[max7]

I am in a position to buy a 108p projector and I am torn between the panny and the HD80. From a price perspective the panny comes in a 2.5k whilst the HD80 is 2k. I would pay the extra £500 if I thought it was worth the extra. I am not an expert and I fear a short demo may not be conclusive.

I would sooner buy on reccomendation from experts. I dont mean to be derogatary to the retailers - I know many add invalubaly to the forums but I know they can also be biast.

I will be seated between 10-15 feet watching an 8ft wide screen...

[Avi]

Originally Posted by max7

I am in a position to buy a 108p projector and I am torn between the panny and the HD80. From a price perspective the panny comes in a 2.5k whilst the HD80 is 2k. I would pay the extra £500 if I thought it was worth the extra. I am not an expert and I fear a short demo may not be conclusive.

I would sooner buy on reccomendation from experts. I dont mean to be derogatary to the retailers - I know many add invalubaly to the forums but I know they can also be biast.

I will be seated between 10-15 feet watching an 8ft wide screen...

Demo, demo, demo and then just to be sure demo again. At the end of the day it's the image that your prefer that counts. DLP and LCD produce a different "style" of image and some prefer one to the other. Some other things -

DLP PJ's tends to be less flexible with regard to PJ mounting/screen position as they usually have less lens shift or longer throw which may/may not be a consideration.

The noise level produced by the PJ when operating may also be a consideration.

Also some people are affected by what is called "RBE" or raindows with single chip DLP. This is because a single chip DLP uses a very fast spinning wheel with different colour segments to produce colours on screen. Some people see muti-colour rainbows on the edges of moving objects or areas of high contrast. Not everyone is affected but if you or your family are it could be a problem.

Go see/hear them in action and take along familar material to test.

AVI

[ShanePJ]

Hi Max7

The HD80 vs. PTAE1000. The HD80 really is in a league of it's own. Giving a brilliant first impression. Your room dimensions means you need to opted for a smaller screen(i.e. 92"). But I can guarantee you will not be disappointed if you do so!

If you cannot opted for a smaller screen then the Panasonic PTAE1000 is the next best projector at this price level and it will fit your screen.

Regards. Shane.

[max7]

Hi Shane

Thank you for the advise but can you confirm that using the HD80 on a screen larger than 92 inch wide will result in a degraded picture?

[Avi]

Originally Posted by max7

Hi Shane

Thank you for the advise but can you confirm that using the HD80 on a screen larger than 92 inch wide will result in a degraded picture?

Max7


How far would the PJ mounted be from the screen ? The limit may be due to the maximum image size from a given throw i.e. to achieve a 8' wide image the PJ would need to be mounted ~ 18' from the screen.

AVI

[max7]

Shane,

The screen will be a maximum of 16 feet away

[Liam @ Prog AV]

IMO screensize is irrelevant here. The HD80 will offer the best picture without much stress at all. The question will be the relatively fixed installation position (no lens shift), any running noise differences, and if you suffer from rainbows. The picture though, 100% of the time will be better on the HD80.

[sniffer66]

Originally Posted by Liam @ Prog AV

IMO screensize is irrelevant here. The HD80 will offer the best picture without much stress at all. The question will be the relatively fixed installation position (no lens shift), any running noise differences, and if you suffer from rainbows. The picture though, 100% of the time will be better on the HD80.

Do you have them in stock as well now Liam ?

[warbie]

How bright are the two in comparison? I plan on powering 2 screens - a 7ft white 1.0 gain and a 6ft grey 0.8 - and want something bright enough to last a good while. I had a TW1000 which, due a fault, was sent back. I was pretty impressed with it, but even with a brand new bulb it was struggling in terms of brightness in my non bat cave of a room.

If the Themescene is nice and bright when calibrated I could live with a few rainbows.

[ShanePJ]

Hi All

Just be in a Demo with the HD80 and one very happy customer.

