Projector upgrade (1 Viewer)

[Palmese85]

Hello ,
So I’m looking to upgrade my Panasonic ae4000 projector. This projector was great. Movies were great, video games in it great, Need something similar but with the 2020 upgrades and some. But dont want to break the bank. Possibly no more than 4K. Any help. Thanks.

 

[RichMurphy]

I too enjoyed my Panasonic projectors, and was disheartened when they exited the home theater market.

I replaced my last Panasonic with an Epson 5050UBe, and am very pleased with it. It is noticeably brighter than the Panny (even when the Panny had a new bulb), and it handles black and white images far better than the Panny. Of course, I now have 4K via pixel shifting technology, and HDR.
One drawback is that my Panny 3D glasses didn't work with the Epson, so I had to buy new ones.

If you have an older home theater receiver like mine that has only one 4K-capable input, I STRONGLY suggest you get the 5050UBe model, the "e" indicating it has wireless technology. The wireless device plugs into my one 4K input on the receiver, and the device in turn can handle up to three 4K inputs, so I am now able to switch between my 4k UHD player and my Roku Ultra without having to switch cables. Also, I now have a third input available for whatever may come down the pike in the future.

I am not a gamer, so I can't speak to how it handles games.

The projector, two pairs of 3D glasses, and shipping and tax should come to less than your $4,000 budget. Hope this helps.

 

[RolandL]

I bought the BenQ HT3550 DLP 4K projector recently for around $1500 and love it. I use it mostly for watching 3D Blu-ray's.

 

[Palmese85]

I too enjoyed my Panasonic projectors, and was disheartened when they exited the home theater market.

I replaced my last Panasonic with an Epson 5050UBe, and am very pleased with it. It is noticeably brighter than the Panny (even when the Panny had a new bulb), and it handles black and white images far better than the Panny. Of course, I now have 4K via pixel shifting technology, and HDR.
One drawback is that my Panny 3D glasses didn't work with the Epson, so I had to buy new ones.

If you have an older home theater receiver like mine that has only one 4K-capable input, I STRONGLY suggest you get the 5050UBe model, the "e" indicating it has wireless technology. The wireless device plugs into my one 4K input on the receiver, and the device in turn can handle up to three 4K inputs, so I am now able to switch between my 4k UHD player and my Roku Ultra without having to switch cables. Also, I now have a third input available for whatever may come down the pike in the future.

I am not a gamer, so I can't speak to how it handles games.

The projector, two pairs of 3D glasses, and shipping and tax should come to less than your $4,000 budget. Hope this helps.

Thank you for the reply. Looked into that one also. Looks good. I also want to make sure it can handle games also. My son likes to play games on it also.

 

[TJPC]

I am almost a complete projector TV novice, but I want to keep 3D capability and also have 4K.
Brace yourself, I am now going to ask a couple of really stupid questions.

1. The projector I believe hangs from the ceiling. I would want to connect a PVR and cable to it. How is that done?

2. I also would need it attached to a disc player and speakers.

When I taught media, I used a small portable projector on a stand with wheels. This had to be in the middle of the room. This would be a traffic hazard in a living room.

 

[Peter Apruzzese]

I am almost a complete projector TV novice, but I want to keep 3D capability and also have 4K.
Brace yourself, I am now going to ask a couple of really stupid questions.

1. The projector I believe hangs from the ceiling. I would want to connect a PVR and cable to it. How is that done?

2. I also would need it attached to a disc player and speakers.

When I taught media, I used a small portable projector on a stand with wheels. This had to be in the middle of the room. This would be a traffic hazard in a living room.

Yes, most people attach it to the ceiling. There are also short throw models you can place on a table right below the screen. Assuming you run your devices through a home theater receiver now, you would take the HDMI out of the receiver and run it to the projector via HDMI cable. The receiver would do all the switching and sound control.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

You can also put it on a bookshelf in the back of the room, or build a simple shelf on a wall to place it on - those have been approaches I’ve taken. It’s a little less complicated than drilling into the ceiling to hang a mount.