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Home Theater & Entertainment => General Discussion => Topic started by: Charlie on June 20, 2012, 04:01:58 PM

Title: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: Charlie on June 20, 2012, 04:01:58 PM
Well my wife has given me a few options.  She let me have the formals for my Linenbacking stuff for six months which is until November...  After that I've compromised and told her I would pack it up if she gave me the informal for my office and let me turn the back deck into a sun room so I could start it back up. 

Long story short....  I am going to turn my upstairs poster lair/office into a home theater to replace the informal I'll be taking.  So we went TV shopping, but I am reading that most of you guys have projectors.  I have a 42" Samsung and like Samsung but found a 70" LED Sharp flat screen that I was keen on...  I am no longer the audiophile/home theater buff I was 15 or so years ago...  Things just seem to come in packages now...

I do have a Denon AVR-1312 receiver and system speakers... It is 650W 5 channel...  I am OK with the sound at the moment, except perhaps needing a new Sub... 

But I want a big TV!  The room is relatively longer in one direction with one window and I will probably stadium two couches.

Anyways, I ramble...  LED Flat Screen or Projector?
Title: Re: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: jayn_j on June 20, 2012, 04:34:29 PM
I can only give my opinion.  I have an Epson projector feeding a 120" fixed screen in a dedicated theater.  I also have a 50" plasma in the family room.  Both systems have 5.1 systems with Onkyo receivers feeding full range Klipsch speakers, so sound differences are not the issue.

My opinion is that both systems do a good job at what they do, but they do different jobs.  Kind of like asking "should I buy a motorcycle or a minivan?"  There is no way that an LED set, even an 80" one is going to give the home theater experience you get with a front projector.  It is a very impressive TV, but it is still a TV.  That means that ambient lights tend to be on and the family has various activities going on while the set is running.  Not a bad thing, but not the theater experience.

When we fire up the front projector, it is totally for the purpose of watching a movie (or sports).  The lights get turned off and we concentrate on the show.  There is also a big difference between an 80" set and a 120" one.  The FP screen has over twice the area, and at 11' seating distance, that is enough to do the full immersion feeling you get when you plunk down money at the local multiplex.

Which would I choose if I could only have one?  Probably the plasma, but that is because that room is multi-purpose.  If I had a dedicated room, I would choose the front projector.
Title: Re: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: stewart boyle on June 20, 2012, 04:48:21 PM
I would go with,the very best projector set-up,but I`m biased..

Stew


Title: Re: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: Zorba on June 20, 2012, 06:55:03 PM

Which would I choose if I could only have one?  Probably the plasma, but that is because that room is multi-purpose.  If I had a dedicated room, I would choose the front projector.

Great answer.

I wish I had the dedicated space for that projector. Seen it at work for others and I am sold.. 
Title: Re: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: paul waines on June 21, 2012, 01:33:34 PM
I have a full hd projector, and watching films through it is Amazing, Projector every time....
Title: Re: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: guest8 on June 21, 2012, 02:54:55 PM
I think Jayn summed it up well. If you know what youre getting into and choose based on that then youre all set. I watch my projector every day for TV shows and all that. But it is a projector and thankfully its in a dedicated room so I can block out the windows and make it dark in there and be ok with that. If I had it my living room Id probably hate it, due to the bay windows and all the light. Although my living room is a better size for a theater.. I guess I could just board up the front windows !! :)

Also the size of the room makes a big difference .. If youre sitting to close to a projector screen the quality can possibly leave you itching for a 1080P LCD/Plasma .. I set approx 15'+ away and its great for me but if I sit much closer I have to have HD content playing and not some low quality rip of something because I can see the quality issues very well on that 120" screen when Im <10' away.
Title: Re: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: jayn_j on June 22, 2012, 11:06:55 AM
Is your projector 1080P?  Mine is, and pixels only become an issue at about 2' away.  Now, playing a DVD shows a picture that is noticably softer, but not objectionable to me.  Not enough to replace DVDs with BluRays, but I will buy the BR when there is a choice.

Again, for me 11' back from 120" screen feels good.  That is too closer for many others.  The average seems to be around 14' back.
Title: Re: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: guest8 on June 22, 2012, 12:27:33 PM
Is your projector 1080P?  Mine is, and pixels only become an issue at about 2' away.  Now, playing a DVD shows a picture that is noticably softer, but not objectionable to me.  Not enough to replace DVDs with BluRays, but I will buy the BR when there is a choice.

Again, for me 11' back from 120" screen feels good.  That is too closer for many others.  The average seems to be around 14' back.

Yes mine is 1080P .. But Im not watching content from the source (DVD and Bluray disc). Most everything I watch is a rip .. So a DVD is a 700MB-1.5GB file. Meaning if you think a real DVD is soft this would seem fuzzy ;) Thats why I said if Im sitting <10' away Id prefer HD content that way at worst its a little soft. Thats all because of what i watch, no real reflection on the projector itself.
Title: Re: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: kovacs01 on June 23, 2012, 03:21:21 AM
Projectors are the feces if you have the room.  I have been enjoying every minute of mine.  Incidentally, sit 12 feet back from a 120" screen.  Its a comfortable distance in terms of the screen size/viewing angle/video quality.
Title: Re: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: ddilts399 on July 12, 2017, 08:28:07 AM
So upgraditis hit again, sold off the 2 year old Samsung JS9500 and bought LG OLED for the living room. These are THE tv to have, what a difference in picture. Blacks make such a difference in tv watching, really didn't think I would see this much difference.  If you dont have a front projector and still going flatscreener, I cannot recommend these enough.
Title: Re: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: jayn_j on July 12, 2017, 10:21:07 AM
So upgraditis hit again, sold off the 2 year old Samsung JS9500 and bought LG OLED for the living room. These are THE tv to have, what a difference in picture. Blacks make such a difference in tv watching, really didn't think I would see this much difference.  If you dont have a front projector and still going flatscreener, I cannot recommend these enough.

Agree.  But mostly because the industry hasn't caught up yet with affordable 4k projectors that can do HDR.  I currently have the Samsung 65" 9100 SERIES. Not OLED, but outstanding LED performance.

However the HT is still active in 1080P with an Epson projector.  When 4k becomes available under $2500, I will definitely upgrade the projector.
Title: Re: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: ddilts399 on July 12, 2017, 11:22:47 AM
Been eyeballing the new Epsons that do the pixel shift trick and support HDR, at 2700, that isnt too shabby. Also the new Optoma does 4K and supports HDR10 for 2500. No where around to demo the damn thing is the problem.
Title: Re: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: Harry Caul on July 12, 2017, 04:55:45 PM
Unfortunately the Optoma uses tricks to get 4K too: https://www.engadget.com/2017/06/05/optoma-uhd60-4k-projector/

I initially considered DLP projectors, but I'm sensitive to color separation artifacts.  I've been sticking with LCDs for "rainbow" free viewing -- first with a Panny 540p projector around 2000 and then with a 720p Sony LCD around 2008 that is still limping along on it's second bulb.  Last time I looked at DLP was probably 10 years ago and they are likely better in that respect now.  However, it sounds like the new 4K trick will possibly add to the temporal side-effects as they are adding in a pixel-shift as well. 

Anyway, to be on the safe side I'm waiting for a true 4K LCD projector to get below ~$3000 before upgrading again.  I also like the picture on JVC DiLA/Sony SXRD projectors, but they are physically quite a bit bigger than comparable LCDs models and would look comically large on the wall in my viewing room! 
Title: Re: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: JCM on July 28, 2017, 06:56:05 PM
Have had many setups over the years but currently run a dedicated theater: JVC X550R, 120" screen, seating at 12'. Room is blackout dark and the image is reference quality with Blu-rays via the Oppo 103.

Huge screens with proper viewing distance is the only way to watch movies. It's so odd when I get invited to a "movie night" on someone's 50" flat panel TV. And there's 10 people sitting 15 feet away. There's just no sense of immersion.... no experience.

Although this analogy is a bit different, I'm with David Lynch on this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKiIroiCvZ0 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKiIroiCvZ0)
Title: Re: 70" LED or Projector
Post by: kovacs01 on July 29, 2017, 03:38:52 PM


Huge screens with proper viewing distance is the only way to watch movies. I

Right there with you.  I actually prefer my home to the cinema these days.  Better picture, better sound.  Oh yeah, and beer!  I look forward to upgrading my projector sometime in the future.  I just cannot see doing it when what I have still rocks.