BenQ W7000 Projector

Greetings Projector fans,

As usual, I’m a day late and a dollar short, in getting out this blog.  This time I can share the blame with our friends at BenQ.  A promised Wednesday delivery turned into a Thursday afternoon one after they were a little slow getting an upgraded W7000 projector shipped out to me.  Too bad, I could have driven up there on Tuesday… saved a couple days.

No worries though.  I’ve been viewing the W7000 for several hours, primarily concentrating on black level performance and dark shadow detail.  Mind you I’ve only adjusted the contrast and brightness (and color saturation).  This W7000 has not been calibrated, nor have I yet tried dropping in Mike’s calibration settings from the engineering sample.

As a result, colors are not where we would want them to be for a full comparison, but we already know that the BenQ W7000 projector calibrates rather well.   I will try the old settings to see if they do the job.  Quite honestly, my first impression is that the default color tables look at least very similar to what I saw with firmware 0.22.   If I find them to be, however, more different than I anticipate, at that point we’ll decide over here, whether to calibrate this W7000.  Quite honestly, I’d rather not.  It gets expensive paying Mike to calibrate the same model projector several times.

Before I lay the “results” on you, I did want to point out a few things.  First, the BenQ in its “best” mode, even with Brilliant Color turned off, and lamp on economic, it’s still a bit brighter than the Epson it it’s calibrated Natural (“best”) mode, with lamp on full.

Yep, don’t forget:  The BenQ W7000 is a light canon compared to everything else in the field, anywhere near its price, when it comes to “best” mode brightness.

Black Level Performance of the BenQ W7000 projector

Wow, what a difference between the first W7000 projector and this one. “Night and Day” almost comes to mind. Whereas the first W7000 had black level performance that would be just about average for $1000 – $1500 projectors, along the lines of the Epson 8350, and probably without blacks as good as the Acer H9500BD, this one easily is superior.  In other words, the sample W7000 had only decent blacks for a lower priced projector.

But the BenQ W7000 sells for around $2500, making it one of the less expensive 3D capable projectors that should be a step up in performance from those lower cost models.

The older W6000 had excellent blacks for a projector in its class. OK, not as good as the Epson Home Cinema 8700UB, but pretty close. (the Epson was the best we had seen a year ago, without spending more than twice its $2000ish street price). Thus the great disappointment when the engineering sample of the W7000 arrived, with black performance obviously inferior to the W6000!

The answer you have been waiting for: The BenQ W7000 projector has extremely good black level performance. I’ve viewed side by side with the Epson Home Cinema 5010, which has the best blacks under $3000. The Epson wins, but not by a whole lot. In fact, it sort of plays out like this:

In “best” mode, on normally bright scenes, the BenQ is brighter than the Epson. On the darkest scenes, it can be even a bit more bright compared to the Epson, as it seems the Epson iris closes down further. When viewing side by side, the Epson appears, overall, about 20-30% less bright, and the blacks definitely seem darker by at least that much.

I’d have to say that the W7000 definitely is still a bit short of the Epson in black level performance. On the other hand, I seriously doubt that the Panasonic PT-AE7000, the Sony VPL-HW30 or the Optoma HD8300 can match/beat the W7000′s black level performance. Now I haven’t had a Panasonic PT-AE7000 here for quite a while, but applying memory (or what’s left of mine), I’d put the BenQ and the Panasonic to be about tie, with the W7000 having the slightest edge. The W7000, though, in terms of blacks is a lot closer to the PT-AE7000 than the Epson. Funny about that, I do believe that was about the same pecking order last year, with the Epson 8700UB, the Panasonic PT-AE4000 and the BenQ W6000.

So, where does that leave you? Probably with the BenQ W7000 being one of the best projector choices available. If you want a big screen for 2D, you can’t beat this projector – 140″ diagonal – not a problem, the W7000 won’t even break a sweat.

In 3D, the W7000 does very well, but really is not significantly less bright than the Epson or Panasonic, despite the 3D mode measuring far less. BenQ’s 3D brightness is still pretty good, but not the brightest out there. It shouldn’t have a problem leaving the JVC RS45, or the Sony HW30, for example, in the dust on 3D viewing brightness. Of course glasses and other factors come into play.

That’s it folks, if the black level issue was preventing you to make a decision, you are now free to make your call.  I’ve only really looked at this just arrived W7000 for black level performance so far, but that was the primary question mark remaining in our review.  On a related note, the BenQ and the Epson are pretty similar when it comes to dark shadow detail.  I mean almost identical.  In my side by side viewing today, the Epson had the slightest advantage, but I had to really look hard.  I have to call them a tie.

In the next 24 hours the full review will be updated. Included in that update will be some side by side images, including the Bond night train scene, comparing the W7000 to the Epson Home Cinema 5010 that I have here.

No doubt about it, the W7000 is now my favorite DLP home theater projector dollar for dollar, under $5K! In fact I can’t really think of any of the DLP’s under that price that I’d pay more for, than this $2500ish BenQ, if I want 3D as well as 2D.   There are certainly other big time competitors out there within $1000 more than the W7000′s price, but this BenQ is capable of competing with any of them. You’ll have to weigh the trade-offs compared to other projectors, to figure out if this one’s for you. -art

PS.  Later today, I’ll be exploring shadow detail a bit more, and will post those comments in the full review.

OK, I got distracted with all the holiday activities.  Let me bring you all up to speed on what I finally heard back from BenQ, in terms of answers to my questions.

Lot’s of hopefully really good news:

I’ll run though a number of items I mentioned to them, and their response.

First, regarding the dip we found in the W7000′s cyan secondary color.    BenQ says that is corrected in the January firmware.  That required Mike to go into the CMS to get a good calibration, something we normally don’t do.

Black Level not as good as the W6000: Their exact response:  ”We did the measurement of the latest unit of W7000 and W6000 we have, and the result shows that they are about the same”

We expect that “about the same”, means the W7000 is at least as good, so we’ll cross our fingers until we get to test the new firmware.

Next:  When exiting 3D, found back in 2D with the lamp flickering:  BenQ response:  Fixed on the mass production units.

Aspect Ratio squished with DirecTV This turned out to be interesting, and not BenQ’s fault.  Out here, just about the same time the W7000 arrived, DirecTV changed their Guide and menu systems to HD resolution (finally after all these years).  Seems they are the cause of this problem.  I’ve seen this aspect ratio shift half a dozen times now, (mostly on CNBC, but not only), and I’ve now seen it do it on the Mitsubishi HC7800D, and also my 2 year old Sony LCDTV (which has never done anything like this before.

So, we can cross that one off the list.

Next:

Switching to User 1, all the settings seemed to be replaced by defaults. (temporarily, then upon power down and back up, your settings return)…  Response:  Will be fixed in next version F/W in Jan’12

Finally, as some of you know, BenQ has provided a small first shipment of projectors to dealers.  My understanding is that those units do not have all of the issues above addressed.

And that raised this big question:  What about the folks buying the early (late Dec.) projectors, in terms of getting the new firmware.

Good news there, too: The written word from BenQ:  ”We will provide the FW upgrade service for those customers who buy the first batch projectors. Not a problem.”

(Hooray!)  I expected no less, of course.

I’ve written before, about BenQ being one of the more responsive companies out there – specifically several years back (in the 720p days), they had a serious lamp issue with their PE7700. They took care of everyone, upgrading every projector and replacing every lamp, where the problem showed up (and that was most of the projectors shipped the first 6 months (the lamps lasted, typically 500+ hours, not 2000, but that still means it took many months before anyone was aware of the issue.  BenQ even paid shipping for everyone to send in their PE7700s for upgrade!

That folks is it!   As predicted in the first blog, almost all the problems were of the nature of being the kind of problems that show up in engineering samples, that we expect are fixed by full production.

W7000 Projector - Killer on NFL football!

Of these, the most critical, by far, is the black levels. Black levels were a particular strength of the W6000 (along with brightness), offering probably the best blacks of any DLP home theater projector under $3000 last year, but not quite up to, say the Epson “UB” projectors like the 8700UB.

If the W7000 can match the W6000 in terms of blacks, it certainly will have to be considered one of the top performing projectors anywhere near the price.

And that takes me to talking about the formal review itself, which, but for these issues, should have published more than a week ago.  Instead, I’ve been focusing on these blogs to keep you all up to speed.  Here’s the plan going forward.

1.  Parts of the review are already completed, and will post in the next 48 hours.  Unfortunately, some critical sections will have to wait until I can get the firmware upgraded.

BenQ W7000 - image from the movie Red

2.  Going up first will be “most” of the Overview page (index), the Physical Tour page, the Performance page, parts of the Image Quality page (but not Black levels / shadow detail) which will have to wait for the firmware.  I will also put up the calibration page, although that likely will have some changes with the new firmware.  Hopefully, the new firmware will only require resetting the CMS (taking out the Cyan changes), and that the remaining settings will then provide the same results.  It may turn out that a new calibration will be needed to end up with the proper grayscale calibration.

For those of you who like to check out all the images, the photo shoot is long ago complete, so just about all of the images except those specifically used for discussions on black levels and shadow detail, should also be posted.

My hope will be that I can get firmware next week (or even this week?).  As soon as BenQ says “ok” I’ll make the 20 mile drive to their offices in Irvine CA, and get that firmware.)  My hope would be to have the review completed within 72 hours of getting the firmware!

That’s it folks, best we can do.  I’ll also be posting a “First Look” blog review of that Mitsubishi HC7800D, also hopefully in the next 48, and will endevour to have the full Mitsubishi review up over the weekend or next Monday.

