Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Picture Quality 2 Posted on July 25, 2013 By Art Feierman 1. Sony VPL-HW50ES Home Theater Projector Review - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Highlights - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Overview2. Sony VPL-HW50ES Special Features - VPL-HW50ES Detail Enhancement - Reality Creation - Sony VPL-HW50ES 1.6:1 Zoom Lens - VPL-HW50ES Projector 3D Capabilities - 3D Glasses (two pair provided standard): - VPL-HW50ES MotionFlow - Creative Frame Interpolation - Sony VPL-HW50ES Pixel Adjust3. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector – Physical Tour - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector - Appearance - VPL-HW50ES Control Panel - VPL-HW50ES Projector - Input/Output4. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector – Physical Tour 2 - VPL-HW50ES Menus - Sony VPL-HW50ES Remote Control - Lens Shift - Anamorphic Lens - Wide Screen5. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Picture Quality - Sony VPL-HW50ES Out of the Box Picture Quality - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector - Flesh Tones6. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Picture Quality 2 - Sony VPL-HW50ES Black Levels & Shadow Detail - Black Levels Comparison - Sony VPL-HW50 Shadow Detail Performance - Shadow Detail Comparison - Black Level and Shadow Detail Performance: VPL-HW50ES Projector - Bottom Line7. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Picture Quality 3 - Sony VPL-HW50ES - Overall Color & Picture Quality8. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Picture Quality 4 - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector: Performance, HDTV and Sports - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector: Bottom Line on HDTV and Sports9. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector – Performance - Sony VPL-HW50ES Brightness - Post Calibration: User "best" mode = 992 lumens - VPL-HW50 Projector Low Lamp Mode10. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector – Performance 2 - Sony VPL-HW50ES Pre-Calibration Color temp, Cinema Mode11. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector – Performance 3 - Sony VPL-HW50ES Sharpness - Sharpness Comparison Images - Reality Creation - Detail Enhancement - Continued12. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector – Performance 4 - Sony VPL-HW50ES: Bottom Line Sharpness - Light Leakage - Image Noise - Audible Noise13. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Calibration and Settings - Sony VPL-HW50ES Color Temperature - Sony VPL-HW50ES Basic Settings - Sony VPL-HW50ES Post Calibration Grayscale: User Mode - VPL-HW50ES RGB Settings14. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Projector Screens - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Screen Recommendations - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector - Screens For Dedicated Home Theater - Placing the HW50ES Projector - The Right Screens for Living Rooms, Bonus Rooms...15. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Competitors - Sony VPL-HW50ES vs. Epson Pro Cinema 6010/6020 and Home Cinema 5010/502016. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Competitors 2 - Sony VPL-HW50ES vs. Sony VPL-HW30ES and VW95ES - VPL-HW50ES vs. Sharp XV-Z3000017. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Competitors 3 - Sony VPL-HW50ES vs. Panasonic PT-AE7000 and PT-AE8000 - Sony VPL-HW50ES vs. Runco LS518. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector – Warranty19. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Review Summary - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector - The Bottom Line20. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Review Summary 2 - VPL-HW50ES Color and Overall Picture Quality21. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Review Summary 3 - The Very Bottom Line on the VPL-HW50ES projector: - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector: Pros - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector: Cons - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector: Typical Capabilities22. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Full Specifications Sony VPL-HW50ES Black Levels & Shadow DetailBlacks look very good. Oh, not as good as the Sony’s best 2K projector, the VPL-VW95ES ($6995), but impressive nonetheless. If you see having good inky dark blacks is really important, as I do, this Sony HW50ES projector almost certainly will not disappoint you. Sony seems to have built this HW50 with better abilities in terms of blacks, than the older HW30ES. With this projector, Sony now is right there slugging it out for best blacks under $5000. This Sony is definitely right up there challenging last year’s sub-$5000 champ, the Epson 5010/6010 in terms of blacks. I did a good deal of side by side viewing of dark scenes. Both home theater projectors use dynamic irises (as do almost all), for deeper blacks, and are the two best around. While viewing the two, they were very comparable. On some types of scenes the Sony had the edge, on others the Epson. First time in years anything this affordable could take on the Epson. JVC’s got their RS46 / X35 coming out in a few months, they manage to do really good blacks without an iris – they actually have more dynamic range, but can’t actually get blacks as dark as the Sony. Here are a couple of side-by-sides Sony VPL-HW50ES projector vs. the Epson Home Cinema 5010. First, though, the two projectors are very different. The Epson isn’t near as bright calibrated, so we had to run it, in Livingroom mode, vs. the Sony HW50 being in its best calibrated mode. Still, I couldn’t get the images to exactly the same brightness. You’ll note that the Sony is a touch brighter, which means when comparing the blacks (such as the letter boxing) allow for that letterbox to be a touch brighter because of that. VPL-HW50ES Black Levels Normal Exposure First fairly normally exposed followed by greatly overexposed. Overexposed For the overexposed version I converted to grayscale to make things easier to see, and to remove the distraction of the color shifts in these long time exposures. On this particular night train scene below, the Sony's letterbox is brighter, a bit more so than the projector brightness advantage. Ultimately they are very close to identical, with the Epson the slightest advantage Overexposed For the overexposed version I converted to grayscale to make things easier to see, and to remove the distraction of the color shifts in these long time exposures. On this particular night train scene below, the Sony's letterbox is brighter, a bit more so than the projector brightness advantage. Ultimately they are very close to identical, with the Epson the slightest advantage Below, the Sony VPL-HW50ES and other projectors, with most photos converted to grayscale. For comparing: If two projectors have the starship equally overexposed, then the one with the darker letterbox, is the one that has the blacker blacks. You might also notice that in the starfield but comparing the letterbox is easier, as differences in gamma have less affect. Black Levels ComparisonVPL-HW50ESSony VPL-HW30ESOptoma HD8300Epson Home Cinema 8700UBOptoma HD33JVC DLA-HD250Runco LS10dSony VPL-VW90ESSharp XV-Z17000BenQ W6000PreviousNext The less expensive Sony VPL-HW30ES Optoma HD8300: Epson Home Cinema 8700UB ($2199) the sub $7500 black level champ from two years back: Optoma HD33 (lower cost, $1499 3D capable projector): JVC DLA-HD250: This JVC is slightly less expensive, no 3D abilities. 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. Sony VPL-VW90ES ($9995): Sharp XV-Z17000 (direct competitor): BenQ W6000, a “perennial favorite” lower cost DLP Sony VPL-HW50 Shadow Detail PerformanceThe standard “Bond” night train image does a great job for checking out shadow detail as well. This too is a very dark scene overall. Look to the shrubs on the right, especially behind the tracks, and also look for shadow detail in the wood behind them. Click, as usual, for a much larger image. Shadow Detail ComparisonSony VPL-HW50Sony VPL-HW30ESOptoma HD8300Optoma HD33Epson Home Cinema 5010JVC HD250Mitsubishi HC4000Sharp XV-Z30000 PreviousNext Black Level and Shadow Detail Performance: VPL-HW50ES Projector - Bottom LinePretty impressive! When it comes to blacks without spending a whole lot more (thousands), nothing seems to be better – the new Epson is probably about comparable. One could argue that the JVC X35 gets impressive blacks without a dynamic iris, (and with more dynamic range), but last year’s X30 – RS45, just couldn’t put up blacks as black as the best projectors with irises. As to shadow detail, again, classic performance for the price range. Some will be a bit better, but, mostly I’d be quibbling. I consider that last mile of dark shadow detail to be relatively minor. Given a choice at this level of projector, I see black levels as the more important performance area. Combining both, this Sony VPL-HW50ES is about as good as it gets on dark scenes, and that’s what really separates the good from the great. Add to all of that – Sony’s Reality creation, and it brings out more details still in those dark scenes. Nice. 1. Sony VPL-HW50ES Home Theater Projector Review - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Highlights - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Overview2. Sony VPL-HW50ES Special Features - VPL-HW50ES Detail Enhancement - Reality Creation - Sony VPL-HW50ES 1.6:1 Zoom Lens - VPL-HW50ES Projector 3D Capabilities - 3D Glasses (two pair provided standard): - VPL-HW50ES MotionFlow - Creative Frame Interpolation - Sony VPL-HW50ES Pixel Adjust3. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector – Physical Tour - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector - Appearance - VPL-HW50ES Control Panel - VPL-HW50ES Projector - Input/Output4. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector – Physical Tour 2 - VPL-HW50ES Menus - Sony VPL-HW50ES Remote Control - Lens Shift - Anamorphic Lens - Wide Screen5. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Picture Quality - Sony VPL-HW50ES Out of the Box Picture Quality - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector - Flesh Tones6. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Picture Quality 2 - Sony VPL-HW50ES Black Levels & Shadow Detail - Black Levels Comparison - Sony VPL-HW50 Shadow Detail Performance - Shadow Detail Comparison - Black Level and Shadow Detail Performance: VPL-HW50ES Projector - Bottom Line7. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Picture Quality 3 - Sony VPL-HW50ES - Overall Color & Picture Quality8. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Picture Quality 4 - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector: Performance, HDTV and Sports - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector: Bottom Line on HDTV and Sports9. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector – Performance - Sony VPL-HW50ES Brightness - Post Calibration: User "best" mode = 992 lumens - VPL-HW50 Projector Low Lamp Mode10. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector – Performance 2 - Sony VPL-HW50ES Pre-Calibration Color temp, Cinema Mode11. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector – Performance 3 - Sony VPL-HW50ES Sharpness - Sharpness Comparison Images - Reality Creation - Detail Enhancement - Continued12. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector – Performance 4 - Sony VPL-HW50ES: Bottom Line Sharpness - Light Leakage - Image Noise - Audible Noise13. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Calibration and Settings - Sony VPL-HW50ES Color Temperature - Sony VPL-HW50ES Basic Settings - Sony VPL-HW50ES Post Calibration Grayscale: User Mode - VPL-HW50ES RGB Settings14. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Projector Screens - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Screen Recommendations - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector - Screens For Dedicated Home Theater - Placing the HW50ES Projector - The Right Screens for Living Rooms, Bonus Rooms...15. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Competitors - Sony VPL-HW50ES vs. Epson Pro Cinema 6010/6020 and Home Cinema 5010/502016. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Competitors 2 - Sony VPL-HW50ES vs. Sony VPL-HW30ES and VW95ES - VPL-HW50ES vs. Sharp XV-Z3000017. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Competitors 3 - Sony VPL-HW50ES vs. Panasonic PT-AE7000 and PT-AE8000 - Sony VPL-HW50ES vs. Runco LS518. Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector – Warranty19. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Review Summary - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector - The Bottom Line20. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Review Summary 2 - VPL-HW50ES Color and Overall Picture Quality21. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Review Summary 3 - The Very Bottom Line on the VPL-HW50ES projector: - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector: Pros - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector: Cons - Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector: Typical Capabilities22. Sony VPL-HW50ES – Full Specifications Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Picture Quality Sony VPL-HW50ES Projector Picture Quality 3