NEED HELP ON 3D PRJECTORS

[sameersuleman]

Hi,

I am thinking of buying a 3d projector for my home viewing and have some questions:-

-can i stil view my tv channeels through the projector?

-what size screen am i able to achieve with a good entry level 3d projector?

- are the 3d effects better compared to an LED 3D TV?

-If the projector is ceiling mounted and my viewing distance is more than 5meters what is the best set up in terms of cabling and other equipment PLACEMENT ie blueray player ,reciever etc.

-any other info guidance on this projector issue welcome as i hv never used a projector before.

Rgds,

SAMEER

 

[simonlewis]

Q1) It depends on what you have connected to your projector as pj's don't have built in tv tuners.

Q2) It depends on what projector you buy and what the throw is.

Q3) It appeared a lot better at the cinema (bigger screen).

Q4) If you shop round you can buy cables longer than 5m and what you add to it like reciever and blu-ray is up to you.

 

[sameersuleman]

thanks simon,

Q1. i can connect say a reciever to the projecter through rca jacks or hdmi cable and view its contents right?

 

[simonlewis]

Yes for example you may wish to have a blu-ray player and/or a humax (tv recorder) connected to your reciever and then to your projector via hdmi.

It may be best to talk to your local home cinema specialist to get a better understanding.

 

[sameersuleman]

COULD U ALSO SUGGEST A GOOD PROJECTOR MODEL

 

[simonlewis]

I can't really advise you would need to talk to your local home cinema retailers and it would all depend on how much you want to spend and on whether you you would want a long or short throw and what size screen you want, have you read this thread.

 

[bretty]

Hi, to answer a couple of your questions;

Yes, 3d is better on a projector than a tv, because the 3d effect is magnified by size. 3d really is impressive on a PJ.

I get 120 inches out of my projector from around 4 meters.

I'd recommend my PJ, the optoma HD33. I got mine just over a year ago for £1000. It's brilliant at 2D and 3D.

I have mine ceiling mounted, with the cables running through the ceiling, out of sight.

If you want any other advice about getting a great PJ set up n a budget, just ask.

 

[sameersuleman]

Bretty,

Thanks alot for your comment and advise .I will have a look at that PJ.Do you know of any other budget pj's on offer right now?

Rgds,

SAMEER

 

[kikiso]

I can also recommend the Optoma 25 which I purchased a few months ago and just before the Optoma 25E came out, not sure what the difference is, I think it's brightness. Anyway, I'm more than happy with mine. I have an 80 inch pull up screen from Optoma and I get a great picture, 2D or 3D. It's wired up to an AV Amp which in turn is wired up to my Sky HD and Oppo Blu-Ray. I also have it wired via the ceilng and I used a 10m long HDMI cable bought over eBay, cheap and chearful and works just as well as much shorter and much more expensive cables.

Only issueI have is that my screen has somehow become uneven, I somehow need to stretch it, but it's not a massive issue, most people don't even notice it.

 

[sameersuleman]

Thanks all for your very useful advise.

I have another question for you now.....which PJ is better LED or LCD ??

Also very long HDMI Cables----dont they have issues because of the length? pls adv.

Is the optoma you guys own LED OR LCD.

Thanks,

SAMEER.

 

[kikiso]

The Optoma projectors mentioned are DLP projectors, they tend to be smaller and not as heavy as LCD projectors, they also tend to be a bit cheaper. DLP is supposed to be a sharper picture but because of the way they work, some people see a rainbow effect in certain situations. I've never seen this myself, but if you are worried about it, get a demo.

Here's an article at Projector Central http://www.projectorcentral.com/lcd_dlp.htm which is a great place to do more research. It also contains a calculator where you can input your projector model, then work out screen size or distance from the screen etc, it can do the calculations any way you want.

As mentioned earlier, my HDMI cable is long, 10m, I have not seen any issues with the picture quality despite the fact it's a budget cable.

 

[DandyCobalt]

You can now get projectors which are wirelessly linked to the av receiver. This avoids long cables.

I understand that if distance over 10m, an HDMI signal can degrade significantly, from HD level to composite level.

