imported_BoOsTd

So which is better and why? My home theater setup is in a dark room, so front projector lighting wont be a problem.


I love the idea of a true theater feeling, big 60 inch image on my wall, available for under 3 grand.

But rear projection tvs are pretty sick LCDs are like 5 grand tho for a 60 incher. LCD, Plasma ect...


Anyone own a front projector? or have experience with them?Image quality, lifespan ect... I dont mean at school with powerpoint or **** like that, i mean home theater DVD, video games ect...


Im leaning towards a front projector, unless people talk me out of it... I read that the DLP's produce a pretty nice image for movies.

imported_viper_2_4

I have never owned a front projection, but I have always thought they were a lot more expensive, plus I think you have to have a fairly large room to have one work effectively. I don't know.

My parents have a hitachi rear projection HD unit 53", it has a great picture, when you use component cables on a dvd it looks awesome, and for the most part it acts like a normal TV. The only thing is I don't think the life span will be as good as a normal tv, I think they have had it 2 or 3 years, and its already been serviced twice (under warentee) once was one of the motors that aligns the light guns had to be replaced, and another time a chip fried.....

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

my buddy has one at his home, he absolutely :hearts: it

his is a Dell model with sick brightness.... like 3200 lumens or something like that.

I have a 52" rear projection Toshiba, it's sweet.... but not too sweet lol Should have waited a lil and bought an LCD instead, but the thing is one day you just gotta say fack it and buy something rather than always wait for newer stuff to come out. So yea.... if you have the ability to run a projector, I say do it. Great bang for your buck, esp the Dell peice.

imported_BoOsTd

cool, i guess i can go to stores with setups and check them out. They have come down in price so much... apparently they will be half the price in the next year... Right now you can get a sick NEC DEL with moterized drop screen and celing mount for 1999.99 US I havent really looked into the dells yet, i figured they would be more computer presentation oriented. I guess its all the same

imported_GoldBadge

Are the Front Projection units any good for Hi-Def picture?

T-Shirt Ninja

If you get one that can support the proper resolutions, then yes.

Definitely go front projection if you have the room to support it, as long as you can control the light going in, and have a good spot to mount the projector do it.

I bought myself a 47" panasonic CRT RPTV, amazing picture when you feed it HD (OTA HD for me). I couldn't mount a projector in my bedroom so I was stuck with either going LCD, Plasma, CRT/LCD RPTV. The crt was the biggest bargain of them all, I paid like 2100 w/ taxes last september, since then the price has gone down to like 1800ish. I actually bought a toshiba 30" widescreen tube tv before the panny but I had to return it cause it had a colour problem.

Yea so, I'd read up some on avsforum.com in the sub $3500 projector area, that board I think is the best source for info. Remember to take some pics when you're all done.

imported_BoOsTd

thanks ill check out that site!

BBProductions

hd's are over rated i think.. good quality pictre but i rather spend less get a projector and have a 6' x 6' screen...
800x600 is all you need for using it as a dvd player or tv
for computer use i suggest 1024x768
with proper lumens it would be perfect... a little grainy but hell its huge, just don't sit right up to it...

i sell them at office depot...
the ben q's for round 1500 will give you 1600 lumins 3 year warranty, and good resolution
bulb life usualy is around 2000 hours, and can range from 200-400US

Beyaz

save your money till HDTV becomes standard

BBProductions

what is the point? then another phase of tech is gonna come in... if you keep waiting something will just come out that is better...
just wait long enough till we have hoologram tv's

imported_phuviano

TV's will look a lot better than a projector, but with the projector you can get a way bigger screen.

You have to watch it with projectors though. The bulb can explode on your if you use it for too long. You have to keep track of how many hours the bulb can be used for. If you use it longer than the recommended time, the bulb may explode inside the projector.

If your going to watch everything on it, I say go for just a normal big screen TV (HDTV, DLP, or whatever).

If you are just going to use it on some occasions, than I would say get the projector. You will fall in love with a projector.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

if everyone waits for HD, then HD will never come cuz there will never be a tech market for it. it's called technology uptake, like how quickly ppl take to technology. it's really high in Japan and Hong Kong, and it's really LOW in USA, even LOWER in Canada. We suck It's no wonder we still use broadcasting techonogy from 50 years ago

imported_ERTW

before buying a projector, look into how much bulbs cost for your particular unit... those things are super expensive if they burn out, and if you watch tv a lot, eventually they will burn out

T-Shirt Ninja

You could just get a cheaper projector that does lower res like 800x600 and just use it when your watching dvds. And with the money you saved buy a HD CRT RPTV that serves for regular TV watching.

I don't think you'll want to use the projector ALL the time, especially if you feed it standard cable, 480i will not look pretty when you stretch in like 6 feet diagonally.

Oh be sure to buy yourself a decent universal remote, one with IR learning capabilites and Macros, itll save you the hassle of turning on all your components individually, changing to the proper input and such. I bought myself a super cheap RCA (9 bucks on sale at hbc.com) one that you can mod to flash the onboard ROM using your comp. It has a little LCD screen, 3 macros (for me, Play a DVD and Watch HDTV), and a myriad of other buttons. If you got a bigger budget consider getting a touchscreen remote that can control your lighting as well, Crestron comes to mind, also maybe the Philips Pronto line. Just some other things to consider.

Oh do you have your speakers already? You can buy a preforated screen and mount the speakers behind them to give a cleaner look.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

My buddy uses OTA HD on his Dell projector. I havent' seen his setup, but he is hella impressed!!

The Prophet

19" tube is the way to go lol

90ls

I recently bought this from Sony store in Newmarket "Great Service"

57inch HDTV rear projection

Honestly its one thing that I can honestly say WoW I'm so glad I bought it . HDTV is awsome.. PS2/XBOX/DVD

I have the Rogers HDTV digital box and I have it running on HDMI and gotta tell you picture is unbelievable.

I also have a Philips Projector and honestly no comparison.

imported_BoOsTd

thanks for the input guys.

I was told buy a few sales guys that a good projector(2500-3g) will produce a far better image than any 6g plasma screen.. I gotta find one setup in a store or somtin...

Gunmetalef

reare projection sucks.. get an lcd

T-Shirt Ninja

Nothing i've seen can produce the proper black levels like a CRT RPTV, LCD is a long ways off from being the best choice. If space was a constraint, I'd buy a plasma.