3-chip D-ILA vs 3-chip DLP (1 Viewer)

[Kelly Grannell]

Which one do you think is better?
What are the advantages/disadvantages of D-ILA over DLP?

Thanks

 

[Matthew Todd]

I've never seen a 3 chip DLP in person, so I really can't say from experience.

I have seen a JVC G10 3 chip D-ILA, and liked it very much. Personally, I went with a used CRT. From the little bit I know, screen door will be more noticeable on the DLP because of the very high fill factor of the D-ILA, but contrast also seems to be better, at least on the single chip DLPs. I'm not sure that the 3chip DLPs have as high of contrast as what the single chip DLPs are currently offering.

Bottom line is that you might have better contrast (black level especially) on the DLP, but less screen door on the D-ILA.

Matt

 

[ChrisWiggles]

I assume you're looking at the high-end, thus something like the JVC HD2k or Sony Qualia, which are 1080 panels, versus the current HD2 3-chippers which are 720p. I have not seen the HD2k in person, but I've spent some time with 3-chippers and the Qualia, and IMO the Qualia is in another league from the 3-chippers. The smoothness is the closest I've seen that approached CRT. Way more natural, IMO, than the screen-door riddled DLP that you have to sit far away from. However, the downside is that the DLPs *do* have better contrast ratios, so blacks are better. However, neither have CRT blacks, and in either case the lack is noticeable, so you'd have to live with that either way. IMO, go spend some time with each, but my reaction to the 3-chippers was that they were not that much better, except for lack of rainbows, than the single chip HD2+ units but they are $30K+, nearly triple the single chip or more. The Qualia is a big step up from that at this point.

 

[Leo Kerr]

For a variety of minor reasons, I'd say go with the JVC version of the D-ILA/LCOS projectors over the Sony. I'm willing to go into those reasons elsehwere, but here isn't the point.

3-chip DLP can be very good. I've seen good ones; I've seen fabulous ones. I'm not gonna spend $125,000 for a home projector. Sorry. Especially cause I'd need another ~$10,000 for the lens. (Christie Digital CP2000.)

They do have more 'snap' than the LCOS/D-ILA, but the D-ILA are... smoother. More 'natural.'

And you can walk right up to a DILA projected image, and practically put your nose to the screen before you really begin to see the pixels. (This from a 1920x1080 projector onto a 16'x9' screen.)

Both will be incredible to the vast majority of people. The three-chipper's don't have rainbows.

Some people can see a DLP image.... 'move' (for lack of a better term.) This, I believe, is because DLP works by pulse-with-modulation, and thus there is always a touch of 'shimmer' that should be invisible. D-ILAs, on the other hand, work by variable tone, so if a pixel is going to be 50% gray, it is 50% gray, not on for half of the interval.

Leo Kerr