I am in the same boat as original poster. Have only owned LCD tv's and plasma and moving into a new house soon, and with the prices being very reasonable now...I want to expand into projectors. I am very new to this technology and trying to acquire as much info as I can.
I am so serious about this that I am still searching for a new house and making sure it has a large gameroom area for the projector install. Of all the projector setups I have seen (and I have not seen many), 110" seems to be where you really start to see a difference between a 'really large screen' and something that feels truly cinematic. Of course, I am simply speaking from my own experience and not knocking any setup smaller than 110", but for me...anything less than 110" does not feel like you are truly immersed in the experience. So, the room I choose will have to accomodate this size.
umr, you mentioned in an earlier post that simply choosing the right screen and projector are not the only factors. I am curious what else the factors would be? Lighting is obviously one...space probably another, but what else? If you have the space and minimal lighting, I am curious what else needs to be considered.
The most frustrating thing for me, and one that was mentioned by a previous poster, is that it is very difficult to see many of these different projectors in a setup somewhere. The only pj's I have seen in action are the Sony VPL-VW60, the JVC RS1 and the Mitsubishi HC5000. To my eye, the Mitsu looked best...the Sony was great on Blu-Ray but soft to my eye on normal HD content, and the JVC seemed to have something that looked like the old 'silk-screen effect', or a kind of shimmering on white or bright backgrounds. I am very sensitive to this and hate it when seeing it on cheap rear proj. DLP displays at Best Buy or CC. Of course, the JVC projector was nowhere near as bad, but to my eye, the brighter background still had a little of that annoying shimmering effect that I don't like. Who knows...maybe it's just me...but it's not something I could live with, not for that kind of money. I do realize the JVC has a great reputation, but it's just not for me.
I want to test out the Epson and the Sim2, if possible. I think any of these pj's will look great on Blu-Ray, but I'd like to see how they do with sat or cable HD content and fast motion, particularly sports. I suspect that is where things somewhat get separated.
One question I have though- in movie theaters, you notice there are very low lit lights still on in the theater...it is not 100% dark. So, wouldn't it be natural then, in a home setting, to have some very minimal dim lighting as well? Just curious. The room I choose will probably have very little light...if there's a window, I plan to seal it off.
Anyway, thanks in advance for any advice or feedback. I am salivating at the thought of getting a pj in my future new home...this is something I've wanted for a long time. Cheers.