had it mounted on a ceiling mount, and with the sound muted and standing right underneath it, I could hear it. Sitting nearby with the sound on, there was nothing to hear. My room isn't super-quiet, so this would be a total non-issue for me.


Black levels were suprisingly good for a DLP. We watched some 2.35:1 movie content (Fifth Element), so there were black bars above and below. They were visible (the Sharp rep held up his hand so you could see the shadow cast), but far from distracting. Having seen the Panasonic DLP RPTV using the older 720p element, I can say that this was was in a whole different ballpark.


In summary, let me put it this way: I've been spending a fair amount of time today in my viewing room with a tape measure. http://www.avsforum.com/ubb/wink.gif (Amazingly, front wall is the perfect size to accommodate a 106" screen like the one they were using, with space to the sides for my mains and room underneath for the center. I don't think I can do a microperf at this time -- I might have to buy a second matching center and do an over/under thing). The only thing stopping me from going down and buying one today is the DVI/1394 issue.


------------------

Mike Kobb

(Formerly "ReplayMike", but no longer affiliated with the company; these opinions are mine alone.)

 

[Augie]

Mike, was the screen you saw the 9000 on microperf'ed?


From what I've been reading on the forum, the 9000 looks good on just about any screen: 2.5, 1.2 microperf, Greyhawk. Has anyone been able to do a side-by-side comparison of the 9000 on different screens? I realize that's a lot to ask, but if someone has we need to know!

 

[Spizz]

Quote:

The only thing stopping me from going down and buying one today is the DVI/1394 issue.

Even if you have the DVI connection apparently that isn't enough to decrypt the upcoming HDTV.


Spero D.