Editor's Comments: Here at Projector Reviews we are not overly concerned with measuring the absolute maximum brightness a projector is capable of. With almost all projectors, you can "tweak" some extra brightness - lumens - of them at the expense of picture quality. As a result, we focus not on finding the maximum lumens (there are always some hiding under the hood). For example: In discussing with Mike, he noted that finding the sweet spot in terms of lens shift, will provide more than 100 extra lumens than the normal, on the tabletop setup Mike uses for measuring projectors. Dynamic features often also have an affect, as do contrast settings...
As a result, we find that most projectors we review, measure in 10% to 20% below claim, as does this PT-DZ770UL. (Only rarely do we measure a projector that hit's its claim.) This is more due to our being conservative, than any "flaw" with the projectors we measure. That said, Mike's almost 6000 lumens, is about what we would expect from such a projector. Remember, it's the factory engineers who are expected to deliver the highest possible measurements to the marketing folks. It's a competitive world out there.
For those curious about how various settings can affect brightness Mike recently did go lumen hunting (for the max) in his review of the Sony VPL-FH30 (not a direct competitor - single lamp...), and mentions how lens shift and even gamma can affect brightness. Check out that review if you care to. -art
Other modes cause a significant drop in lumen output. Selecting Graphics or Standard mode reduces the output to 4161, still very bright and a better balanced option for photo or video presentations. The other modes were all quite close in output, but presented another large drop. Cinema and DICOM Sim modes clocked in at 3078 lumens, while Natural and Rec. 709 (the best color balanced mode) modes were 3023 and 2996 lumens respectively. Using the shorter throw, ET-DLE150 lens, the maximum output dropped from 5748 lumens to 5488 lumens. Turning off either of the two lamps results in 33% drop in output.
Dropping the lamp into the Eco brightness mode resulted in a 28.7% drop in lumen output. With Dynamic mode, this still results in 3989 lumens, which is likely sufficient for a majority of applications.
Panasonic PT-DZ770UL Projector - Audible Noise
Panasonic does not provide decibel levels for the PT-DZ770UL, but then the intended large-venue use of such a projector means that noise is unlikely to be a concern. With two lamps to cool, the projector moves a lot of air and so its fan noise is higher than lower output projectors. However, it does have a liquid cooling system for the DLP chip, which cuts down on the internal cooling needed. If I were to guess, I would say that it is in the mid 30s in normal dual lamp mode and just over 30 dB in Eco lamp mode. Whatever the actual level is, suffice it to say that its quiet enough that it’s unlikely to be an issue in almost any presenting environment you’d find this projector.
Even when used in a smaller venue with the projector on a movable cart, it’s unlikely that the noise level would be objectionable. It’s easily quiet enough in Standard mode for comfortable video or movie viewing. Bottom line is that for a projector this bright that is intended to be permanently installed away from viewers, the noise level is not an issue.
