Don't you love the way projector technology has skyrocketed over the last few years while prices have plummeted. After all, it was less than two years ago that a DLP projector with 800 lumens and a 1000:1 contrast ratio was state of the art "High End" and sold for nearly $15,000.
At this rate, I suspect by 2005 we will see native WXGA (1280x720), 2000 Lumen DLP projectors with contrast ratios of greater than 4000:1 (well beyond even CRT capabilities) selling for less than $5,000, and for the High-End group they can expect to have true native 1080p HD resolution projectors (WQUXGA 1910x1080) - most likely LCOS based, and not DLP, but hopefully with much improved ergonomics and greater contrast ratios.
Its a great time to be interested in HT, certainly a far cry from ten years ago when you would have had to spend at least $25,000 on decent CRT, then of course you'd want to spend at least another $15,000 on a reasonably good line doubler, and another few thousand on a high gain screen (to compensate for the low, low, low lumen output from the CRT. And after the hours of reading the manuals, installation, and calibration, what did you have for all that effort and $50,000 or so? A 84" image in a pitch black room, displaying non anamorphic $75 Laser Discs... oh my how the times have changed!
I suppose the hard part for those that are on the fence is when is the right time to jump in. Personally I'd say NOW, as then you will at least get to enjoy the world of true widescreen, but I still wouldn't recommend anyone buying any of these so called state of the art projectors that sell for over $10,000. They depreciate faster than a brand new Cadillac, and even faster than state of the art computers. The nice thing about the sub $5,000 market is that not only is the depreciation significantly less, but it is much easier to sell your unit later down the road as there are always bargain hunters looking for a cheap entry into the world of HT. Not only that, but there frankly is not that HUGE a difference in performance between the $5,000 units and the $10,000-15,000 units. Sure, they will probably have slightly better PQ, and some will offer extra features, perhaps better support, but 2-3 times as much? Not even close. In my opinion they might have about a 10-20% performance/feature improvement over those in the sub $5,000 range. Now, if you have the extra cash to spend, sure, you will get something for it, but for me, I was, and continue to be very happy with my $5,000 unit which I have now had since May.
Mark has offered to help me get measurements once I'm ready. After that, I'll take the response files, plug them into LspCAD, and start modeling crossovers. Once I actually put a crossover together, I'll bring 'em to a meet and have you guys critique them. I won't mind being sent back to the drawing board.
