I'd like to buy a projector to install in my home theater. The screen is 6 feet wide and 4 ft high. There will be a little luminosity while projecting. Which is the most suitable projector for this environment?
Thanks,
2006-09-05 14:10:12 · 3 answers · asked by horaciodeloy 1 in Consumer Electronics ➔ Home Theater
Simple answer is almost any of the popular home theatre projectors (Panasonic PTAE900, Sanyo Z-4, Optoma HD72, etc) will likely work well for you, BUT you can probably make a better choice by considering all aspects of your needs.
You don't mention what type of programming you intend (this can influence choice of aspect ratio, resolution, brightness, connectivity, etc.), what equipment will be connected (e.g. SD or HDTV, DVD or HD-DVD, what types of connectors are involved), where you want to sit (this can impact on the projector mounting location, for example), where the projector will be placed (ceiling, shelf on back wall, coffee table), whether portability is an issue, price range you are comfortable with, etc. All these things influence the choice of projector (and are part of why there are so many choices).
Projectors vary from less than $1000 to more than $50,000. That said a good picture for home theatre use can be obtained in the $2-4K range.
If the room is dark (low luminosity?) on a small screen such as you describe, you don't need a very bright projector (any nominal 1000 lumen projector will work fine). On the other hand watching the SuperBowl with the lights on would make greater demands on brightness. Also note that the screen and projector should be considered together. While starting with screen size may be reasonable (since it may reflect your room conditions) it does limit projector placement and may not be the optimum for your needs. Also the characteristics of the screen can work for or against the optimum picture from a particular projector (e.g. a low contrast ratio projector can be compensated for (to a degree) by a grey screen, or a too reflective (high gain) screen can lead to "hot spotting" from a bright projector).
There are three common technologies for projectors (DLP, LCD and LCOS). All have advantages and disadvantages. I don't agree with the answer above saying you must buy DLP. It is a good choice if you are not sensitive to so called "rainbows", but may not be if you or your friends are. Many people swear by their LCD based projectors ... which on average offer a good image and better flexibility (lens shift, wider zoom lens) for less money than DLP.
I would strongly suggest doing some reading on the Projector Central (http://www.projectorcentral.com/) and Projector Reviews (http://www.projectorreviews.com/index.asp) websites. The "Commentary" articles on the former provide a lot of useful information. For even more information see the AVS Forums (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=9).
Ultimately, the choice is personal because ONLY YOU know what is important to you. It took me a year of research to choose my projector (Canon SX60) because I had a particulalr mix of requirements. Don't just take someone elses suggestion ... do your own research ... after all you are talking about spending a not insignificant chunk of YOUR money!
2006-09-06 01:15:27 · answer #1 · answered by agb90spruce 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You most definately want to go with DLP technology (most are nowadays), the higher the lumens, the better (more than 1600 lumens should be sufficient
2006-09-05 14:19:21 · answer #2 · answered by diabl0blanc0 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
depends purely on your budget it can go from a thousand and some up to 10k look here for stuff http://www.projectorcentral.com/
2006-09-05 14:14:50 · answer #3 · answered by wowdeamon123 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