To start off I don't think JVC is looking to match Sony at the 1100ES price point and will hopefully show a 4K projector (more likely UHD resolution) this year at CEDIA that will directly compete with the 600ES next year. Whether Sony is ready to bring the price point of their 4K SXRD chip down another tier is also another big concern. We'll have to wait and see what JVC does.
Here's what I think JVC needs to do to lure potential buyers and possibly sway some 600ES owners to switch over to a JVC:
Limitations or complications JVC may face to bring this product to market at a similar price point of the Sony 600ES:
The first thing that I can think of is that JVC has traditionally manufactured their entire line up of home theater DILA projectors with economies of scale in mind. They were able to bring us so many high quality/high value models at various price points simply because each projector in the lineup used the vast majority of the same parts internally and externally. I highly doubt JVC will bring us multiple 4K units the first year. The biggest thing that will suffer will most likely be the lens. JVC doesn't do their lenses in-house. I believe Sony uses their in-house manufacturer (Carl Zeiss) to produce the lenses in their 4K models (I could be wrong). Without having their own lens manufacturer or economies of scale to bring down the price this may hinder JVC to match what the Sony 600ES has.
I think the next biggest issue would be the availability of the 18 GBps HDMI 2.0 chipset. Maybe JVC can create their own like Panasonic has in sufficient numbers for their projectors.
I'm sure I missed a few things consumers will want. Feel free to discuss and keep in mind the price point of the unit. I highly doubt they'll go past the MSRP of the Sony 600ES as JVC hasn't been known to enter that pricing tier.
Also, current Sony 4K owners (600/500ES and 1000/1100ES), would such a projector make you consider switching over to a JVC?
Here's what I think JVC needs to do to lure potential buyers and possibly sway some 600ES owners to switch over to a JVC:
- It will need to be as bright as the 600ES which is ~1600 calibrated lumens in high lamp mode.
- It should match the 600ES in ANSI contrast which is around 410:1
- It should have roughly equal lens quality and match subjective native image sharpness and pixel delineation before any smart sharpening software
- It should have software similar to RC. Clear black and MPC both do similar things but they should incorporate both into one software package.
- It should have subjective motion qualities similar or surpassing Sony. Both in terms of motion resolution and in terms of how it interpolates the incoming signal.
- It will need to have higher native contrast over the Sony's and I think this is one of the most likely things for the JVC 4K machine to do easily. The tough part here is get native contrast high enough while also getting that extremely high jump in image brightness. Can JVC engineer a light and optical path good enough to get that kind of brightness AND the kind of high contrast ratios we're used to?
- It should include a RF 3D emitter internally and have an port to connect external emitters.
- It should match or best the Sony's in 3D. Both in terms of flicker and crosstalk.
- It should include a refined DI. This should be a dual iris solution similar to how the 600ES functions to limit overall brightness and use of the DI at the same time. From reports the 2014 models have an excellent DI which is impressive for their first attempt, let's see if they can raise the bar. I'm not looking for higher dynamic contrast, just smoother and a less noticeable implementation.
- It should include HDMI 2.0 with an 18 GBps chipset for full HDMI 2.0 compatibility. While the 10.2GBps chipset may suffice, for better compatibility it should include the better chipset.
- It should include a game mode with dramatically less input lag. Many processing features will likely be disabled for this to happen but it should make many people happy even if PQ is reduced to a manageable level.
- It should include a refined Lens Memory feature. Implementations from previous JVC and Sony models are usually hit or miss when loading memories often resulting in a necessary tweak to get it just right.
- It needs to have a fully functional CMS and custom gamma curve software.
- It needs to have similar or better scaling for 1080p content to UHD/4K resolutions. It should be able to vertically stretch 4K content for anamorphic lenses.
- It needs to have something to clear up the image noise introduced by driving the D-ILA panels through pulse-width modulation.
- It should not have an issue with image streaking like previous 1080p units.
- If possible it should include an FI solution at 4K resolutions. This may be a no-go for a number of years. The processing power needed is considerable but it would be nice if JVC had a proprietary chipset designed and tuned for such needs. This is not needed but many would find it a huge plus.
- And finally, it needs to have a street price around $10000 in the US. Sorry Europe
Limitations or complications JVC may face to bring this product to market at a similar price point of the Sony 600ES:
The first thing that I can think of is that JVC has traditionally manufactured their entire line up of home theater DILA projectors with economies of scale in mind. They were able to bring us so many high quality/high value models at various price points simply because each projector in the lineup used the vast majority of the same parts internally and externally. I highly doubt JVC will bring us multiple 4K units the first year. The biggest thing that will suffer will most likely be the lens. JVC doesn't do their lenses in-house. I believe Sony uses their in-house manufacturer (Carl Zeiss) to produce the lenses in their 4K models (I could be wrong). Without having their own lens manufacturer or economies of scale to bring down the price this may hinder JVC to match what the Sony 600ES has.
I think the next biggest issue would be the availability of the 18 GBps HDMI 2.0 chipset. Maybe JVC can create their own like Panasonic has in sufficient numbers for their projectors.
I'm sure I missed a few things consumers will want. Feel free to discuss and keep in mind the price point of the unit. I highly doubt they'll go past the MSRP of the Sony 600ES as JVC hasn't been known to enter that pricing tier.
Also, current Sony 4K owners (600/500ES and 1000/1100ES), would such a projector make you consider switching over to a JVC?
