[RICKYJ]

After much deliberation, I decided that I wanted to sell my AX100E. I had used an Optoma HD70 previously, and did like the DLP picture, but the offset just did not work in my converted garage, but after stumbling across an advert for the IN76, I realized that it had a much better offset 115-116% (dependent on what you read), which would work in my room, with some small alterations to the screen.

Order History/Experience/Background

So I set about finding a good price for the IN76, only to discover that Infocus actually offer refurbished/overstocked units on ebay via their own ebay shop. I often feel that refurbished units are often offer a different value than original new units, as they have often been inspected before resale, rather than just come off a factory belt. They do only have a 12 month warranty though.... To my surprise, they had the IN78 for sale for under £700 inc delivery. The IN78 had retailed at over £2,000 when they were released in late 2006, and had received very good reviews, as can be seen from the following links:

Home cinema choice - winning the best projector under £3000 in the 2007 awards

Trusted reviews

Other review quotes

The specifications, and official Infocus links


So I cashed in on my AX100E on the forums, taking a bit of a hit on the purchase price, but technology never stands still I also cashed in the extended cover that I had on the unit, which made me in the region of £700 enough to cover a (IN78) purchase.

So after some questions to Rafe (the Infocus ebay contact), I purchased an IN78 via an ebay auction on Tues 3 June, for the grand total of £675. Please note ebay's estimated conversion for £ is a little off when paying by paypal - it was about £25 out (for the worse) for me. I received an email later that day to say that they had run out of refurbished projector, so I was actually getting a brand new unit

On Wed 3 June, I received confirmation that the unit had been sent from Holland via UPS, and was provided with a tracking number. Delivery date was scheduled for Friday (to my work address). I tracked it to the door, and it was delivered on time on Friday, but I was out of the office, so did not get the unit until Sunday.

Setting the unit up

All the accessories were evident, although the main manual is on CD. It also included a UK 3 pin lead. I wasn't sure it would do as it came in from Europe.

I moved the mount, (the screen still needs to be dropped a little), and set about connecting the unit up.

Observations

The colours (skin tones etc) appear to appear be very accurate. The blacks appear to be much better than the AX100E, and the punch on the dark scenes appear to be better.

It appears to take a little while to sync to a source, but does tell you it is syncing....

It takes a 1080p24 from the PS3, but my unit came with firmware 1.3. so I need to upgrade to 1.4 before I can see whether it outputs it correctly. I am yet to try my EP35 to see whether it accepts the 24p signal, as unlike the PS3, it is not forced.

The unit seems quiet in whisper mode, while plenty bright enough.

Conclusion

I have used the unit for under an hour, so more to follow.

Pics and more information will follow in the coming days, but at under £700 this is an outstanding unit.

[fishman09]

nice one for the new thread m8

i'm looking at either the in78 or 76, so any screens/info you can post over the coming days would be greatly appreciated

fish

[Klippie]

£675..., that's an outstanding price, I bought mine for £1900 when they came out and I thought that was a good price for the quality of the image it threw. Its a very under rated machine the IN78 and unless RBE bothers you I can guarantee you’ll not see a better 720p picture unless you spend an awful lot more money. If thats what the IN78 costs there's no point buying an IN76.

I've got a PS3 hooked up as well, fantastic is all I can say...

[Andy30]

I've got to say I'm impressed with mine and I've only had it up since the weekend.

I got it from the same seller on Ebay for about £660 inc p&p, mine was also a brand new machine and very quick delivery as well.

The only mistake I made was to buy a cheap screen and it's letting the picture down quite badly so I now have to look for a better screen do really do it justice.

The golf on the 360 looks amazing though even with the bad screen.

[Osamede]

Just got mine a couple weeks ago and have a Grandview screen arrriving tomorrow. Looking forward to setting it all up!

[RICKYJ]

Sorry for the delay in posting back to this thread. I have had a few personal matters to attend to....

I have now been able to spend a few hours with the projector, and initial impressions are that the picture on SD-DVD is, and on normal sky it appears improved over the AX100.

Blu-ray looks excellent, especially now that I have been able to update the firmware to 1.4 for smooth 24p playback. The picture from the PC is also excellent

Also I used a THX disc to do a calibration, and it was very close out of the box

More feedback to come in due course, but in the meantime here are some pictures from sky-hd, and spiderman 3 on blu-ray....

[Andy30]

Can I ask which screen are you using?

Just trying to make a final decision on the screen I'm going to buy.

Thanks.

[RICKYJ]

Originally Posted by Andy30

Can I ask which screen are you using?

Just trying to make a final decision on the screen I'm going to buy.

Thanks.

I use a goo painted screen, although it needs changing as i still see roller marks caused by a pattern on the roller

I was going to go for a drh fixed screen, but actually noticed you were disappointed with your manual screen. Why was that?

I see you have already been enquiring, and have to admit Beamax looks like a possible solution, as it has some good feedback... But their fixed screens are quite expensive

[Andy30]

I'd prefer a fixed screen but unfortunately I have to have the screen in front of a plasma so have to compromise a little.

I was very happy with my DRH screen, it was just too small and 4:3 ratio.

