[B Feelgood]

I currently have a Samsung FP-T6374 63" plasma television. I sit about ten feet from it and after getting accustomed to the size, I am starting to want something bigger. My plan is to sell the Sammy and pick up a little 50" plasma for cable/regular TV viewing and getting a projector setup for exclusively watching movies on. I would be using a PS3 as the player.


My main question would be, what is the image quality like on a projector compared to a plasma TV? Can the black levels compete? Does the image have that same "pop" that a plasma provides?


The room environment can be controlled. It will only be used during the night time and I can get the room to be black. My seating distance can vary from 8'-16'. I would like the biggest screen possible for this distance while still getting optimum performance from the projector.


Since this will only be used once/twice a week for a few hours at a time I am not looking to spend a fortune. Maybe around $1000-$2000. How much do the screens cost and what is a good size for that seating distance?


From a quick look around the board I noticed the older Infocus 7210 had pretty rave reviews. Any comments on this model?

 

[thuway]

You can get comparable results if you stay within sane sizes. You would have to buy a Da-Lite high power screen and a bright projector. IE Mitsu HD1000u or Optoma HD72

 

[terminatorbob]

Well, coming from a Panasonic 42" 9UK plasma to a HC1500 I can say that you do loose a few things that ive noticed.


1. Contrast. This is very dependent on your setup but the blacks defiantly are not up to snuff. Keep in mind though my room isnt finished yet. I have white walls that is reflecting a lot of light. Once I paint them a darker color this will probably help.


2. Color. It isn't quite as colorful as my plasma but it is close.


3. Sharpness. Im shooting it on to a 100" screen with a 720P projector. Of course the 42" plasma is going to appear sharper. Im sure a 1080P projector would help out tremendously though.


But the big pro for the projector that truly does out weigh all of the cons listed above is just the sheer size of the screen. The plasma comes no where close to providing a true theater experience as the projector does. I love it!

 

[mommacux]

You don't need a HP screen with a bright PJ,especially if you have a light controlled room.A nice matte white low gain screen paired with a PJ like the 7210 will give you that plasma like pop your looking for.


The 7210 is a good choice,I would definately stay with DLP...other choices in your price range are the Sharp DT-510,or the Marantz VP-4001 which is what I own.These projectors are of similar design with the Marantz being a bit brighter,and having an extra iris setting for added contrast.


Getting back to your question about how comparable a plasma is to a projector...speaking from my own experience,especially with the Marantz and a 106" Draper matte white screen,it's very comparable only alot bigger!

If you have never experienced a projector at home before your in for a real treat.


I can use the Marantz in wide iris mode on the Dynamic picture setting with ambient lighting no problem with great results for that bright plasma effect.I use this setting for HD sports,sitcoms etc...for movies with the lights out I use the Theatre 1 mode,narrow iris for superior contrast and black levels[which I think are right on par with any plasma by the way]even in this mode the image has plenty of 3D like pop.


My short list for your budget right now would be:


The 7210 or the VP-4001,both are a little hard to find right now, but I'm sure if you do some digging something should pop up,or the Sharp -510.Any of these projectors paired with a high power screen would be like looking directly into the sun.As I said earlier a matte white screen would be a good choice...for your particular seating distance you could go anywhere from 100 to 120" at a cost of anywhere from 150 to a $1,000 dollars or more...check out the various screen threads on this forum.


I think using any of the aforementioned pj's along with a 50" plasma would be an excellent setup.


Good luck with whichever projector you choose.



Tom

 

[speed32219]

Um, the 7210 when optimzied for Video (D65) is a bright PJ and does not require an HP screen. There is no comparison to the above lower end units. It would be stunning by comparison.


You can also get a sharp xv-z3000, Marantz VP4001 whcih have short throws but would light up a 120" diagonal screen as would the 7210 but the Sharp/Marantz put out roughly 100+ more lumens when optimized for Video (D65) and provide a better CR and black level. Also, the Sharp/Marantz PJ's would be mounted much closer to the screen (12' - 13') while providing a big, bright Picture with stunning black levels. You can get a 120" 1.3 gain screen (Focupix) electric white screen for around 279 shipped with a IR and UHF controllers. (HTdepot dot com)


The Sharp DT-500 or 510 would also fit. THe 500 has 200 more lumens than the 510 and a third Iris like the 3000 and VP4001 units.


The above are great DLP PJ's for the $$$ if you can find one.

 

[frank456]

VP4001 and DT-510 on a screen size no larger than 100" and sitting back at least 12-13' will look as good as the plasma.


Sit closer to a larger screen and it will not look as good.

 

[mommacux]



Quote:
Originally Posted by speed32219 /forum/post/14180947


Um, the 7210 when optimzied for Video (D65) is a bright PJ and does not require an HP screen. There is no comparison to the above lower end units. It would be stunning by comparison.


