Panny AE300 vs Sanyo Z1

Rickyj at Kalibrate

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Well my budget has just had a little addition to it from a very kind gf, which now means I can look little higher up the projector scale than I was previously looking (AE200 and AE100). Well I have decided to move up to either of the above, which whilst I know are being discontinued, can be had at a very reasonable price.

Now I know the comparison has been asked, plenty of times before, and I have been working my way through the old threads using the search function regarding the above projectors, and checking out projectorcentral etc. I am really looking for any comments now, after people have had them a while now.

A bit of background info, I am going to have a seperate room to fit the projector in, which will measure about 14' x 10'. I can't really hang the projector from the ceiling as the room has ceiling heating fitted, therefore, the only option is to mount on the wall at the end of the room, say 12' back, as I have some deep shelves. This will mean a screen size of about 7'4" wide (a little bigger than I wanted). And a seating position about 10' - 12' back.

Any help would be greatly received.

Thanks

Ricky:hiya:
 
i am a new z1 owner and happy with what i got, i found the lense shift a great help when setting up as i couldn't position the pj in the centre of the screen, much better than fiddling with keystone
my original thread

some screen shots and set up pics:
here:

i'm sure what ever you decide you will not be dissapointed.
good luck
 
I've ot the Z1 and it's projected from about 10ft away onto a diy screen with black out fabric. This is my first projector an i would recommend it to anyone. It will be getting used in a loft conversion and will be ceiling mounted, in the mean time its on a coffee table slightly off centre to the screen.

All i can say is the Z1 is a superb model and especially at the price its at justnow from most suppliers, make sure and shop around though, even try dealtime.co.uk to compare prices.

Dont do what i did though and buy cheap component cables, make sure and splash out as this makes all the differece.

GO FOR IT
 
I demoed the Z1, but bought an AE300 blind in the end :eek: :D , so I have seen both.

Lens shift was not an issue for me as I have a basement room with a low (6'6") ceiling, ideal for home cinema and no keystone is required.

Screendoor was an issue I was bothered about though. To my (sharp) eyes, it is much less visible with the AE300 than with the Z1. That said, during my Z1 demo, I had considerable success reducing the screendoor with a touch of defocus. Also, some people don't like the "smoothscreen" technology of the AE300 as they think it makes the image look a bit soft. I think it looks great.

In conclusion, I would have been very happy with either of these projectors, but reduced screendoor, 5000 hr lamp life (in low power mode), and a marginally quieter fan swung it, for me, in favour of the Panny. I do not regret my decision. If I had needed to mount off-centre, I would have gone for the Z1 and been equally happy.
 
AE300,7.5ft (80x45in) screen,Room 13.5x8, PJ shelf mounted, Very happy! :D

pic002z.jpg


pic012z.jpg
 
The 300 will have less screendoor than the Z1 since Panny added some gadgetry to reduce it ... this results in a slightly 'soft' image similar to defocussing so in the end both projectors will be similar.

I used my 300 with a 92" 16:9 screen, the pj was about 10' away from the screen with 0 zoom .. you want to avoid using zoom if possible, or at least no more than just a touch.

The lens shift on my Z2 proved very useful when I installed that, if you can't get the projector centred to the screen at whatever height is needed .. the 300 is about 6" above the bottom of the screen when table mounted, don't know about the Z1 .. then you'll have to use Keystone Adjustment on the Panny, which will kill picture quality, whereas Lens Shift is done optically on the Z1.

Bottom line: both are pretty equal in most important respects so installation requirements may be a deciding factor.
 
Cheers for the reply's, I am starting to sway towards the Panny AE300. I have had a quick demo of the AE300, and was impressed with that. I have been unable to get a demo of the Z1, and am a bit worried about ordering it blind incase I don't like the screendoor effect produced.

Calibos, that set up looks very good, and the specs of the room are very similar to mine, was just wondering what sreen you are using, and whether you notice any screen door, with these sorts of measurements.

Cheers

Ricky
 
Originally posted by yumyum33
I have been unable to get a demo of the Z1, and am a bit worried about ordering it blind incase I don't like the screendoor effect produced.

not really much of an issue at a certain distance, as i project a 6'5" image and sit about 8 or 9' away and i dont see any! not that i try and look for it.
 
Yumyum33,

Bog standard 80x45in(7.5ft diag) Dalite Model B. Does the job although there is a bit of a ripple on the left side. Not really an issue for me though as you cant see the ripple or its wavy affect on the image on that side from the viewing position. Its only off-axis that you can see it, and seeing as the screen is the width of the room, to get off axis to the ripple you have to stand along the side wall half way up the room.

I would have gone the permanent DIY screen route only for the fact that because of where the door and the window are, it wouldn't have worked out. ie I cant mount a perm. screen across the window obviously but with the pull down screen at that end across the window I can have my couch at the optimum viewing distance along the opposite wall. If I mounted a perm screen on the couch wall, I couldn't have the couch against the window wall because of the door, thus the couch/viewing position would be only halfway down the room at about 8 foot which would cause screendoor issues. If only the door had have been on the same wall it is only half way down the room, then I would have been sorted.

As I said thankfully the ripple is not an issue really from my viewing position. If it was I would have a problem. ie There is only about an inch either side of the screen casing because of the width of the room. I cant fit an electric which generally have thicker/better screen material less prone to ripple beacuse the casings are bigger. Tab tensioned screens are the same ie casings and bottom bar generally wider than a manual pull down. To fit one of these I would need to drop a screen size which I'm not really prepared to do.

You have a wider room so you shouldn't have any issues with screen casings fitting your room unless you want a 120in screen! :D

As for screendoor, none from my 1.8 screenwidth ratio viewing distance. (about 12ft9in)
 
Thanks for your help guys. I have now ordered an AE300E from Komplett, and just awaiting delivery. Keeping my figures, toes and everything crossed that it comes across dead/lit pixel free.

Can't wait now.

Thanks again guys.

Ricky:D
 

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