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  • Hi, In a month or two I'm intending to set up a projection system to watch films and evaluate footage. And for pure fun. I'm thinking of a screen size of about 3.5m diag. and a throw of approx 4-5m. 1080p Please let me know your experience with projecting your gh2 footage on big screen? Thanks!

  • 20 Replies sorted by
  • Considering projectors, I strongly suggest to look at refurbished options.

    I have this one, it is very good price for good 1080p image

    http://www.ebay.com/itm/ViewSonic-Precision-Pro8100-Home-Theater-Projector-1080p-2-HDMI-/400328024350?pt=US_Video_Projectors&hash=item5d3568e11e

    8100 is 3 LCD projector (that I prefer to DLP, as I can see rainbow pretty good),

    plus it has complete remote with all adjustments made by motors (focus, zoom, and lens shift)

    Other good sellers:

    http://www.ebay.com/sch/consignia-canada/m.html?_trksid=p4340.l2562

    http://www.ebay.com/sch/digitalwest.direct/m.html

  • I have the optoma gt750 and love it. It easily can reach 322 inches and bigger but loss of quality will start to become visible. Plus it's a short throw projector meaning it can be about 120 inches from just 5ft away.

  • @GravitateMediaGroup

    OK, how about to read first post?

  • I'm not sure what 3.5m is converted to ft if that's what your saying.

    It's 10 ft now that I check 322 inches is about 26 ft As far as throw, sometimes gotta take what ya can get for whatever price

  • I can recommend the JVC D-ILA X30. We use it in our studio. 60/50Hz, color space, setup ... no issues so far. Brilliant image. 3D option. Since there is a successor (x35), there is a price drop for the x30. Grab one quick!

  • @Alex

    JVC are not cheap

    I see only one refurbished at about $2100 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/JVC-DLA-X30-BLACKProjector-FULL-WARRANTY-FROM-JVC-/130775095240?pt=US_Video_Projectors&hash=item1e72cd97c8

    With normal price being at $2800-3000 range

  • Btw, DLP projectors are, in fact, mechanical devices. After some hours DLP chip starts to fail (individual mirrors). This is espcially true for small sized projectors.

  • I have a 1080p optoma that goes for around a $1,000 on Amazon right now, really like it. I can't see the difference between it and the $3,000+ Panasonic at my friend's house.

  • projector quality is only part of the equation. make sure your screen is worthy of the projector you use.

  • the JVC DLA-X30 can be found for € 1999,- in Germany. That is € 1000,- less the normal price. Amazon is selling it for € 2513,-. Still a huge price for a private investment though and the X30 is very large in size too ...

  • Thanks All!

    @Vitaliy_Kiselev - this unit looks good and to hear + feedback from you is even better. I see it has provision for anamorphic front attachment, which could be fun. Interesting about the dlp units. Moving parts, eh (sounds like my old 16mm Bauer)

    @kellar42 - Good to know about the optoma. They are quite popular.

    @Alex - With the projector in your studio, I imagine you find aspects to your shots you might not have noticed on the desktop monitors, both good and bad.

    @htinla +1 on screen quality. Bed sheets don't cut it.

    @GravitateMediaGroup - 300 inches is pretty good! Those optomas seem great for the $.

    Again, thanks folks for the input. I think I'm off to refurbishedland and grab a viewsonic. Seems quite pro for the money.

    Cheers!

  • I use a wall for a screen, by the way.

  • I used a black pigment to get a slightly grey paint in the wall. I dissolved 15 drops from it to each 1 liter white paint gallon. You can find it in paint stores. you can use spackling paste before painting to get a smooth surface in wall. The grey in the wall gives deeper blacks and avoid too bright whites in projection. The wall gets a little darker than a white paper sheet.

    CIMG0843.JPG
    800 x 600 - 108K
    CIMG0844.JPG
    800 x 600 - 116K
    CIMG0847.JPG
    800 x 600 - 77K
  • As I will shoot in 720p to do some slow motion with GH2 and also some 720p Magic Lantern HDR videos with T3i, the 720p will be my default resolution for projection.

    So I got an used panasonic ae900 for quarter the price of the optoma hd20 cheapest fullhd projector, and i got a free shipping, a great deal. In service menu it shows just 1400 hours in first bulb. The 3LCD convergence is good and free of rainbow effect. It has the smooth screen technology so I cannot see the pixels even close to the wall. Works great for a 120 inch screen.

    The images from standard definition TV and from Sansumg DVD player in RGB input looks beautiful without aliasing due to good upscalling. I do not watch bluray at this moment due to small amount of titles and higher rental prices and I dont have a bluray player yet.

  • @beheath - yeah, 322 is what they advertise but I can go a little bigger. To put it to the test I had to take it outside and project it on my garage and it was at least 300 inches from just roughly 13ft away. Here is a video I found that shows it off, this video is what led me to making the purchase.

    obviously at this size it's not going to have the same ability as a IMAX project, but still impressive for the average consumer. I actually believe the price has dropped quite a bit from the original as well

  • Talking about DIY screens, there are ways you can make your own pearl gain screens too, something like a Stewart screen but far cheaper. I'll see if I can dig up one my old links when I was researching that sort of stuff

  • @Dazza

    I think we need to move our discussion about screens into separate topic.

  • What is the best 1080p Home Theater Projector for less than $1,000 (USD)? Not sure if this deserves a separate topic at all - so I thought I would post it here first.

  • What is the best 1080p Home Theater Projector for less than $1,000 (USD)?

    I doubt that such thing as "best" exist in this world.

    http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odkw=1080p+refurbished&_osacat=0&_trksid=p2045573.m570.l1313&_nkw=1080p+refurbished+projector&_sacat=0

    You can just choose. I prefer to get better projector for small price being factory refurbished. Both Viewsonic and Optoma have few models on ebay.