need help selecting a projector (1 Viewer)

[JosephEllis]

I am a sort of new to this ht thing blown away by all the Projectors on the market. Looking for the best bang for the buck without breaking the bank ($2500). Looking at several. Would like component inputs and 16:9 support. I am looking at buying something this week.

any input would be appreciated...

any one have or seen the ViewSonic PJ500 or 550?
Thanks again.

 

[Gabriel_Lam]

What do you mean by 16:9 support? Do you mean 16:9 native resolution (ie. 848x480, 1280x720, or 1366x768) or do you simply mean can display 16:9 properly (like all 4:3 projectors can by simply showing black bars)?

What kind of room do you have? Is ambient lighting well controlled? What size screen? What kind of screen material? Does DLP rainbows bother you? Does screen door bother you? Are you fanatical about color? Are you a blackaholic? Are you more into dark movies? How about sports?

 

[JosephEllis]

What do you mean by 16:9 support? I mean 16:9 compatibility as some projector tout.
What kind of room do you have? I have a room above my garage. I am going to go with a dark color scheme.
Is ambient lighting well controlled? There will be some ambient light. There are two windows in the room.
What size screen? What kind of screen material? I am not sure. I haven't got that far.
Does DLP rainbows bother you? Does screen door bother you? Are you fanatical about color? Are you a blackaholic? Are you more into dark movies? Not sure I have never seen these attributes. I basically want a nice bright picture on a screen that looks good, not all that picky.
How about sports? I really don't watch sports (except the occasional baseball game).
I see alot of projectors and not sure which brands to focus on and which to steer clear of.

 

[Neil Joseph]

Here are some possibilities...

- Sanyo PLC-XW15 - $2000, 1024x768, 800 ansi lumens
- NEC MultiSync VT540K - $2800, 1024x768, 1000 ansi lumens
- Mitsubishi XL1U - $2800, 1024x768, 1100 ansi lumens

Others feel free to chime in with specific models that Joseph can consider.

 

[rodney wiley]

I started new thread because I need to be schooled in front projection and screens!

 

[JosephEllis]

The projector I have my eye on is a Viewsonic PJ1065 has everything but 16:9 support.

What do you all think?

 

[Gabriel_Lam]

The PJ1065 is actually made by Hitachi as the CP-X985W. It's actually an older model that Hitachi has phased out. Hitachi rated it at 3200 ANSI lumens and 300:1 on/off contrast, so I'm not exactly sure how Viewsonic arived at the 3500 and 500:1 numbers. It can support 16:9 just like every single other 4:3 projector in the world. If you can find one of these to fit your $2500 budget, I think it would be a good purchase for a large screen and poorly controlled ambient lighting.

 

[JosephEllis]

How about the Panasonic PT-L711XNTU sounds like a nice pj. any thoughts?

 

[Dave_Olds]

711 is good as is the AE100 for a starter projector....16x9 native resolution, component & vga input, excellent colors....No Rainbows to worry about....

Cons - Screendoor (should sit 1.5x width away from screen or further), poor blacks....

But at $1400.00, its a limited investment and can easily recoup that on eBay or in a forum if you dont like it...

Dave

 

[JosephEllis]

Well I decided to jump on eBay and see what was out there.

Picking up a Mitsubishi X390U for about 2300.

Thanks for all the insight. Hopefully this will be a good projector.

Joseph