Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Image Quality 2 Posted on July 16, 2013 By Art Feierman 1. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Home Theater Projector Review - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector Highlights - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector Overview2. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Physical Tour - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector - Appearance - HC7900DW Control Panel - HC7900DW Projector - Input/Output3. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Physical Tour 2 - HC7900DW Menus - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Remote - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Lens Throw - Mitsubishi HC7900 Lens Shift - Anamorphic Lens - Wide Screen4. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Image Quality - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Out of the Box Picture Quality - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector - Flesh Tones5. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Image Quality 2 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Black Levels & Shadow Detail - Black Levels Comparison - Shadow Detail Performance - Shadow Detail Comparison - Black Level and Shadow Detail Performance: HC7900 Projector - Bottom Line6. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Image Quality 3 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW - Overall Color & Picture Quality7. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Image Quality 4 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector: Performance, HDTV and Sports, including 3D - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector: Bottom Line on HDTV Sports, and also 3D HDTV content8. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Performance - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Brightness - Post Calibration: User "best" mode (placed in User AV Memory 1) = 701 lumens - HC7900DW Brightest Mode (that you would never want to watch) - HC7900DW Brightest "Watchable" mode Game (or Cinema), Brilliant Color on, Contrast at +10: 1112 lumens9. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Performance 2 - HC7900 in Eco-mode vs. Full power: - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Pre-Calibration Color temp, Cinema Mode10. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Performance 3 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Sharpness - Mitsubishi HC7900DW: Bottom Line Sharpness - Light Leakage - Image Noise - Audible Noise11. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector Calibration and Settings - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Color Temperature - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Basic Settings12. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector Calibration and Settings 2 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Post Calibration Grayscale: User Mode - HC7900DW RGB Settings13. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Advanced Calibration Information - Color Management Settings (CMS) - Notes - Calibration Charts (Before and After)14. Mitsubishi HC7900D – Projector Screen Guidance - Acer H9500BD Projector Screen Recommendations15. Mitsubishi HC7900DW – Competitors - Mitsubishi HC7900DW vs. Epson Pro Cinema 6020 UB and Home Cinema 5020 UB - Mitsubishi HC7900DW vs. Sony VPL-HW50ES16. Mitsubishi HC7900DW – Competitors 2 - HC7900DW vs. Sharp XV-Z30000 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW vs. Viewsonic Pro 9000 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW vs. PT-AE800017. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Warranty - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector - Warranty18. Mitsubishi HC7900DW – Review Summary - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector - The Bottom Line19. Mitsubishi HC7900DW – Review Summary 2 - HC7900DW Color and Overall Picture Quality - HC7900 DW Projector - Brightness for 2D viewing - HC7900 Projector - 3D Brightness20. Mitsubishi HC7900DW – Review Summary 3 - The Very Bottom Line on the HC7900DW projector21. Mitsubishi HC7900DW – Review Summary 4 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector: Pros and Cons - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector: Pros - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector: Cons22. Mitsubishi HC7900DW – Full Specifications Mitsubishi HC7900DW Black Levels & Shadow DetailThe HC7900DW offers solid black level performance in its price range. Definitely not the best, but definitely what we call “ultra high contrast”. This projector is roughly comparable in handling blacks to projectors like the Panasonic PT-AE8000 and the BenQ W7000. It won’t, however, match the blacks of the Epson or the Sony. The Epson (HC5020UB) is slightly less expensive, the Sony a many hundreds of dollars more. Black Levels ComparisonMitsubishi HC7900DWEpson Home Cinema 5020PT-AE8000Sony VPL-HW50ESOptoma HD8300Optoma HD33JVC DLA-RS45Runco LS10dSharp XV-Z30000PreviousNext Mitsubishi HC7900DW: Pretty darn good. Like all the images below of the “starship”, it is intentionally overexposed by several f-stops. This raises the blacks so they can be easily seen as dark grays, and so that after mentally adjusting for the slightly differing exposures, you get a very good idea of how the HC7900 stacks up to the competition. Epson Home Cinema 5020: Image more overexposed (slightly, but blacks are still blacker than the HC7900). Definitely has more “pop”, thanks to the better blacks. PT-AE8000: More comparable to the Mitsubishi. This image is a touch more overexposed, but factor that in, and they are very similar in terms of black levels. Sony VPL-HW50ES: A little more overexposed making it hard to compare, but still at least as black blacks as the Mitsubishi, so this again, indicates a projector with better black level performance than the HC7900. Optoma HD8300: Very nice, offers slightly better blacks than the Mitsubishi, not quite up to the Epson or Sony. This is an older image not converted to grayscale, and definitely less overexposed. Optoma HD33 (lower cost, $1499 3D capable projector): Blacks are not as good as the Optoma, the image is less overexposed. JVC DLA-RS45: JVC’s $7500+ projectors have killer blacks. Even this RS45 is very good, and better than the Mitsubishi, although not by a whole lot. Runco LS10d projector ($27,000+): This one is included to make