Topic: HT Projector advice

[Kato]

Hello fellow HT enthusiasts,

Just wanted to seek advice and recommendations for a good DLP projector for HT use. I've been doing some research on InFocus X3 and Panasonic PT-AE900 but not quite sure which is better or if there're other brands/models better in this range. If anyone could also point me to where I could audition and buy them, I'd be very grateful.

Thank you. 

Kato

[Munskie]

Hello fellow HT enthusiasts,

Just wanted to seek advice and recommendations for a good DLP projector for HT use. I've been doing some research on InFocus X3 and Panasonic PT-AE900 but not quite sure which is better or if there're other brands/models better in this range. If anyone could also point me to where I could audition and buy them, I'd be very grateful.

Thank you. 

Kato

hi there..if your looking for a dlp projector...panasonic ae900 aint one.  its a lcd projector.  but im using one and im truly satisfied with its performance.  i dont know if infocus x3 is a dlp projector.  you could ask for an audition thru mang sonny's the HOME THEATRE, just look at the audio/video stores thread.  you could also look at my thread or matzter's den thread at the HT picture gallery, we have posted pics of panny ae900 in action. thanks 

[Kato]

Hi Munskie,

You guys have a great HT setup! I just drooled all over my keyboard. I'm more of an audio enthusiast, but lately been having the itch to bring that cinematic experience to my home after my dad infected me with his new "hobby" (and now after seeing all your wonderful HT setups!). Now we're both on the prowl for a projector like kids wishing for that big Voltes V.

My dad did his homework too and we both agreed that the Panasonic AE900 would be perfect for us. How much does the AE900 cost locally and around how much are the bulbs (average I think is around 12K to 15k)? If we're lucky, we should have both our systems setup before the week ends (that's how much this craving makes us desperate!).

Cheers!

Kato

[Kato]

Just ordered the AE900 from Sonny Tuazon for my dad to be delivered tomorrow... can't wait to see the smile (or sly grin) on my dad's face! 

Thanks Munskie for the feedback.

[ricky]

Just ordered the AE900 from Sonny Tuazon for my dad to be delivered tomorrow... can't wait to see the smile (or sly grin) on my dad's face! 

Thanks Munskie for the feedback.

Congrats bro,and i envy you that you share the same passion as your dad.This hobby will bring you closer to each other pa kaya lang 2 pa kayo gagastos You wont regret getting the panasonic pj,its reasonably priced and with very good performance.

[Kato]

Hi Ricky,

Thanks! Yeah, I agree that it's such a nice feeling when you get to bond with your dad like kids sharing toys hehehe I'm going to his place tomorrow to wait for the AE900 and it's "binyag" and to consider getting my own. Now, I just have my wife to brainwash and convince that this "passion" is essential to a family's well-being I always say... "this is better than me hanging out with my 'adventurous bachelor' buddies right?" hehehe

Kato

[ricky]

You said it right bro its quite unfortunate that my dad passed away before my brother and i can afford our present set-ups,he was the one pa naman who influenced as with watching movies at a very early age By the way is your dad also a member of pinoydvd?maybe you can invite him too,and you are right this hobby is much much better than hanging out with single friends(kakaingitsila kasi single eh unlike us double and triple na lol) good luck bro on your new hobby and happy watching ot na eh

[Kato]

Hi Ricky,

Nope he isn't a PinoyDVD member (yet), though he surfs to research on his new toys or prospects I'm also quite new here in terms of participating in the forums, but been a member since 2004. I find this site quite informative and often entertaining

I just had my dad call Sonny Tuazon and we just found out na dun din pala niya nabili yung B&W speakers nya. Malamang di na makatulog yon mamaya, pati ako rin excited hehehe The AE900 was packaged with a 60"x60" wall/ceiling-mount screen, but I dunno what brand. I've been browsing through the forums and seems like Da-lite is quite popular. Is there a big difference when using Da-lite screens compared to regular projection screens?

Cheers!