I upgraded to a cheap electric screen which is the one I was dissapointed with, just trying to save a bit but you live and learn.

I am torn between the Beamax and the DRH screen, I have decided to spend the extra and go for an electric screen though.

The DRH is a £100 cheaper but I don't want to make the same mistake again.

Decisions decisions.

[mogge66]

Having first built a projector last year, which proved extremely good but was relatively large and looked like a dog coffin on the living room floor, I switched to an IN78 at the end of last year, and it's great. The g/f suggested getting one to replace the monster on the floor, and with great reviews and low pricing (cheaper from the ebay store but not by much compared to new which is what I went for), it was a no brainer. The Gadget show did a blind test recently of an Infocus and a top end LCD projector, and everyone without exception said that the Infocus DLP was better by miles than the LCD.

Optical Fault - Warped Prism?
It did develop problems in the optics after about 4 months and only about 400 hours, (see http://www.flickr.com/photos/26901008@N04/), and which I ignored at first but it got worse. Infocus were good and swapped the unit out a few days after reporting it so that we weren't left without one. Cross fingers the replacement won't go the same way.

Screen
For a screen, we simply project onto a wall painted with white Dulux Trade Matt Emulsion from about 3.5 to 4 meters away at maximum zoom (image about 2.5M wide) in our living room/media room. I'm curious about alternatives, but while goo (which we're thinking about) and expensive screens may be better, they would not as aesthetically pleasing as using a white wall that fits with the rest of the room, and the picture is stunningly good from the Dulux. Colours are rich and vibrant, and the image is bright just on regular brightness and even if the room is not fully dark.

Location
We used to have it on a coffee table, but just switched to a ceiling mount which is much better. There's no keystone correction required now which improves the image in some cases, and it's nice to get it out of the way. It's great to settle down on the sofa and press a button and have the lights dim, projector come on, and the room transform for a movie I just need to automate the Ikea blinds so that they shut automatically

Sources
Right now we play DVD's from a Mac mini with VLC (Apple DVD player gives a much worse image than VLC), but the default image profile on the Mac needs to be adjusted to improve contrast. Even through a 15M S-video cable Sky+ looks OK for most broadcasts, but improved a lot by setting sharpness on the IN78 to "Sharper". Should be much better from Sky HD and the HDMI though. Despite having a large and decent LCD TV, we now almost never use it in favour of the projector.

[Osamede]

There a lot of options in the picture settings, including colour, sharpness and brightness. Does anyone have a set of suggested settings for best picture for this projector? I use whisper mode only.

[cjmilner]

Originally Posted by RICKYJ

It takes a 1080p24 from the PS3, but my unit came with firmware 1.3. so I need to upgrade to 1.4 before I can see whether it outputs it correctly. I am yet to try my EP35 to see whether it accepts the 24p signal, as unlike the PS3, it is not forced.

Hi Ricky, just bought an IN78 from the same guy on eBay as yourself, for the same price (absolute steal, was a new model and not a refurbished one as advertised). I have tried to connect it to my EP35 and the projector will not display 1080p/24, I dont know what firmware edition is as I didnt think to check, but will do later when I'm at home. Have you managed to update your firmware to 1.4? If so, is the PJ now displaying 1080p/24 for you?

Cheers

Chris

[RICKYJ]

Originally Posted by cjmilner

Hi Ricky, just bought an IN78 from the same guy on eBay as yourself, for the same price (absolute steal, was a new model and not a refurbished one as advertised). I have tried to connect it to my EP35 and the projector will not display 1080p/24, I dont know what firmware edition is as I didnt think to check, but will do later when I'm at home. Have you managed to update your firmware to 1.4? If so, is the PJ now displaying 1080p/24 for you?

Cheers

Chris

I have updated my firmware:-) It definately has made a difference to the PS3, but can't comment on the EP35, as I have not yet connected it up. That is in the bedroom at the moment

Will try and connect it up on Thursday, and let you know how I get on, as it works in a different way to the PS3

Anyway Chris, when did you get the IN78, and are you getting on with it?

[cjmilner]

Originally Posted by RICKYJ

I have updated my firmware:-) It definately has made a difference to the PS3, but can't comment on the EP35, as I have not yet connected it up. That is in the bedroom at the moment

Will try and connect it up on Thursday, and let you know how I get on, as it works in a different way to the PS3

Anyway Chris, when did you get the IN78, and are you getting on with it?

I just got it yesterday and have only had it sat on a box, need to move my Voguls mount as I previously had a Panasonic PTAX100 like yourself, how accurate do you think I will need to be in getting the lens sitting in the middle of the screen? Dont have the luxury of the lens shift anymore!

Chris

[RICKYJ]

Originally Posted by cjmilner

how accurate do you think I will need to be in getting the lens sitting in the middle of the screen? Dont have the luxury of the lens shift anymore!

Chris

Very accurate

[cjmilner]

And now the projector wont even connect to my EP35! Just refuses to make the connection by HDMI! It was taking many attempts yesterday to connect but today it just wont connect whatsoever, it tries searching for a signal then returns to the splash screen.

