82 replies to this topic

[MarkTecher]

Yacano, on 11 January 2012 - 07:41 AM, said:

...So can I put the question out there instead of trawling the internet looking at reviews.... I challege you all with this this question!!

What is the best projector on the market that has the following?

1. Unit cost is under $1000
2. has HDMI / VGA connections
3. provides sharp text on the "whole" screen via a PC connection
4. has a lamp replacement cost under $300
5. has a lamp life of around 4000 - 6000 hrs

Could this be like trying to find the perfect man or woman? ...There's too many shonky Projectors out there.

Add a few 0s to that figure and you have all of the above and more.
For less than a grand, have a look at BenQ's W1060 1080 DLP.  AFAIK, these use the same 0.65" chip that the W6000 uses.  For what you pay, you get a pretty good image.

Edited by MarkTecher, 11 January 2012 - 08:54 AM.

[kopthat]

709er, on 10 January 2012 - 06:45 PM, said:

Thanks for that.
After fiddling around today and doing side by side comparisons with my old (Sanyo Z2000) PJ, and noticing that the whites on the Pana 7000 seemed slightly bluish in comparison, I am inspired to spin up the "wow" disc, and take it through it's paces.
I easily removed the slightly bluish tint, but there is such a multitude of settings and combinations, I thought that I should check out somebody else's math!

I have the WOW disc on the way from amazon as I heard it was easier to use than DVE or had a few more features.
I think it is region A, so I will have to shove it in my el cheapo allure region free blu ray player.

I know it will only give basic calibration and nothing beats an expert like Mark with all their ISF dark arts

[MarkTecher]

kopthat, on 11 January 2012 - 12:05 PM, said:

I have the WOW disc on the way from amazon as I heard it was easier to use than DVE or had a few more features.
I think it is region A, so I will have to shove it in my el cheapo allure region free blu ray player.

I know it will only give basic calibration and nothing beats an expert like Mark with all their ISF dark arts

I acquired my copy at CEDIA 2010 a few months before the official release date.  The disc I have is region free.  I don't see why they all are not the same.

[709er]

kopthat, on 11 January 2012 - 12:05 PM, said:

I have the WOW disc on the way from amazon as I heard it was easier to use than DVE or had a few more features.
I think it is region A, so I will have to shove it in my el cheapo allure region free blu ray player.

I know it will only give basic calibration and nothing beats an expert like Mark with all their ISF dark arts

I tried mine out today.
As you say, it's extremely easy to use, though after doing the "purity" tests, I used the chapter skip button on the Oppo and it put it into some wierd mode where there were vertical signal noise bands that wouldn't disappear.
I had to turn off the player and start again
I am happy with the results, though I have only calibrated it in rec709 mode.
Need to try the others now.

[Yacano]

MarkTecher, on 11 January 2012 - 08:53 AM, said:

Add a few 0s to that figure and you have all of the above and more.
For less than a grand, have a look at BenQ's W1060 1080 DLP.  AFAIK, these use the same 0.65" chip that the W6000 uses.  For what you pay, you get a pretty good image.

Hi Mark

I thought I should also look at the size of my loungeroom, the maximum distance I can get a projector is 296cm away from the wall

I went to the Benq website and looked at the Projector "distance calculator" and noticed I really need to get a projector that has "short throw" because when comparing the screen size to that of the W1060, the image will be smaller... I can't seem to find a W1060 with "short throw" ...so now i'm looking at the W710st... It's only 720p but an improvment over the MP515.... does the W710st have the same "chip" as you mentioned in your previous post? Is this a good projector?

Thanks for all of your replies, you have definitely been helping me with this!

[MarkTecher]

Yacono,

I honestly know nothing about BenQs W710.  The only 720P I knew and liked was the famed 8720 (now discontinued).  Short throw units will be hard.  Maybe look toward LG who make that ultra short throw unit for schools now.  It mounts right at the screen yet is supposed to do a 90" screen.

[kopthat]

MarkTecher, on 11 January 2012 - 01:30 PM, said:

I acquired my copy at CEDIA 2010 a few months before the official release date.  The disc I have is region free.  I don't see why they all are not the same.

