JVC X5000 (DLA-X5000B) Projector Review & Comments

Looks nice. It is a shame though that a PJ at this price point is still going to need an external 3DLUT solution to have colours that track through the whole gamut accurately, especially when you consider that all the electronics you'd need for a 3DLUT is undoubtedly already in the box (save for a little bit of flash memory to store the 3DLUT, and perhaps a slightly larger FPGA).
 
It's funny should mention that but I'm in the middle of reviewing the Murideo Prisma 3DLUT video processor and was about to use it on the X5000.
 
That will be interesting. I think it is the next least expensive 3DLUT solution to the eecolor 3DLUT boxes I have a couple of, which sadly are no longer in active development from what I can see (though still working well for what they do).
 
I thought HDR content was freely available on the web to test it?

http://demo-uhd3d.com
You still need a means to play it back into the projector. I have yet to find a HEVC HDR media player to use with my MAC and I have yet to find a media box to play any HDR clips in to the projector. Works with some TVs as they have players built-in. Waiting on Sony sending me a player so I can finish the VW520ES review.
 
Last edited:
I'm surprised that the CMS calibration was done at 100% as typically there is very little content at 100% so adjusting the CMS at 75% may well give better 'real world' results (possibly helping with the 25 & 50% results too), even if it takes the dE at 100% higher.

I wasn't aware of the Murideo Prisma 3DLUT box, but my first question would be whether it is 4K or not? At the moment there seems little point in giving up the excellent results I get with an external Lumagen 2041, but of course this device is limited to 1080p input/4k output. I'd either need a 4K video processor, or ideally a projector that can be calibrated well using it's own controls. Hence why I'm banging on about calibrating the CMS for more typical 'real world' use.
 
The calibration is done at 75%, perhaps I didn't make that clear. The point I was trying to make was that the tracking out-of-the box is excellent from 75% down, so you just need to tweak the CMS rather that dialling in perfect results which is what I did initially. If you over use the CMS it begins have an adverse effect at 25 and 50%. The X5000 can be calibrated well using its own controls, I only mentioned the Prisma because I happen to be reviewing it right now.
 
Great review :)

The fact that it got such a resounding thumbs up despite not being able to review it with HDR speaks volumes about this projectors value :)

I get the feeling it's going to be hard deciding between the X5000 & X7000.
 
Hi Steve, thanks for a great review.

Looks nice. It is a shame though that a PJ at this price point is still going to need an external 3DLUT solution to have colours that track through the whole gamut accurately, especially when you consider that all the electronics you'd need for a 3DLUT is undoubtedly already in the box (save for a little bit of flash memory to store the 3DLUT, and perhaps a slightly larger FPGA).

The JVCs absolutely don't need an external 3D LUT as long as you use the excellent and free JVC Autocal software to get an almost perfect baseline, both for gamma/greyscale and gamut.

What Steve reports is the best you can get with the internal contrals, which are very limited as you have only 2 point greyscale, tri-band gamma and non-working CMS.

The JVC Autocal software, which requires a Spyder 4 (possibly Spyder 5 soon) sensor gives you up to 33 step gamma autocalibration, 12-point manual gamma adjustment and near perfect gamut calibration provided you create a custom rec-709 colour profile (and the specific Spyder 4/5 unit you use is reasonably accurate).

The calibration is done at 75%, perhaps I didn't make that clear. The point I was trying to make was that the tracking out-of-the box is excellent from 75% down, so you just need to tweak the CMS rather that dialling in perfect results which is what I did initially. If you over use the CMS it begins have an adverse effect at 25 and 50%. The X5000 can be calibrated well using its own controls, I only mentioned the Prisma because I happen to be reviewing it right now.

This is the way the JVC CMS has always worked sadly, on current and past models back to their first CMS on the HD-750. It was definitely there on my X7. That's when I first reported it and it's been there since, but as most people were not checking linearity, they just produced great looking charts and undersaturated calibrations.

