Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector: Summary 2 Posted on November 19, 2013 By Art Feierman 1. Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector – Review - Overview: Pro Cinema 4030 - The Pro Cinema 4030 Earns Hot Product Award - Pro Cinema 4030 Highlights2. Pro Cinema 4030 Special Features - Super-Resolution - Dynamic Iris and Contrast - Picture In Picture - HDMI-Link3. Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector – Special Features 2 - Black and White Cinema Mode - Full Color Management System - 3D and 3D Glasses - Epson Panel Alignment - Lamp Life4. Pro Cinema 4030 Projector – Hardware Tour - Appearance - Control Panel - Lens Controls - Lens Throw - Lens Shift - Pro Cinema 4030 - Overall Placement Flexibility5. Pro Cinema 4030 Hardware Tour 2 - Inputs and Outputs - Pro Cinema 4030 Menus - Lamp Door - Remote Control6. Pro Cinema 4030 Projector – Image Quality - Pro Cinema 4030 - Out of the Box Picture Quality - Pro Cinema 4030 Skin Tones - 4030 Black Level and Shadow Detail - Black Level Performance - Projectors Side by Side7. Pro Cinema 4030 – Image Quality 2 - Black Level Performance - Black Levels: Pro Cinema 4030 vs. Competition - Shadow Detail - Overall Picture Quality - HDTV and Sports8. Pro Cinema 4030 Projector Performance - Pro Cinema 4030 Brightness in Different Image Preset modes - Full Power vs. Eco Mode - Affect of Zoom Lens position on Brightness - Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector - Calibrated - Brightest Mode - Quick-Cal For better Viewing Experience - Quick-Cal of Dynamic Mode: Measurements9. Pro Cinema 4030 Projector Performance 2 - Pre Calibration Color Temp: Natural Mode - Pro Cinema 4030 Color Temperature Post Calibration - Pro Cinema 4030 - 3D Brightness10. Pro Cinema 4030 Performance 3 - Epson PC4030 Projector - Sharpness - Bottom Line Sharpness11. Pro Cinema 4030 Performance 4 - Light Leakage - Image Noise - Audible Noise12. Pro Cinema 4030 – Warranty and Support - Epson Provides Three Years of Warranty and Replacement Program13. Pro Cinema 4030 Calibration - General Calibration Settings - Before After Color Temperature Comparison - Comments about the Calibration - Additional Calibration Information for our members14. Epson Pro Cinema 4030 – Advanced Calibration Information - Color Management Settings (CMS) - Notes - Calibration Charts (Before and After)15. Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector: Competitors - Epson Pro Cinema 4030 vs. Panasonic PT-AE8000U - Pro Cinema 4030 vs. Home Cinema 5020UB - Pro Cinema 4030 vs Pro Cinema 603016. Pro Cinema 4030 Projector – Summary - Let's Talk Picture Quality - Fitting in Your Room17. Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector: Summary 2 - 3D Performance - Pro Cinema 4030 - Great Warranty and Support - Taking On The Competition 18. Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector: The Bottom Line - A Few Final Thoughts19. Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector Full Specifications EPSON PRO CINEMA 4030 PROJECTOR REVIEW SUMMARY 2 3D Performance As discussed elsewhere in the review, the 3D is very good. It’s relatively free of projector induced crosstalk. The images above, I should note, are, of course 2D images, but from movies available in 3D, including a recent Spiderman, and The Hobbit. Equally important to the quality of the 3D picture, is the brightness. Having that nice relatively bright 3D Dynamic mode gives 3D viewing some respectable color, but with the brightness you need to enjoy a long movie in 3D on a 100″ diagonal screen without feeling that the picture is too dim to watch. In a good room (with almost no ambient light) you can push out larger in terms of screen size, but by about 120″ diagonal many of us start feeling like the 3D is definitely underpowered. At least this Epson has a goodly amount of lumens in 3D to start, which is more than most of the competition can claim. Pro Cinema 4030 - Great Warranty and SupportThis is discussed on the Warranty page, but the short version is you just can’t beat this warranty, at least not with any under $10,000 home projector I can think of. Not only do you get three years of warranty coverage, but warranty issues are solved by Epson simply replacing your projector within 2 business days, at no cost to you, not even shipping. And that replacement program is good for all three years. Epson basically offers the best warranty on home projectors. While some Epson projectors only have two years coverage, the Pro Cinema projectors like the 4030 all come with three years! Taking On The Competition I should