I’ve seen a couple of user reviews for the PT-AE3000 that complain of dust blobs on the lcd panel after a few weeks.

My trusty Sony VPL-VW10HT had the same problem a few months after I bought it even though I changed the filter every other month.

Do you know of any dust problem?
Thanks,

David

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Dust blobs can occur on 3LCD and LCoS projectors (and 3 chip DLP’s too). Generally it is a problem that affects very few people (or possibly many people never notice a small one). Of course the forums tend to be filled with many enthusiasts who will spot and report any flaw, as well as newbies, and also people who go searching for help when they spot a problem As a result, keep in mind that while always a possibility, the probability should be pretty low. Consider – Panasonic is probably selling at least a couple thousand PT-AE3000′s a month, and perhaps a couple times that many per month leading up to Christmas.

What I can tell you, is that out of, say, the last 15 different 3LCD projectors (and 5 LCoS) that I’ve reviewed, I’ve only spotted a dust blob on one. Of course I only run each projector from anywhere from 40 to 150 hours typically.

I generally recommend not to worry about it, unless it happens to you. Of the four dominant 3LCD home theater projector brands – Epson, Mitsubishi, Panasonic, Sanyo – Sanyo’s are designed with a “cleaning system” (holes in the chassis, a bulb air blower…). Epson has their overnight replacement program which people over the years report having used when confronted with a dust blob issue. I cannot answer as to how Panasonic or Mitsubishi treat a dust blob issue.

You might want to talk with the dealer about it, before buying! -art

Warren

Is the PT-ae3000U any quieter than the PT-ae1000U?

Thanks,

Warren
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Greetings Warren,

Just guessing here. If the PT-AE3000 is a little quieter than the PT-AE1000U, the difference is going to be very slight. At most, I’d guess a db or two. Not enough to really impact a purchase decision. Two db is enough to detect, in a normal conversation, but as someone once explained it to me (right or wrong): If you are listening to a soft conversation, and it is sufficiently low that you are making out only, say, 1 out of three words, and therefore can’t follow the conversation at all, then a 2 db increase might allow you make out 2 out of three words, and therefore give you a much better chance of following the conversation. Now that is a subtle difference. Obviously if you are listening to something like a test tone, the difference would seem much greater. (much as it’s harder to see pixel structure in a photo, than for straight text where you have lots of nice straight and curved edges. -art

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Keeping in mind that these are two projectors in the same overall class of performance, for your circumstance, I would probably go with the Epson. It has been my backup projector all year (and now sits in my Ensemble HD, and I often used it instead of my less bright JVC RS1 in my main room, for sports viewing. And there is a far bigger difference between my JVC and the Epson than the Epson and the Panny PT-AE3000. I’ve got the Panny sitting in my main room now, but when I’ve been switching out for sports, it’s not one I reach for… – art

Thanks in advance
Russel.

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Hi

I thought I corrected that. Yes, I meant black levels are better on the Panny, not the shadow details.

I love the IN83′s picture, but it definitely comes up a bit short on black levels. Still, I use it often, especially for sports. I love having lots of lumens. That’s why I gave them hell for just having a manual iris, and no dynamic one. -art

Closer, for sure, the 1080 UB still has that advantage though, it is, likely, though, that it is a trade-off against a slightly more natural look to the Panny. As much as I like the 1080 UB, I have always found the image to be a little “hard”. (And I have almost 400 hours on the 1080 UB they lent me at the beginning of the year. -art

Thanks,
Wes

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Hi, see my comments in the finished Panny review. Short answer – not direct competitors, but, the Mits has some advantages (brightness, sharpness) but if you don’t need either, it definitely has a lower price/performance value.

Before the panny pt-ae2000 did not have pop and wow compared to epson 1080ub. Now is the panny pt-ae better in this regard or just as good almost as the epson?