Finally, a partial Summary page will also go up.

BUT!   A final determination as to whether the W7000 will qualify for a Hot Product Award, a Special Interest Award, or no award at all, will have to wait until I’ve had a close look at the next firmware.

And that folks, is it for now!  -art

PS.  one more time – Happy New Year!

Greetings and happy holidays.

It’s almost Christmas Eve here in southern California, and we hope everyone is enjoying the season as much as we are.  I’ll be knocking off after I finish this W7000 projector blog.  (finally)

I had intended to try and get a good portion of the review  up and running this evening, but there wasn’t enough time.  I’ve still got 100+ images to process (Lisa’s overseas – so I have to do all that myself), and tons of writing to do.  But, more importantly, at this point, I really want to speak with the BenQ folks for information on the newer firmware that’s already out there.  (I am working with an early engineering sample – firmware 0.22). By now, BenQ should be up to at least at 1.0 firmware.  We’ve noted a number of issues in the earlier blog from two days ago.

Let’s talk BenQ W7000 and our engineering sample!  Based on comments and emails, I want to start off by discussing what an engineering sample is, since understanding that is important.  Then back to the W7000 projector.  First, for those of you concerned after reading the first blog – relax!

BenQ W7000, an exceptionally bright projector

This BenQ W7000 is likely to be one of the best projectors around the price, if the final versions are clean, and there’s a bit of performance improvement in one area.

I elaborated yesterday when answering a  comment about engineering samples, but most of you might miss that.

Over the years, we’ve probably reviewed at least a dozen engineering samples out of something approaching 200 projectors.  In almost every case, we were able to bring in a full production version of the projector, not too long after first consumer shipments, to confirm that all the things missing, or not working, or acting strangely, are fixed.    That’s the plan here.   Although the differences are a bit vague, let’s say that engineering samples are typically “unfinished” whereas a pre-production version is normally finished, and very close to what will ship.    The reason we like do engineering samples when we can get them, is that it means we can give you folks a heads up, by the time the projectors are beginning to ship, and then we get a second look, for updating you.

Unfinished?  By unfinished, I mean that some projectors have had only HDMI working, a few had menus only in Japanese, or Chinese or Korean.  In one case, in HDMI we couldn’t access most color controls making a calibration impossible.  In another, HDMI was the only input working – no component, computer, or even composite video.  I’ve had one where the case wasn’t even close to final.  (the entire top piece was blank, and made of the wrong material.  Entire modes are often missing, menus incomplete, if it’s a whole new projector, it’s probably a good bit dimmer than a full production projector.  And they usually have a bunch of glitches and non-working features.

This BenQ W7000 fits the bill.  As I reported, some glitches, and possibly even some menu items might be missing, but as I have also said, most of what’s missing or not right, should be just fine by the time full production W7000 projectors ship.

For that reason, we’ll post the review in a few days, but we plan on a major update within the next couple of weeks.

Great. With that out of the way, time to talk more about the BenQ W7000 itself.

I’ve been watching football on the W7000 all day while writing and minding my fantasy football.  Wow, it’s a sharp image.  It’s very bright!  I’m filling my Studiotek 130 at full 16:9 size of 98″ diagonal for regular viewing, but when I’m watching DirecTVs NFL Mix, with it’s 8 separate games going on one screen, I zoomed out so that I was filling the full width of my 124″ diagonal screen, which works out to the equivalent of about 130″ (in 16:9).  Boy is it bright.  Even at the larger size, (with some of the unneeded (non game) parts of the image off the screen, the W7000 was effortlessly bright, even running in “best calibrated mode”.  That was with my rear lights on, and my shutters just a little open as usual (sunny day).  No problem.

I’ve done some more 3D viewing.  As I had reported, I believe, the BenQ when in 3D seems to be a little less bright than the Epsons (3010 and 5010 series), and the Panasonic PT-AE7000.   But not by much.   I found previously, that the Panasonic and Epson seem about equally bright.  I normally view in 3D with the glasses setting in the medium of 3 positions, when available.   Bright usually has lot of ghosting, while for me, low and medium aren’t too different, with low a touch cleaner.

Well the BenQ doesn’t have any glasses options (don’t expect them too, either) – that feature seems to be showing up on 3 chip LCoS and 3LCD projectors but not DLP.    Basically my impression is that the W7000 falls in between the Epson 5010′s medium and low brightness glasses settings (this is a feature controlled by the projector – you won’t see any difference to the image in brightness unless you have the glasses on).  There isn’t a whole lot of difference between those two modes.   Switching back and forth between the different classes (both projectors running at the same time), it took a bit of time to get the overall feel that the Epson was brighter.  In other words, if a full production W7000 is at all brighter than this engineering sample, it should be at least as bright as those other bright projectors in 3D.

Movie viewing is a pleasure, but for the blacks that could/should be a bit blacker. Classic, rich, deep  colors, well calibrated as we have come to expect from DLP projectors.

Black level performance is actually at the top of my list of questions when I talk with BenQ this week, rather than some of those reported glitches.  We shall see if production projectors do better blacks – boy if they do, look out!

Brilliant Color – the implementation is subtle (compared to most).  It really doesn’t get “over the top” like so many do.  The BenQ’s image is still excellent with BC on, but still, as expected, the W7000 is a little more natural looking with Brilliant Color turned off.

BenQ W7000 - X-Men - Cityscape

Touring the BenQ W7000 – I’m going get the Tour page up perhaps first, so you get a feel for the W7000 hardware.  Remote and most menus look like they have for years, and I’m a fan of both.  It’s basically the same remote that I loved when I owned BenQ projectors way back to the PE-8700 and PE8720, 4,5,6 years ago.  It’s got good range, a great backlight and good organization!

The collection of inputs is pretty standard, no surprises, that too will be covered in depth on the Tour page.

3D brightness – seconds ago, I found more lumens, from playing around.  You will all love this, especially in regard to things “missing” on engineering samples.

In 3D mode, first of all, the menu is all kinds of stretched, they haven’t grabbed it, and made it 3D, pretty ugly, but functional.

When the W7000 was setup next to the Epson 5010 in 3D,  as reported above, it wasn’t quite as bright, but very close.  Now I should have been running with Brilliant Color on, as I was looking for max lumens.  Well, I got that wrong, and I think it relates to some work not yet done on this .22 firmware.

When in 3D with BC On, the projector seems to be in a Warm or Normal Color Temp modes – basically, based on our calibrated best.   When I went to the Color Temp settings, though and tried to change to other Color Temps, I could change it from Normal to Warm, Cool and Native, but while the words changed, the picture did not.  That’s right, essentially, in 3D on this projector, the Color Temp looks good, but we can’t get to the one really bright mode – Native.

But:

Turn Brilliant Color to OFF, and strangely, now 3D drops into the Native Color Temp mode, and brightness goes up.

Now that I’m aware of these idiosyncrasies, I’ll take another look, against the Epson to see which one rules in terms of brightness.  It’s quite possible I was in their “3D best”, rather than 3D brightest.  I don’t think so, but, I’ll get back to you.  Real soon!

BenQ W7000 Projector - Image from X-Men FC

We’re not going to try that with this engineering sample, but we will give 3D gaming a spin when the production version shows up.  Meantime I’ve dropped in the PS3′s hot new game UnChartered: Drakes Deception.  I even tried playing it for a few minutes.  The 3D looks pretty good (says the non-gamer), but, in this case, the game is 720p.  With all this screen surface, I sure would prefer a game in 1080.  Pete or Scott will ultmately get a full production unit to test for lag, and for their gaming expertise.

Uh-oh, family obligations.  OK, I’m out of here!  I’m going to stop back tomorrow or after Santa leaves, and drop in a few images for you.  One last time – happy holidays! -art

PS.  Was watching a replay of the old Uconn vs. Oklahoma BCS Tostidos Bowl in 3D on ESPN 3D, few a few minutes.  Turning off BC, really made a difference.

On a related note, ESPN 3D is coming over in 1080i/60.  Their 3D implementation (DirecTV + ESPN 3D), definitely isn’t a sharp as a 2D 1080p signal, no doubt about that.   I had thought that ESPN 3D was 720p (will check), in which case DirecTV may be converting it to 1080i.

A couple of folks posted comments to this blog.  I had asked to wait until RonJ’s was up.  OK, bottom line, a couple of you, that I suggested post your comments on Ron’s blog, instead reposted on this one, but addressed to Ron.  Ron has no access to my blog, other than as a reader.  Please (Peter, and one other) repost on to Ron’s blog, at the address above.

Or if you prefer to jump to his blog’s homepage:  http://www.projectorreviews.com/projector-technical-blog/

Hi everyone,

It’s time for me to introduce another new blogger on our site.  Welcome Ron Jones, below he’s provided a brief introduction to himself, and tomorrow I’ll be posting his first serious blog on the technical side of projectors and related home theater.

I’ve asked him to write a short intro, for me to post here.  After that, I want to tell you a bit about what we’re up to, blog wise, and why Ron’s starting to blog for us.   So, here’s Ron:

Greetings all:

My name is Ron Jones and I am very pleased to have been invited by Art to contribute to Projector Reviews with a new blog focused on home theater video technology with an emphasis on new technologies, such as 3D, and associated issues/considerations.  My background is as an Electrical Engineer (MSEE) with 30+ years professional experience and as a home theater owner/enthusiast for 35+ years.  My home theaters have evolved through several generations of CRT front projectors to current micro-display digital projection technology.   I plan to start off the new blog with discussions on the transition to a 3D capable home theater and to the technologies involved. I hope to give readers an understanding of the unique factors, issues and limitations that need to be considered for creating a 3D enabled home theater.

