What Projector for $4500 (1 Viewer)

[Greg Risley]

I am thinking about upgrading the Zenith projector. I will probably have $4500 to spend and I'm really only interested in DLP or LCD. I'm just tired of the CRT route, and the wife no longer wants the big monster hanging from the ceiling. The Infocus 350 dlp sure looks like the way to go. Any other sudgestions?
Thanks
Greg

 

[James_T]

Greg:
You can get an NEC LT150 (XGA resolution just like the Infocus LP350) for an incredible price. Check out the "DLP, LCD, D-ILA Projectors" forum over at:
http://www.avsforum.com/ubbcgi/Ultimate.cgi
to get more info on this projector. I ordered mine today.
E-mail me if you need any more info, but you should be able to get everything you need to know from those forums.

 

[Parker Clack]

Greg:
We just added Projector People to our site as a vendor that sells all sorts of LCD and DLP projectors. They are also a great source for what is the best to get.
Right now the Sanyo PLV-60 LCD projector seems to be the one to beat for the money. Its contrast is fantastic, it has native 16 x 9 panels and from the people that I have talked to say they really love the white and black levels on this unit.
It is a little more than what you said you have to spend but the guys at Projector People will work with you on a price.
James is also right about visiting AV Science to ask about the various projectors out there.
Also, you may want to wait until have CEDIA in a couple of months to see what Infocus comes up with for the HT market. They have the great 530 model but this is still geared for the presentation market. They are supposed to have a model similar to the 530 but made for the HT market.
Parker

 

[Stephen Dodds]

James is correct. The LT150 for $2700 from AVS is stunning value.
Steve

 

[Luis Gabriel Gerena]

I am sorry to disagree but the Sanyo is not getting good reviews. A small search at the AVS forum will give you a lot of info on the many problems it has. Of course no projector is perfect but I think the Sanyo is not good enough. I rather go for the Sony 10HT or wait for the price on the new 11HT and also see how it compares to the 10HT. Try the BiG Picture for info on the Sony 10HT.

 

[KeithR]

I agree with Steve...the LT150 deal is by far the best deal in projectors if you aren't sensitive to rainbow artifacts...and should be better than the LP350.
I also agree about the Sanyo...although, now I think Sanyo has been taking care of the problems, and the newere units should be better. be careful though, the Sanyo is a BIG projector---19 lbs, and 20 inches deep...

 

[Parker Clack]

Ok, so now the Sanyo is not rated as highly as the NEC unit. When did AV Science start selling LCD projectors? I thought they used the same company as we have with us now - or Projector People/ Hometheater People.
At any rate it appears that the LT150 using a High Gain (2.8) screen is what lots of people are looking into.
Let us know what you end up getting.
Parker

 

[Pete B.]

Tell me I'm seeing things, but a replacement bulb for the NEC is $450.00 !!!!! That's a lot of cash after 1000 hours of use IMO! Guess you really have to pay to play with the big boys Would love to have a FPTV but I'll stick with my less costly RPTV.

 

[KeithR]

Parker,
AV Science is a store in Rochester...they sell everything---however, they usually don't sell "presentation" projectors. They do sell NEC, and because the LT150 has this following, Alan got some units and is selling them for 2700 (great price!). They also sell DILAs...albeit for 10k for a G15. They also sell Seleco, Dwin, etc. Currently, there is a power buy on the Sanyo PLV-60 for 5700 I believe...
I have become sensitive (very much) to rainbows, so I am going with a Seleco HT200DM...it is a native 16:9 dlp, which will be cool, as no lenses are required, and has eliminated the rainbow artifacts with a new 6 segment color wheel. Pricing is very good through AVS...no local dealer anywhere can match them, as they do so much volume. More than I wanted to spend, but at this point, I just want a picture that works!
All said, if I hadn't been so sensitive to rainbows, I would have the LT150 in my hands right now...

 

[KeithR]

Hey Pete, how much did your ISF calibration cost? I bet around 400 bucks...and in our upgraditis mindset, I doubt you will use 2000 hours on a projector (with an extra bulb)...for quite some time. That is 1000 movies...which should be over 2 years...on a 100" screen.

 

[Parker Clack]

Keith:
Thanks for the clarification. I thought you were referring to the web site AV Science.
Parker

 

[Stephen Dodds]

He is. AV Science the store runs the the AVS Forum.
Steve
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Link Removed

 

[Darren Hunt]

Keith...
What did you pay for your Seleco HT200DM? I was unaware of its existance until I read this post and it seems like quite the machine. How happy have you been with its performance?
Darren

 

[Jon_Mx]

First off Sanyo makes several models, PLV-60 and XP21N are two of their most popular. Several people are complaining about dust blobs (fixable with factory cleaning) and solarazation on the PLV-60, but every user still insists it is better than a Sony 10HT. The XP21N hasn't had those complaints. The Sony is a fine projector which can be made to look very good with some tweaking. In my opinion, (and seewww.projectorcentral.com ) the Sanyo XP21N is the best projector for watching progressive-scan DVDs without stepping up to a $10K DILA. Some people assume the PLV-60 is better because of the 16:9 LCD panels vs. the 4:3 LCD panels of the XP21N, but atleast for DVDs that hasn't been the case. The XP21N is being sold for $5500 which is a bit more than the $4500, but is worth it, especially if you don't have a darkened room. The 2500 lumens is awesome in almost all lighting conditions.

 

[KeithR]

Darren,
You can email me and we can discuss where and what kind of pricing. I don't ever really post pricing....it just is bad taste. I can tell you the unit lists for 11k, but streets much lower than this. Many have said this is the best DLP to date (well, 1 chip that is). It does native 480p with no scaling, so this should be really good...HDTV i hear is stunning as well. Interesting because it still is only SVGA. There are other technologies such as DILA and LCDs that provide good pictures---all have pros and cons.
Honestly, the best deal in fps are the crts---they have plummetted in price with the advent of digital projectors. If only I had a house, or some permanent place of living---i dont' have room for one here in my small NYC apartment. Check AVSforum.com for a lot of deals on all these machines....if you get in on the powerbuys on any of this stuff, a hell of a system can be built for >40% off list!
Jon,
Just to mention with any of the XGA machines like the XP21, a scalar should be necessary, no? Do you have a Quadscan like DanG's setup yet? Or are you going another route---HTPC?

 

[Jon_Mx]

The XP21N looks awesome with a 480p signal from a progressive scan player. For a 480i signal, a scaler would be a significant improvement. 480i is watchable, but it is not a smooth crisp image. I currently just have a panasonic progressive scan player and only watch DVD's on my projector. I will probably get a HTPC or scaler in the near future though.

 

[Greg Risley]

Hey guys. Thanks for all the great info. I do have a question concerning anamorphic displays. My current setup is a Zenith Pro-880 projector onto a 70" screen. The main reason I got this projector a few years ago is that it was the only video grade projector that has an anamorphic mode, since at the time I could not afford a data grade projector. Since I'm not using a line doubler, the anamorphic image is much better than the standard mode. On some of these projectors you are talking about do they offer an anamorphic setting, if not is the image compromised by this, so on and so forth?
Thanks
Greg