Front projectors

[RGA]

For those of you looking at the new televisual formats the front projector seems to get missed. I must admit I have not kept up to date on this as some like Woochifer but I was highly impressed the other day from what I saw out of a Front projector system that was far cheaper and far better than some of the expensive rear projector sets.

I remember the old days of watching $25,000.00 systems in dark rooms with atrocious picture quality. The other day I was watching a $1497.00Cdn front projector with a $500.00Cdn screen. Now it was not a big big screen maybe 50-70 inches but it was quite a smooth picture a lot of resolution if not detail...similar to theater pictures which IMO is still better than super detail images that to my eye are tough on the eyes like the $6,000.00 Sony rear projectors.

Maybe I'm picky or not picky enough but what I liked about this set up is that you can actually set-up a REAL home theater sound system the way it was MEANT to be heard by having 5+ speakers of the identical make and model number across the front LCR channels. Why? Because let's say you had three B&W N801s across the front - the screen would sit above the speaker - none of that center hump I always hear.

I also like the fact that when you're not watching you don't have to have an imposing tv in the room - simply roll the screen up and perhaps have a nice painting behind(They had a screen that runs off a remote control which operates the screen like a garage door - for more money of course).

Apparently the screen has some sort of crystal system to make the picture superior or reflect light or some such stuff.

The total system under $2000.00Cdn is the best thing I've seen woithout spending a small fortune and offers the home audio advantage. The unit can take feeds from XBOX and all that stuff as well. It also serves as a slide projector.

The plasma picture is nice and all and I'm sure it is no doubt technically superior - but frankly this relatively inexpensive projector to me looked better overall - sorta more natural.

Unfortunately I didn't catch the brand of the thing at the time - wasn't a Sony I can say that much. There is probably some annoying disadvantage like expensive bulb replacements to ruin it all - but if you have not been looking at any of these things it might be worth it to give it another look because this was easily superior to the $25,000.00 thing I saw in the mid 90s - and that room was better than this cheapie one.

[Woochifer]

The technology with projectors in general has been advancing exponentially the past few years. The projectors of old were CRT units that could only do standard NTSC resolution. At that time, the consumer big screen TVs were these huge front projection console units with the projector directly underneath the screen with a mirror about two feet in front that would reflect the image onto the screen. The Advent Novabeams were considered the top of that class, and I remember that they went for somewhere around $10k. Then someone figured out that it's more compact and not as unwieldly to make these things rear projection.

Things have changed a LOT since the mid-90s, with HD resolution and DLP-based projectors coming onto the market during that time. I believe that the high end CRT front projectors are still considered the best of the bunch, but they are also the most expensive options out there. DLP is probably what you saw, and that's the same type of projector used in most digital cinema projectors and with IMAX digital projectors. DLP's basically a microchip with thousands of tiny reflector mirrors, and the movement is done mechanically. Very ingenius system that produces a bright and vivid image, and with RPTVs it saves a lot of space.

I've been using LCD projectors for PowerPoint presentations for years, and the picture quality has been getting better as the projector prices have tumbled. The main disadvantages of front projectors compared to RPTV or plasma or LCD screens are the brightness and contrast levels, and trying to use them in small rooms. They're getting better, but so are all the other HD options. If you have a big enough room, and you want an image larger than about 65", then the front projector's the option of choice. And the larger dedicated home theaters I've seen also use front projectors.

[Widowmaker]

I myself recently bought an Epson Powerlite S1 LCD projector for $999 and I LOVE it. I literally have a 100" image on my wall (I don't have a screen yet). It has spoiled me so much that I cannot do video gaming or movie watching on the small screen anymore.

Sure, the black levels and contrast could be better but hey, it's a fair trade off if you want a huge display. Also, if you're deciding between DLP and LCD, know that LCD has better color definition and is slightly brighter overall but DLP gives you better black levels and a more accurate picture overall.

[Mark]

So how do watch a TV signal through a front projector? Just have basic cable, but would like to see sports on the huge screen...