And there you have it.  Ron’s very focused on 3D at the moment, I’ve already read a draft of the blog that will post tomorrow, which is definitely 3D.  To clarify, though, Ron will be taking on a wide range of topics, of which 3D is but one.  I expect, though, that 3D will dominate his first month of blogs.

Most of you know we  another new blog just a couple months ago, which looks at projectors for gaming, and other games related aspects.  I’ve got a plan, it seems, and that’s to grow a small network of bloggers to blog on related topics, and get some critical mass, as I can only do so many reviews, write so many blogs, and answer comments.  As a result, I’m (working on building up a select group of blogs and bloggers tied together primarily by home theater, and especially projector related.  This could mean as many as 6 new blogs this year, and probably that many next year.

I asked Ron Jones to blog for us, as he has the skills and background to take on some highly technical issues.   You all know me, I’m more of the subjective guy, techie at heart, but am more concerned about the bottom line – the end result, than the actual technical reasons.

Enter Ron, who in the past, has been one of the more active folks in terms of commenting on my blog.  One thing I admire, is that when he sinks his teeth into a topic, he seems impressively thorough at examining it.   Ron, like me, happens to be very into 3D, but he’s a detail guy.  I’ve been learning 3D as fast as I can for two years now, but Ron has consistantly managed to provide me helpful information, and he’s corrected me, or provided more accurate explanations than mine, a number of times, which you can find on old blogs of mine.  I recall in particular his understanding of polarization issues as it concerns screens for 3D.  Until I met Ron (online), my assumption was that if you take two “non-3D” screens, such as the Stewart Studiotek 130, and the Carada Brilliant white.  Very similar doing 2D, similar gain, etc., they would likely behave fairly similarly.  Ron pointed out, and explained why, that one of those screens could end up producing an image easily twice as bright as the other, with 3D content, because they are very different in terms of polarization retention.  I learned, readers learned.

Ron’s been active at providing good additional info, occasionally correcting me, for quite some time, and I simply felt that giving him his own blog, letting him answer your comments, would be a real plus for the overall worth of www.projectorreviews.com.

Point is, he’s into it, and has good stuff to share.  So, again, welcome Ron!

Remember, his first real blog – technical, will be posted here tomorrow, BUT, that same blog will appear on his own blog sometime this weekend.  As soon as he’s up and running with it on his blog, I’ll pull down the version on my blog, and replace it with a link to his new blog (you will also be able to find a link on our homepage in the BLOGS section (left-center column).

Over the next few months we’re going to be expanding our social networking options.  So far, we’ve been pretty minimal, so look for lots of ways to pass on the word about our site and blogs to your friends.

One last thing – we’re going to launch still another new blog – next week, if all goes well.  That one will be a second one relating to the gaming world and projectors.  More info in my next introduction, probably right after the 4th.

Hang in there, and enjoy the Fourth of July weekend (US), everyone else, hey, just enjoy!   -art

OK I”m back a week now from the NAB show in Las Vegas, where I did get some face time with JVC.   I’d love to say that I got all the answers, but at least I learned some things. though nothing shocking or surprising.  At least you get to hear some of JVC’s “side” of the story.

First, let’s start with the brightness ratings of the projectors… compared to last year’s and older.

JVC did reiterate what we all pretty much knew.  This year they decided to rate their projectors the way the bulk of the industry does, which is to measure how bright the projector is capable of, instead of how bright it is at an ideal D65.   Of course, very few projectors under $10,000 were doing it JVC’s way – of D65 measurements.

JVC believes that, despite record sales and backorders on their home theater projectors, that the low claimed numbers were hurting them business wise.  That is certainly understandable, as we all would likely  agree.  I was a dealer long enough to know that one would have to explain to all but the enthusiasts, why a more expensive projector might claim half the brightness, but still be brighter for movie viewing. (ie.  My JVC RS20, measured only about 60% of that of an Epson 8500UB back then, but my JVC  was at D65, vs. the Epson in a mode that was a bit ugly but OK for sports, wth a color temp around 9000K, and too strong on greens as well.  But the Epson only put out about 500 lumens at D65 compared to my JVC’s over 700 lumens.  That, BTW is why I always said, that the Epson couldn’t handle my 128″ Firehawk screen, because it couldn’t fill it with movie quality color, even if it could do a brighter football game.

So, ultimately the change in ratings, I would call a marketing decision.  If I had to second guess them, for the first year – the transition year, I might have boldly touted both – an 8500K (or brightest mode), and a 6500K measurement.

