Compare Projectors - JVC DLA-RS10 vs. RS20

Posted on November 13, 2013 by Art Feierman

JVC DLA-RS20 vs JVC DLA-RS10

Battle of the Titans? Well, the DLA-RS20 won our Best in Class Award, and the DLA-RS10 had to settle for second best. That means a lot of people are going to have to decide between excellent, and better still. It's where you have to draw the line in the sand. They're very similar, so it's "I can spend $$$ for RS10 and for $$$$ I can have an even better version." I guess that's about the same as deciding on which class of Mercedes, C class, E class, etc.

JVC RS20 vs JVC RS10 Projector Overview

Comparing two similar projectors from the same manufacturer is pretty easy. What we have here is a pretty great projector, the JVC DLA-RS10, and one that's even better - the DLA-RS20. Please note, these are sold by JVC's Pro division. Virtually identical versions are available from JVC's Consumer division. It plays out this way:

The JVC DLA-RS20 projector's equivalent model is the HD750. The DLA-RS10's almost identical twin, is the HD350. Pricing is pretty much identical between the Pro and Consumer versions. Perhaps the most siginficant difference, however, is that the HD350 and HD750 are black with silver trim, and the RS10 and RS20 instead have a bit classier gold trim.

The JVC RS20 simply stated, has the best black level performance of any projector I have ever worked with, at any price. A year ago, I should note, I said the same thing about the RS20's predecessor, the RS2. It should be noted, that the RS10 pretty much is the next best at black levels, behind those two.

Both projectors are rather premium priced, with the JVC RS10 selling for $4995, and the RS20 at $7495. Considering how good the RS10 is, many folks will be hard pressed to spend the extra for the RS20. On the other hand, these are projectors for folks who want a truly superb viewing experience, so many will feel that, "If I'm going to spend for the RS10, I might as well dig deep, and go for the RS20." (That certainly was my personal logic, in recently buying an RS20 for my main theater).

Both projectors look the same, both run on 3 LCoS chips (JVC calls them D-iLA), both have excellent placement flexibility, and best of all, they projector outstanding images.

This page is intended to help you decide which one is right for you!

Physical Attributes

The two projectors are virtually indentical, from this standpoint. Both have 2:1 zoom lenses and extensive lens shift, for maximum placement flexibility. The amount of lens shift isn't as great as a few other projectors, but the range is still excellent. The projectors can be placed (for a 100 inch diagonal screen) as high as 15 inches above the top of your screen surface, or as low as 15 inches below the bottom of your screen surface, or anywhere in between.

Focus, zoom, and lens shift are all motorized. The lens is mounted slightly off center, and recessed, and as a nice touch, a motorized door closes in front of the lens, when the projector is turned off. That will keep dust and spiderwebs off of the lens.

Physically, both projectors are fairly large, deeper, than wide, and are very attractive looking - with a shiny piano black finish, and just enough gold trim (around the lens, and a line from front to back on the top and one on each side), to have a very classy look. No sharp edges, the DLA-RS10 and DLA-RS20 have clean lines. The wife won't have any aesthetic issues with these lookers!

The control panels are located on the top, and the cable connection area - inputs and outputs are located along the right side (looking at the projector from the front). Many have mixed feelings about placing cable connections on the side, but in my room, they are on the side away from the entrance to the theater, so they couldn't be better placed. There are two HDMI 1.3 inputs on both models.

The only major difference between these two is the lack of an analog computer input on the less expensive JVC RS10. That might be an issue for a few folks. In my setup, I like to use my laptop with my RS20, and it's no problem, as my MacBook Pro has an HDMI output. For those having computers with the typical analog monitor out, there are some work-arounds, so don't despair. In most cases an analog computer output can be converted to HDMI, or component video, with the right external devices.

Both have a single component video input, and also a 12 volt screen trigger.

In summary: Excellent placement flexibility, motorized everything, excellent physical appearance. The only limitation between the two models is that lack of a dedicated analog computer input on the JVC DLA-RS10.