Got my HC1600 a couple days ago after ordering it from 6ave. The shipping was a little slow but I wasn't in a rush so didn't mind it too much. Just little background here. I started my projector career with the Optoma Ep716 I originally got for business. Then started watching movies on it then started playing my 360 on it and got hooked! I eventually found this site which was a good and bad thing. Good because of all the great information and helpful members bad because it keeps putting me in debt!
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So I needed to upgrade to a "home theater" projector and get rid of my business projector. Last year everybody and their dog jumped on the Acer Ph530 because of the great price ($600). I was hesitant at first because of the low lumens (1000) and my theater(bedroom & livingroom) was going to have a lot of ambient light. Took the plunge anyway and loved the projector and still do but it just wasn't bright enough. I thought I could just watch without the lights but since its my main viewing source in my livingroom it just wasn't working out specially when we have people over.
A little history(you can skip this part if you dont want to know my situation)
So a couple of months ago I decided too look for a brighter projector and since I dont have blu ray I didn't need 1080p and I think 720p projectors are the best bang for the buck right now. I decided to go with the HD65 because of live cashback deals on ebay with refurbished HD65s my projector came out to $500 after cashback. I love the HD65 and was definitely a great little projector but I could not take the noise! I'm in an high alititude place so the low oxygen caused the projector to kick the fans up to High altitude mode which made it sounds like a hair blower in full blast! Literally! So I ended up selling both of the HD65 I bought off ebay and made $100 each on it so wasn't a bad deal at the end..
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So the only other choice for a bright 720p was the HC1600 and waited a month after I sold my HD65 to go buy it. Good thing I waited though with the deal they just came out with!
Installation & Fan Noise
When the UPS guy finally got to my place it was just like christmas as a kid all over again. Couldn't wait to get that box open and bust it out. The first thing I noticed was how much bigger it was compared to the HD65 and it was little bigger than the Acer. Although it was bigger it wasn't heavier than the Acer. My current setup in my livingroom is the projector sits upsidedown on a shelf. Yes I know Mitsubishi doesnt' recommend this but I have no choice. The HC1600 shape and how its kinda of arched plus the additional offset the HC1600 had over the PH530 made it a little diffucult to position but got it to work without moving my screen. When I first started it up I could tell how much more silent it is compared to the HD65 and it was about the same as the Acer in low lamp mode.
My Pick- Acer PH530 its as quiet as the HC1600 but a little smaller. Like the fact that Acer has flat shaped instead of arch the Mitsu had. If you have a normal person with a projector mount this will not effect you however.
RBE
First off I have never seen rainbows on any projector and my GF has not complained seeing any as well. I know there's been a lot of complaints about rainbows about this projector but I have not seen any at all.
My Pick- All!
Picture Quality & Brightness:
I can definitely agree with projectorreviews article about the HC1600.. Out of the box compared to the HD65 the HC1600 picture quality and colors were crap! The HD65 definitely has better factory settings. The colors are definitely more colorful on the HD65 probably because of the higher contrast ratio it has. Seriously though I dont get why Mitsubishi do a little calibration on this thing before shipping it out! I didn't mind it too much because I know I will find a good setting here on avs or somewhere on the web. As for brightness, I can't tell the differece between the HD65 or HC1600 even though the 1600 is rated at 100 lumens more. Both projectors were definitely brighter than the Acer and is the reason I wanted to replace it.
My Pick-HD65 has better settings out of the box, has richer colors and is as bright as the HC1600.
Screen Door effect
It seems the HC1600 has more noticeable SDE than the HD65 and the PH530. I dont remember noticing too much SDE when I had the HD65. I do sit pretty close to my screen and have noticed some SDE on the acer and Hd65 but seem to notice it more with the HC1600. It doesnt' bother me too much now but at first I noticed it a lot specially reading text when i'm playing games on my 360.
