Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector – Performance Posted on September 1, 2009 By Art Feierman 1. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector Review - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector Review - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector Overview2. Mitsubishi HC3800 Special Features - HC3800 Lamp Life - Zoom Lens3. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector – Physical Tour - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector - Appearance - HC3800 Control Panel - Input/Output - HC3800 Menus4. Mitsubishi HC3800 Remote Control5. Mitsubishi HC3800 Lens Throw - Lens Shift - Anamorphic Lens6. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector – Image Quality - Mitsubishi HC3800 Out of the Box Picture Quality - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector - Flesh Tones7. Mitsubishi HC3800 Black Levels & Shadow Detail8. Mitsubishi HC3800 Black Levels & Shadow Detail9. Mitsubishi HC3800 Black Levels & Shadow Detail 210. Mitsubishi HC3800 Black Levels & Shadow Detail 311. Mitsubishi HC3800 Black Levels & Shadow Detail 412. Shadow Detail Performance13. Shadow Detail Performance 214. Shadow Detail Performance 315. Mitsubishi HC3800 – Overall Color & Picture Quality16. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector: Performance, HDTV and Sports - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector: Bottom Line on HDTV Sports17. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector – Performance - Mitsubishi HC3800 Brightness - Lumen Output for various Gamma modes at 100 IRE, color temp on Medium: - Lumen Output at various Color Temps at 100 IRE, Gamma on Auto - Pre-calibration18. Mitsubishi HC3800 Sharpness19. Mitsubishi HC3800 Sharpness 220. Mitsubishi HC3800: Bottom Line Sharpness - Light Leakage - Image Noise - Audible Noise21. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector Calibration and Settings - Mitsubishi HC3800 Color Temperature - Lumen Output at various Color Temps at 100 IRE, Gamma on Auto: - Mitsubishi HC3800 Basic Settings22. Mitsubishi HC3800 Post Calibration Grayscale - Engineering Sample - Production HC3800 Projector - RGB Settings - Brightest Modes23. Mitsubishi HC3800 – Projector Screens - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector Screen Recommendations24. Mitsubishi HC3800 – Competitors - HC3800 vs. Epson Home Cinema 8100 and Home Cinema 8500UB - Mitsubishi HC3800 vs. Mitsubishi HC5500, HC6800 - Mitsubishi HC3800 vs. Sanyo PLV-Z70025. Mitsubishi HC3800 vs. BenQ W6000 - Mitsubishi HC3800 vs. Sharp XV-Z15000 - HC3800 vs. Optoma HD2026. Mitsubishi HC3800 vs. BenQ W1000 - Mitsubishi HC3800 vs. Panasonic PT-AE300027. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector – Warranty28. Mitsubishi HC3800 – Review Summary - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector - The Bottom Line29. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector – The Bottom Line 2 - The Very Bottom Line on the HC3800 projector30. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector: Pros, Cons, and Typical Capabilities - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector: Pros - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector: Cons - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector: Typical Capabilities31. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector Specifications In this section we consider the brightness, sharpness, and image noise of the Mitsubishi HC3800 home theater projector. Also considered are the physical attributes of light leakage and audible noise. Mitsubishi HC3800 BrightnessKeep in mind, this review is based on the engineering sample that was provided by Mitsubishi. Color tables will likely change somewhat, and measurements will also therefore change, with final production units. Since the HC3800 does calibrate nicely, though, we felt that the results here, will be pretty indicative of a full production projector, even if the settings we report in the calibration section will be different. We will update all our setttings recommendations once we have received a projection projector. Here’s another projector that’s extremely bright in its best mode. The HC3800 manages about 950 lumens in it’s best mode (Cinema, Medium color temp, Brilliant Color on. That’s almost as bright as the more expensive BenQ W6000. When you need maximum lumens, the HC3800 doesn’t have many more in reserve, measuring maximum brightness of 1142 lumens, with gamma mode on Sports, and color temp on medium, but that’s still better than the average home theater projector (average is about 1000 lumens for “brightest” mode, and just under 500 lumens for “best” mode. Lumen Output for various Gamma modes at 100 IRE, color temp on Medium: Auto 948 @ 6611 Cinema 968 @ 6590, 726 @ 6238 w/BC off Video 953 @ 6617 