[Thekop]

I am totally new to the projector scene, but have been thinking of buying one for almost a year now... I've got the Plasma i wanted and i love my current system as it is ( well apart from a receiver upgrade soon ) but i know there is nothing better than an even larger screen in a home cinema set up...

I have the ScreenPlay 7210 on my list of auditions, but can i do better for the money ? I was even thinking of doubling my budget if it warrants it

I also need a screen to go with it ( maybe up to about a 100 inches or so ) So any tips and recommendations anyone can give me will be much appreciated ?

I live on the Isle of Wight, so i need as much advise i can get before traveling around the south looking for demos.

Cheers

[Lizard]

the 7210 is a very good PJ and one you will find hard to fault esp as its your first PJ. However if you can afford to double your money then the sharp XV-Z12000 and Sim2 HT300E are ment to be very good indeed.

As for the screen, how much are you prepared to spend? I'm no expert on screens but i do know there are some stunners out there that dont come cheap.

[Thekop]

Originally Posted by Lizard

the 7210 is a very good PJ and one you will find hard to fault esp as its your first PJ. However if you can afford to double your money then the sharp XV-Z12000 and Sim2 HT300E are ment to be very good indeed.

As for the screen, how much are you prepared to spend? I'm no expert on screens but i do know there are some stunners out there that dont come cheap.

Thanks for that, i'll probably have up to a grand to spend on a screen. A powered one would be ideal

I keep reading about the Sony Ruby. I'm just wondering if it's a bit excessive for a first time buyer though ?

[LFCRules]

Hi mate,

To help with the demo's, I'm sure you'll have them on your list, but pop over to Audio-T in Portsmouth (North End). They completely gutted and redesigned their demo facilities towards the end of last year, and now both rooms look great with very good demo facilities in both for projectors

Cheers

Andy

[Timbo21]

If you want a fixed frame screen, which are the best due to no wrinkles etc., then I don't think you could do better than a Carada for the money, see www.carada.com . Audioholics have compared their brilliant white material as very close to the Stewart studiotek 130 material, which will cost considerably more. You buy direct from the U.S. & my 88" diagonal (76.7" wide viewing area) Criterion with Brilliant White cost about £630 including taxes & shipping. They are awesome screens, sort of like what SVS are to subwoofers, ie fantastic quality at unbeatable price due to buying direct. David Giles, the owner, is a top bloke & can advise on everything. Screen is easy to assemble, loads of great feedback from people on www.avsforum.com as well as here.

Some may say that the Optoma H79 is better than the 7210. It may have a better black level, but I don't think the video processor is as good as the 7210.
However, if you did fancy shelling out around £1500 for an external processor then the H79 may be the better choice. Or, the ruby

[Gary Lightfoot]

the Optoma H79 is good value IMHO. I don't think it's as bright as the Infocus, but it has higher contrast, so will have better blacks as well. www.projectorsareus.co.uk are in Horsham and have Sim2 products on demo, so you could try them if you want to see a Sim2 in action.

Gary.

[Thekop]

Originally Posted by LFCRules

Hi mate,

To help with the demo's, I'm sure you'll have them on your list, but pop over to Audio-T in Portsmouth (North End). They completely gutted and redesigned their demo facilities towards the end of last year, and now both rooms look great with very good demo facilities in both for projectors

Cheers

Andy

Hi mate, yeah i'm considering them also, with SevenOaks in Southampton.
It's quite daunting spending this kind of money, so indepth demos are cruicial.
It'll be a few weeks yet before i take the plundge. But thanks for the recommendation

Is the Sony Ruby really that good ? I'm really waiting to see a few more reviews on that machine yet.. But it looks like the ScreenPlay 7210 seems like a cracking deal, along with the Optomas

I'll be keeping tabs on here for more advice a long the way.

Originally Posted by Timbo21

If you want a fixed frame screen, which are the best due to no wrinkles etc., then I don't think you could do better than a Carada for the money, see www.carada.com . Audioholics have compared their brilliant white material as very close to the Stewart studiotek 130 material, which will cost considerably more. You buy direct from the U.S. & my 88" diagonal (76.7" wide viewing area) Criterion with Brilliant White cost about £630 including taxes & shipping. They are awesome screens, sort of like what SVS are to subwoofers, ie fantastic quality at unbeatable price due to buying direct. David Giles, the owner, is a top bloke & can advise on everything. Screen is easy to assemble, loads of great feedback from people on www.avsforum.com as well as here.

Some may say that the Optoma H79 is better than the 7210. It may have a better black level, but I don't think the video processor is as good as the 7210.
However, if you did fancy shelling out around £1500 for an external processor then the H79 may be the better choice. Or, the ruby
Cheers guys

Thanks mate. A lowering screen is more ideal for me as it'll lower over the plasma. I know what you're saying about a fixed screen though
Thanks for your tips anyway, cheers

Thanks all

[chrislewis]

Hi mate,
Im running a H79 with a Lumagen HDP and the performance is nothing short of staggering.
Ive not seen the 7210 in action but i had a 7205 before the H79 and the H79 knocks the infocus for six in everyway.


chris

[Thekop]

Originally Posted by chrislewis

Hi mate,
Im running a H79 with a Lumagen HDP and the performance is nothing short of staggering.
Ive not seen the 7210 in action but i had a 7205 before the H79 and the H79 knocks the infocus for six in everyway.


chris

Hi mate, sure i'll keep it in mind Do you know the average life expectency of the bulb in that model ?