The place where JVC gets into trouble, of course, lies with us enthusiasts, and with owners of older JVC projectors, looking to move up.  I initially missed the 8500K reference, and apparently so did many others.   That is, we all assumed that JVC would still be rating  at D65.   I certainly praised JVC for a big anticipated jump in brightness in my blogs right after CEDIA.  It wasn’t until later, that I noticed the non D65 rating for the first time  (probably thanks to a comment by one of you guys).

We older JVC owners and serious enthusiasts who have been big JVC fans (even those who have not yet afforded one), have been disappointed, but, we, or at least I, share some of the hit.   Had I noticed 8500K at first… My early blogs would no doubt have been more like:  ”well most projectors are a lot brighter up there close to where most projectors native lamp temp is, so we can only hope that some of that filters down to D65.”    Had I noticed, I might have still expected a 20-30% brightness increase though, not a drop.

So, that brings us to the color profile issue, and tell you the truth – I’ve got nothing to add there.  I never got to the question of why the RS40 is brighter…  That’s my bad…

JVC did tell me something though I want to share, because it explains something many of us have been conjecturing about:   Is the reason why there are no other reviews (except my partial) in the US.     OK we  pretty much realize now, that  I was the first  person to get a projector for review (in the US) from JVC.    I learned that the unit I had, was not only the only one they had for reviewers, but it was also an early one, and was needed at all the trade shows JVC attends, as well as being toured around to dealers and to commercial clients (remember it’s the Pro series – they market them to production facilities, etc.  Apparently they have 3 total (my guess) RS50 and RS60s for all that visibility.

I was told that mine was the oldest of those, and when they had them setup, as usual at a recent show, that mine did measure in about 50 lumens less than the newer ones.  That is no surprise.  I knew that mine was an early RS60 even though it didn’t land until early Feb.  They point out that they are always improving the process, and that tends to be particularly true with manufacturers with a (new) first generation engine, like this years RS40, 50, and 60.  By comparison, the HD250Pro looks to be similar to last year’s RS15.

There is some hope. JVC did say they would try to get me another projector so I can at least finish what I started.  That would probably be at least a few weeks, and they could not promise.   I said I’d take an RS50 or RS60.  I am hopeful, but not giving odds.  When I get one, I plan to fully investigate the color profile Off options, and measure them, and see how good or bad they look on 3D (and 2D).

I’m still not willing to get into the whole color profile issue from a performance standpoint with the RS50 and RS60, simply because while we know there are a few hundred extra lumens available there, I can’t talk quality of picture, etc. because I still have not seen the projector run with the color profiles off.

JVC does say that with the color profiles off, these projectors do get very close to the 1300 lumens.  I know we’ve been hearing a bit lower, but the forums have listed measurements over 1000 lumens, with the lens set in various positions.  JVC seems confident that the projectors – by normal Industry standards (ANSI lumens – no particular color temp) definitely approaches 1300 lumens.  Well, in general, we find most projectors don’t reach their claimed brightness, but get within 5-25% of claim.  If the JVC’s get, say 1100 lumens that would be down about 15% from claim, and very typical.   That doesn’t really cheer up those of us who had anticipated 1300 lumens (give or take) at D65, but, if the color profile off options aren’t too ugly, or can be improved a bit, then the end result could even be that this projector can find more lumens for 3D and look as good or close, to the Sony VPL-VW90ES which mustered up about 750 lumens, with reasonably good color for 3D.

BTW, I am more and more coming to the belief that a dual screen solution is what we all need to deal with the brightness of these 3D projectors.  It’s definitely helping here, with the 3D but I also want the best possible screen for most of my viewing – 2D, and that’s not going to be a 3D screen, nor a really high gain screen.

Any feedback from you RS50 and RS60 owners, about how the color profile Off looks when tackling 3D, is appreciated.  How good or bad is it.  Are skin tones reasonable?  If I can’t lay my hands on another one soon, I can at least have you guys with projectors comment, so others can read it.  If you have owned a projector previously, how does the profiles off, compare with your last projector’s.   I would have liked to have a chance to play with the settings at NAB, but there were always people coming through their mini-theater area.  Too bad.

Also, anyone in So Cal, with an HD250Pro they are willing to part with for a week, I can loan my RS20… But seriously, I expect I’ll find a dealer I can work with.

There isn’t a whole lot more to report for now.  The RS50 and RS60′s seem to be what you and I have seen.  In 2D with the usual color profiles it’s still not as bright as last year’s projectors.  The promise of 1300 D65 lumens is something JVC never made, but many of us assumed.  We will all have to judge these JVC projectors, for what they are, I don’t expect any real changes at this time, just the usual minor refinements.  Sorry I have nothing more concrete than that.

-art

My name is Pete Connolly and I’m very excited to start helping out here at Projector Reviews.  I spend a lot of time in front of the big screen with a controller in my hand and hope to share some of my thoughts and experiences on pairing video games with home theater projectors.  I will be doing this by adding a video game section to future reviews, as well as contributing here in a gaming focused blog.