The internal JVC CMS does generate undersaturated calibrations if you aim for 100% of rec-709. It has always done. The only way to mitigate this is to calibrate to 75% of rec-709, as you have done, but it's still not ideal. As I - and others - have reported this to JVC for years now, it's quite clear that either they don't understand the issue, or they can't solve it. The CMS is best not used for this reason as it messes with the gamut linearity or leads to an oversaturated calibration at 100% sat (there isn't much real content there, except maybe with animation, but still).

This used to lead to the need to get external calibration until they offered the JVC Autocal software. Now, with this software, you can get in most cases - bar an undersaturated / uncorrectable gamut to start with - a near perfect calibration.

Regarding how much of P3 the X5000 can cover, you might want to use the JVC autocal to create a DCI custom profile and see how much of P3 you measure with this.

Just like creating a custom rec-709 colour profile gives you much better results (fully correctable, excellent saturation tracking), creating a DCI colour profile with the JVC Autocal software would ensure that you are actually getting the widest possible gamut the PJ can offer.

Alternatively, you might want to try with colour profile off, not with the cinema profile you have used, which is wider but is likely not the widest possible gamut the PJ can offer.

I and others have documented the JVC Autocal software in the other forum, so you might want to take a look and see how it works. It has a steep learning curve given the lack of detailed documentation from JVC, but it's a well worth investment, and in my opinion the only way to get the best out of these projectors, especially without any external correction.
 
Last edited:
I loved reading this review........

Not because I want this projector...But because at the end it recommends the epson TW9200 in the £3k bracket and I picked up mine in as new condition for £1500 :)
 
The JVC Autocal software, which requires a Spyder 4 (possibly Spyder 5 soon) sensor gives you up to 33 step gamma autocalibration, 12-point manual gamma adjustment and near perfect gamut calibration provided you create a custom rec-709 colour profile (and the specific Spyder 4/5 unit you use is reasonably accurate).

Useful info, seems a shame not to include it in the review as it sounds like it should give you a more or less spot-on calibration. Makes me think there is no point trying to calibrate this PJ via the CMS - to do so in any meaningful way means you need a meter, so you might as well use the JVC software which accesses the much more granular controls?
 
Hi Steve, many thanks for the thorough in-depth review. Makes the X5000 seem like incredible value. On the 3D front where about 3 or 4 of us enthusiasts are left, I wanted to ask about the 96hz refresh of the glasses. I am unfortunately cursed with the ability to notice the low level flicker at this rate or at least have been with past JVC projects. Are you able to comment on this at all. 120z or 60z per eye a\la Epson seems to be just about OK and I'm hoping the new JVC's may be at a similar rate of sync? Thanks in advance, Paul
 
You still need a means to play it back into the projector. I have yet to find a HEVC HDR media player to use with my MAC and I have yet to find a media box to play any HDR clips in to the projector. Works with some TVs as they have players built-in. Waiting on Sony sending me a player so I can finish the VW520ES review.

Yes we have used a Sony content generator to play back HDR.
 
Hi Steve, many thanks for the thorough in-depth review. Makes the X5000 seem like incredible value. On the 3D front where about 3 or 4 of us enthusiasts are left, I wanted to ask about the 96hz refresh of the glasses. I am unfortunately cursed with the ability to notice the low level flicker at this rate or at least have been with past JVC projects. Are you able to comment on this at all. 120z or 60z per eye a\la Epson seems to be just about OK and I'm hoping the new JVC's may be at a similar rate of sync? Thanks in advance, Paul

Count me in as a 3D enthusiast. Unfortunately no change in 3D refresh rate, so flicker likely the same if you're sensitive to it (luckily I'm not).
 
