[quakana]

Ok, probably a dumb question but I have had the panny for years and am still very happy with the picture I get from it. The color and clarity seem amazing to me. I am running in a very dark basement with a simple Elite pull down that I think at the time cost me 125 bucks. Here is another kicker......my lamp (always run on ECO) has 4300 hours on it. To me it still looks awesome. If I throw down 3k for the Epson, will I see a huge difference? As much research here and on youtube I am still confused as to which way to go projector wise but epson seem very popular. I typically watch movies on VUDU and or my PS4 blueray but would like to start streaming 4k and using 4k disc's and possibly buy a good 4k disc player
Again.....dumb question......but if I spend the 3k and light this thing up.....will I expect a WOW difference?

I have a killer 7.2 audio system with a Denon AVR-X4000... Klipsch RF-7ii fronts, RC-64ii center, Dual HSU VTF-15 MKII subs and old klipsch towers for my side and rear surrounds.
Feel I have the audio down and would like to upgrade the signal chain for video
Thanks.....and go easy on me LOL
Dave

 

[quakana]

Screen is 120"


https://www.flickr.com/gp/[email protected]/8aiH6n

 

[rekbones]

Most who have made that upgrade said the change was significant. The AE8000 in its day was no slouch but the 5050 should tick the upgrade box in virtually ever category except maybe the auto lens shift on the Panny as it is unique. As for a wow factor only you can judge. 4300 hrs over several years is low usage buy my book as I come close to that annually so $3k is a lot of cash for some of us.

 

[MississippiMan]

Most who have made that upgrade said the change was significant. The AE8000 in its day was no slouch but the 5050 should tick the upgrade box in virtually ever category except maybe the auto lens shift on the Panny as it is unique. As for a wow factor only you can judge. 4300 hrs over several years is low usage buy my book as I come close to that annually so $3k is a lot of cash for some of us.

The actual Lens Shift on the Panny is manual. Only Zoom & Focus is Automatic when Lens memory is employed. The 5050 has it all.

And yeah....the up-tick in Lumen output and resolution is pretty significant....almost extreme, and the 5050's Black Levels are superior considering the PJ's light output. The only thing sadly missing in the 5050's grab bag is the Panny's Smooth Screen technology....a worthy feature I can to enjoy when 2.39:1 screen sizes got immense and viewing distances got closer..


I recently replaced Lamps in 2 different AE-8000/s. The owners had no / saw no reason to upgrade if doing such restored their image brightness (...both had 6K+ hours on 'em)

 

[Luminated67]

Unfamiliar with these Pannys so can’t comment on whether blacks levels will improve or even be worse than before, one thing I can say is the Epson throws a very crisp image comparable to a Native 4K from 9-9.5ft on my 100” screen and the colour accuracy is top notch.

 

[MississippiMan]

Unfamiliar with these Pannys so can’t comment on whether blacks levels will improve or even be worse than before, one thing I can say is the Epson throws a very crisp image comparable to a Native 4K from 9-9.5ft on my 100” screen and the colour accuracy is top notch.

Well my goodness. A 5050 E-Shift shooting it's image on a 100" screen and being set at it's absolute minimum throw had better be crisp! Your almost Zerox'ing the image onto that screen! (75 fl! )

 

[Luminated67]

Well my goodness. A 5050 E-Shift shooting it's image on a 100" screen and being set at it's absolute minimum throw had better be crisp! Your almost Zerox'ing the image onto that screen! (75 fl! )

LOL that the viewing distance not where the projector is.

 

[quakana]

Thanks Everyone! So, the Faux-4k signal itself isn't all that much better than native 1080P?
Projector aside I am wondering what your experience has been with a 4k source using a faux-4K projector.

 

[MississippiMan]

A varied experience

Thanks Everyone! So, the Faux-4k signal itself isn't all that much better than native 1080P?
Projector aside I am wondering what your experience has been with a 4k source using a faux-4K projector.

I can't say I've seen anyone relate that? Forgoing the PJ's ability, the quality of the source is the real item to consider, the Disc content as well as the UHD Player in use. Lots of variables in the pipeline...and a mismatch can affect it all.


I've been there, done that with all three type /brands of PJs. Including the latest top end JVC (NX9)

You can be sure that the quality of both the Signal Source Content as well as the Player has everything to do with it all when the PJs' themselves are fairly equally matched. A really good UHD player need not be horrendously expensive....a Sony UBP-x800 or the LG UBK80 orUBK90...all deliver superb 4k to any compatible Fuax-4K machine.

Faux-4K reproduced from 4K UHD content on either a F-4K Epson or JVC is in every way superior to a straight up 1080p image. 1080p up-conversion isn't far behind, but very dependent upon the quality of the content.