Kato

[ricky]

bro no need to worry with diff with the free screen and da-lite since its free naman Im using the da-lite brand 84x84 and comparing it with viewtek the cloth is much thicker lang(yung da-lite) but i doubt it na may diff sila in terms of projected image sa brand lang nagkatalo really may i ask why 60x60 lang gusto nyo screen? although the smaller the clearer the image pero sa akin kasi the bigger the better panasonic can project clear image at bigger screen size at shorter distance.yung ae500 ko at 13feet away can project an image size of 46x82 which is just right for my space

[Kato]

bro no need to worry with diff with the free screen and da-lite since its free naman Im using the da-lite brand 84x84 and comparing it with viewtek the cloth is much thicker lang(yung da-lite) but i doubt it na may diff sila in terms of projected image sa brand lang nagkatalo really may i ask why 60x60 lang gusto nyo screen? although the smaller the clearer the image pero sa akin kasi the bigger the better panasonic can project clear image at bigger screen size at shorter distance.yung ae500 ko at 13feet away can project an image size of 46x82 which is just right for my space

Hi Ricky,

Hey, I just saw your HT set-up, very impressive! When I get the chance to "pretty-up" my room, I'll post it here too, plus my dad's, of course. Though mine's a very modest setup compared to everyone else's

The 60"x60" screen was what was offered to us as the freebie. I didn't realize that it was a bit small after we ordered hehehe I guess we were too engrossed with the thought of getting the AE900 tomorrow. Maybe we'll just upgrade that na rin tomorrow after we see it. Still not sure how to setup the place and if the screen's going to be ceiling or wall-mounted. I also personally prefer a more "colossal" image para mas dramatic, just like I prefer to watch in the orchestra section of the theatre. I can just imagine how your HT feels like.

By the way, is it advisable to buy spare bulbs now or is it better to just get it replaced only when it gets busted or has lost much of its brightness?

Cheers!

Kato

[ricky]

bro thanks and no need to buy spare bulb at this time,i have been using my ae500 to my hearts content and still has not consumed 1/3of bulbs life.Im not saving for the bulb but for a dlp upgrade when the time comes that i need to replace my present bulb

[ricky]

And you and your dad are most welcome to visit my place and even matz(im sure matz would not mind the visit since since he's a very cool guy) so that you have an idea on what gears to get

[Munskie]

Hi Munskie,

You guys have a great HT setup! I just drooled all over my keyboard. I'm more of an audio enthusiast, but lately been having the itch to bring that cinematic experience to my home after my dad infected me with his new "hobby" (and now after seeing all your wonderful HT setups!). Now we're both on the prowl for a projector like kids wishing for that big Voltes V.

My dad did his homework too and we both agreed that the Panasonic AE900 would be perfect for us. How much does the AE900 cost locally and around how much are the bulbs (average I think is around 12K to 15k)? If we're lucky, we should have both our systems setup before the week ends (that's how much this craving makes us desperate!).

Cheers!

Kato

thanks kato...and im glad you chose panny ae900.  its really a steal for its value and performance.  imagine PJs costing 3 or 4 times over, mga 10 to 15 percent na lang PQ improvement sa panny.  im also glad your dad is also an avid HT enthusiast, at least may kakampi ka when your wife's gonna question your HT upgrades and purchases.  if you look at our thread,sina sir ricky and sir matz, malaking tulong sila in setting up my ht, and i know they will be to you too...can't wait to see your HT in the gallery....and for sure another satisfied panny customer...congrats kato!!

[Kato]

Hey Munskie and Ricky!

Thanks so much for all the info and advice and specially Ricky's gracious invitation :-) We'll surely take you up on that one of these days :-)

We're currently testing the AE900 here at my dad's place as I write this post! Mr. Sonny Tuazon and his son, Butch, came over and delivered it together with the screen kanina. They're such a nice father and son tandem too!