You were right Mark the WOW blu ray arrived and is region free,
I'm sure I read in the Googlesphere that someone had bought it and said it was region A which they had a cry about.
I'm personally shocked that you can't believe everything you read on the interweb..... or can you.....

[MarkTecher]

kopthat, on 18 January 2012 - 12:26 PM, said:

You were right Mark the WOW blu ray arrived and is region free,

It makes no sense to regoin lock a test disc anyway.  It is not like a PLUGE pattern is a film that is still in the cinema in AU.  Joe Kane was actually concerned about both regoin coding and macrovision affecting the test patterns and why JPK's DVE is regoin free on both DVD and BD.

[MarkTecher]

HIgh or Low Average Picture Light for setting Brightness?

On many test discs, you get a choice of high APL or low ALP patterns for setting brightness.  Whist I have always used a low APL (from direct view days), I've recently swung over (last 6~12 months) to using a high APL pattern for setting brightness and here is why.

Black is defined as the absence of visble light and a because a projector is a source of visible light (even DiLA does not produce black to the level on no light), black levels will never be true to the definition.  So after using commercial test patterns and even making my own (using Paint), I tested the idea of using a high APL patter and I seem to be geting more consistant results.

PLUGE is the name of the pattern created by SMPTE and is used for setting brightness and whilst patterns like the ones created by Joe Kane are full screen (low APL), the PLUGE can also be found as a part of the SMPTE color bars.  For a direct view display, you don't want to be using this because of the high average picture light makes the PLUGE hard to see, but for my DLP projector (BenQ W6000), I actually find it works well.

When you use this to set the brightness, you need to be sure that the blacker than black bar (arrow on the left points top this) is dropped into the video black background and should not be visible.  The above video black bar should still be visible.   If it is not, then you are crushing the blacks and shadow detial will be lost.

SMPTE Colour Bars

[fishman1311]

Quote

Hi Mark

I thought I should also look at the size of my loungeroom, the maximum distance I can get a projector is 296cm away from the wall

I went to the Benq website and looked at the Projector "distance calculator" and noticed I really need to get a projector that has "short throw" because when comparing the screen size to that of the W1060, the image will be smaller... I can't seem to find a W1060 with "short throw" ...so now i'm looking at the W710st... It's only 720p but an improvment over the MP515.... does the W710st have the same "chip" as you mentioned in your previous post? Is this a good projector?

Thanks for all of your replies, you have definitely been helping me with this!

Hi Yacano,

Did you proceed with the W710ST or find another suitable projector?  I am in the same situation - currently have the Benq MP515ST and it's getting old and needs an update. I also need a short throw due to a beam across the ceiling of my room. I like the look of the W710ST but it's hard finding info on and harder seeing one on display.

Any feedback appreciated.

[Yacano]

fishman1311, on 11 April 2012 - 09:24 PM, said:

Hi Yacano,

Did you proceed with the W710ST or find another suitable projector?  I am in the same situation - currently have the Benq MP515ST and it's getting old and needs an update. I also need a short throw due to a beam across the ceiling of my room. I like the look of the W710ST but it's hard finding info on and harder seeing one on display.

Any feedback appreciated.

Hi,
I just bought the Benq W710ST yesterday and spent my entire evening and this morning slaving over the settings. This is how it went:

1. The only wall I can display a projector has a total maximum distance of 320cm so that's why I wanted to invest in at short throw projector.

2. I plugged in the current VGA cable I have connected to my PC and also tried the HDMI ports from my laptop. I found the image sharpness to be "exactly" the same.

3. I was hoping in this version of Benq Projectors they would have fixed the "issue" because it is a major issue with this brand, not having the ability to have a sharp image in both diagonal corners. This is supposed to be a 720p projector and when you manually focus your left a bit defeated when you can't get a sharp image like you can on the rest of the screen. They obviously have a flaw in their design.

4. When I used the "suggested" resolution that the machine displayed, I did so but had a nightmare with the horizontal and vertical phase settings, this nearly drove me mad! I had to change to a smaller resolution for the fuzziness to stop on the screen.

5. To top things off I found a 3mm scratch on the lense.

6. I noticed the settings with brightness colour were exactly the same as my older model Benq MP515.


I'm sending this unit back, very horrible experience... hoping the place I bought it from will let me exchange for something else due to the scratch and the focus issue.

