Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Physical Tour 2 Posted on July 28, 2013 By Art Feierman 1. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector Review - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector Highlights - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector Overview2. Sony VPL-VW95ES Special Features - Dynamic Iris - VPL-VW95ES 3D Abilities - Let's talk 3D active glasses - 2D to Simulated 3D on the VPL-VW95ES3. Sony VPL-VW95ES Special Features 2 - Sony VPL-VW95ES Gamma Modes - CFI - Sony MotionFlow - Sony SXRD panels - (LCoS) - Individual SXRD panel adjustment4. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Physical Tour - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector - Appearance - Sony VPL-VW95ES Control Panel - Input/Output5. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Physical Tour 2 - Sony VPL-VW95ES Menus - Sony VPL-VW95ES Remote Control - Sony VPL-VW95ES Lens Throw - VW95 Lens Shift - VPL-VW95ES Anamorphic Lens, Lens Memory6. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Image Quality - VPL-VW95ES "Out of the Box" Picture Quality - VPL-VW95ES Projector - Flesh Tones7. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Image Quality 2 - VPL-VW95ES Black Levels & Shadow Detail - Black Levels Comparison8. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Image Quality 3 - Shadow Detail Performance - Shadow Detail Comparison9. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Image Quality 4 - Sony VPL-VW95ES - Overall Color & Picture Quality - The bottom line on overall picture quality10. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Image Quality 5 - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector: Performance, HDTV and Sports - Bottom line for HDTV on the Sony VPL-VW95ES Home Theater Projector11. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Performance - Sony VPL-VW95ES Brightness12. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Performance 2 - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector - Post Calibration - Sony VPL-VW95ES Sharpness - Sharpness Comparison Images - Sony VPL-VW95ES: Bottom Line Sharpness - VW95 Light Leakage - VPL-VW95ES Image Noise - Sony VPL-VW95ES Audible Noise13. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector Calibration and Settings - Sony VPL-VW95ES Basic Settings - Pre-calibration - Sony VPL-VW95ES Color Temperature - Calibration - Sony VPL-VW95ES Post Calibration Grayscale: User 2 (based on Cinema 3) "Best" - Notes14. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector Screen Recommendations15. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Competitors16. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector Warranty17. Sony VPL-VW95ES Home Cinema Projector – Review Summary - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector - The Bottom Line - The Very Bottom Line on the VPL-VW95ES projector - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector: Pros - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector: Cons18. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Full Specifications Sony VPL-VW95ES MenusAlthough Sony seems to add a new feature or two with each generation, the menus have been fundamentally the same. Because the menu stucture hasn’t changed since the first of the series, the VW50, way back in 2006, we often borrow from older reviews. It’s time for a fresh start, so for the VW95ES review, we have all new menu photos and descriptions. Here goes. For those who like experimenting, and lots of controls to play with, this VPL-VW95ES should keep you most amused! Menu Slideshow Picture menu As you can see from the picture menu, all the main menu icons are on the left of the menu. Custom 3 menu The next menus relate to Picture, and modes and color. Let's start with the lower level menu for calibrating the grayscale, as shown in this Custom 3 menu. Picture mode In the picture menu, the first choice are your picture modes. Sony provides five standard modes and a User for you. The five standard ones are Dynamic, Standard, and Cinema 1, 2, and 3. Please note, Cinema 2 is the preset with the best starting color. Reset menu Next, is Reset, and I mention it only because I don't like seeing a Reset button in the middle of a bunch of controls, even if it makes you verify. Below that, Cinema Black Pro, The Sony VPL-VW95ES projector cinema black pro menu.which has an important sub-menu. From it, you can select any of 4 iris modes - two diynamic, a manual adjustment, or Off. Advanced Iris menu Also important to a lot of folks - the other item on that sub-menu is lamp brightness. High or Low (Sony takes a pass on calling it "eco-mode" as so many do). MotionFlow is next on the Picture menu, and it has two items on its sub-menu, the more important of the two, being Motion Enhancer, which is the name for Sony's Creative Frame The Sony VPL-VW95ES projector advanced iris menu.Interpolation ("smooth motion"), which is great for sports, but does cause serious change to a 24 fps movie - you get that live digital video, or "soap opera" look. On the low setting it's not too bad (I watched part of the movie Red, with it on low, and it was ok, but the film feel is long gone). Picture menu Then come your basic Contrast, Brightness, Color and Hue controls. Color Temp comes next and it offers up four basic and multiple Custom color temp settings. The standard ones are High Middle, Low 1, and Low 2. Screen Menu Screen Menu is next, and it deals with aspect ratios, called Wide Mode. It offers a choice of Normal, Full, Wide Zoom, Zoom, and Anamorphic Zoom. The other setting on the Screen menu is Overscan. The Sony offers only Overscan off and on options, and no masking alternative which I prefer (as it maintains 1:1 pixel mapping). Setup menu The Setup menu's next with the Lamp reset control, all your standard setup stuff like menu position and language, Standby modes... Function Menu The Function Menu is an interesting one with a 3D settings item (offers auto select between 2D and 3D, or manual). HDMI settings and input search are also there. Installation menu The Installation menu is about projector positioning, the 12 volt trigger, setting the IR for the remote, and aligning Sony's LCoS panels. Finally, of course, there's an Information menu. These last two, are not shown, nor is the Screen menu. Picture Mode (3D) menu Yes, the Picture Mode menu in 3D looks exactly like the 2D version, except for the addition of (3D). All modes are useable for 3D. Picture Mode (3D) menu There is a 3D menu for settings, which gives you control over glasses brightness, and the depth adjust control (very interesting, but I mostly avoided it). Picture Mode (3D) menu Since the menu floats at the front of the projected image, there's no visible depth separation when photographing the 3D image. But, change the setting to -1, The Sony VPL-VW95ES projector 3D adjust menu.and everything doubles up, as you can see here, and as the menu shifts a bit in terms of depth. To a large degree it's hard to see what's really happening without a good image to use for reference. Sony VPL-VW95ES Remote ControlThis remote for the 95ES is almost the same one they switched to last year. In fact it is the same but for the addition of two more buttons. I like this remote. It’s a big one, very long. The backlight is a deep LED blue, with reasonably good visibility of the letters on the buttons. Since this remote is essentially the same except for the addition of two new buttons, most of this content is borrowed from our Sony review of last year.: This layout is now, perhaps my all time favorite remote control, at least of all the remotes I’ve worked with while reviewing home theater projectors. Keep in mind that I spend a lot of time using remotes, as I try out different settings. As a result, my usage is a lot different than the typical owner, but I still think everyone should find this to be an excellent remote control. Image to the right, is last year’s remote for the VW90ES. The new one has 2 additional buttons. We will replace this image shortly. I also note, this is one large remote – measuring a full 10 inches in length. Also of note, a few of the keys do glow dimly, so with some difficulty, you can find it in a fully darkened room. That may sound minor, but, I got so frustrated over the last year plus, with my remotes for my two Sony PS3s, when trying to locate them when the lights are off, that I finally put a couple of day-glow stickers on both of them. Let’s start at the top, and work our way down… Top right is a green power switch. It uses the standard protocol of Press once to power up, Press twice, to power down. Next to it, is the Input button allowing you to toggle through the different sources. To its left, is the Light button, that turns on the blue LED lights that illuminate the buttons.. The next two rows are for the six Picture modes: Cinema, Standard, and Dynamic, pluse User 1, 2, and 3. Because this Sony remote can control other Sony Bravia devices such as Blu-ray players and camcorders, you will next find a full set of playback controls, such as play, fast forward, next/previous chapter, pause, etc. Also included in that section are the Sync Menu and Options buttons, to define and select those other Bravia devices. Different options are available depending on the devices. This whole control section only works when the compatible Bravia devices are hooked up via HDMI 1 or HDMI 2. Next comes the main navigation section. It consists of the usual four arrow keys (in a round configuration), with a center Enter button. Surrounding the navigation area are three buttons in a larger circle. The one to the upper left brings up the Lens functions (focus, zoom, lens shift). The bottom one is the Menu button to launch the menus, and the top right one is the Reset button. Personally, I find large Reset buttons located near navigation to be scary. Nothing worse than, “oops” I just reset everything.” Still there is a confirm function, but, pay attention! Below the navigation area are nine buttons that provide direct access to some of the more frequently selected controls: Gamma, Black Level settings, Advanced Iris, Color Space, Color Temp, 3D, Motion Enhancer (CFI), Wide Mode which lets you toggle through different aspect ratios, RCP which is Sony’s color management system, and lets you individually tune each primary and secondary color. Note; We do not work with the RCP as part of our own “basic” grayscale calibration of the VW95ES. Most likely, if you hire a good professional calibrator, they will adjust the individual colors, as well as the grayscale balance. That leaves just six more buttons – actually 3 pairs of direct controls. They are Sharpness, Brightness, and Contrast. Again, an excellent remote. It is logically laid out, the buttons have a good feel. It fits well in your hand (mine is pretty average sized), and has excellent range. Click Image to EnlargeSony VPL-VW95ES Lens ThrowThe VW95ES projector’s motorized 1.6:1 zoom lens offers a reasonable amount of placement range. Per the user manual, if you have a 100 inch diagonal 16:9 screen, the lens allows the projector to be placed as close as 10 feet 1 inch, or as far back as 16 feet 4 inches. That said, the Sony is not going to rear shelf mount in a lot of people’s rooms, due to the relatively shallow maximum distance, compared to most other projectors with 1.5:1 to 2.1:1 zooms. The 95ES can not be placed as far back as most projectors that are rear shelf mountable (has lens shift). Most of the non-DLP competition can be placed as far back as 19 – 21 feet, for the same sized screen. The bottom line, therefore, is while you can, of course, ceiling mount the VPL-90ES projector, many will not be able to place