You can also get a sharp xv-z3000, Marantz VP4001 whcih have short throws but would light up a 120" diagonal screen as would the 7210 but the Sharp/Marantz put out roughly 100+ more lumens when optimized for Video (D65) and provide a better CR and black level. Also, the Sharp/Marantz PJ's would be mounted much closer to the screen (12' - 13') while providing a big, bright Picture with stunning black levels. You can get a 120" 1.3 gain screen (Focupix) electric white screen for around 279 shipped with a IR and UHF controllers. (HTdepot dot com)


The Sharp DT-500 or 510 would also fit. THe 500 has 200 more lumens than the 510 and a third Iris like the 3000 and VP4001 units.


The above are great DLP PJ's for the $$$ if you can find one.

Actually,the 500 does not have the third iris like the Marantz or the 3000 models do.

 

[frank456]

These projectors only have 2 iris components. One in front of the lamp and one in the lens itself.

 

[mjg100]



Quote:
Originally Posted by mommacux /forum/post/14180793


You don't need a HP screen with a bright PJ,especially if you have a light controlled room.A nice matte white low gain screen paired with a PJ like the 7210 will give you that plasma like pop your looking for.


The 7210 is a good choice,I would definately stay with DLP...other choices in your price range are the Sharp DT-510,or the Marantz VP-4001 which is what I own.These projectors are of similar design with the Marantz being a bit brighter,and having an extra iris setting for added contrast.


Getting back to your question about how comparable a plasma is to a projector...speaking from my own experience,especially with the Marantz and a 106" Draper matte white screen,it's very comparable only alot bigger!

If you have never experienced a projector at home before your in for a real treat.


I can use the Marantz in wide iris mode on the Dynamic picture setting with ambient lighting no problem with great results for that bright plasma effect.I use this setting for HD sports,sitcoms etc...for movies with the lights out I use the Theatre 1 mode,narrow iris for superior contrast and black levels[which I think are right on par with any plasma by the way]even in this mode the image has plenty of 3D like pop.


My short list for your budget right now would be:


The 7210 or the VP-4001,both are a little hard to find right now, but I'm sure if you do some digging something should pop up,or the Sharp -510.Any of these projectors paired with a high power screen would be like looking directly into the sun.As I said earlier a matte white screen would be a good choice...for your particular seating distance you could go anywhere from 100 to 120" at a cost of anywhere from 150 to a $1,000 dollars or more...check out the various screen threads on this forum.


I think using any of the aforementioned pj's along with a 50" plasma would be an excellent setup.


Good luck with whichever projector you choose.



Tom

Go to 2nd act and buy a refurb 4001 right now.

 

[Ikari Warrior]

The High Power screen is very "plasma like". I went to one after originally going with a grey screen for darker blacks, and the pop the image has now in brightness and color is amazing. I tried samples of 5 other screen types, but even with a fairly bright projector (HD72) and a light controlled area the HP was the most impressive.

 

[oxygen955]

i have a nec 61" plasma and i have a 32" sony plasma, and an optoma h31, the blacks of the plasma may be a little better but not by that much, and the color had a little more pop to it than the projector. That said i would not go back to such a small screen, the pj is just so much more immersing when watching a movie.


fyi, i just bought a marantz vp4001, because of the rave reviews

 

[mommacux]



Quote:
Originally Posted by frank456 /forum/post/14181668


These projectors only have 2 iris components. One in front of the lamp and one in the lens itself.

Yes,what I meant to say was a third iris setting.

 

[JOHNnDENVER]

The trade offs, are more going from a small screen to a really giant screen.

I really don't see the technologies involved being much if any factor here.



Ambient / reflected light is your worst enemy with front projection.

 

[kyungkim]



Quote:
Ambient / reflected light is your worst enemy with front projection.

This is the most important factor here.

Take a long hard look at the room this will be in.


I had exactly the same plan as the op, but i was foiled by reflected light. I had good light control, but light walls and that destroyed the image.

Quote:
My main question would be, what is the image quality like on a projector compared to a plasma TV? Can the black levels compete? Does the image have that same "pop" that a plasma provides?

The short answer would be no. The reflected light bled into the darker areas causing the image to look washed out. This was with the most highly rated budget pj at the time, the ae 2000.


From what i could gather, i could have mitigated this with a high gain-gray screen, but good quality types in the size i wanted was out of my price range.


So the short story is you can't plop a pj into a space you normally have a plasma. There are many more room considerations you need to make before that can happen.


Even then I wouldn't say the pj is better or comparable to the plasma image. Its different.

You are giving up a little bit of absolute pq for the impact of a very large screen.


I'm still working toward my front pj dream, just need to convince the wife to let me repaint

In the meantime my 60in plasma just has to hold me over.

 

[Pedro2]

Part of the appeal of the high power screen is that it is retroreflective and thus does a better job with ambient light compared to other white screens.