I was going to try and update the firmware, but cannot find the M1DA cable that has the USB plug on the other end to plug into the PC, did this come with yours Ricky? I have a feeling that I saw it when I opened the box but cant find it anywhere now.

[RICKYJ]

Originally Posted by cjmilner

And now the projector wont even connect to my EP35! Just refuses to make the connection by HDMI! It was taking many attempts yesterday to connect but today it just wont connect whatsoever, it tries searching for a signal then returns to the splash screen.

Have you made sure the HDMI cable is in the projector correctly. Due to the position of the hdmi port, I found the cable had worked loose once I moved the projector around to get it square to the display

Originally Posted by cjmilner

I was going to try and update the firmware, but cannot find the M1DA cable that has the USB plug on the other end to plug into the PC, did this come with yours Ricky? I have a feeling that I saw it when I opened the box but cant find it anywhere now.

It does not come in the box But I will PM you with details of where to get one at a good price, and quickly.

[cjmilner]

Originally Posted by RICKYJ

Have you made sure the HDMI cable is in the projector correctly. Due to the position of the hdmi port, I found the cable had worked loose once I moved the projector around to get it square to the display



It does not come in the box But I will PM you with details of where to get one at a good price, and quickly.

Yes, I was sure to push it firmly in, and checked it every time. The cable works fine with TV and PS3 and is a good quality QED. I'm glad you have told me that the cable was not included, I can stop the search now!

[RICKYJ]

Originally Posted by cjmilner

Yes, I was sure to push it firmly in, and checked it every time. The cable works fine with TV and PS3 and is a good quality QED. I'm glad you have told me that the cable was not included, I can stop the search now!

That is odd. Are your switching on the projector before the HD-DVD player, HDMI and HDCP can be funny sometimes...

Are you using a receiver in the middle, or direct HDMI to proj?

Also have you tried using the second HDMI port (via the adapter in the box)?

Ricky

[cjmilner]

Originally Posted by RICKYJ

That is odd. Are your switching on the projector before the HD-DVD player, HDMI and HDCP can be funny sometimes...

Are you using a receiver in the middle, or direct HDMI to proj?

Also have you tried using the second HDMI port (via the adapter in the box)?

Ricky

I've tried switching the PJ before DVD and vice versa, no effect. Its going straight to the PJ, havn't set up the sound in the room yet. And no, didnt think of using the adapter, I sent an email to technical support last night and just got an email saying that the local service centre would be in touch to pick up and replace the projector as it was defective 30 days from new. I just hope they dont arrive and its all working fine!

[Anim]

Who sells this at £700? I can only see it for £900 on ebay.

[RICKYJ]

it was the seller infocusinternational, but they don't seem to have any advertised at the moment. I will send you the details for Rafe tomorrow, if you want, so you can see if they have any more...

[Anim]

Please, that would be helpful. Thanks.

[cjmilner]

Tried using the white adapter and it works straight away, although the EP35 wont send a 1080p signal through it, a message comes up saying that I need to stop the playback and it does so and reverts to 720p. I think it must be the HDMI socket on the PJ that is causing the problem, it just doesnt seem to sit in there firmly enough and any slight movement or bend in the cable interupts the connection.

[RICKYJ]

Originally Posted by Anim

Please, that would be helpful. Thanks.

PM Sent.

[cjmilner]

Originally Posted by Anim

Who sells this at £700? I can only see it for £900 on ebay.

Here is the Infocus eBay shop, sadly there are no more IN78's available at the moment, but it seems to be updated quite regularly so just keep checking back on there. http://stores.ebay.co.uk/The-InFocus-Europe-Store

[RICKYJ]

Originally Posted by cjmilner

Tried using the white adapter and it works straight away, although the EP35 wont send a 1080p signal through it, a message comes up saying that I need to stop the playback and it does so and reverts to 720p. I think it must be the HDMI socket on the PJ that is causing the problem, it just doesnt seem to sit in there firmly enough and any slight movement or bend in the cable interupts the connection.

Agreed the HDMI port is not in the best place. But I have no problems sending 1080p with the HTPC and PS3. Will try my EP35 later, but my sources all go through an Onkyo TX-SR875, so a slightly different HDMI/HDCP chain.
When are they replacing the unit?

[cjmilner]

its just when I used the DVI adapter that it wouldnt output to 1080p, HDMI, when it is working, works fine to 1080p, just not at 24fps.

I got an email from infocus saying that I would be contacted by a local service centre to arrange for a pick up.

[Osamede]

You need the most recent firmware for this unit to do 1080p 24 fps. If your unit did not come with that firmware, that would be the problem - and probably what they would be doing with your unit.

Originally Posted by cjmilner

its just when I used the DVI adapter that it wouldnt output to 1080p, HDMI, when it is working, works fine to 1080p, just not at 24fps.

I got an email from infocus saying that I would be contacted by a local service centre to arrange for a pick up.

[cjmilner]

Originally Posted by Osamede

You need the most recent firmware for this unit to do 1080p 24 fps. If your unit did not come with that firmware, that would be the problem - and probably what they would be doing with your unit.

Yes I have arranged to get hold of the cable to connect it to the PC to do the update for this.