Newbie projector purchase

dabiggk

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Hi peoples,


I have only just signed up to this site, so nice to meet you all.


I’ve finally got my lounge ready and I’m now ready to purchase a projector, thing is, I don’t know much about them, I’ve read up a bit but would like some advice.


What are the things I should be looking for?? I know that begs the question ‘well what do you want from a projector?’
I think I’m after one that is at least 1080p, plays blu-rays with 24p and can be ceiling mounted, with it being ceiling mounted would I need lens shift?



And with a budget of around £800 what’s the best ones, I keep seeing optima mentioned a few times? Anygood?


thanks guys
 
£800 is tight for much choice with a 1080p unit and especially if you want or need lens shift. Is your £800 to include a screen and I take it you have the sound covered with some sort of 5.1 sound system.

There are two types of PJ, DLP & LCD in/around your budget, where are you located as you should really get a demo.

Optoma are very good at the budget end, I have an Optoma HD20 1080p and it's now 4 years old and been trouble free and for teh price gives off a very impressive 100" size image which I view from about 8/9ft distance. I also have an Epson LCD 3200 LCD with lens shift which gives a similar quality image.

DLP advantages, nice sharp image/small size, no dustblobs/low prices. Disadvantages a bit noisier then LCD/Rainbows/not as flexible for placement as LCD with lens shift.

LCD advantages, a bit quieter/no rainbows/flexible for placement with lens shift and better zoom to get larger smaller screen from a similar distance lens throw to DLP models. disadvantages more costly/dustblobs/size

DLP options Optoma HD131x around £650, Benq W1070/1080/1100 £650-800.

LCD with Lens shift, Epson TW3200 £850 approx.

You may not have had much of a response but to be fair all the answers to your questions are detailed in plenty of other similar posts you just need to read them.

If you want a bit of advice on a one to one basis, pm me and I am happy to speak on the phone with further advice. I am not a salesman just an enthusiast. I am in the west midlands and if you are not far away can offer a demo of LCD & DLP machines in my home cinema.
 
Hi,
I would highly recommend an epson tw3200 projector.
 
£800 is what I wanted to spend on the projector itself. So was looking at the optima HD25E, not sure if I need lens shift, as you can buy ceiling mount that extends, wouldn't that be ok?

With regards to screen size, you say 8 - 9ft you get 100" on your optima, what would I get with the HD25E from 12ft? would like to buy a 120" screen and it would be great if I could use most of those inches!
heres the screen I'm looking at Sapphire SWS270WSF-ASR2 | 122 inch Projector Screen | Richer Sounds

also regarding my surround sound heres my other post
http://www.avforums.com/forums/speakers/1803332-when-looking-decnt-speakers-what-do-you-look.html
 
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Optoma HD25e Projection Calculator - Throw Distance and Screen Size

See the screen calculator for image size and throw distance, 100" diagonal will need min 11ft throw, for 120" diagonal you would need 13ft-6" minimum throw. My HD20 needs around 12ft throw for 100", I said I sit 8-9ft from the screen not that the pj is 8-9ft from the screen.

Throw= distance from the front of the projector lens to the screen face, you don't need lens shift if you can position the centre line of the lens with the horizontal centre of the screen.

If you are more likely to get a HD25 or any DLP make sure you get a demo to see if you see any rainbow effect, this is seen by 20-30% off folks and some people can feel nauseous or get headaches when experiencing rainbows.
 
You are looking at the HD25e, it is a very high lumen output for a projector which is fine if you want to view in a room with some ambient light but if viewing at night or in a darkened room 2800 lumen will be very bright and the blacks & colours may look a bit overblown (blacks may look more grey than black).

The 131x is a 2000 lumen pj but other than that is virtually the same as the 25e except it's black which would suit those conditions better and is £650 as opposed to £800 so may be wise to consider that as an alternative.

Optoma EMEA - HD131X: Ultimate 3D Projector
 
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If you have £800.00 for a PJ alone & if it were me i would try locate the Epson TW-3200. Even if i had to up my budget slightly to get a peace of mind warranty... Seemly its one of the best all-rounders at its price point with excellent overall performance & placement facilities.
 

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