Anyway.... the AE900 is just splendid! Though our drapes allowed too much sunlight kanina (all over the house), the PQ is still really good. Now, we're just waiting for the sun to set para full blast na ang DVD marathon mamaya. I've also downloaded lots of HD trailers (1280 x 720 resolution) last night, haven't tried playing them with the AE900 yet as I forgot to bring my laptop's VGA cable Although they looked really great on the Hitachi CP-SX1350 last night (borrowed the company projector). I'm going to get an AE900 too for sure. Truly great performance:value ratio! Timing and konting lambing lang kay wifey! hehehe

I'm currently looking for calibration guidelines/tips for the AE900 online as I don't have a calibration disk yet. Any suggestions on where to look?

I'm so happy, I could just kiss the AE900... such hot stuff! Literally! hehehe

Cheers!

[Kato]

Guys, just wanted to share this... take a look at these pics of the AE900's projection with a diagonal screen size of 62.5" and with no calibration done yet. Also note that these were only taken using a mobile phone's camera (posted as is; no color enhancement; just resized). I can't believe my own eyes how good the video is... The colors are so rich and realistic... see to appreciate talaga... these pics don't do justice. I still can't stop saying "wow" since this afternoon. 





I'll be trying HD DiVX movie trailers later and see how the native 1280 x 720 resolution of the AE900 looks like.

Cheers!

[ricky]

bro im sure after the right video calibration you'll be more amazed on its picture quality.The leaves and tree barks at the back of frodo will be clearly visible pati pores sa mukha and eyelashes nya makikita mo. at 520p pa lang happy na ako lalo na siguro kung 720p na! Congrats again bro sa DAD mo

[yakisoba]

how much did you get it from sonny tuazon pre? 

[ronjet]

WOW! ibang klase talaga ae900!!! galing din nila sir ricky ang munskie!

congrats sir kato and to your dad's new toy!... i hope makuha mo na din yung sayo sir. and umpisahan niyo na yung "paglalambing" to your wife po sir .... expert din sila sir munskie and sir ricky also si sir matz dyan! they can truly help you a lot. 

[Kato]

Hi Guys, it's now 6:33am and we just finished the "binyag" session for the AE900 and I'm still all hyped-up. All I can say is that it's so good that we were oblivious na state of emergency na pala tayo. We only stopped because the sun was rising na and creeping through the drapes again.

Anyway... the best part is... I hooked up my laptop to the AE900 and configured the display settings to 1280px by 720px... then played HD DiVX movie trailers (720p) I got from http://www.divx-digest.com/movies/previous_trailers.html (marked as HD)... It was like heaven and earth, believe me! Jaw-dropping "CLARITY" with heavy emphasis on "CLARITY" and true visual fidelity talaga... pure nirvana! Now, I'm craving for full-length HD movies... DVD quality now feels like "it's just not enough" It's just so frustrating kanina kasi after watching all those HD trailers of Superman Returns, Madagascar, Shark Tale, etc... it felt exactly like ALL FOREPLAY AND NO SEX! Bitin talaga!!!

Dunno if it would look as good on my rear projection TV since I don't have a VGA/RGB-to-component cable to hook up my laptop with it.

Ronjet, thanks! My wife's already jealous of the AE900. I just asked her if I could sleep with the AE900 tonight. The hot AE900 will keep me warm.

Yakisoba, we got it for 92K packaged with a 60"x60" pull-down screen. Wasn't that a sweet deal? Or did you get a better one? hmmm..........

Ricky, I'm just waiting for the "Avia Guide to Home Cinema" DVD. Are there others like it that I should get? Just curious, how did you calibrate yours and what values did you use for your advanced settings? I think we may have a similar room structure (though your screen is bigger) so I could probably play with your settings for starters? Also, if you have a PC/laptop capable of displaying 1280x720 through its VGA out, you should really try viewing the HD trailers using your Panny. I promise you, you will love me and give me your entire DVD collection after this new experience hehehe

Cheers!

[Munskie]

hehe..inumaga kayo ne....kaya nga i cant wait din to have a taste of blu-ray or hd-dvd...although im keeping my cards pa....to have the next gen players and format na bumaba yung price.  congrats kato and im glad your one satisfied customer nga panny...

[yakisoba]

92k for the panny is not bad may kasma nang screen eh.  But  Listening Room is offering it at 87k.   So halos same din kasi la pa siyang SCREEN na kasama.   

Dude Can you post some pics of your room? How big is your room? Kasi I have a small HT room eh and a 60' x 60' pull down screen tama lang sa room ko.   

[Kato]

hehe..inumaga kayo ne....kaya nga i cant wait din to have a taste of blu-ray or hd-dvd...although im keeping my cards pa....to have the next gen players and format na bumaba yung price.  congrats kato and im glad your one satisfied customer nga panny...

Munskie, hehehe yeah, I can't wait for the HD DVD and Blu-ray disks and players to come out and for the standards to be ironed out na rin. Since I couldn't wait after experiencing HD last night, here's my immediate HD solution (with minimal or no cost):

Use a capable PC or laptop equipped with a good video card (hi-res and high color bitrate) and a good sound card preferably with digital coaxial or optical output; this setup will seamlessly integrate with the AE900 (or any HD-capable display) and your A/V receiver.

Then get hold of HD DivX videos from friends/relatives who have HDTV broadcasts (very common in the states). I have friends there who record tons of HD programs using a PVR (Personal Video Recorder that's PC and software based, functions like Tivo but better). I already have a couple of full-length HD movies waiting to be viewed (a full-length HD DivX movie fits one DVD disk!) and might just go back to my dad's place tonight for another round of movie marathon

I'm not encouraging this way of acquiring movies, but if you want to experience how HD feels like on your system "now", this is your sneak-peak into the not-so-distant future of high definition video. I assure you, after this, you may not want to go back and will probably tell yourself: "back to the future!". But, then again, you can always wet your feet by getting those HD DivX movie trailers that I literally call "teasers".

My thoughts... using a pc-based HD playback system (a'la media center pc) may prove to be the most practical route (and the most economical if you already have a good pc/laptop system) for now. Of course, later on, you'd have to get a Blu-ray disk drive/player.

92k for the panny is not bad may kasma nang screen eh.  But  Listening Room is offering it at 87k.   So halos same din kasi la pa siyang SCREEN na kasama.   

Dude Can you post some pics of your room? How big is your room? Kasi I have a small HT room eh and a 60' x 60' pull down screen tama lang sa room ko.   

Yakisoba, yeah and I was desperate to get my hands on one so I really didn't shop around after my extensive research on the AE900 hehehe Around how much kaya yung 60"x60" screen? I was hoping to get a bigger screen sana that could give a 100" to 120" diagonal projection size.

Hiya pa ko to post pics of our HT setup, medyo magulo pa kasi... wirings all over, AE900 on the coffee table (yet to be intalled overhead), me sprawled on the floor hehehe. But, I'll definitely post pics of mine and my dad's pag presentable na. Very inspiring mga setups of everyone in the HT Gallery talaga.

Cheers!

[Munskie]

can't wait to see you in the gallery bro....post some panny ae900 in action too....

[ricky]

Ricky, I'm just waiting for the "Avia Guide to Home Cinema" DVD. Are there others like it that I should get? Just curious, how did you calibrate yours and what values did you use for your advanced settings? I think we may have a similar room structure (though your screen is bigger) so I could probably play with your settings for starters? Also, if you have a PC/laptop capable of displaying 1280x720 through its VGA out, you should really try viewing the HD trailers using your Panny. I promise you, you will love me and give me your entire DVD collection after this new experience hehehe

Cheers!

