[kenfab]

Oh man, I ordered the AE100 this past Monday afternoon from Japan and my Wife just called and told me it arrived this morning!!!

That's *amazing* service! Japan to my door in less than 48 hours!


I'll respect Alan's wishes and not mention the specific name of the dealer publicly, but I'll disclose in private via email if anyone's interested ([email protected]).


Now, how am I possibly going to concentrate on "work related" issues for the rest of the week!?!?


I should be getting the screen this Friday so this weekend I should have everything set up enough to be able to send my preliminary comparison/review to this group.


Ken


PS See this thread for more info ...
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...hreadid=138228

 

[kenfab]

I rushed home yesterday afternoon and eagerly (but carefully) opened the new AE100 box. Since my screen is not due to arrive until Friday, I decided to set up an interim solution by projecting on to the side wall. The projector sat on a chair approximately 10' from the wall (standard "white" paint on a 2 year old house), attached to my HTPC via a VGA cable. I haven't yet performed any calibrations whatsoever... I simply turned it on, adjusted the image size and focused it to razor-sharp conditions.


Initial impressions:

WOW! I'm *very* impressed! By walking up to the wall I could easily see what all of the "Screen Door" hoopla is all about... but walking even 10' or so away enabled the Screen Door effect to all but disappear (even with the razor-sharp focus). In my opinion, at 10'+ the Screen Door effect is a non-issue even on a 7' wide image. Initially there was plenty of ambient light filling the room which obviously washed out the image, but it was certainly still watchable (I'll be saving my quality HD and DVD viewing for night time... during the early evening I'll watch the TiVo/Dish material). Once the darkness of night arrived I projected a HiPix-recorded HD episode of CSI. The quality of the image surpassed my expectations (the blacks were a bit green, but remember, I haven't yet calibrated the unit). Throughout the evening I played numerous programs and was thoroughly impressed... even the TiVo material was enjoyable. I've yet to test my Toshiba SD-5109 Progressive DVD player.


Well, since I'm currently "working" I need to cut the post short, but I believe I'll be taking tomorrow off (*cough*) in eager anticipation of the arrival of my screen. This weekend I'll mount the screen and calibrate the projector (I own a TAW CA-1 Colorimeter, Avia, Video Essentials, etc). I'll post my results on Sunday or so.


Ken


PS I've already put 7 hours on the bulb and so far (*crosses fingers*) I don't have the Red LED of Death!

 

[eujin]

Ken, keep up the reports! I'm especially encouraged by your positive reports of Tivo viewing, as I currently have a DirecTivo with my Tosh 50H81. What kind of screen will you be using? How much ambient light is in your room when it's not fully dark?

 

[kenfab]

For a "temporary", relatively inexpensive screen I choose a Da-Lite Model B 16:9 (52"x92"). I plan on upgrading to a Gray or Firehawk once I've become more comfortable with the screen size, ambient lighting issues, etc. Speaking of which, I don't know of an objective way to express the levels of ambient light... and of course those levels vary during the course of the day and evening. So, at least for now, I can't answer that question.


Ken


PS *cough*... *hack*... *wheeze*... boy, maybe I should go home soon!

 

[lightpants]

My brother called me yesterday about 10 am and said the projector had arived. I ordered it Monday night about 10pm est. I took half a day, and went home. Unpacked the projector, hooked it up to my htpc and fired it up. WOW!! I can't belive how good the picture looks. I went to Home Depot and Lowes to find some parkland plastics screen material. Both stores had none, at Lowes the salesman showed me some waterproof pannel material that was fiberglass based. It was $30. I bought that and a 4x8 sheet of styrofoam. I glued the two materials together with contact cement and took it downstairs to the a/v room. I set the htpc resolution using Li On's specs and fed the direct tv signal to the component input of the radeon aiw in the htpc.


I went to sleep at 3:30 am last night! I couldn't stop watching this thing. I watched training day, jay and silent bob, and a few other parts of movies that I had allready seen. It is such a great viewing expirence, seeing the movies that big and so clear.


I went to the Home depot near my work today and they had the Parkland Plastic pannels on clearence for $12. I picked up 3. They look like they will be an inprovement over the pannel that I have allready made. And I was allready happy with that!! I want to make 2 different aspect ratio screens and I am going to hang them by hooks so I can change them when I need. I have got my work cut out for me this weekend.