the Sony on a rear shelf, unless they are using an unusually large screen for a that room size. Let me restate that – you aren’t likely to be able to rear shelf mount unless your room depth is fairly shallow. VW95 Lens ShiftThe Sony VPL-95ES has vertical and horizontal lens shift. Both functions are motorized, and controlled from the remote, via the lens button. For a 100″ screen, the center of the lens can be placed as high as approximately 7.5 inches above the top of your screen surface Actually Sony quotes in their manual, a maximum of 31 – 7/8 inches above the center of the screen, which is about 49.5 inches high, so top of the screen is about 24.3 inches above the center of the screen. VPL-VW95ES Anamorphic Lens, Lens MemoryThe VPL-VW95ES, of course, supports using an anamorphic lens. A motorized sled for the lens can be controlled by the Sony’s 12 volt trigger. This allows you to go with a true Cinemascope shaped screen (such as 2.35:1). For those selling your soul just to afford a VW95ES, without the budget for the lens, or lens and sled, please note that a 2.35:1 (anamorphic) screen is still very doable, if that’s your preference, and if it works out for your room placement. The Sony VPL-VW95ES offers a full Lens Memory setup. This will allow you to go with that 2.35:1 (or 2.40:1) “Cinemascope” width screen. With Lens Memory, once it’s set up, when you want to watch a widescreen movie, then simply at the touch of a button, the image will zoom out (larger image) to fill the entire width of your 2.35:1 screen. At the same time, (the Sony has digital image shift and motorized lens shift), the image will adjust to be properly filling the screen vertically with just the information from the movie, with the letterboxing overshooting the screen. With the Sony’s great black level performance, you are only likely to really notice the letterboxing if your front wall around your screen is white or near white, and you’re watching a very dark scene. Alternately, when it’s time to watch some “standard” 16:9 content – including HDTV, and most animation films, the lens will return to the the setting for watching in a 16:9 aspect ratio, keeping the whole vertical image within the screen height (constant screen height), which results in the letterboxing on the screen, to the left and right of the 16:9 image. If movies are your primary reason for owning a projector, then for most, it does make sense to have the largest screen size when viewing movies. With the standard 16:9 screen, though, movies – due to their letterboxing, are a smaller area, than HDTV. With the VPL-VW95ES, you have two ways to go “widescreen” – either use the lens memory, or go with a full anamorphic lens solution. 1. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector Review - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector Highlights - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector Overview2. Sony VPL-VW95ES Special Features - Dynamic Iris - VPL-VW95ES 3D Abilities - Let's talk 3D active glasses - 2D to Simulated 3D on the VPL-VW95ES3. Sony VPL-VW95ES Special Features 2 - Sony VPL-VW95ES Gamma Modes - CFI - Sony MotionFlow - Sony SXRD panels - (LCoS) - Individual SXRD panel adjustment4. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Physical Tour - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector - Appearance - Sony VPL-VW95ES Control Panel - Input/Output5. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Physical Tour 2 - Sony VPL-VW95ES Menus - Sony VPL-VW95ES Remote Control - Sony VPL-VW95ES Lens Throw - VW95 Lens Shift - VPL-VW95ES Anamorphic Lens, Lens Memory6. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Image Quality - VPL-VW95ES "Out of the Box" Picture Quality - VPL-VW95ES Projector - Flesh Tones7. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Image Quality 2 - VPL-VW95ES Black Levels & Shadow Detail - Black Levels Comparison8. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Image Quality 3 - Shadow Detail Performance - Shadow Detail Comparison9. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Image Quality 4 - Sony VPL-VW95ES - Overall Color & Picture Quality - The bottom line on overall picture quality10. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Image Quality 5 - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector: Performance, HDTV and Sports - Bottom line for HDTV on the Sony VPL-VW95ES Home Theater Projector11. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Performance - Sony VPL-VW95ES Brightness12. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Performance 2 - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector - Post Calibration - Sony VPL-VW95ES Sharpness - Sharpness Comparison Images - Sony VPL-VW95ES: Bottom Line Sharpness - VW95 Light Leakage - VPL-VW95ES Image Noise - Sony VPL-VW95ES Audible Noise13. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector Calibration and Settings - Sony VPL-VW95ES Basic Settings - Pre-calibration - Sony VPL-VW95ES Color Temperature - Calibration - Sony VPL-VW95ES Post Calibration Grayscale: User 2 (based on Cinema 3) "Best" - Notes14. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector Screen Recommendations15. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Competitors16. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector Warranty17. Sony VPL-VW95ES Home Cinema Projector – Review Summary - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector - The Bottom Line - The Very Bottom Line on the VPL-VW95ES projector - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector: Pros - Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector: Cons18. Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Full Specifications Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Physical Tour Sony VPL-VW95ES Projector – Image Quality LnRiLWhlYWRpbmcuaGFzLWJhY2tncm91bmR7cGFkZGluZzowfQ==