The 8000's image was deemed a bit soft by many, albeit very smooth and pixel free....more so the latter than a Epson, but not 'quite" the same as a JVC. With all my Panny installs I used image enhancement to sharpen the picture just enough to compensate. No such effort was ever needed with a JVC.

Moving into Native 4K, I did not care for the Optoma units (...or the JVC DLP...) much...finding their light uniformity lacking and the mechanics noisy. But the clarity of image.....PDG.

The JVC NX9......well it is to die for, but so also is a new Mid-Engine 'Vette, but I doubt I will have either in my personal possession anytime soon. (...a Lottery win notwithstanding)

Basically, it all boils down to the ability to buy into the machine that one covets. I find that many of the Members as well as potential "in the know"customers still feel the very best image for the money spent comes from the older JVC models (x790r - RS540)......hands down. Next up is the Epson 5050, especially for those with big screens and a burning desire for vibrant HDR. For the Cheese & Crackers crowd, the Optoma s fill that niche nicely, and I've had owners of the lower end of the budget scale wax effusive on both the UHD-51ALV as well as the uber-inexpensive UHD-50. The latter being a very pleasing value.

So in order (...and omitting the NX9)

1. JVC x790 / RS-540
2. Optoma UHD-51ALV / Epson 5050 (dead heat)
3. Optoma HD-50 (...save $$$ and buy a really good UHD BluRay Player...)

 

[MississippiMan]

LOL that the viewing distance not where the projector is.

OK....that makes for a better explanation. Curiosity has me wondering though...how far back is your throw? Even at the maximum for that size screen (20') your still getting a whoppin' 63 fl.


I'll bet the quality of your HDR doesn't suffer.

 

[Luminated67]

Thanks Everyone! So, the Faux-4k signal itself isn't all that much better than native 1080P?
Projector aside I am wondering what your experience has been with a 4k source using a faux-4K projector.

Oh it’s better when feed material to make it sheen.

 

[Luminated67]

OK....that makes for a better explanation. Curiosity has me wondering though...how far back is your throw? Even at the maximum for that size screen (20') your still getting a whoppin' 63 fl.


I'll bet the quality of your HDR doesn't suffer.

My lens is closed down to -16 for SDR and -2 for HDR. And you are right my HDR is amazing.

 

[Archaea]

I went from an AE8000U to a 5040UB and the difference was a small step up. It wasn’t a dramatic night and day difference as some would have you believe. I had 1700 hours on mine. The buyer of my 8000 saw it compared to the 5040UB and i told him i wanted $750 for the Panasonic or he could buy the Epson for $1150 with

 

[SOWK]

I went from an AE8000U to a 5040UB and the difference was a small step up. It wasn’t a dramatic night and day difference as some would have you believe. I had 1700 hours on mine. The buyer of my 8000 saw it compared to the 5040UB and i told him i wanted $750 for the Panasonic or he could buy the Epson for 1150 with 0 hours/ refurb. He chose the Panasonic with 1700 hours at the cheaper price. So it wasn’t just me.

With that many hours on your Panasonic bulb though you’ve lost 20% brightness or more. So replacing the bulb might be a good option if you are otherwise happy.

There’s a BenQ 9060HT for sale in the classified from a well known forum member for $3200 right know. I’d rather have that than the Epson, personally. It has LED lighting. - 20K hours till half brightness.

Another enthusiast on these boards @SOWK says that particular BenQ was very nearly as good as his JVC NX7 (i think?) in an A/B he did. I don’t think the Epson 5040UB would be in that same class. The downside is the BenQ has no lens memory.

Full disclosure, that was with madVR. That would likely not be the case without.

 

[Luminated67]

I went from an AE8000U to a 5040UB and the difference was a small step up. It wasn’t a dramatic night and day difference as some would have you believe. I had 1700 hours on mine. The buyer of my 8000 saw it compared to the 5040UB and i told him i wanted $750 for the Panasonic or he could buy the Epson for 1150 with 0 hours/ refurb. He chose the Panasonic with 1700 hours at the cheaper price. So it wasn’t just me.

With that many hours on your Panasonic bulb though you’ve lost 20% brightness or more. So replacing the bulb might be a good option if you are otherwise happy.

There’s a BenQ 9060HT for sale in the classified from a well known forum member for $3200 right know. I’d rather have that than the Epson, personally. It has LED lighting. - 20K hours till half brightness.

Another enthusiast on these boards @SOWK says that particular BenQ was very nearly as good as his JVC NX7 (i think?) in an A/B he did. I don’t think the Epson 5040UB would be in that same class. The downside is the BenQ has no lens memory.