Kato i did not buy any calibrating disc since i just asked my friend BOTE also a member of pinoydvd to calibrate both the audio-video side of my set-up.He has 2 kinds of the calibrating disc one is avia and the other one is sound and vision (i forgot) plus he bought the spl meter.Maybe you can try to just contact him since he calibrates for FREE,and another good thing about him is he researches your set-up before he actually do it para pati settings eh alam nya As for the computer being my player ,yeah Bote bugged me about that eversince i got hold of the panny,he himself watch in 720p using his pc. but the major turn off for me is to operate the laptop everytime i want to view 720p(hassle sa akin )Also planned of building an HTPC with remote but too costly so im just waiting for my oppo player to view in 720p,anyways happy naman na ako for the meantime so why torture myself for hd programming thats still too far for us pinoys to get Dadating din yan sa atin bro so no need to hurry up since hindi pa sulit ang pricing congrats again

Ronjet thank you sa plugging ha

[Kato]

Hey Ricky,

I was also supposed to get the OPPO DV971H from Amazon, but found out it won't play DivX HD. The great thing about it though is that it uses Faroudja's DCDi technology. I prefer the KiSS DP-600 HD media player (http://www.kiss-technology.com/?p=600en&v=users) but it's not yet available and I have a feeling it will cost quite a bit.

Actually, I understand your feelings about not having a laptop or pc near your HT gear. For me, however, since I'm into IT, using laptops/PCs is quite second-nature to me. So I guess, it's relative to one's preference. Marrying my HT system with my laptop or pc seems natural to me and actually that's where the future of HT is going ---> Multimedia Centers/Consoles. I honestly find it attractive to see a sleek Thinkpad T43 on the coffee table with the HT as the backdrop hehehe The small hassle of using a laptop/PC is a very small (even negligible) price to pay for being able to view true HD media. I won't even say it's torture HD is unbelievably so good. Pure eye candy talaga. HD upscaling by mid to high-end players just doesn't cut it. HD upscaling only artificially (mathematically) improves on DVD's 480p resolution (into 720p), but it's not even close to true 720p. Lucky you, you can wait, but I don't think I can! When you've tasted HD, anything lesser just won't taste as good. I'm now having withdrawal symptoms after last night's HD session... sigh...

Thanks for recommending Bote, I'll probably bug him when he's not busy Does your Panny give total blacks in a totally dark room (after calibration)? Like for example, can you distinguish the black bands on top/bottom of a letterbox-format movie?

Cheers!

[yakisoba]

kato: dude question lang . . . You have a 60 x 60 manual projector screen right?    When you pull down the projector screen what are the intervals?  As far as I know kasi when you pull down a projector screen you can set it not to it's full height size na 60".  What's next 50" then 40" then 30"   Kasi I have a dillema when I buy a projector screen I can't pull the whole projector to 60" mga 50" lang.  So my screen would 60" x 50" lang.    Kasi tatamaan yung TV ko.   

Thanks in advance.     

[ricky]

Hey Ricky,

I was also supposed to get the OPPO DV971H from Amazon, but found out it won't play DivX HD. The great thing about it though is that it uses Faroudja's DCDi technology. I prefer the KiSS DP-600 HD media player (http://www.kiss-technology.com/?p=600en&v=users) but it's not yet available and I have a feeling it will cost quite a bit.

Actually, I understand your feelings about not having a laptop or pc near your HT gear. For me, however, since I'm into IT, using laptops/PCs is quite second-nature to me. So I guess, it's relative to one's preference. Marrying my HT system with my laptop or pc seems natural to me and actually that's where the future of HT is going ---> Multimedia Centers/Consoles. I honestly find it attractive to see a sleek Thinkpad T43 on the coffee table with the HT as the backdrop hehehe The small hassle of using a laptop/PC is a very small (even negligible) price to pay for being able to view true HD media. I won't even say it's torture HD is unbelievably so good. Pure eye candy talaga. HD upscaling by mid to high-end players just doesn't cut it. HD upscaling only artificially (mathematically) improves on DVD's 480p resolution (into 720p), but it's not even close to true 720p. Lucky you, you can wait, but I don't think I can! When you've tasted HD, anything lesser just won't taste as good. I'm now having withdrawal symptoms after last night's HD session... sigh...

