Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 3 Posted on October 8, 2008 By Art Feierman 1. Sanyo PLV-Z700 1080p 3LCD Home Theater Projector Review - Sanyo PLV-Z700 1080p 3LCD Home Theater Projector Review: Overview2. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector Highlights - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector Highlights - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Basic Specifications3. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Physical Tour - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Physical Tour4. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Image Quality Sections - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector: Out of the Box Picture Quality5. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 2 - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Skin Tone Handling6. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 3 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Black Level and Shadow Detail - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Black Level Performance7. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 5 - Shadow Detail Comparison - Thumbnails Comparison8. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 4 - Black Level Comparison - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Shadow Detail Performance9. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 6 - Shadow Detail Comparison - Sanyo PLV-Z700 projector - Projector Comparison10. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 7 - Thumbnail11. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 8 - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Sharpness - Sharpness Comparison - Monitor Comparison12. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 9 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Performance: HDTV and Sports - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Overall Image Quality - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Overall Picture Quality: Bottom Line13. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: General Performance - PLV-Z700 User Memory Settings - PLV-Z700 Projector: Remote Control - PLV-Z700: Lens Throw and Lens Shift14. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: General Performance – 2 - PLV-Z700: SDE and Rainbow Effect, Pixel Visibility - PLV-Z700 Projector: Brightness - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Pre Color Calibration - Measurements Settings - Brightness Changes - The Iris setting also has a similar, large impact (Brilliant Cinema, Lamp on Normal)15. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: General Performance – 3 - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Post Calibration - Z700 Brightness: Bottom line - PLV-Z700 Projector: Light Leakage - PLV-Z700: Audible Noise Levels - PLV-Z700: Projector Screen Recommendations16. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: General Performance – 4 - PLV-Z700 Projector: Measurements and Calibration - Advanced Settings - That resulted in these measurements - A quick calibration was also done to Brilliant Color - A quick calibration was also performed on Dynamic - PLV-Z700: Image Noise 17. Sanyo PLV-Z700 3LCD Home Theater Projector: Warranty18. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector: Summary - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector: Summary19. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Pros, Cons, and Typical Capabilities - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Pros, Cons, and Typical Capabilities - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Pros - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Cons - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Typical Capabilities20. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Pros, Cons, and Typical Capabilities – 2 - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Competitive Aspects - PLV-Z700 vs. Mitsubishi HC5500 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 vs. Epson Home Cinema 1080 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 vs. Sanyo PLV-Z2000 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 vs. Epson Home Cinema 1080 UB21. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Pros, Cons, and Typical Capabilities – 3 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 vs. Optoma HD80 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 vs. BenQ W5000 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 vs. Epson Home Cinema 610022. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Pros, Cons, and Typical Capabilities – 4 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 vs. Panasonic PT-AE3000U - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector: Summary - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Bottom Line23. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector Specifications Sanyo PLV-Z700 Black Level and Shadow DetailSanyo PLV-Z700: Black Level PerformanceI can’t say that I’m really disappointed, but I had hoped for a little more. I realized going in, that the claimed contrast of the PLV-Z700 is lower than the PLV-Z2000. In reality, that’s fair, as the Z700 is considered Sanyo’s entry-level 1080p projector while the old PLV-Z2000 is about to be replaced by a more expensive (than the Z700) PLV-Z3000. It would have been nice, though, if the Z700 matched the Z2000, especially since the PLV-Z3000 should have significantly better black levels than either of these two. That is, if specs are any indication. What we have here, is a low cost 1080p projector with good black levels. It’s definitely better than, say the old Mitsubishi HC4900, of that I have no doubt (one of the two least expensive), and it is probably comparable to the HC55500 (replaces the HC4900), depending on the settings you choose. Depending on settings, it should rival some of the basic DLP models using Darkchip 1 or Darkchip 2 DLP processors. For those enthusiasts – really into pure performance, the PLV-Z700 is certainly not your end all solution, but may serve as a very good choice for those enthusiasts on a tight budget. Almost certainly the step up to the Sanyo PLV-Z3000 will be dramatic, in terms of black level performance. Perhaps the most important point to discuss here, are all the combinations of dynamic and manual irises – including the lamp functions, and other advanced features. Fire them all up, and black levels are very respectable – but brightness is limited. The brightest settings for Creative Cinema, will limit black level performance. While we measured a good combination at around 675 lumens, I found that better black levels were achievable with more use of iris and advanced features. I would say I got a very respectable result from using both the dynamic iris (mode1), and lamp mode (A1), in combination with their Auto Black Stretch feature (I used low or mid), and the fixed iris at -25. Since we didn’t measure that combination, I can only guess, but I put that guess between 450 and 525 lumens. And that is a nice, average brightness. There are so many features that interreact with each other that the combinations are near endless. Enthusiasts will just love fooling with the different setting combinations and determining which is best for their room and viewing tastes. I only had time to view a handful of combinations. Click to enlarge. So Close. This first Blu-ray image is from Space Cowboys – a nice dynamic, dark scene with a small area of bright white, and also a larger bright red area- a challenge for a dynamic iris. Click Image to EnlargeThe Fifth Element on Blu-ray disc (the new improved version). The original Blu-ray Fifth Element was poorly mastered, and eventually redone. 1. Sanyo PLV-Z700 1080p 3LCD Home Theater Projector Review - Sanyo PLV-Z700 1080p 3LCD Home Theater Projector Review: Overview2. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector Highlights - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector Highlights - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Basic Specifications3. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Physical Tour - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Physical Tour4. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Image Quality Sections - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector: Out of the Box Picture Quality5. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 2 - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Skin Tone Handling6. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 3 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Black Level and Shadow Detail - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Black Level Performance7. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 5 - Shadow Detail Comparison - Thumbnails Comparison8. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 4 - Black Level Comparison - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Shadow Detail Performance9. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 6 - Shadow Detail Comparison - Sanyo PLV-Z700 projector - Projector Comparison10. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 7 - Thumbnail11. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 8 - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Sharpness - Sharpness Comparison - Monitor Comparison12. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 9 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Performance: HDTV and Sports - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Overall Image Quality - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Overall Picture Quality: Bottom Line13. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: General Performance - PLV-Z700 User Memory Settings - PLV-Z700 Projector: Remote Control - PLV-Z700: Lens Throw and Lens Shift14. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: General Performance – 2 - PLV-Z700: SDE and Rainbow Effect, Pixel Visibility - PLV-Z700 Projector: Brightness - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Pre Color Calibration - Measurements Settings - Brightness Changes - The Iris setting also has a similar, large impact (Brilliant Cinema, Lamp on Normal)15. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: General Performance – 3 - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Post Calibration - Z700 Brightness: Bottom line - PLV-Z700 Projector: Light Leakage - PLV-Z700: Audible Noise Levels - PLV-Z700: Projector Screen Recommendations16. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: General Performance – 4 - PLV-Z700 Projector: Measurements and Calibration - Advanced Settings - That resulted in these measurements - A quick calibration was also done to Brilliant Color - A quick calibration was also performed on Dynamic - PLV-Z700: Image Noise 17. Sanyo PLV-Z700 3LCD Home Theater Projector: Warranty18. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector: Summary - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector: Summary19. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Pros, Cons, and Typical Capabilities - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Pros, Cons, and Typical Capabilities - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Pros - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Cons - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Typical Capabilities20. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Pros, Cons, and Typical Capabilities – 2 - Sanyo PLV-Z700: Competitive Aspects - PLV-Z700 vs. Mitsubishi HC5500 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 vs. Epson Home Cinema 1080 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 vs. Sanyo PLV-Z2000 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 vs. Epson Home Cinema 1080 UB21. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Pros, Cons, and Typical Capabilities – 3 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 vs. Optoma HD80 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 vs. BenQ W5000 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 vs. Epson Home Cinema 610022. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Pros, Cons, and Typical Capabilities – 4 - Sanyo PLV-Z700 vs. Panasonic PT-AE3000U - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector: Summary - Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector: Bottom Line23. Sanyo PLV-Z700 Projector Specifications Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 2 Sanyo PLV-Z700 Home Theater Projector Review: Image Quality – 5