point out to those of you who skip around the review, that there is a lot more information about how the 4030 compares with projectors from other manufacturers on our Competitors page in this review. Note please: The small images you see here do get truncated by this slideshow player. When you click to enlarge you will see the full side by side comparison images. With both pair, the Pro Cinema 4030 is on the left. So, what is the serious competition? It’s a short list of projectors that can even try to slug it out with the Pro Cinema 4030, without spending more: That list includes the BenQ W7000, the Panasonic PT-AE8000U, The Sharp XV-Z30000, the Acer H9500BD, and at least one very old Optoma that won’t go away. One could even consider this projector competition for the Sony VPL-HW55 and the JVC DLA-X35 both being far more expensive. There are plenty of notably less expensive projectors that could also be considered, including the Optoma HD25-LV, the BenQ W1070 and W1500, etc., but none of those really can be serious competition, due to issues such as brightness, image noise (HD25-LV), and most certainly; black level performance. 4030 vs. Epson UB Projectors Pro Cinema 4030 (left) vs. last year's 5020UB Generally its hard to tell these two apart. The more expensive 5020UB projector does slightly better blacks, but the exposures are different enough that you can't tell here. Is the Pro Cinema 6030UB worth an extra $1000? Good question. Are the slightly better black levels with the more expensive UB, worth it? Well, you also get lots of extra features, like CFI. Your budget likely will decide the answer. 1. Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector – Review - Overview: Pro Cinema 4030 - The Pro Cinema 4030 Earns Hot Product Award - Pro Cinema 4030 Highlights2. Pro Cinema 4030 Special Features - Super-Resolution - Dynamic Iris and Contrast - Picture In Picture - HDMI-Link3. Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector – Special Features 2 - Black and White Cinema Mode - Full Color Management System - 3D and 3D Glasses - Epson Panel Alignment - Lamp Life4. Pro Cinema 4030 Projector – Hardware Tour - Appearance - Control Panel - Lens Controls - Lens Throw - Lens Shift - Pro Cinema 4030 - Overall Placement Flexibility5. Pro Cinema 4030 Hardware Tour 2 - Inputs and Outputs - Pro Cinema 4030 Menus - Lamp Door - Remote Control6. Pro Cinema 4030 Projector – Image Quality - Pro Cinema 4030 - Out of the Box Picture Quality - Pro Cinema 4030 Skin Tones - 4030 Black Level and Shadow Detail - Black Level Performance - Projectors Side by Side7. Pro Cinema 4030 – Image Quality 2 - Black Level Performance - Black Levels: Pro Cinema 4030 vs. Competition - Shadow Detail - Overall Picture Quality - HDTV and Sports8. Pro Cinema 4030 Projector Performance - Pro Cinema 4030 Brightness in Different Image Preset modes - Full Power vs. Eco Mode - Affect of Zoom Lens position on Brightness - Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector - Calibrated - Brightest Mode - Quick-Cal For better Viewing Experience - Quick-Cal of Dynamic Mode: Measurements9. Pro Cinema 4030 Projector Performance 2 - Pre Calibration Color Temp: Natural Mode - Pro Cinema 4030 Color Temperature Post Calibration - Pro Cinema 4030 - 3D Brightness10. Pro Cinema 4030 Performance 3 - Epson PC4030 Projector - Sharpness - Bottom Line Sharpness11. Pro Cinema 4030 Performance 4 - Light Leakage - Image Noise - Audible Noise12. Pro Cinema 4030 – Warranty and Support - Epson Provides Three Years of Warranty and Replacement Program13. Pro Cinema 4030 Calibration - General Calibration Settings - Before After Color Temperature Comparison - Comments about the Calibration - Additional Calibration Information for our members14. Epson Pro Cinema 4030 – Advanced Calibration Information - Color Management Settings (CMS) - Notes - Calibration Charts (Before and After)15. Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector: Competitors - Epson Pro Cinema 4030 vs. Panasonic PT-AE8000U - Pro Cinema 4030 vs. Home Cinema 5020UB - Pro Cinema 4030 vs Pro Cinema 603016. Pro Cinema 4030 Projector – Summary - Let's Talk Picture Quality - Fitting in Your Room17. Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector: Summary 2 - 3D Performance - Pro Cinema 4030 - Great Warranty and Support - Taking On The Competition 18. Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector: The Bottom Line - A Few Final Thoughts19. Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector Full Specifications Pro Cinema 4030 Projector – Summary Epson Pro Cinema 4030 Projector: The Bottom Line