So…where to begin?

Update 4/25/2011:  Pete’s Games and Game Projector Blog is now live.  His opening article “The Starting Bit”, which appeared here, has been moved there.  Please join him there!  The short name for his blog, is Bitbound – A Gamer’s Blog.  -art

I would like to tell you about a new blog launching on our site in the next few days.  More importantly, t0  tell you we’ve got an expert to blog on the topic of gaming and projectors.

Gaming!  As we all know, one popular aspect of owning a projector at home is that you can not only watch movies, sports, TV, but also play games.  Games and gamers, come in all types and complexity.  In almost all cases, game playing is a much better experience thanks to the greater immersion, when filling say, a 100″ diagonal image, instead of some  37″ LCDTV or a portable game machine.  Of course, if you are mobile, pico projectors for your gaming?

I’ve always wanted to answer the gamers who regularly email me, comment on blogs, etc., with good advice regarding gaming and what to look for in a projector, for the best gaming experience.  One problem only:   I am not a gamer.  Oh, I have a Wii, and a PS3 (and an XBox) but they don’t get much use.  Oh, Carbon Canyon auto racing a few hours every couple of months  (I play Risk occasionally online too, but that’s low def, simple), and on occasion, Wii sports.   Playing Wii, though, on my screen – is something!  But I’m strictly entry level as a gamer.

So I went out, and found one.  Well, possibly two, but that’s a story for a later blog.

Meet Pete.  Mostly I’ll let him tell you his story, but Peter is one serious gamer, and he owns a projector.  He tells me he used to compete on the national level until he had to focus on his college education.  He may be more into gaming than me, but we do have one thing in common, it seems:  We Are – Penn State!

So, this is how things will happen.

I’m going to post his first blog on my blog, here, in the next hour or so.

Better news still.  Pete will also be reviewing certain projectors strictly for their gaming ability.  In most cases, that will mean a real section on gaming added to a number of home theater projector reviews, as well as a new breed of lower cost gaming projector.  I hope Pete to have his first review of a projector from the gamer’s perspective done in May.  He currently owns an Epson home theater projector (fyi).   Finally, He also plans to blog about specific games.  Pete thinks too many of us don’t get to be aware of some great games out there, among the less commercial game titles.

Pete’s blog is now open for business (as of 4-25-11), check it out:  Bitbound – A Gamer’s Blog

And one more item.  I’ve got two other gamers I’ve also been speaking with.  We could add even more.

So, I’m sure many of you have at least tried some sort of game on your home theater projector, or are interested in some gaming when you get your first projector.  All of you, welcome Pete on board!

OK, it won’t be long now.  Gamers are Welcome!  Let Projectors Rule Your World!  -art

I’ve been a goodly number of emails or comments asking me when the big annual report for home theater projectors will come out, along with our Best In Class Awards.

The short version is, the 2011 1080p Home Theater Projector Comparison Report (it’s most formal name), will be out before the end of May.

Here’s the story behind that:

First it’s been a slow year for new home theater projectors.  Several companies didn’t introduce anything new last fall at CEDIA, of particular significance, Panasonic, BenQ, and Optoma (BenQ and Optoma had lower res, but no 1080p).  Many others only refreshed models with updated firmware, and minor improvements.  The Epson 8700ub, 8350, the Mits HC4000, the Sanyo Z4000, etc. are good examples.  They are all improved, but nothing earthshaking.  They have been seriously delayed.

Oh, there are some pretty cool new products.  Sharp expanded and improved their previously reviewed Z15000 into the 3D XV-Z17000.  JVC’s new models are mostly brand new product, Mitsubishi rolled out their HC6800, etc.  Those following JVC, know that there have been issues, and review units extremely difficult to find.  And so it goes.  With less comparative to write about, and with the hope of still seeing 2-4 important projectors in May, it seemed logical.

FYI, I’m also trying to land a Runco LS-HB (specs) projector. We’ve reviewed two of their LifeStyle projectors including the Runco LS-10d, their lowest cost 1080p 3 chip DLP.  The LS-HB, however, is relatively affordable, with a price point well under $10K.  The HB stands for High Brightness.  This projector, however is a single chip DLP, explaining the relatively low price.   It should prove to be much brighter than even the LS10d, and definitely the brightest true home theater projector in the upcoming report, if it makes it.  That Runco LS-HB, could prove to be the dream machine for those favoring sports and HDTV viewing over movie watching, thanks to some serious light output for a home projector.

Don’t despair, the head to head action is just between updates of last year’s projectors so that the big 2010 Home Theater Report’s competitive info hasn’t really changed much more than mentally adjusting the model number, checking for what improvements we spotted, and making your decisions using that report, and the current reviews…

That’s the skinny.   BTW, still no word back re the most asked questions, which are about the new JVC’s and if I’ll be getting another RS50 (specs) or RS60 (click for review) in to see about the brightness issue, or any others to review.  I am expecting to see JVC folks at NAB on Monday or Tuesday of next week.  I truly hope I have something to report.   BTW I fully intend to take  my light meter, on the outside chance that they have them setup, AND they let me measure brightness.