Thanks for recommending Bote, I'll probably bug him when he's not busy Does your Panny give total blacks in a totally dark room (after calibration)? Like for example, can you distinguish the black bands on top/bottom of a letterbox-format movie?

Cheers!

Bote will be coming over to my place within the week to calibrate my velo cht12r with the rest of my system,Ill ask him to set up my laptop to my panny to try it out yes after calibration black is really black,and since i watch in total darkness even the white housing of the screen turns in to black din

[Kato]

kato: dude question lang . . . You have a 60 x 60 manual projector screen right?    When you pull down the projector screen what are the intervals?  As far as I know kasi when you pull down a projector screen you can set it not to it's full height size na 60".  What's next 50" then 40" then 30"   Kasi I have a dillema when I buy a projector screen I can't pull the whole projector to 60" mga 50" lang.  So my screen would 60" x 50" lang.    Kasi tatamaan yung TV ko.   

Thanks in advance.     

Hi Yakisoba, yeah the screen won't really pull down fully. I'm just not sure by how many inches and what the intervals are, but I'll ask my dad tonight. Not really sure if we'll keep the screen or get a slightly bigger one like 84" or 96". Maybe you could hang the screen slightly forward so that it drops down in front of your TV or push the TV slightly behind the screen (if you have room at the back) or move the TV to a different room?   You won't really be able to use the whole length/height of the screen talaga and minsan nakakailang... parang gusto mo lagyan ng chain extensions yung pull-down screen to lower it to a perfect height para you just pull down a perfect 16:9 (or slightly taller) screen. We're even considering of a DIY screen treated with a special paint (lots of DIY tips about this online).

Bote will be coming over to my place within the week to calibrate my velo cht12r with the rest of my system,Ill ask him to set up my laptop to my panny to try it out yes after calibration black is really black,and since i watch in total darkness even the white housing of the screen turns in to black din

Hi Ricky, so cool! You won't regret trying HD out talaga. Imagine 720p pa lang ang projectors natin, pano pa kaya kung 1080p na... If you have broadband, there are tons of HD movie trailers online.

When achieving real blacks, did your overall luminance/brightness get affected or was anything compromised?

Cheers!

[Kato]

Hey Ricky,

Just in time before you try out HD using your laptop with your Panny, here's another HD option... Windows Media High Definition (WMV HD) which competes with other HD formats. They're even selling WMV HD DVD's online. Check them out at www.wmvhd.com and you can download HD clips from there too if you're on broadband. If not, just let me know and I'd be happy to download HD content for you. I already have a few.

My thoughts... while Blu-ray and HD DVD formats being presently in their silly tug-o-war game, DivX HD and WMV HD formats are already here with their video and audio quality extremely exceptional and even comparable. The great thing is that DivX HD and WMV HD can be contained in standard DVD (even CD) media. This means virtually anyone with a PC/laptop and DVD rom drive can play them. For us HT enthusiasts, this would mean a great deal... heaven is closer and we can touch the clouds. HTPC's are even becoming very common now and lots of software are available that can turn a PC into a self-contained, highly functional HD player (with remote too). In fact, stand alone DivX HD DVD players are already available for those who don't like using PC-based players.

Anyway, just wanna share with you my HD-laptop-Panny experience... when using the Panny with your laptop/PC, try to use 1280px by 720px resolution if possible. This means that anything coming from your laptop's VGA out to the Panny will pass through and be displayed as is with no conversion or scaling since the Panny's native resolution is 1280px by 720px. Otherwise, other high resolutions will be converted/scaled by the Panny's processor automatically. My laptop's setting was 1280px by 1024px (closest I could come to 1280x720) and still looked awesome. If your computer has DVI or HDMI out then so much the better. Hmmm... I think I might just write a short article about this to share with everyone...

Balitaan mo kami about your HD experience ha?

Cheers!

 

[Kato]

'wrote this in relation to this topic... http://pinoydvd.com/board/index.php?topic=48429.0