Sports 1142 @ 6352, 880 @ 6154 w/BC off Lumen Output at various Color Temps at 100 IRE, Gamma on Auto Medium 948 @ 6611 High Brightness 1091 @ 6143, 1142 @ 6148 on Sports gamma Cool 655 @ 8942 Warm 843 @ 5342 As you can see from the numbers above, turning Brilliant Color off, drops the brightness about 25%. Since there are tons of lumens for movie viewing, many will take advantage of the quieter low lamp mode, which is plenty bright, and has an extremely long lamp life rating (5000 hours). Low lamp will drop the brightness of the projector by approximately 22%. Turning Brilliant Color off, and lamp to low, and the Mitsubishi HC3800 projector still manages 565 lumens! Click to Enlarge.So close Since the HC3800 projector has a 1.5:1 zoom lens, we measured the difference in brightness betwwen full wide angle, mid-point, and full-telephoto settings on the lens. Full wide angle (the projector filling the screen from its closest distance), increases brightness by a modest 7.5%. Full telephoto decreases brightness by 9.3% compared to the mid-point. Click Image to EnlargePre-calibration 30 IRE 6513K 50 IRE 6652K 80 IRE 6649K 100 IRE 6556K That’s pretty darn good, for before a calibration, and for that matter pretty good for after a calibration, too! The Calibration page will provide the settings we used. That includes basic settings as well as gain and offset. We will revise, with numbers from a production projector when available, if there is a noteworthy difference. 1. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector Review - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector Review - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector Overview2. Mitsubishi HC3800 Special Features - HC3800 Lamp Life - Zoom Lens3. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector – Physical Tour - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector - Appearance - HC3800 Control Panel - Input/Output - HC3800 Menus4. Mitsubishi HC3800 Remote Control5. Mitsubishi HC3800 Lens Throw - Lens Shift - Anamorphic Lens6. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector – Image Quality - Mitsubishi HC3800 Out of the Box Picture Quality - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector - Flesh Tones7. Mitsubishi HC3800 Black Levels & Shadow Detail8. Mitsubishi HC3800 Black Levels & Shadow Detail9. Mitsubishi HC3800 Black Levels & Shadow Detail 210. Mitsubishi HC3800 Black Levels & Shadow Detail 311. Mitsubishi HC3800 Black Levels & Shadow Detail 412. Shadow Detail Performance13. Shadow Detail Performance 214. Shadow Detail Performance 315. Mitsubishi HC3800 – Overall Color & Picture Quality16. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector: Performance, HDTV and Sports - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector: Bottom Line on HDTV Sports17. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector – Performance - Mitsubishi HC3800 Brightness - Lumen Output for various Gamma modes at 100 IRE, color temp on Medium: - Lumen Output at various Color Temps at 100 IRE, Gamma on Auto - Pre-calibration18. Mitsubishi HC3800 Sharpness19. Mitsubishi HC3800 Sharpness 220. Mitsubishi HC3800: Bottom Line Sharpness - Light Leakage - Image Noise - Audible Noise21. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector Calibration and Settings - Mitsubishi HC3800 Color Temperature - Lumen Output at various Color Temps at 100 IRE, Gamma on Auto: - Mitsubishi HC3800 Basic Settings22. Mitsubishi HC3800 Post Calibration Grayscale - Engineering Sample - Production HC3800 Projector - RGB Settings - Brightest Modes23. Mitsubishi HC3800 – Projector Screens - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector Screen Recommendations24. Mitsubishi HC3800 – Competitors - HC3800 vs. Epson Home Cinema 8100 and Home Cinema 8500UB - Mitsubishi HC3800 vs. Mitsubishi HC5500, HC6800 - Mitsubishi HC3800 vs. Sanyo PLV-Z70025. Mitsubishi HC3800 vs. BenQ W6000 - Mitsubishi HC3800 vs. Sharp XV-Z15000 - HC3800 vs. Optoma HD2026. Mitsubishi HC3800 vs. BenQ W1000 - Mitsubishi HC3800 vs. Panasonic PT-AE300027. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector – Warranty28. Mitsubishi HC3800 – Review Summary - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector - The Bottom Line29. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector – The Bottom Line 2 - The Very Bottom Line on the HC3800 projector30. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector: Pros, Cons, and Typical Capabilities - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector: Pros - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector: Cons - Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector: Typical Capabilities31. Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector Specifications Mitsubishi HC3800 Projector: Performance, HDTV and Sports Mitsubishi HC3800 Sharpness