As for the image degrading I feel that on a 106" screen compared to the other 1080p projectors this will still offer one of the best results you can achieve. To fit this projector in you need around 18' as a minimum distance.

As for the brightness. Haven't tried it on a grey screen but on the Beamax M Silver is plenty bright enough for me, I expect if you need the extra contrast then the HD80 will not disappoint.

Noise level. The HD80 is very quiet and does not distract in any way form the movie.

And yes we have stock.

Regards. Shane

[ShanePJ]

Hi Warbie

The Themescene HD80 is Brighter.

Regards. Shane

[max7]

The panny is an exceptional machine - if the HD80 is indeed superior... in what areas does it excel ?

[Liam @ Prog AV]

By being a DLP machine

[Avi]

Originally Posted by Liam @ Prog AV

By being a DLP machine

Assuming you or your family or friends are not affected by rainbows.

AVI

[Liam @ Prog AV]

As I said in my previous post, the *picture quality* will go to the HD80. You must take into account other factors such as RBE, no lens shift, fan noise etc and if they might affect your specific installation.

Calibrated ANSI contrast ratio for example I think was mentioned here or on another HD80 post. Was in the 500s which is exceptional. Only a handful of other DLP machines go above this. I do not know the figure for the Panasonic, but it will be around 300 at best. The JVC HD1 is high 300s

[warbie]

How does it compare too the HD1? Bearing in mind the noise, rbe etc

[Avi]

Originally Posted by Liam @ Prog AV

As I said in my previous post, the *picture quality* will go to the HD80. You must take into account other factors such as RBE, no lens shift, fan noise etc and if they might affect your specific installation.

Calibrated ANSI contrast ratio for example I think was mentioned here or on another HD80 post. Was in the 500s which is exceptional. Only a handful of other DLP machines go above this. I do not know the figure for the Panasonic, but it will be around 300 at best. The JVC HD1 is high 300s

Liam

I spent some time with the HD81 a while back how does the HD80 compare ? Also have they sorted the DI ?

AVI

[sniffer66]

I'd also like to know how it compares. I orderd an 80 today but I'm sitting here wondering whether I should have gone for the DC3 81 instead

Damn these post delivery blues !

[Avi]

Originally Posted by warbie

How does it compare too the HD1? Bearing in mind the noise, rbe etc

I spent time with the HD81 a while back and at that point apart from RBE the biggest issues for me were-

• The dynamic iris was noticeable in operation (appeared to lag behind what was on screen). It also made a "cick/crunch" noise when adjusting

• The black level wasn't that good and got worse if you turned off the dynamic iris

• It was loud in operation and truned in to hovercaft on high lamp (no joke)

• You could not replace/upgrade the bundled VP as it uses an RS232 link to control the HD81

• Longish throw and lack of lens shift could be a limitation in some installs

• Brightness dropped significantly between pre and post calibration

• The image had a "digital" look to it more so than other DLP's I've seen

Not sure if the HD80 improves in any of these areas or some could be addressed with calibration but best to go see them with your own eyes and compare with other PJ's. Be sure to watch some quiet scenes.

AVI

Oh well that's solved that issue of me wanting one. I only have 16' to play with and currently have a 109" screen.

No way am I going smaller

[Liam @ Prog AV]

I'd probably take the HD1 over the HD81 just because it's a nicer projector to install and use. I still prefer DLP contrast, but the JVC is just a well built product in all departments. Unfortunately for JVC I think the VXP in the Themescene does a better job when you set it up, but the setup is horrific. I still can't get to grips with the gamma and the edge enhancement sections (why isn't there just an edge enhancement OFF option!). Anyway, going off-topic here.

For 2 grand I can't see that the HD80 has much competition to worry about. Unfortunately it doesn't get VXP power like the HD81 does, but not much else in this price bracket does either. However I do not know if it uses the same AI or if there have been any improvements wrt noise levels etc. It quotes a lower dB rating so I assume something has been worked on.