Funny that was my impression when I switched from the Sony to the Epson but the other day we hooked up the Sony for fun and going back it was apparent how much better the Epson is from brightness to its superior contrast and blacks, I also tested Antman and Wasp, 4K on the Epson vs 1080p on the Sony, the benefits were quite noticeable.

 

[Joseph Moore]

I'm in this boat, or about to be. I've been pretty happy with my AE8000U for years. Lens memory for CIH is an absolute MUST for me, and as we all know, there aren't many options < $6K to compare. Still, when compared to the other TVs in my house, I can't help but feel like I'm missing out on 4K and pseudo-HDR. When i was researching a replacement, I kept mistakenly looking at specs for the AE4000U. So, in reality the 6050 isn't going to give me much more brightness at all. I sure hope that black levels and contrast is noticeably better, otherwise I think I'm going to regret this purchase.

 

[Archaea]

I'm in this boat, or about to be. I've been pretty happy with my AE8000U for years. Lens memory for CIH is an absolute MUST for me, and as we all know, there aren't many options < $6K to compare. Still, when compared to the other TVs in my house, I can't help but feel like I'm missing out on 4K and pseudo-HDR. When i was researching a replacement, I kept mistakenly looking at specs for the AE4000U. So, in reality the 6050 isn't going to give me much more brightness at all. I sure hope that black levels and contrast is noticeably better, otherwise I think I'm going to regret this purchase.

You won’t regret upgrading from the AE8000 to the 5050UB, but if you don’t care about 3D you could look at the LS12000 too. Laser is quite nice, and HDR handling is solid, 120Hz, better uniformity, 4x e-shift. You don’t have to pay full retail $5K at Best Buy or other retail either if you know of a dealer, FWIW.

 

[MississippiMan]

I'm in this boat, or about to be. I've been pretty happy with my AE8000U for years. Lens memory for CIH is an absolute MUST for me, and as we all know, there aren't many options < $6K to compare. Still, when compared to the other TVs in my house, I can't help but feel like I'm missing out on 4K and pseudo-HDR. When i was researching a replacement, I kept mistakenly looking at specs for the AE4000U. So, in reality the 6050 isn't going to give me much more brightness at all. I sure hope that black levels and contrast is noticeably better, otherwise I think I'm going to regret this purchase.

Be advised that no other PJ with Lens Memory does Format changes automatically like the AE8000u. You have to select the Format you want.

I second the choice of the Epson LS12000 over the 5050ub. Brighter...longer Warranty....Custom Chief Mount included....and yes...if you look around there are a few Epson Dealers who are not grabbing for your wallet.

It's near to impossible to still find a 6050ub anywhere that isn't priced well above original MSRP, since it has been discontinued and it's replacement is essentially the LS12000. The same applies to the 5050ub in many cases.

 

[Joseph Moore]

Be advised that no other PJ with Lens Memory does Format changes automatically like the AE8000u. You have to select the Format you want.

I second the choice of the Epson LS12000 over the 5050ub. Brighter...longer Warranty....Custom Chief Mount included....and yes...if you look around there are a few Epson Dealers who are not grabbing for your wallet.

It's near to impossible to still find a 6050ub anywhere that isn't priced well above original MSRP, since it has been discontinued and it's replacement is essentially the LS12000. The same applies to the 5050ub in many cases.

Thanks, yes, I know I'll have to press a button to change aspect ratios. While it is impressive when the Panny auto-switches, it also often switches when I don't want it to, so I think this is a net wash. (now in the era of streaming service menus, this is much more of an issue than it used to be with physical media.)

I chose the 6050UB over the LS12000 for two reasons:
1. I got a demo 6050UB with 400 hours on it and 2 spare bulbs for under $2K.
2. When the bulb dims I can simply replace. When the laser dims on the LS12000, I'd be out of luck.

 

[MississippiMan]

Thanks, yes, I know I'll have to press a button to change aspect ratios. While it is impressive when the Panny auto-switches, it also often switches when I don't want it to, so I think this is a net wash. (now in the era of streaming service menus, this is much more of an issue than it used to be with physical media.)

I chose the 6050UB over the LS12000 for two reasons:
1. I got a demo 6050UB with 400 hours on it and 2 spare bulbs for under $2K.
2. When the bulb dims I can simply replace. When the laser dims on the LS12000, I'd be out of luck.

OK...your post didn't seem to read you had made a choice yet.
That <$2K price is sweet. @ 2 spare lamps even sweeter.

However at 20K hrs minimum on the Laser engine you'll be replacing your 4th Lamp on a 6050ub at least.(...and maybe your teeth to! ) Also the 4KEshift on the LS12000 is quite a bit superior to that on the 6050ub, and the additional brightness can make a real difference with UHD - HDR content`. But a 6050 under $2k is still a bargain...ain't no denyin' that!`