One more item:  For the next two – three weeks, don’t expect any brand new home theater projector reviews to be published.  All the new reviews will be for my Education report.

The home projector reviews will resume after that report.   If, however, an RS60 or RS50 finds its way here, I will take a break to finish the RS60 review by remeasuring and updating.  That’s it for now.  -art

It’s not easy to talk the high end home theater projector manufacturers to provide us with review projectors, but we did it, we have here Runco’s new 1080p LS10 projector – or by its more formal name, the LifeStyle 10 by Runco.  The Runco LS10 (specifications) is the least expensive of Runco’s 1080p 3 chip DLP, home theater projectors.  Actually Runco sent me an LS10d, which means it shares the same outboard processor as many of the more expensive Runco projectors. There is also the less expensive LS10i, which has all the processing internal to the projector.

First things first, Runco is just starting to ship this LS10 projector.  The two versions play out like this, price wise:  The LS10i stickers for $21,995.  For those with the extra bucks, and wanting the flexibility advantages of an outboard processor, this LS10d, will set them back $26,995.

Mike’s already taken a close look at the LS10d, and run all the numbers.  I don’t want to get into that now, as this is going to be a brief blog, but the basics are – at 6500K, the projector is cranking out a dazzling 1465 lumens plus – more lumens than most projectors can produce in their brightest, ugliest modes (often with color temps of 9000K to 11,500K).  That’s actually a handful more lumens than Runco’s D65 claim of 1440!  (Go Runco!)

The LS10 gets close to 2000 lumens at it’s brightest, although it falls short of it’s maximum of 2100.  We measured just over 1800, which is with a color temp up around 9300K, so not the most desirable image.  Still, when you desperately need maximum lumens, you’ll compromise a bit.

The projector isn’t exceptionally quiet, rather, running with lamp on standard, it’s probably 30 db, or a touch less.  Of course one figures a brighter projector ends up in a bigger room, more often than not, where you are likely to be sitting a little further from the projector.

Black levels are pretty impressive, just like with the LS7.  The dynamic iris action is nicely smooth, a little slow, and generally smooth compared to most.  Definitely one of the better dynamic iris actions out there. This projector is more like the Epson UB, in blacks than, say a JVC RS25, since the Epson and the Runco both use dynamic irises.  The point being blacks really are very good.

I haven’t studied shadow detail at all, but nothing noticed as a problem, either.

And that saves the best for last – color.  Skin tones are gorgeous.  And the picture is bright and dynamic on my 100″ screen.  I mean we’re talking LCDTV type of bright.  I had one of the rear window’s shutters open to let in some sun, and had some lights on, and that only really affected pretty dark stuff.   I love the LS10d’s lumens combined with great color and especially natural skin tones.  I hope my photography is able approximate capturing what I’m seeing.

If you ask me if I prefer this LS10 (i or d) over, say a JVC DLA-RS35 or RS60, which will have blacker blacks than the Runco, the answer is – I’ll take the Runco.   As I often say, after a certain point, black level improvements take a back seat to other improvements.

Also of note.  This projector doesn’t seem to like processing 24fps content.  At any rate, the processor was struggling.  I ended up instructing my PS3 not to output 24fps.  Mike said there was another report online as well, and that Runco is aware of the issue (remember – brand new model).  Apparently it will require some minor firmware fix to the outboard processors.

The Runco LS10i is not affected with the 24fps issue, and it sounds like the LS10d won’t have to deal with it either in a few more weeks. I’m not sure that the first consumer units have shipped yet. This one is a Sample.

That’s about it.  Other than to say that the outboard processor, the Runco DHD controller, as you would expect has a wealth of inputs and connections. There are 4 HDMI inputs, an HDMI output to the projector, and a second audio only hdmi output for your audio system.  The rest of the connectivity is also significant, but we’ll save that f Oddessy  or the full review.

I could learn to live with this Runco projector!   Anyone who can convince Runco to give this one to me – no strings attached, can have my RS20…  (We can all dream.)  The big problem here is having too much fun watching it. I have 2001 A Space Odyssey on right now.  The space scenes are all the more striking for having lots of lumens behind them, on this modest 100″ diagonal 16:9 screen.  (I sure hope my new Studiotek 130 arrives and is mounted before I have to say goodbye to this projector. -art

PS.  Give me about 8 days from this blog until the full review goes live.  I’ll try for sooner, but need to finish off some other stuff, including the little Neo-i system with built in pico projector, and a short review of the new Viewsonic camcorder with built in pico projector.  (Yep, some fun toys!)  Later! -a