 

[abacus]

The longer the cable the thicker it needs to be however providing it complies with the HDMI specification then you should be OK. (Double check this as sometimes manufactures only guarantee the short lengths of a particular cable complies)

HDMI is digital, so there will be no performance drop off, it will either work or it won’t. (If you get blocking then the cable is not up to scratch)

I use a 10m cable from Amazon that cost me about £12.50 and have no problems. (The cable is a bit stiffer than some of the more expensive ones, but if you are being charged over £20 for a 10m cable then you are being ripped off)

If possible steer clear of wireless as there can be problems just like you get with other Wi Fi systems. (If you do try wireless make sure you can return it if it doesn’t work)

Hope this helps

Bill

 

[bretty]

I can also recommend the Optoma 25 which I purchased a few months ago and just before the Optoma 25E came out, not sure what the difference is, I think it's brightness. Anyway, I'm more than happy with mine. I have an 80 inch pull up screen from Optoma and I get a great picture, 2D or 3D. It's wired up to an AV Amp which in turn is wired up to my Sky HD and Oppo Blu-Ray. I also have it wired via the ceilng and I used a 10m long HDMI cable bought over eBay, cheap and chearful and works just as well as much shorter and much more expensive cables.

Only issueI have is that my screen has somehow become uneven, I somehow need to stretch it, but it's not a massive issue, most people don't even notice it.

Quite common with retractable screens. Simple fix, though. Get 2 1.25kg weights (for going on a dumbell/barbell) and put one either side of the rod that runs along the bottom of the screen.

 

[bretty]

Thanks all for your very useful advise.

I have another question for you now.....which PJ is better LED or LCD ??

Also very long HDMI Cables----dont they have issues because of the length? pls adv.

Is the optoma you guys own LED OR LCD.

Thanks,

SAMEER.

No, not that i've found. I paid less than £20 for 15m HDMI from amazon and have no issues, just a great picture . Don't believe the hype on the cable stuff matey.

 

[kikiso]

I can also recommend the Optoma 25 which I purchased a few months ago and just before the Optoma 25E came out, not sure what the difference is, I think it's brightness. Anyway, I'm more than happy with mine. I have an 80 inch pull up screen from Optoma and I get a great picture, 2D or 3D. It's wired up to an AV Amp which in turn is wired up to my Sky HD and Oppo Blu-Ray. I also have it wired via the ceilng and I used a 10m long HDMI cable bought over eBay, cheap and chearful and works just as well as much shorter and much more expensive cables.

Only issueI have is that my screen has somehow become uneven, I somehow need to stretch it, but it's not a massive issue, most people don't even notice it.

Quite common with retractable screens. Simple fix, though. Get 2 1.25kg weights (for going on a dumbell/barbell) and put one either side of the rod that runs along the bottom of the screen.

Wow, seems simple, will give it a try, thanks.

 

[kinda]

I'm not a massive 3D fan, but it does look good on my projector (Epson EH-TW8100). The projector will show anything that comes in on its HDMI or other inputs, but obviously tends not to have sound so you'll need always need a separate cinema amplifier / speakers.

DLP tends to have better blacks and reds as I understand it, but sometimes noisier and with potential rainbow effect. LCD has no rainbow effect, and I'm very happy with my current LCD projector for vibrancy, (I can easily watch in daytime in the higher birghtness modes), black levels, and colour accuracy. The previous more budget EH-TW3500 was similarly good, but dug out slightly less detail especially in dark areas. There's also been an opinion that judder is more obvious on LCDs but this hasn't been an issue for me, and a projector with frame interpolation can help.

One thing to watch out with at the budget end is features for installation like lense shift. If you can'y lens shift or have keystone correction you have to physically place the projector in the middle of the screen, horizontally and vertically. Keystone correction makes the image worse, so lens shift is preferred. The zoom on the projector will dictate what image size you can get at a particular distance.

Regards cables I run an 8m Cablesson cable, which was very reasonably priced and seems well made, and previously ran two of these joined together with a non-amplifying connector, (so 16m). I have had no issues and the picture is great.

I've never regreatted going down the projector route, and plasma or LCD owning friends are always very impressed when they get a look at the picture on offer. 2D or 3D I'm aure you won't regret it.