WTF? Projector?

http://www.projectorcentral.com/

HT section

http://www.projectorcentral.com/home-theater-multimedia-projectors.htm

Then mess around with the calculator.

http://www.projectorcentral.com/projection-calculator-pro.cfm

This can give you a ballpark idea and narrow the list of candidates.

Plan B:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=68

Scan for popularity //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

For that price range, you won't find any better than a Mitsubishi HC4900. I believe the MSRP is $2500 but you can get it from projectorpeople.com for $1500. The Sanyo PLV-Z2000 is a little more (~$200) but has more features. Look up those projectors on AVSforum, you'll find hundreds of pages of feedback on them.

Now here is the thing, (I am half asleep so bare with me) Is lens shift important to him? cause if the mouting position isnt perfect then the image wont be square. Also does he want lcd or dlp?

Imo the sanyo z5 would be teh best bet if he needs lense shift if not maybe an optoma hd 72 or a mitsu like described above

Two types of lens shift: Horizontal and Vertical

Lens shift allows flexibility in where you can place the projector, so it doesn't have to be dead center.

Usually DLP projectors are more restricted in placement, only allowing a little vertical and no horizontal. LCD projectors usually have both vertical and horizontal. DLP, LCoS/SXRD/DILA, LCD's, they all have their pluses and minuses. I'd recommend on researching them to see which suits your needs.

The projectors 1loudsuv recommended are 720p, and the ones I recommended are 1080p. While they're all good projectors, if they cost the same, you should go for 1080p since they'll be a little more "future-proof".

If your brother is serious about the theater and has a hi-def player like bluray/hddvd (1080p/24), he should spend a little more and get the z2000, since it's the only one out of the ones mentioned in this thread that handles 1080p24.

Also make sure you let him know lamp life wont be long, my jvc rs 2 lamp went out at 100 hours.....

lamp life wont be long, my jvc rs 2 lamp went out at 100 hours.....

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And are the lamps expensive?

I recommend the NEC 1065's, we use them here at work and they work great. The keystone and cornerstone functions are really nice too so you don't have to worry about mounting it perfectly center. The throw distance is pretty nice too.

Also make sure you let him know lamp life wont be long, my jvc rs 2 lamp went out at 100 hours.....

Click to expand...

Wow, how did that happen? I'm sure you know already but lamps are pretty sensitive... Overheating can make it burn out much quicker. Usually lamps are rated at 2000 hours but without proper care/maintenance, they rarely last that long. However they should last at least 1000 hours...

For the person that asked about lamp prices, the average is around $350-$450. Some of the higher ends go over $1k for lamp.

DIY for the screen. Go to AVS and search for the projector you're considering and read the feedback. Also they have a "diy screen" section.

And you do NOT need 1080p....