My Pick- HD65 less noticeable SDE than the HC1600 and about the same as the PH530
Conclusion
Overall i'm pretty happy with my purchase specially with the deal Mitsubishi is currently running. Can't beat a brand new projector for less than $640 after rebate with a free bulb worth at least $250. But if money and price wasn't a factor and the HD65 was quieter I would definitely choose the HD65 over the HC1600. Both projectors are good but I just like the picture that the HD65 threw over the HC1600. Its just too bad I live in a high altitude place.The Acer was/is a good entry level projector and for the price I got it last year it has served me well. Still keeping the Acer as my second projector for my bedroom and the HC1600 is staying in my livingroom. Hopefully this helps somebody else who have trouble choosing one from another, mainly the HC1600 vs HD65. Good luck!
A little history(you can skip this part if you dont want to know my situation)
So a couple of months ago I decided too look for a brighter projector and since I dont have blu ray I didn't need 1080p and I think 720p projectors are the best bang for the buck right now. I decided to go with the HD65 because of live cashback deals on ebay with refurbished HD65s my projector came out to $500 after cashback. I love the HD65 and was definitely a great little projector but I could not take the noise! I'm in an high alititude place so the low oxygen caused the projector to kick the fans up to High altitude mode which made it sounds like a hair blower in full blast! Literally! So I ended up selling both of the HD65 I bought off ebay and made $100 each on it so wasn't a bad deal at the end..
Installation & Fan Noise
When the UPS guy finally got to my place it was just like christmas as a kid all over again. Couldn't wait to get that box open and bust it out. The first thing I noticed was how much bigger it was compared to the HD65 and it was little bigger than the Acer. Although it was bigger it wasn't heavier than the Acer. My current setup in my livingroom is the projector sits upsidedown on a shelf. Yes I know Mitsubishi doesnt' recommend this but I have no choice. The HC1600 shape and how its kinda of arched plus the additional offset the HC1600 had over the PH530 made it a little diffucult to position but got it to work without moving my screen. When I first started it up I could tell how much more silent it is compared to the HD65 and it was about the same as the Acer in low lamp mode.
My Pick- Acer PH530 its as quiet as the HC1600 but a little smaller. Like the fact that Acer has flat shaped instead of arch the Mitsu had. If you have a normal person with a projector mount this will not effect you however.
RBE
First off I have never seen rainbows on any projector and my GF has not complained seeing any as well. I know there's been a lot of complaints about rainbows about this projector but I have not seen any at all.
My Pick- All!
Picture Quality & Brightness:
I can definitely agree with projectorreviews article about the HC1600.. Out of the box compared to the HD65 the HC1600 picture quality and colors were crap! The HD65 definitely has better factory settings. The colors are definitely more colorful on the HD65 probably because of the higher contrast ratio it has. Seriously though I dont get why Mitsubishi do a little calibration on this thing before shipping it out! I didn't mind it too much because I know I will find a good setting here on avs or somewhere on the web. As for brightness, I can't tell the differece between the HD65 or HC1600 even though the 1600 is rated at 100 lumens more. Both projectors were definitely brighter than the Acer and is the reason I wanted to replace it.
My Pick-HD65 has better settings out of the box, has richer colors and is as bright as the HC1600.
Screen Door effect
It seems the HC1600 has more noticeable SDE than the HD65 and the PH530. I dont remember noticing too much SDE when I had the HD65. I do sit pretty close to my screen and have noticed some SDE on the acer and Hd65 but seem to notice it more with the HC1600. It doesnt' bother me too much now but at first I noticed it a lot specially reading text when i'm playing games on my 360.
My Pick- HD65 less noticeable SDE than the HC1600 and about the same as the PH530
Conclusion
Overall i'm pretty happy with my purchase specially with the deal Mitsubishi is currently running. Can't beat a brand new projector for less than $640 after rebate with a free bulb worth at least $250. But if money and price wasn't a factor and the HD65 was quieter I would definitely choose the HD65 over the HC1600. Both projectors are good but I just like the picture that the HD65 threw over the HC1600. Its just too bad I live in a high altitude place.The Acer was/is a good entry level projector and for the price I got it last year it has served me well. Still keeping the Acer as my second projector for my bedroom and the HC1600 is staying in my livingroom. Hopefully this helps somebody else who have trouble choosing one from another, mainly the HC1600 vs HD65. Good luck!
