Marantz VP-12S4: Image Quality - 1

Posted on October 11, 2013 by Art Feierman

Modes of Operation

The Marantz projector has several pre-set modes, and plenty of user saveable settings. Your basic "best" mode is Theater - or what is called Theater Default. You can modify the theater settings as Theater 1, 2...

All together there is a total of 9 user savable setttings.

Next is Standard Default. This gives you a cooler color balance (higher Kelvin temperature, more bluish). Many people will prefer this color balance over the Theater mode, at least on traditional Hi-Def and other non-movie material. Again there are multiple Standard modes so you can save your preferred settings.

Modes of Operation

click to enlarge. Here are two images of one of the boathouses in Philadelphia, the one on the left was captured in Theater Default, the one on the right - Standard Default. As you can see, the color balance shift is significant. (Note, as you can barely tell from the shadows, these images were captured near dusk and should have an redish-orange caste. Overall, the Marantz VP-12S4 produces smooth, accurate colors. I haven't yet seen a fleshtone Ididn't like.

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click to enlarge There is no sense of the images being too contrasty. Dark areas are only dark when they are supposed to be. On this side by side shot (to the right) of a very, very dark scene, note (as you look at it) the right side of Anakin Skywalker's face. There is color and detail there on the Marantz (left), by comparison, the BenQ on the right goes quickly to flat "black". Also note that there is plenty of detail in his blanket on the left, and again virtually flat without detail on the right. (When you normally watch a scene like this, of course, you don't necessarily know that it should look like the left. If you see results like on the right, you assume that's what it should look like - its a dark scene. Better projector - better picture!

More comparison shots between the Marantz VP-12S4 and the BenQ PE7700:

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click to enlarge Stars - where did they go. Note the full star fields around the planet on the Marantz. The BenQ is almost starless on this very difficult scene to reproduce. (You will probably have to put your nose up to the screen to see what's going on on this image - in terms of all the stars.) There is also more detail on the planet's surface on the left (Marantz). Hopefully you can see the stars. I do my work on a laptop, and some people using conventional monitors find my images to be a little to dark to tell on shots like this.

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click to enlarge These images were recorded dark. On screen both projectors were brighter and more vibrant when viewing. Once again, though this gives you an excellent idea of the differences.

Click Image to Enlarge

Our last comparison image is again from Star Wars Attack of the Clones. Look carefully at the dark cloaks The Marantz (left) has subtle details - on the right - none. Right below her chin, you can see a difference - there is some brown material around her neck, with vertical lines visible (only on the Marantz).

BenQ PE7700