the point, that a lot more money doesn’t mean any significant improvement in black levels. Think instead, that other things become more important. Sharp XV-Z30000 (direct competitor): this is another good DLP projector. The image is a bit less overexposed. Blacks are roughly comparable, though I’d say they slightly favor the Sharp. Shadow Detail PerformanceLook at the shrubs on the right, on the far side of the tracks. Compare detail in the trees also on the right. The HC7900DW’s dark shadow detail is really excellent. I don’t think any of the competing projectors can do better by a noticeable, visible amount. I can’t say which of several is the very best, but this Mitsubishii projector is definitely one of the ones that seems to reveal the most. As alway, ignore color shifts, long time exposures (up to 30 seconds, create problems). Shadow Detail ComparisonMitsubishi HC7900DWEpson Home Cinema 5020 UBPT-AE8000Epson Home Cinema 3020Optoma HD33Optoma HD8300Sony VPL-HW50ESPreviousNext Epson Home Cinema 5020 UB: The Mitsubishi’s dark shadow detail is every bit as good, perhaps a touch better than this Epson which we find to be better than most. PT-AE8000: Also very good dark shadow detail Epson Home Cinema 3020: A lower cost projector ($1599), not an ultra-high contrast projector. Optoma HD33: Another lower cost projector Optoma HD8300: Nice blacks but not as good on dark shadow detail Sony VPL-HW50ES: Better on blacks than dark shadow detail, but still very good. Black Level and Shadow Detail Performance: HC7900 Projector - Bottom LineVery good and Excellent. That’s a pretty good combination for a $2500 home theater projector. Although the blacks could be improved, they are good enough that further improvement, while desireable (say to the Epson’s level), is a legitimate trade off compared to the slightly better skin tones of the Mitsubishi. At the end of the day, you’ll have to decide between the projectors. Black levels and shadow detail are two important abilities, but not all of the important ones. 1. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Home Theater Projector Review - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector Highlights - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector Overview2. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Physical Tour - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector - Appearance - HC7900DW Control Panel - HC7900DW Projector - Input/Output3. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Physical Tour 2 - HC7900DW Menus - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Remote - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Lens Throw - Mitsubishi HC7900 Lens Shift - Anamorphic Lens - Wide Screen4. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Image Quality - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Out of the Box Picture Quality - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector - Flesh Tones5. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Image Quality 2 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Black Levels & Shadow Detail - Black Levels Comparison - Shadow Detail Performance - Shadow Detail Comparison - Black Level and Shadow Detail Performance: HC7900 Projector - Bottom Line6. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Image Quality 3 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW - Overall Color & Picture Quality7. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Image Quality 4 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector: Performance, HDTV and Sports, including 3D - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector: Bottom Line on HDTV Sports, and also 3D HDTV content8. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Performance - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Brightness - Post Calibration: User "best" mode (placed in User AV Memory 1) = 701 lumens - HC7900DW Brightest Mode (that you would never want to watch) - HC7900DW Brightest "Watchable" mode Game (or Cinema), Brilliant Color on, Contrast at +10: 1112 lumens9. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Performance 2 - HC7900 in Eco-mode vs. Full power: - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Pre-Calibration Color temp, Cinema Mode10. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Performance 3 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Sharpness - Mitsubishi HC7900DW: Bottom Line Sharpness - Light Leakage - Image Noise - Audible Noise11. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector Calibration and Settings - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Color Temperature - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Basic Settings12. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector Calibration and Settings 2 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Post Calibration Grayscale: User Mode - HC7900DW RGB Settings13. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Advanced Calibration Information - Color Management Settings (CMS) - Notes - Calibration Charts (Before and After)14. Mitsubishi HC7900D – Projector Screen Guidance - Acer H9500BD Projector Screen Recommendations15. Mitsubishi HC7900DW – Competitors - Mitsubishi HC7900DW vs. Epson Pro Cinema 6020 UB and Home Cinema 5020 UB - Mitsubishi HC7900DW vs. Sony VPL-HW50ES16. Mitsubishi HC7900DW – Competitors 2 - HC7900DW vs. Sharp XV-Z30000 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW vs. Viewsonic Pro 9000 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW vs. PT-AE800017. Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Warranty - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector - Warranty18. Mitsubishi HC7900DW – Review Summary - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector - The Bottom Line19. Mitsubishi HC7900DW – Review Summary 2 - HC7900DW Color and Overall Picture Quality - HC7900 DW Projector - Brightness for 2D viewing - HC7900 Projector - 3D Brightness20. Mitsubishi HC7900DW – Review Summary 3 - The Very Bottom Line on the HC7900DW projector21. Mitsubishi HC7900DW – Review Summary 4 - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector: Pros and Cons - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector: Pros - Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector: Cons22. Mitsubishi HC7900DW – Full Specifications Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Image Quality Mitsubishi HC7900DW Projector – Image Quality 3