[fishman1311]

Thanks Yacano for the update, appreciate the feedback.

I had a small office fitout that required a projector so i thought I would use the MP710ST as a test run prior to committing to getting one for home.
I installed it with just a VGA and HDMI connection and projected onto a 80" screen (pretty small I know but there were limitations on the screen size).

I was very underwhelmed with the image I got from either input connected to a laptop, both in terms of resolution and sharpness of the image. I actually think that I get a better image from my old MP515ST on a 100" screen at home. But this has the advantage of going through a Pioneer receiver so perhaps the signal gets a kick from this ???

Did you settle on another short throw alternative?? I'm interested because I would still like to upgrade but not confidnet in the MP710ST.

Appreciate any advice.

[Yacano]

Hi,

fishman1311, on 29 June 2012 - 12:46 PM, said:

Thanks Yacano for the update, appreciate the feedback.

I had a small office fitout that required a projector so i thought I would use the MP710ST as a test run prior to committing to getting one for home.
I installed it with just a VGA and HDMI connection and projected onto a 80" screen (pretty small I know but there were limitations on the screen size).

I was very underwhelmed with the image I got from either input connected to a laptop, both in terms of resolution and sharpness of the image. I actually think that I get a better image from my old MP515ST on a 100" screen at home. But this has the advantage of going through a Pioneer receiver so perhaps the signal gets a kick from this ???

Did you settle on another short throw alternative?? I'm interested because I would still like to upgrade but not confidnet in the MP710ST.

Appreciate any advice.

Hi Fishman

I purchased the W1060 from Office works... Was amazed by how clear the text on the screen reads... Such a huge improvement over any other Benq projector... Only thing I found is that with the light tube the brightness of the projection goes darkish to bright from the left of the screen to the right. Not sure if this is a design flaw... It's not hugely noticeable though. I had a similar thing with my MP515.

[Yacano]

MarkTecher, on 14 January 2012 - 05:13 PM, said:

Yacono,

I honestly know nothing about BenQs W710.  The only 720P I knew and liked was the famed 8720 (now discontinued).  Short throw units will be hard.  Maybe look toward LG who make that ultra short throw unit for schools now.  It mounts right at the screen yet is supposed to do a 90" screen.

Hi Mark
After a lot of decision making and a disaster trying to set up the W710ST and taking it back, I finally purchased a W1060 and noticed right away how sharp the text reads on the screen... I was like "wow!" and the sharpness is across the whole screen and not in one section!! I noticed from left to right of the projection it displays darkish to bright... Something probably to do with the light tube, do you know what this could be? ....Also I'm having difficulty trying to maintain a resolution of 16:9 (projector) and 1280x720 (windows 7 resolution) when watching movies or television through my PC fast moving images flicker at this resolution. The graphics card I have is ATI raedon 512mb 3400 series.... I notice when ever I turn my PC off and on again the resolution changes to a lower one and doesn't look very sharp and becomes degraded. If I upgrade the graphics card will this fix the flicker and resolution problem.

Thanks for reading.

[MarkTecher]

Sorry I can't answer the PC questions because when I attach mine, it rescales for 1920 x 1080 and the system defaults to 60Hz.  I have the option to select 24Hz for HD video playback as well, so all good for me.

What is your screen?  If you are seeinng a noticeable brightness from centre to edge, I would have to suggest the screen itself is at fault as the lamp driving the projector is or should be constant brightness.  If your screen is slightly shiny, you normally see a "hot spot" which is a direct reflection of the lamp itself.  However with a high gain screen and when viewed off axis, you may experice a brightness difference.

[simonv]

Look at the new BenQ W1070 I have been considering getting one of these to use as a gaming projector as my Epson TW9000 is useless for gaming, the new BenQ W1070 is getting great reviews and is well worth a look

Yacano, on 26 July 2012 - 02:37 PM, said:

Hi Mark
After a lot of decision making and a disaster trying to set up the W710ST and taking it back, I finally purchased a W1060 and noticed right away how sharp the text reads on the screen... I was like "wow!" and the sharpness is across the whole screen and not in one section!! I noticed from left to right of the projection it displays darkish to bright... Something probably to do with the light tube, do you know what this could be? ....Also I'm having difficulty trying to maintain a resolution of 16:9 (projector) and 1280x720 (windows 7 resolution) when watching movies or television through my PC fast moving images flicker at this resolution. The graphics card I have is ATI raedon 512mb 3400 series.... I notice when ever I turn my PC off and on again the resolution changes to a lower one and doesn't look very sharp and becomes degraded. If I upgrade the graphics card will this fix the flicker and resolution problem.

Thanks for reading.

[simonv]

They also make a short throw version of the BenQ W1070 as well, hope this helps

simonv, on 18 January 2013 - 11:48 AM, said:

Look at the new BenQ W1070 I have been considering getting one of these to use as a gaming projector as my Epson TW9000 is useless for gaming, the new BenQ W1070 is getting great reviews and is well worth a look

[Quark]

The short throw models are IMO best used for business presentations - difficult to get the necessary optical quality for ST at this price point.

[Mooingcow]

Hi guys, Newbie needs some help.

Been interested in a projector for my new house for a while but still not sure if it will suit me. But after seeing that LG laser projector from CES I got excited again (then quickly deminshed when the price estimated $10k USD).
Basically the size of my dedicated room is 3.22m^2. I am concered that this size just isn't good enough to fit a projector?
My alternative at the moment is either a 65" Plasma or that Sharp 70" LED LCD.
The screen will be used for gaming, movies and TV shows.

If I do go projector I would like the screen to be atleast 100". My budget is roughly $3.5k with screen, so any recomendations? 3D doesn't concern me but I guess its a nice option.

Cheers.

[davep]

I have a feeling my room wouldnt be any larger than about 3m in length.  With the shortened throw, youll be limited in screen sizes and projectors that offer zooms.  I managed to squeeze 88" out of my throw distance, could possibly have gone 90", but I wouldnt have thought much more than that.

I assume you already have a receiver & speaker setup for the room?  Or is that part of a second budget.  

There are a few group buys happening in the forums at the moment, I would think the Epson models would offer the zoom, performance, and budget you are looking for.

[Mooingcow]

Yeah the budget is just for the TV/Projector. I have about a $3.5k budget for sound aswell. Though I am from Australia so we have massive screw australia taxes to deal with.
Pushing out 88" sounds like to me its maybe more beneficial going for the 70" panel? I guess with the extra 220mm I have to play with I might hit the 100 depending on the projector... how much does quality suffer from this though?

[davep]

I dont think that a 70" panel will out perform a 88-90" screen, A flat panel typically gives you a bit more usability, i.e. you can flick it off and on on a whim, but a projector really wants you to invest an hour or two and room setup (i.e. darkening walls/ceiling for room reflections) takes more thought.  Hit up projectorcentrals calculator, to see what models will give you what screen size.  I still say projector.

[Mooingcow]

Thanks for you help.
I went to that calcuator and it wasn't helping me as much as I had hoped... due to the fact that there are hundreds of projectors to chose from!

I've tried googling but to no real help, is there specific models/brands that will suit the shorter throw that I am after? I do want to hit the 100" if I go projector. I have no dramas in setting the room up correctly, as its what I want to do anyway.

[jamiet]

Mooingcow, on 29 January 2013 - 08:50 AM, said:

Thanks for you help.
I went to that calcuator and it wasn't helping me as much as I had hoped... due to the fact that there are hundreds of projectors to chose from!

I've tried googling but to no real help, is there specific models/brands that will suit the shorter throw that I am after? I do want to hit the 100" if I go projector. I have no dramas in setting the room up correctly, as its what I want to do anyway.

Just a tip with the distance calculators that some people will consider obvious and some will not. Those calculators are based off the lens to screen surface distance. You need to take into account the projector depth plus room to plug in your cables (part of the reason I prefer side inputs). You can use right angle connectors to reduce the rear clearance in some cases but it's just easier if you don't have to.

You probably need to post the length of your room, not just the square metre area for people to suggest a screen size to aspire to. My initial thinking is 100" is too big unless you like looking at pixels.

Cheers,
Jamie

[MarkTecher]

jamiet, on 01 February 2013 - 11:55 AM, said:

My initial thinking is 100" is too big unless you like looking at pixels.

It is all relative to the ratio of seating distance to image height.  3x ANY screen hight with a 1080 projector is perfectly acceptable.  I prefer 2x, but that is just me.