Infocus X1 Vs 4805 (1 Viewer)

[Dave George]

I was recently in the same boat as you, and like the guys above I finally decided on the 4805.....but then I saw an X1 with 100 hours on the bulb for $500 on ebay and I couldn't pass it up

As it turns out, I am affected by the rainbow effect (though only on movies, and not on videogames, for some reason???). It was annoying on the first movie I watched, but I seem to notice it less and less as time goes on.

Bottom line, for the price I paid I'm very happy with the X1, but at new prices, I have to agree with the posters above that the 4805 is the way to go (take that FWIW, as I haven't seen the 4805).

Dave

 

[Daman]

well ive found a good deal on x1 up at circuit city which is the last remaining one they have and they are striking off a decent amount so would be picking it up tomorrow.. if i dont like it then would pick up the 4805 by next weekend.. ill post up my exp with the x1 over the weekend, keeping my fingers crossed that me and wifey dont see the rainbow
Thanks again guys!
Daman

 

[Stephen Dodds]

Not many yet have been able to compare an X1 with a 4805, but there have been comparisons with the Optoma H30. I have an H30 and found it quite a bit better than my old X1 in terms of black level, brightness and vibrancy.

The 4805 is apparently an improvement over the H30 in these areas so I would definately go for the 4805.

Steve

 

[Brian Fellmeth]

I'm running a 4805 on a DIY gray screen. It kills. With a superbit DVD, looks like a 92 inch plasma. No sign of rainbows. Never seen an X!, so can't compare, but the 4805 is alot of performance for $1500, esp on DVD which it is specifically optimized for.

 

[Joseph Bolus]

Stephen:


I don't know too much about the Optoma H30. Just out of curiosity, what's the speed of the color wheel on the Optoma, and does it include a "white" segment? Also, is it a native 4:3 pj with a 16:9 mode?

And, BTW, just how many projectors have you owned in the last four years? (Boy, remember those old SDE-prone 300:1 CR LCD projectors that we were purchasing back around 2001 that cost $5000 dollars? We've come a long way, baby!!)

 

[Stephen Dodds]

Let me think....

... oh, too many to remember. But a series from the model-forgotten 100:1 contrast Sanyo through the LT80s (I had an LT80,81 and 84), through the LT100, through the LT150, via the NECs, some Sharps, a crappy Proxima, Panasonic AE100, a couple of Infoci, X1, H30, etc etc. Probably over a dozen. Oops, counting those I've mentioned more like 20.

Generally each has been an improvement. The X1 ws the biggest jump for the price, ie it replaced an LT150 and was better at 1/3 the price.

These days they won't be cheaper, but will be better.

I've never hugely worried about rainbows, but the H30 has a 4x with no white segment. It has a blanked off 4:3 panel to make 16:9 better.

Cheers

Steve

 

[Joseph Bolus]

That *does* sound like the 4805's closest competitor at the moment. After I purchased the very satisfying X1, which was my second projector, (my first was the SVGA LCD Philips SV20i which had a CR of about 350:1 and cost around $3000 back in 2000); I pretty much stopped keeping up with the current "projector of the day". That is, until I came across the press release for the 4805!

Twenty projectors, huh? Ya' know, Steve, you're everybody's hero here!!! You really ought to write a book relating your experiences with projectors ...

 

[Daman]

Guys! Thanks for the help Finally bought the X1 and setit up on saturday and enjoyed watching a few movies with friends on the 90 inch screen.. BUT.. sadly i CAN see the rainbows whereas my wife and a friend who was with us cant.. and to think im the one with the perfect vision amongst the 3 of us.. but i noticed the rainbows only in LOTR and a little bit in secret window, didnt see them at all in Finding Nemo or Ice Age.. wonder why that is? I think i would be returning the X1 and going in for 4805 finally, have to find a local dealer and go in for it.. thanks for all the help again im still thinking why the heck did I have to be the one to see them rainbows :frowning:

 

[Citizen87645]

My guess is because those films have fewer high contrast scenes. RBE tends to be most noticeable with white text on black, for example.

 

[Daman]

I guess that would explain why i kept seeing it in Secret Window.. it also seems that my eyes/brain is getting used to this and i am seeing fewer rainbows as compared to when i first saw a movie on it.. is it possible that brain somehow adjusts to this phenomena over a period of time?

 

[Citizen87645]

Some people have stated as much. The effect seems to be most noticeable when a person is "scanning" the screen, rather than viewing a fixed point. One person has suggested gamers might be more sensitive to RBE because of the scanning habits developed from videogame playing.

 

[Daman]

well that could be true to certain extent in my case, i am into playing games but been a little inactive from the past few years.. still hook up the PS2 once in a while, I have been trying to keep the eyes fixed on the screen instead of scanning it around since i hooked up X1

 

[Joseph Bolus]

A *lot* of people have reported this, and that was the case with me as well.

I've also noticed that practically none of the animated movies (Toy Story, Toy Story 2, Bug's Life, and so on) viewed on the X1 exhibit detectable RBE. The worse offendors seem to be "Space" movies and "Fantasy/genre" movies for some reason. Also, if you own one of the more recent Sony DVD players with the "custom picture modes", I've found that the "Dynamic 1" setting virtually eliminates the detection of the effect even with the problematic movies.

Still ... At this point in time you might be better off going with the 4805. So far, even people that saw RBE with the X1 are not being bothered by the effect with the 4805.

 

[todbnla]

Oddly enough, I see more SDE than RBE...Looks like the X1 demo is about over for me and the 4805 will be taking its place. I just could not pass it up for the lil money extra, 16x9 native was the formost item.

 

[Daman]

Thanks for the tip Joseph.. yes i do own a new sony sacd player which i think does have the setting, will try it out tonight and see how it goes.. if i still find it annoying 4805 is the only way left

 

[DaveGTP]

I know I've tossed this idea around. My gamer friends are susceptible, and non-gamer types don't know what I am talking about. Non-scientificly evaluated, but I noticed a trend, and some others on AVS have agreed it seems to be the trend.




I find I see rainbows only in white on black scenes. Anime is 90% rainbow free (important). Saw rainbows on Cowboy Bebop (space scenes). I see a lot of rainbows when watching Bablyon 5 (lots of white lights in the background on the walls - camera pans to follow something). LOTR - the swords in Fellowship, in the mines of Moria. But saw no rainbows in ROTK.


It's really a white on black issue for me, exclusively. And I found I have tuned them out for the most part (I notice them, but am not really bothered by them). I am going to try the polarized camera filter that some have suggested at some point.


As far as screen door, try just a touch of de-focussing. I finally got it just right. It really helps with the intermittent SDE.

 

[Holadem]

Question: Is the throw distance the same fro both projectors?



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H

 

[Citizen87645]

If they're not exactly the same they are pretty darned close.