ROOKIE432

Noobe needs advice

Great forum guys. I read the forum pretty extensively but still have a few questions. Let me premise by saying I'm planning a 500 sq ft home theatre in my basement. My plan for this room is not necessarily stick to the rigid format of a dedicated Home theatre in the way that It will be a place for the whole family to hang out. Big cushy sectional sofa, bookcases etc....but, it will be set up in the style of a front projection home theatre. I have full control over the ambient light and will be soundproofing the room from the upstairs.
I intend to be able to watch movies, play video games, and watch satellite tv and football all in hd and blueray.
My concern is I have yet to see a front projector system in action.
I misread the BestBuy Magnolia website and drove 2hrs to a bestbuy in Columbus Ohio today only to discover no projectors were on display.This of course was to my great dismay.
My first question is to those of you who have dedicated systems...Can I expect to get a similar quality picture from a 1080p projector as a 1080p lcd/plasma. I did see a Sony Bravia 1080p LCD today hooked up to blueray that had a picture second to none.
The only drawback I saw was I could see the screen trying to catch up to the action(refresh rate) It was still faster than all other flat screens I have seen.

Second Question: I have studied up on Lumens vs Contrast Ratio and have decided that for my application Lumens should take priority. My question is I still want to take advantage of darkroom viewing for movies but for tv I may want a little ambient light. How do I guage how much in Lumens I need?
Unless I'm misunderstanding something too many lumens will be too bright and wash out the screen in total dark environment. Is this correct?

Advice appreciated as I'm still tryind to settle on a projector to buy.

Bill

SethH

Re: Noobe needs advice

What kind of budget are you talking about for your projector. That is the primary piece of information we need before we start talking about things like lumens and contrast ratio. After we have a price range we'll start talking about technology -- LCD vs LCoS vs DLP, etc.

ROOKIE432

Re: Noobe needs advice

Well Seth,
Like most people I don't have an unlimited budget for the room. I'll have about 8k to spend overall. The basement is partially finished in that it is already drywalled. I need to spend about 1500 on carpet, approx 1k on drop ceiling, and 1500 on sofa. I have my own cabinet shop w/ full cnc router so building my own cabinetry and environmental furnishings is about 1k in materials. This leaves me about 3k in my budget for projector system including screen. (already have surround sound system).
That being said if there is a high quality picture projector for under 1k than great I have a little money to play with, but a 3k system isn't a dealbreaker either. (i'll just have to count on some tax return money to throw in the pot

I have been reading good things about the Panasonic AE2000U but its in the $2700 range and that doesn't incude a screen.
By the way I'm thinking 80"x45" screen.

I just want to get the most acceptable system for the least expense. I don,t need a a 10k projector that allows for a 200" screen and 50k:1 contrast ratio.
Being a noobe I'm afraid to be sold on a bill of goods that really becomes irrelivant for my application.

Thanks
Bill

SethH

Re: Noobe needs advice

Well, if you're set on 1080p, then you will not go below $2000 for a projector/screen combo.

Mitsubishi has recently made their HC4900 projector available for $1995 making it the lowest priced 1080p front projector on the market. It's solid unit that you should take a look at. The Panasonic you mention is probably a better unit, but you would have to decide if it is $700 better.

One thing I feel I should mention is that it's very difficult to compare these units on published specs. For instance, the Mits 4900 has published 700 lumens while the JVC RS2 has published 600 lumens. Despite these numbers, I doubt you'll find anyone who would take the Mits over that JVC if cost were no object.

ROOKIE432

Re: Noobe needs advice

Seth,
You have pinpointed my problem directly. All I have to go on is published spec's as I have no source to actually go and see these systems up and running. I have settled on 1080p entirely because I can see the difference in flat panel lcd's at the box stores.
Such is why I am needing advice from the eyes of those of you who have seen these in action.

Thanks for the tip on the Mitzu... I'll take a look. Again If the right system is 3k than so be it...I'll find the cash for the right performance. Just don't want to overbuy because I can't see one powered up and running.

all advice appreciated.

Bill

Audioman321

Re: Noobe needs advice

Stay with the 1080p, they are nice.

ROOKIE432

Re: Noobe needs advice

Thanks for the advice so far,

Just ordered the Mitsu HC4900 from ProjectorUsa. On sale for $1800 plus Mitsu's offering a $500 MFR rebate. That's a 1080p projector for $1300 +/-...Wow what a deal. At that price I opted for the complete package that included 96" horiz screen high contrast Da-Mat, projector mount, and cables. Total theater setup about $1900 after rebate!!!

Bill