Brother in law has a projector set up for movies and it is really impressive, but he doesn't watch TV at all.

Also interested in thoughts about wall vs screen....although our walls are not white, so I suppose we would need a screen anyhow.


mark

[magictooth]

So how do watch a TV signal through a front projector? Just have basic cable, but would like to see sports on the huge screen...

Brother in law has a projector set up for movies and it is really impressive, but he doesn't watch TV at all.

Also interested in thoughts about wall vs screen....although our walls are not white, so I suppose we would need a screen anyhow.


mark
You basically just plug your TV cable into the projector. It's that easy. The only problem with some sports is that sometimes the feed is really crappy. When a bad signal gets blown up to 100", you see a ton of pixelation and artifacts. However, there's lots of games now that are broadcast in HD. I guarantee once you see your favourite team on a 100" in HD, you won't want to go back to a 32" plasma screen - EVER.

About the wall vs. screen. The screen gives you an even reflective surface. This is important because the image that you're seeing is just the light reflecting off the screen. When you use the wall, the imperfections scatter the light randomly and you lose some of the image quality. As well, some of the screens out there will actually give you more apparent contrast (grey screen vs. white screen) and will also give you an incremental boost in brightness (1.3 gain fabric as an example).

About the advantages of DLP vs. LCD, generally DLP has better contrast, but newer models of LCD screens have contrast ratios of up to 1400:1. The difference between 1400:1 and 3000:1 can be characterized as subtle at best. And this difference is only noticeable in the ideal darkened room environment. As for colour accuracy and saturation, the new DLP Matterhorn and Mustang chips generally have the colour perfectly bang on. I can see the generalization that colour is better in LCD applying to older models of projectors, but with the new ones, there's virtually no difference.

[shaizi]

For those of you looking at the new televisual formats the front projector seems to get missed. I must admit I have not kept up to date on this as some like Woochifer but I was highly impressed the other day from what I saw out of a Front projector system that was far cheaper and far better than some of the expensive rear projector sets.

I remember the old days of watching $25,000.00 systems in dark rooms with atrocious picture quality. The other day I was watching a $1497.00Cdn front projector with a $500.00Cdn screen. Now it was not a big big screen maybe 50-70 inches but it was quite a smooth picture a lot of resolution if not detail...similar to theater pictures which IMO is still better than super detail images that to my eye are tough on the eyes like the $6,000.00 Sony rear projectors.

Maybe I'm picky or not picky enough but what I liked about this set up is that you can actually set-up a REAL home theater sound system the way it was MEANT to be heard by having 5+ speakers of the identical make and model number across the front LCR channels. Why? Because let's say you had three B&W N801s across the front - the screen would sit above the speaker - none of that center hump I always hear.

I also like the fact that when you're not watching you don't have to have an imposing tv in the room - simply roll the screen up and perhaps have a nice painting behind(They had a screen that runs off a remote control which operates the screen like a garage door - for more money of course).

Apparently the screen has some sort of crystal system to make the picture superior or reflect light or some such stuff.

The total system under $2000.00Cdn is the best thing I've seen woithout spending a small fortune and offers the home audio advantage. The unit can take feeds from XBOX and all that stuff as well. It also serves as a slide projector.

The plasma picture is nice and all and I'm sure it is no doubt technically superior - but frankly this relatively inexpensive projector to me looked better overall - sorta more natural.

Unfortunately I didn't catch the brand of the thing at the time - wasn't a Sony I can say that much. There is probably some annoying disadvantage like expensive bulb replacements to ruin it all - but if you have not been looking at any of these things it might be worth it to give it another look because this was easily superior to the $25,000.00 thing I saw in the mid 90s - and that room was better than this cheapie one.


If you guys are interested in more information about the DLP and LCD projectors, send me an email at"fullcontact@shaw.ca". I live in North Vancouver B.C. I have been playing around with projectors for the last couple of years, cannot live without them. Everything is better with front projectors, Movies, Video games, Sattelite,etc.
Feel free to contact, would like to help. Best regards.