Help selecting a new projector

[harveychestbreach]

Hey all! I am looking at getting a new projector and I had one chosen out about 2 years ago and thought it might be best to look again before makign a decision. I want something bright enough to be visible with dim lighting on but the deepest blacks I can get at 4K. I am looking at a $1500 to $3500 budget. Thanks in advanced!

[johnt]

My vote is for the Epson EpiqVision Ultra LS800 

[Omon_Ra]

Is this in a new media/theatre room or existing? Size of screen and projector location? First figure out throw-distance for screen size, that will help narrow down some of the choices. Short-throw projectors are awesome, but can also be a huge pain in the ass to get aligned correctly. Also what kind of screen are you going to get? That's a big factor in the blacks. Black Diamond is one of the better, albeit a bit expensive, for contrast/blackityblacks.

[harveychestbreach]

19 hours ago, Omon_Ra said:

Is this in a new media/theatre room or existing? Size of screen and projector location? First figure out throw-distance for screen size, that will help narrow down some of the choices. Short-throw projectors are awesome, but can also be a huge pain in the ass to get aligned correctly. Also what kind of screen are you going to get? That's a big factor in the blacks. Black Diamond is one of the better, albeit a bit expensive, for contrast/blackityblacks.

This is a new media area and the projector would be a ceiling mount and I'm not looking for anything short throw but we can go that route.

[Omon_Ra]

1 hour ago, harveychestbreach said:

This is a new media area and the projector would be a ceiling mount and I'm not looking for anything short throw but we can go that route.

 

If it were me, I'd go for a 'traditional'/not-short-throw projector.. way easier setup/alignment. Also invest in a decent mount with plenty of adjustment. Though you do gain brightness by having the projector closer to the screen. And you won't need as long of an HDMI run; depending where your receiver is going to live that is. I tend to prefer Optoma and Epson projectors, but from the 4K laser projectors I've installed (I worked for an AV company for 5 years, mostly in vacation rental properties with media rooms, so I've installed a lot) the difference in picture quality is pretty negligible these days. And like I had said before, the screen itself makes a big difference in picture quality and contrast. A more budget projector with a really nice screen can look better than a high-end projector with a cheapo screen.

 

Optoma has this throw-distance/screen size calculator that can help with their models: https://www.optoma.com/projectioncalculator/?region=USA&name=UHZ45 (The UHZ45 is selected as model, seems like it could be a good fit for you)

 

Do you have the dimensions of the room and how big your screen will be? Which way do the ceiling joists run, parallel or perpendicular to the screen wall? When we were picking projectors for clients it mostly came down to price point, throw distance:screen size, and availability. Big things I'd make sure it has are optical zoom/focus (digital zoom and push-button/'digital' focus via menu never seemed to be able to absolutely pinpoint the image), plenty of image adjustment (keystone, etc) and physical lens shift. Another consideration is will you want the projector to run your apps/streaming services, or will you use another device (Roku, AppleTV, etc) for that? IMO a Roku/AppleTV connected to the projector, and using HDMI-ARC back to the receiver is the easiest route. Not a big fan of LG or Samsung UI's (if I had to pick one, I like LG's better, but they also sometimes don't have apps you would expect). One remote, powers on projector and receiver and controls volume. Also, will you be gaming at all on it? If you are, is input lag/latency of any importance to you?