My advice to all the fence sitters out there- Pull the trigger!!!!

I have been looking for a projector since Christmas and have been contimplating the ae100 for the past few weeks. I paid $1501 shipped to my door. At this point it is the best money I have spent on a toy. As long as it keeps working I am sure I will get hundreds of hours of enjoyment out of it.


One thing I noticed is when I power it down ( press power button once then 2 times fast) It powers down normal, but as soon as the 2 red leds come on it fires right back up. Is this normal? You have to be quick with the rocker switch to turn it off befor the lamp comes back on. Am I doing something wrong?

If anybody knows could you email me?
[email protected]



Thanks,

Jim

 

[WXdude]

Hi Ken,

Glad you like your ae. I sure am enjoying mine, what a great little projector. I have a question, you state that " I'll respect Alan's wishes and not mention the specific name of the dealer publicly", this is strange. Did I miss something? A few weeks back myself and several others were mentioning this dealer quite often by name. Aren't they a sponsor of this forum?? I just find this so odd...............whats going on here lately??

(PLEASE, don't take this as a personal attack, that it is not. I am just curious what I missed. It makes absolutely no sense what so ever to me.)


What type of screen did you get? I got the dalite model b with the video spectra coating and I think it's great. I sure would like to see one of these babies on a grey screen. Keep us posted on your thoughts.




Quote:

Originally posted by kenfab Oh man, I ordered the AE100 this past Monday afternoon from Japan and my Wife just called and told me it arrived this morning!!! That's *amazing* service! Japan to my door in less than 48 hours! I'll respect Alan's wishes and not mention the specific name of the dealer publicly, but I'll disclose in private via email if anyone's interested ([email protected]). Now, how am I possibly going to concentrate on "work related" issues for the rest of the week!?!? I should be getting the screen this Friday so this weekend I should have everything set up enough to be able to send my preliminary comparison/review to this group. Ken PS See this thread for more info ... http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...hreadid=138228

 

[cpc]

Man I have to get one of these things before I turn green

 

[kenfab]

WXdude: no worries, no offense was taken.


My statement was due to Alan's comment in this thread... http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...hreadid=138528


I mentioned the type of screen I purchased four replies up.



cpc: you *probably* won't regret it!


Ken

 

[kevinsmith]

Kenfab,

so is this going to replace your TW65X81? I think thats what a lot of fence sitters are waiting to hear.


lightpants,

you only have to hit the button twice, not three times.

 

[kenfab]

Kevin: I'm not going to reveal a final verdict until I have a chance to calibrate the projector. However, I will say this... my in-laws are already inquiring about when they can come over and pick up the TW!


Incidentally, I've already starting taking some nice pictures of the preliminary implementation and test shots of the projected wall image using my Olympus C-3040 Digital Camera. I hope to get some of them posted this weekend...


Ken

 

[hoxford]

Quote:

Originally posted by lightpants One thing I noticed is when I power it down ( press power button once then 2 times fast) It powers down normal, but as soon as the 2 red leds come on it fires right back up. Is this normal? You have to be quick with the rocker switch to turn it off befor the lamp comes back on. Am I doing something wrong?

Holy Crap! That sounds like a blown bulb waiting to happen! Are you sure the manual doesn't say to press the power button and hold it OR press it twice fast? That's how it is on my LC75U.


From the LC75U manual:
Quote:

Turning off the power 1) Hold down the POWER button for at least 0.5 seconds or press the POWER button twice to turn off the power. The lamp unit will switch off and the picture will stop being projectoed. (The power indicator on the projector will illuminate orange.) 2) Wait until the power indicator on the projector illuminates red (until the colling fan stops). Do not in any way cut power to the projector while the cooling fan is still operating. Be careful not to switch off the MAIN POWER switch of the projector, unplug the power cord from the electrical outllet, or turn off in-line switches such as tabletop power switches. 3) Press the MAIN POWER switch to the "0" side to turn off the power.

 

[Li On]

Quote:

Originally posted by lightpants One thing I noticed is when I power it down ( press power button once then 2 times fast) It powers down normal, but as soon as the 2 red leds come on it fires right back up. Is this normal? You have to be quick with the rocker switch to turn it off befor the lamp comes back on. Am I doing something wrong? If anybody knows could you email me? [email protected] Thanks, Jim

Hi Jim,


Be careful! Forget the manual and take my advice.


When the AE100 is in standby mode (power pluged in, main power switch ON at the back), press the remote (or the top button on the AE100) Power button for 0.5 sec will power on the AE100.


When power off, press the remote (or the top button on the AE100) Power button for 0.5 sec will power off the AE100. The AE100 fans will go to high speed mode for 1 mins to cool down the bulb. DO NOT press ANY remote key or button on the AE100. After 1 mins, the AE100 will be off and stay in standby mode. Then you may switch off the main power button at the AE100 back if you need to move it.


That's it. There is NO such thing as press power button once then 2 times fast. I repeat, DO NOT press power button 2 times fast!


My AE100 is at 354 hours of usage and going strong.


regards,


Li On

 

[lightpants]

Thank you, that works much better. When I pressed the button once then 2 two times fast, it would power down then power back up. I was confused. I just spent another night of watching adjusting the projector. I think I have about 10 hours on it. In two days!! I am going to take it to work with me tomorrow. I bet there will be some more orders placed this weekend!

Jim

 

[Steve13]

Some of my favorite AVS posts are these types from Jim and Ken. It's great to hear the excitement in their posts when people first get their new projectors.


I've had my Sony for almost 2 years, and I still remember that feeling when I first saw the spectacular, huge image that a projector can offer.


Welcome to the club, guys! It only gets more fun (and more expensive) fro here!

 

[WXdude]

I agree with Li On on the power down sequence. I didn't even know about using the power button, I have been using the remote the whole time and it works great. I only have about 25 hours on mine so far but I just received my Peerless mount yesterday afternoon so it will be mounted this weekend and then the hours will begin to pile on!!!

I wonder if some of the problems some people are having with the AE are due to them possibly powering down incorrectly? Just a thought.........

 

[mike_decock]

Quote:

Originally posted by kenfab even the TiVo material was enjoyable.

I'd like to know how things look with letterboxed material from the TiVo into the AE100. I'm considering this projector and it's my real "final" question before I take the plunge.


EG: Record a letterboxed movie on TCM (black bars top/bottom). Project this with the AE100 and now the image is windowboxed (black bars top/bottom, left/right). Is there a way to zoom it so that the image fills the 16x9 screen (in essence chopping off the top/bottom of the 4x3 image), or is it more "watchable" windowboxed?


Thanks,


-Mike...

 

[NEO2000]

I watch DIRECTV with my AE100 and it looks real good. truthfully my improvement came when i purchased a Belden Svideo cable. It made a HUGE difference.....

 

[eujin]

NEO2000, where'd you get the Belden cable from?

 

[Jude]

AE owners or knowledgables: (from somewhat of a newbie)


If a person owns an XGA projector with similar lumens, what do you get out of this AE100 projector picture-wise that might be superior? (Other than built in 16:9?)


I have yet to purchase a projector, but have been eying the hand-me-downs on ebay in order to find a deal. I've always assumed I should be looking for an XGA projector, yet the AE seems to be lower than this (some odd number like 858x484 or something?)


Assuming a person was going to use an HTPC to send their DVD image via video adapter & an RGB/VGA connector into the projector, isn't an XGA projector going to (in general) put a better looking image on the screen?

Thank you for

 

[anthonyc]

Not all xga's are the same when it comes to video projecting.

Having looked at a few projectors you must be careful when choosing an xga projector for ht use. Some do and excellent job and others are ok. All I'm saying is don't just go by the xga resolution as to whether the unit is comparible to the AE or other projectors. Read about your specific model and then try and see one in action.


I went through the same thing you were going through on ebay and until I stumbled on this forum I was going to got the ebay route...in fact I purchased one but when it was delivered the screen pixels were shot and there were vertical and horizontal black bars on the screen. It was if the unit was slammed then shipped. Be very specific on how you want your unit shipped and detail the packing method because UPS insurance will not cover internal damage only loss or catostrophic visable damage (like forklift through box).


Thank God I told the guy how to pack it. He didn't follow my instructions and the projector was ruined but I'm not liable because I told him the specifics.


The gist is I went with p**japan and got the AE and haven't looked back. 80 hrs and still kicking!