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[raym]

Hi Matt. I hope you don't mind me asking but I saw somewhere on Interact where you said you bought an Epson 3010 recently? I think that is the TW6000 equivalent over her in Oz. I'm interested in your experiences with it both positive and negative. Naturally, my primary input source will be the HTPC running MC / Theater View. 

I think I've narrowed my decision to the TW8000 (same as yours but with optical lens shift) and the Panasonic AE7000. Did you consider this projector at all? I've heard good things about these too (as well as the previous AE4000 model) but most feel the Epson's win in terms of black levels and I've read a few concerning things about fan noise on the Panasonic's too. Would you consider the Epson a quite projector? Audible noise is a big consideration for me as the projector will be ceiling mounted directly above the primary seating position.

The Pani has a shorter warranty period and doesn't even come with any 3D glasses!

Anyway, really value your opinions so anything you can share about this is appreciated.

Cheers.

[Matt]

I went for the Epson 3010 because it was about half the price of the Epson 5010 or Panasonic AE7000 (once you factor in glasses).  As I understand it, they all use basically the same panels and have about the same brightness, so I figured the image quality would be similar.

As you mentioned, the lack of lens shift is a big drawback.  My projector sits in a shelf built into the wall that can't move.  I lucked out that the 3010 mostly worked, but I did have to move my screen which isn't easy since it has a frame nailed to the wall.  I'm not the type that could be happy using keystone correction.

The noise from the dynamic iris is probably my biggest gripe.  It sounds just like a hard drive that's not in a case.  My projector is about 4 feet from my head and I'm picky about sound.  When watching a movie, the noise is mostly a non-issue, but when browsing Theater View or the Internet where there's no audio, it's annoying.

As for fan noise, it's fine in eco-mode but loud (not harsh) in normal-mode.  I always ran my PT-AX200U in high-power and it was about the same volume as the 3010 in eco.  I think the 3010 may be a little brighter in eco than the Panny in high, so this isn't an issue.

This is my first Epson.  I've had two other projectors, both Panasonics.  I'm not a fan of Panasonic's mail-in-rebate to get more warranty.  I also think they got a little greedy by not making a real 3010 competitor and instead only pushing the $3000 price point.

[raym]

Thanks for the feedback Matt.

Hmmm the DI noise is another thing I've heard others complain about. Is there a massive trade-off in PQ with it turned off?

Do you need an IR extender to get 3d or is the range ok for you? I presume the IR bounces off the screen to reach the viewer? I'm a little vague on this.

Cheers.

[Matt]

Hmmm the DI noise is another thing I've heard others complain about. Is there a massive trade-off in PQ with it turned off?

In a really dark movie (say the latest Harry Potter), you certainly get deeper blacks with it on.  But the overall effect is subtle in my opinion.  If you turned it on or off and didn't tell me, I doubt I'd know a difference unless I was specifically looking for it.

It seems like most the time it's stopping the lens down and making noise only to open the lens back up a split second later.  I think Theater View really freaks it out when it switches screens because it'll be almost all black and then bright white text will pop in.  Cuts for commercials get it too.

Do you need an IR extender to get 3d or is the range ok for you? I presume the IR bounces off the screen to reach the viewer? I'm a little vague on this.

I have to aim right at the projector when 3d is going.  At first I thought "oh, I guess you can't use menus while the projector is in 3d mode" and didn't think much more about it.  But it was just the IR interference thing, which maybe everybody but me would have known right away.