Cheers for the review and LOL at marvin the martian, that is THE crosstalk test that I've never seen a projector handle perfectly (first thing I did was run that 3D scene when I got my TW 9200)
 
Thanks Manni, always glad to hear from a fellow 3D enthusiast. I'm still going to give the X7000 a good old go to see if I can get past the 96z problem. Otherwise its either the LS10000 or waiting for next years wave of projectors. Not sure I could stand another year of hanging around:mad:
 
Last edited:
Thanks Manni, always glad to hear from a fellow 3D enthusiast. I'm still going to give the X7000 a good old go to see if I can get past the 96z problem. Otherwise its either the LS10000 or waiting for next years wave of projectors. Not sure I could stand another year of hanging around:mad:

3D was one of the few areas where the LS10000 was better than my X500 (less crosstalk, less flicker, the 500ES was a tad better though adding better resolution as even 3D is upconverted to 4K on the Sony 4K models), but the added brightness in the new models will likely allow the JVCs to get back into the lead as they have a lot more contrast than both the LS10000 and the 5x0ES, even in 3D. Unless flicker is a real issue for you, I would take less crosstalk and higher brightness anytime.

Can't wait to look at the X7000, hopefully in the next few weeks. I still think it will be my next projector and will replace my trusty X500, one of the main reasons being improved 3D.
 
Count me in as a 3D enthusiast. Unfortunately no change in 3D refresh rate, so flicker likely the same if you're sensitive to it (luckily I'm not).
It's funny what we are susceptible to. I remember showing a friend some 3d on my JVC and the 1st thing he said was 'whats with all the flickering '. I've never seen it, not even once and I've watched loads of 3d.

Yet he doesn't see rainbows on dlp projectors. I see them all the time, even on plasma tv's. Weird....
 
It's funny what we are susceptible to. I remember showing a friend some 3d on my JVC and the 1st thing he said was 'whats with all the flickering '. I've never seen it, not even once and I've watched loads of 3d.

Yet he doesn't see rainbows on dlp projectors. I see them all the time, even on plasma tv's. Weird....
Exactly Soupdragon, its a darned curse and makes the viewing of 3D very tiring. If only the LS10000 was brighter and allowed for HDR, I would have snagged it in a minute. As it is I'm torn between hoping I might acclimatise to the X7000 and waiting for the next generation of pjs:facepalm:
 
Hi Steve, many thanks for the thorough in-depth review. Makes the X5000 seem like incredible value. On the 3D front where about 3 or 4 of us enthusiasts are left, I wanted to ask about the 96hz refresh of the glasses. I am unfortunately cursed with the ability to notice the low level flicker at this rate or at least have been with past JVC projects. Are you able to comment on this at all. 120z or 60z per eye a\la Epson seems to be just about OK and I'm hoping the new JVC's may be at a similar rate of sync? Thanks in advance, Paul
The review sample didn't actually arrive with any 3D glasses included (Phil had a similar problem with the VW520) but luckily I have two pairs of glasses and an emitter of my own. They're just the standard 3D glasses that JVC have been using for the past few years, so if you're susceptible to flicker nothing will have changed I'm afraid. Unfortunately as others have pointed out flicker is a bit like rainbows, it varies from person to person.
 
Im still running my trusty HD350 which I've had for the past six years but am wondering whether the X5000 might be the machine to finally upgrade to. I've been pondering whether it would be a better option for me than a cheaper 2nd hand X500?

It obviously will for UHDBD & 3D, but in terms of black levels & contrast......

My room is a velvet lined batcave, but quite small. My pj is currently at maximum throw and zoom to light up my 110" (diagonal) screen. As such, I doubt absolute brightness is an issue either way. I imagine that I would run either pj in low lamp and achieve the same brightness on screen, with the X5000 manual aperture closed further. The promise of doubling the native contrast with the X500 is a massive positive for me, yet I remain confused from all the reports as to whether I would see the same improvement with the X5000, if it was brightness matched to the X500? Any thoughts?

My other slight concerns with the X5000 are that the X7000 & X9000 both have the filter to achieve P3 colour and are 12 bit end to end......I suppose I'm uncertain of the impact of this and it exposes my limited knowledge of how colours work? Am I right in thinking that colour depth is analogous to resolution and so gives more transitions between colours (so should reduce colour banding for instance) whereas colour space is how much of the visible spectrum of colours can be displayed? So in terms of colour space, the X5000 is in the same boat as the X5000........but in terms of the greater colour depth of UHDBD, the X5000 will be the same as the X7000 & X9000? Or is that wrong?
 

The latest video from AVForums

Is 4K Blu-ray Worth It?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom