Z1 or Z2 for a Newbie?

Chipster

Standard Member
Joined
Nov 12, 2003
Messages
203
Reaction score
2
Points
51
Location
UK
I've been hanging fire on buying my first pj until I become more accustomed to pj technology.

I have been unable to demo pj's in the South West UK 'side by side' as there is very limited choice available here.

So far I have only seen a couple of DLP's (X1 and a couple of Sharps) however I suffered the rainbow effect on all of them. This only leaves LCD and considering I only have a budget of around £1000 (perhaps a little more if pushed) with very little chance of demo's, I can only go on forum / magazine reviews and dealer comments to steer me in the right direction.

These are my observations so far.

DLP is out due to rainbows (But might take a look at the Themescene H30 when its available)

LCD is the only choice left, but reviews are very sparse for my price range, short of the Sanyo and Panasonic ranges and a few others not mentioned too much in the forum.

Dealer’s comments have put me off Panasonic due to unreliability and customer service (This will vary case to case though I'm sure)

This really only leaves me with the Sanyo Z1 or Z2 due to the amount of personal experience info available here and the odd available website reviews.

Z2 is a little more money, and I have to admit being a little disappointed at forum member’s comments regarding VB.

Z1 can be had for a good price, and as a first purchase I feel I could live with dated technology as many of you have already.

Yes I will upgrade, as I have with the audio side but what I don’t want to do is get even more confused reading countless reviews.

So finally, my question is....What should I buy, Z1 or Z2???

Maybe once I’ve experienced a pj, I will be suckered into spending ££££ as usual.

Thanks for your support and thanks in advance.

Chipster.
 
Z2 for you!!! I am on my 3rd pj - had the z2 for 2 wks - there's nothing that touches it for the £'s! 12 months ago you would have had to pay at least double for similar performance! I'm running mine with a Sony Pro Scan DVD - last night watched Pirates of the Carribean - 8' wide - simply stunning! Buy the Z2 - I promise you won't be disappointed - or call me Santa!
 
I'll add my vote to the Z2 pile too, seeing as its not getting much forum space ;)
 
Slight word of caution having faced the same dilema.

Limited budget.

Lack of dealers who can Demo.

I had set my mind on the (almost) universally well reviewed Z2 but when I checked the screen size that I would need with its short throw l lens, I came to the conclusion that without major work, and further expenditure (eg a ceiling mount) it would not fit easily into my room.

Hence I have purchased a graded Sony HS 10 for £1250 which will sit hapily on a shelf on one end wall and (hopefully) will project a sensibly big image onto a standard size screen on the opposite wall. It has a long throw lens. Needs a bigger distance to produce a large image.

As long as I am not plagued by the HS10s reliability bug IT should work well with the minimun of alterations to the room. (only time will tell)

The HS 10 (should!?) come complete with Sonys 10m long universal signal cable which also save expenditure (initially anyway) on costly cabling.

I would add that I have not yet collected or seen the HS 10 working yet!!!!!

Regards

Allan
 
Thanks for your comments, ultimately I will go for the Z2 even it stetches my budget slightly, and I'm pretty sure I would think I was missing somthing if I went ahead with the Z1.

That said, I would be interested allansr in the result of your graded HS10 purchase. A good pj by all accounts but as yet out of my price range.

Thanks,
Chipster
 
Hi FazerThou

I live in Bristol.
 
I have a Z1 in Cardiff if you fancy a trip over the Severn Bridge to have a look at it.
 
Hi Aydon.

A very kind offer. I work in Wales on occaision, so perhaps I could PM you somtime regarding a visit soon.

Have you thought about a Z2 or are you quite happy with the Z1? Have you had it long? I would be very interested in your experiences.

Cheers and thanks again.

Chipster.
 
Funnily enough I work in Bristol!

I've had the Z1 for around 5 months. I was planning to get a SIM2 as I had moved house and got a dedicated cinema room. However, after viewing 3 DLPs (Not the SIM2 though) I found that I could see 'rainbows' on all three, as could my wife. Although the quality at Demo was a lot poorer, I eventually went for LCD and got the Z1.

I have not regretted it.

The difference going from a 36" Widescreen to a 7' screen and pj was immense. And I think I would have been a bit of a fool spending the extra £5000 on a DLP as my first pj - the LCD is easy to watch and I do not notice any 'screendoor'.

Knowing what I know now I would not spend the extra to get a DLP over the LCD - in the future I may look at things differently, and I am sure that others may say that it *is* worth the money. But currently and with my setup (You can see some pics in the "So what have you got thread") it is the best decision I have made.

If you know that you will be around the Caerphilly/Cardiff area and can stay late let me know and we can organise something - I generally tend to not get home til around 7pm on a weekday, although I have got 2 weeks off over Christmas :D
 
Hi Aydon

Thanks for the info, would love to pop over one eve for a look. I work on call, so never know where I'm going to be from one day to the next but as your not that far from my home addy an evening would be no problem. If we PM and exchange mobile numbers or email, perhaps we could sort somthing out soon.

Would it be cheeky if I brought my DVD player? its a HR DVD25 with Pal Prog comp outs. (Dont worry if thats a problem).

Nice Pics on the thread by the way and thanks for your help.

Cheers

Chipster.
 

The latest video from AVForums

TV Buying Guide - Which TV Is Best For You?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom