[MJ DOOM]

Optoma ZH406 1080P laser projector.

How's the color reproduction? Ive seen it only covers 90% of REC709. Also dynamic black function, any actual visual improvement, any pumping affects?

 

[DunMunro]

How's the color reproduction? Ive seen it only covers 90% of REC709. Also dynamic black function, any actual visual improvement, any pumping affects?

Where did you read the REC709 specs?

 

[MJ DOOM]

Where did you read the REC709 specs?

https://www.optoma.com/vn/product/zh406/

The Zx5xx series has 99% REC709 coverage.

 

[Danonano]

This is the Optoma ZH406 1080P laser projector. Historically these laser DLP's have been designed with tons of brightness for large venue and office installations. This one is a bit unique since it has features that we typically don't see in these models. It has a 4K input and can handle UHD HDR content surprisingly well. it also has some lens shift which is always welcome since many of lower cost DLP's do not have this option.

It also has very bright 3D which i'll be discussing over the next few days. I always liked the .65 1080P DMD's. they are very sharp (this one is no exception) and they have higher contrast than the .47 pixel shifters.

I've been wondering what the best PJ is for 3D these days, so I will be very interested in what you discover. I'm also curious how it does in 2D, as it might be a decent living room projector.

 

[GregK]

I've been wondering what the best PJ is for 3D these days, so I will be very interested in what you discover.

Plus 1 on that.

Also am very curious to hear what you find.

 

[zombie10k]

I've been wondering what the best PJ is for 3D these days, so I will be very interested in what you discover. I'm also curious how it does in 2D, as it might be a decent living room projector.

Plus 1 on that.

Also am very curious to hear what you find.

hi, here are some preliminary findings on 3D mode. I took a look at scenes from Passengers, Pacific Rim, Frozen II, Maleficent II and Antman 3D.

I'm using DLP link for now with the Xpand DLP Link glasses. The Xpand RF emitters + glasses aren't working, i'll have to see which RF emitter Optoma recommends.

With the Projector in 3D mode, I'm measuring 1650 lumens on a 100 IRE window in 3D mode with the Minolta T10 meter. Greyscale looks good through the glasses so the 3D mode is also a good movie mode, meaning colors won't be blown out in favor of extra brightness.

I decided to check my Viewsonic LS800WU picture in the posts above with their 3D mode and see the brightness difference. The Viewsonic can crank out another 1000+ lumens in it's 3D mode, also with good color through the glasses. ~2700 lumens in 3D mode on the Viewsonic. The Viewsonic is almost 2x the MSRP of the Optoma but it's nice that it has this much light output for 3D mode.

3D looks nice and solid on both projectors, no flicker. I see less RBE on both projectors in 3D mode vs 2D mode. Color through the glasses looks very good on both projectors '3D modes'. Lower APL scenes like those in Pacific Rim also look good with perceived contrast through the glasses. it's only when going into very low APL scenes does it remind me that it's a DLP with a limited black floor. overall great 3D for the animations and action movies.

I'll have more details on the projector this week.

Pacific Rim is one of my favorite 3D movies!! 01:09:45 is where is all the fun starts killer 3D and a pounding audio track for 20+ minutes of kaiju battle

 

[Javs]

hi, here are some preliminary findings on 3D mode. I took a look at scenes from Passengers, Pacific Rim, Frozen II, Maleficent II and Antman 3D.

I'm using DLP link for now with the Xpand DLP Link glasses. The Xpand RF emitters + glasses aren't working, i'll have to see which RF emitter Optoma recommends.

With the Projector in 3D mode, I'm measuring 1650 lumens on a 100 IRE window in 3D mode with the Minolta T10 meter. Greyscale looks good through the glasses so the 3D mode is also a good movie mode, meaning colors won't be blown out in favor of extra brightness.

I decided to check my Viewsonic LS800WU picture in the posts above with their 3D mode and see the brightness difference. The Viewsonic can crank out another 1000+ lumens in it's 3D mode, also with good color through the glasses. ~2700 lumens in 3D mode on the Viewsonic. The Viewsonic is almost 2x the MSRP of the Optoma but it's nice that it has this much light output for 3D mode.

3D looks nice and solid on both projectors, no flicker. I see less RBE on both projectors in 3D mode vs 2D mode. Color through the glasses looks very good on both projectors '3D modes'. Lower APL scenes like those in Pacific Rim also look good with perceived contrast through the glasses. it's only when going into very low APL scenes does it remind me that it's a DLP with a limited black floor. overall great 3D for the animations and action movies.

I'll have more details on the projector this week.

Pacific Rim is one of my favorite 3D movies!! 01:09:45 is where is all the fun starts killer 3D and a pounding audio track for 20+ minutes of kaiju battle

Hey Jason, Hope you are well!

Have you got a writeup anywhere on that Viewsonic? Is it a good unit for a 3d workhorse machine? Where do you rank it in terms of the machines you have on hand there for 3d etc? Sharp, good optics?

Thats got a half decent price here in AU...

 

[zombie10k]

Hey Jason, Hope you are well!

Have you got a writeup anywhere on that Viewsonic? Is it a good unit for a 3d workhorse machine? Where do you rank it in terms of the machines you have on hand there for 3d etc? Sharp, good optics?

Thats got a half decent price here in AU...

@Javs - Hi, good to hear from you! all is well here, just spending a lot of time at home given the current situation.

I've had a chance to work on a few HT projects and set up a MiniDSP HD that i've had here for a while. I picked up a UMIK-1 and finally learned REW. The results were outstanding! I didn't realize how much difference a good house curve + knocking down some of the peaks throughout the curve would make on the overall impact of my 18"s. now i'm camping out in the Bass EQ for Filtered Movies and going back and watching many movies that are neutered

 

[DunMunro]

A short video review of the ZH406:

 

[zombie10k]

A short video review of the ZH406:

One of the first major issues I see with the Optoma ZH406 projector is that the dynamic black is not usable. It has a massive jump in brightness in low APL scenes and the dynamic gamma is blowing out highlights during scene transitions.

There are also some notable HDR issues as well i'll be posting about later this weekend.

 

[humbland]

"The lens is good but not great in comparison to a number of other .65 DLP's I have here. The Sharp30K 3D DLP is very sharp from edge to edge across the screen and the projector I still use for 3D in the HT room."

Hi Jason,
+1 on Jav's good wishes
Good to see your thread getting some attention. Sadly, most of us probably have a little more time on our hands.
I see that you still have the Sharp Z30K in your HT stack. I think I asked you a few years ago, but do you still use it for anything other than 3D?
FWIW, we are still rocking ours (Z30K). Guess there are only a few of us Sharp people left...
I gave up on the Darbee-->iscan-->Z30K chain. Too many HDMI sync problems.Back to just the Darbee. Just for Ducks (go U of O), do you use any outboard signal processing?
Be well.

 

[DunMunro]

One of the first major issues I see with the Optoma ZH406 projector is that the dynamic black is not usable. It has a massive jump in brightness in low APL scenes and the dynamic gamma is blowing out highlights during scene transitions.

There are also some notable HDR issues as well i'll be posting about later this weekend.

Thanks. What are you using as your output device?

 

[zombie10k]

"The lens is good but not great in comparison to a number of other .65 DLP's I have here. The Sharp30K 3D DLP is very sharp from edge to edge across the screen and the projector I still use for 3D in the HT room."

Hi Jason,
+1 on Jav's good wishes
Good to see your thread getting some attention. Sadly, most of us probably have a little more time on our hands.
I see that you still have the Sharp Z30K in your HT stack. I think I asked you a few years ago, but do you still use it for anything other than 3D?
FWIW, we are still rocking ours (Z30K). Guess there are only a few of us Sharp people left...
I gave up on the Darbee-->iscan-->Z30K chain. Too many HDMI sync problems.Back to just the Darbee. Just for Ducks (go U of O), do you use any outboard signal processing?
Be well.

Hi, I hope all is well with you as well. I was using the Sharp 30K for regular TV / Streaming until a few weeks ago. Even though I have about 6 or 7 lamps for it, I wanted an LED projector to run for extended hours and not be concerned about wasting lamp hours.

I found a Runco 750 LED for a few hundred $$ on ebay (these were 15K in 2010!!) These were high end .95 DLP's that have a nice sharp lens. These are not very bright (~500 lumens) but when centered on my HP screen for max gain, it looks great!

now I have the 'triple stack' - JVC on bottom, Runco 750 middle and the Sharp 30K is on the top rack not seen in this photo. I still use the Darby with the Runco and the Sharp 30K, it's a great match for the DLP's.

 

[humbland]

Hi, I hope all is well with you as well. I was using the Sharp 30K for regular TV / Streaming until a few weeks ago. Even though I have about 6 or 7 lamps for it, I wanted an LED projector to run for extended hours and not be concerned about wasting lamp hours.

I found a Runco 750 LED for a few hundred $$ on ebay (these were 15K in 2010!!) These were high end .95 DLP's that have a nice sharp lens. These are not very bright (~500 lumens) but when centered on my HP screen for max gain, it looks great!

now I have the 'triple stack' - JVC on bottom, Runco 750 middle and the Sharp 30K is on the top rack not seen in this photo. I still use the Darby with the Runco and the Sharp 30K, it's a great match for the DLP's.

Thanks for the info.
Those pics sure look good! Are they really 1080p? If so, is the Darbee the only enhancement? How does the Runco compare with the Z30K?

As far as tweaks go, I have a question for you: In trying to solve the HDMI sync issue, I reset the Z30K to factory specs. I then re-calibrated using Art's original settings. Things came out fine for Sports, but my go to Movie mode seems way too bright. I've been fiddling around with it, but have not found the sweet spot. We also have a HP 2.8 screen. Do you mind sharing your Z30K set up for Movies?
Thanks

 

[blee0120]

Hi, I hope all is well with you as well. I was using the Sharp 30K for regular TV / Streaming until a few weeks ago. Even though I have about 6 or 7 lamps for it, I wanted an LED projector to run for extended hours and not be concerned about wasting lamp hours.

I found a Runco 750 LED for a few hundred $$ on ebay (these were 15K in 2010!!) These were high end .95 DLP's that have a nice sharp lens. These are not very bright (~500 lumens) but when centered on my HP screen for max gain, it looks great!

now I have the 'triple stack' - JVC on bottom, Runco 750 middle and the Sharp 30K is on the top rack not seen in this photo. I still use the Darby with the Runco and the Sharp 30K, it's a great match for the DLP's.

I forgot how amazing the Darbee is. I need to find one for mines.

 

[pjp]

I still use the Darby with the Runco and the Sharp 30K, it's a great match for the DLP's.

I forgot how amazing the Darbee is. I need to find one for mines.

Never tried the Darbee. Do you think this will improve the image for an LG-PF1500w? The primary source with the LG is typically Roku, but sometimes watch Blu-ray via PS3 or Chromecast. Does it add any latency?

 

[zombie10k]

Never tried the Darbee. Do you think this will improve the image for an LG-PF1500w? The primary source with the LG is typically Roku, but sometimes watch Blu-ray via PS3 or Chromecast. Does it add any latency?

Hi, I use it with the PF1500 as well. it helps increase perceived sharpness and contrast. From everything i've read since it's release, there is no measurable latency. from the AVForum review:

Our measuring instrument is accurate to 0.1 milliseconds and detected no difference with the Darblet in or out of the chain.

I use it for gaming on my Planar 8150 (~16 ms one of the lowest on a projector) and have never seen any latency with the Darbee. If you can find one, try it out!

 

[pjp]

Hi, I use it with the PF1500 as well. it helps increase perceived sharpness and contrast. From everything i've read since it's release, there is no measurable latency. from the AVForum review:

Our measuring instrument is accurate to 0.1 milliseconds and detected no difference with the Darblet in or out of the chain.

I use it for gaming on my Planar 8150 (~16 ms one of the lowest on a projector) and have never seen any latency with the Darbee. If you can find one, try it out!

Thanks -- great feedback. I'm in for one!!

 

[blee0120]

Never tried the Darbee. Do you think this will improve the image for an LG-PF1500w? The primary source with the LG is typically Roku, but sometimes watch Blu-ray via PS3 or Chromecast. Does it add any latency?

Yes, get one. I'm ordering one on Amazon. It's not that expensive for what it brings to the table. The only problem was that it didn't work with 4k devices. Since majority moved to 4k, it was left behind. I gave a sense of higher resolution. I remember my DLP looked a tad bit soft without it.

 

[humbland]

Yes, get one. I'm ordering one on Amazon. It's not that expensive for what it brings to the table. The only problem was that it didn't work with 4k devices. Since majority moved to 4k, it was left behind. I gave a sense of higher resolution. I remember my DLP looked a tad bit soft without it.

+1 on the Darbee "pop". I agree, since 4K came around, the Darbee has sort of fallen out of favor. We are still in a 1080p universe and have one on all three home displays.
BTW, if you want to include it in a 4K stream, you can try adding an iscan mini in the last link of the video chain. It will take the Darbee signal and upscale it. The combination seems almost synergistic. The Darbee enhances perceived contrast and the iscan adds sharpness and noise reduction. The result is a super clean/sharp image. It worked well for about a year in our set up. Then the HDMI sync issue became too frustrating. Sadly, I pulled the iscan and went back to just the Darbee. The image still looks beautiful, but I miss the iscan. Trying to find the motivation to get out the ladder and try some new HDMI cables to see if I can get the iscan back in the chain...