[chrislewis]

Off the top of my head its 3000hrs but could be more ill dig out the instructions and check.

One more thing with the infocus there noisy buggers my 7205 used to drive me nuts ok in loud action films but watch something different and all i could hear was the pj buzzing over my head and the heat it chucked out used to heat the room.

The H79 is near silent and thats no exageration

cheers

chris

Originally Posted by Thekop

Hi mate, sure i'll keep it in mind Do you know the average life expectency of the bulb in that model ?

Hi,

The Sony Ruby is very very good you just have to see it, and the best bit is that it is native 1080!!!! The black level is not quite as good as DLP at the same price but that is only a very small difference as the benefit to go with the latest Sony offering out weights the negative!

[Thekop]

Originally Posted by chrislewis

Off the top of my head its 3000hrs but could be more ill dig out the instructions and check.

One more thing with the infocus there noisy buggers my 7205 used to drive me nuts ok in loud action films but watch something different and all i could hear was the pj buzzing over my head and the heat it chucked out used to heat the room.

The H79 is near silent and thats no exageration

cheers

chris

Thanks Chris

Originally Posted by AV-Enthusiast

Hi,

The Sony Ruby is very very good you just have to see it, and the best bit is that it is native 1080!!!! The black level is not quite as good as DLP at the same price but that is only a very small difference as the benefit to go with the latest Sony offering out weights the negative!

Hi mate

Sure i'll probably check one out near the time.. Although i do like good black levels when watching moves, but i must say that the Ruby doesn't look very tempting

[Gary Lightfoot]

With the auto iris I would think the Ruby could easily improve upon a DLP black level provided the white level was made the same. If the DLP was considerably dimmer thna the Ruby, then the black level could be darker, but at the same level of brightness, the Ruby would be blacker. If you're talking about the iris being 'on', then it would be about the same, depending on it's brightness level at white.

The best DLPs are around 4000: to 5000:1, and the Ruby has been measured at bewteen 12000:1 and 17000:1, with one owner tweaking his to 30000:1, so it is capable of CRT blacks when set for shadow detail, and even approaching total fade to black, though not quite there yet.

Gary.

[Meridius]

you say the sony can do 12000:1 to 17000:1 but will the sony ruby produce
a total black without anything projected on the screen or do the best dlps still do better blacks here

I have always found with any projector that it could inprove on total black but you always get light on the screen thay are getting darker gray now but does the ruby offer total black levels or do the new hs81 produce a better black ???

[Gary Lightfoot]

The Sony cannot do total fade to black like a CRT, but then again a CRT will only do total fade to black with a loss of shadow detail - if calibrated correctly so that shadow detail is visible, even a CRT will have a slight glow on the screen, and the Ruby can achieve that. No current production DLP will match it if it has the same level of brightness though. If you dim a DLP down using a lens filter, then you could match the black level but at the expense of overall brightness.

Black level is determined by reference white level and contrast ratio.

Some CRTs with special gamma circuits (recently developed, so not main stream), or a custom gamma capability via HTPC or external scaler can achieve TFTB and good shadow detail - I would say that to match a CRT which had been calibrated for good shadow detail, we are looking for around 10,000:1 on/off CR, but for TFTB and good shadow detail from a fixed pixel display we are probably looking for around 30,000:1.

Intra-scene contrast (ANSI contrast) will be better on a DLP than any LCD/SXRD display if the room allows it. That will help with better depth of field and intra-scene blacks so DLPs will do better here. I believe the Ruby measured at around 213:1 ANSI using a modified ANSI test pattern, but a good DLP can achieve over double that in a suitable room (dark non reflective walls and no ambient light).

I don't know what the calibrated white level or the production contrast ratio will be of the HD81 (it may have a user adjustable iris), but the chances are it may be able to do the same brightness and black level as the Ruby - but not both at the same time - it will need to have an auto iris for that. There's a good chance it will have a higher contrast and better brightness and black levels than the Ruby in iris full on or full off modes though. We will have to wait and see.

Until a production model becomes available and somebody can see it and measure it, we won't know for sure how well it will compete with teh Ruby.

HTH

Gary.

[Thekop]

Hi

I am taking everything on board here So thanks guys for contributing to my quest in choosing a short list

I think what i'm really after is a great all rounder...
It's only when i get into the demo rooms i will really be able to judge.. But will spending more reap me greater benefits ?

Contrast range, black definition and image smoothness is a top priority.
Plus good bulb life and a good back up service.
I see that ScreenPlay throws in an extra bulb with their models too
Food for thought !

Cheers all