Page 1 of 5 >>
Projector Roundtable 2010
As technology marches on, projector experts weigh in on the state of video projectors.
enlarge
Northview Christian Church in Dothan, Ala., uses two Christie Roadster HD10K-M projectors in custom mounts in rear-projection chambers, which maximizes the DLP models’ 10,000 lumens of brightness.
enlarge
Available in July, Sony’s new VPL-FX500L projector is rated at 7,000 lumens, which, depending on conditions, might be sufficient brightness for sanctuaries that seat a few hundred worshippers.
Projectors are interesting beasts. They combine a relatively low-tech element (a lamp) with one of a variety of competing imaging devices (based on LCD, DLP, or LCoS) and a computer-driven back end that employs sensors and fast-evolving software to handle tasks such as image processing, calibration, and even fan management. Meanwhile the resolutions of our computer and video sources expand, and we suddenly have new options in the realm of signal path. As such, the marketplace for projectors presents a matrix of difficult technological choices, enough to overwhelm even the savvy among us. It's also a moving target: Today's 10,000-lumen projector might cost the same as the 5,000-lumen model of five years ago. But at some point, if you want to project an image, you have to pull the trigger on a purchase. "The potential life of a projector is forever," says Chuck Collins, vice president of commercial A/V of Digital Projection Inc. (DPI), "but technology marches on."
To assess the state of that march, I spoke with representatives at five major projector manufacturers: Christie Digital, Barco, Sony, Panasonic, and DPI. While each company understandably favors a different mix of technology for projectors present and future, I found that they agreed more than not on the major issues. Participating were Collins of DPI; Sander Phipps, senior product manager for professional projectors, Sony; George Tsintzouras, director, product management for business products, Christie; Sharon Dagan, worldwide projection product line manager, Barco; Sam Malik, general manager of the presentation technologies group, Sanyo; and Scott Wellington, marketing manager, projector systems, Panasonic.
For this article we focused on larger projectors, the ones that best serve sanctuaries with capacities from roughly 400 to 2,000. The panel participants agreed that for these sizes of sanctuaries, projectors rated between about 5,000 and 12,000 ANSI lumens will be appropriate. But ambient light conditions and sanctuary shapes vary, of course. Ultimately, says Dagan, "It's all about the people in the back."
Light Engines
The element that gives any large projector its oomph is a close cousin to Edison's incandescent triumph. "Generally, screen size, throw distance and ambient lighting are the major elements that have an impact on making a projector selection," says Wellington of Panasonic. The power ofa projector's lamp is by and large what determines how long a distance the projector throws, how big an image it can successfully produce, and how much ambient light it can overcome. It's the major factor in a projector's brightness rating, typically measured in ANSI lumens. The lamp is also the point at which the projector's colorimetry begins: different lamps produce light of different colors.
Today's powerful light engines require a bulb. True, all the major manufacturers are paying close attention to laser technology, which in the long term probably will prove to be an excellent light source. And with their pure, unchanging colors, energy efficiency and long lives, light-emitting diodes (LEDs) present an intriguing option as each successive generation of the technology yields better brightness. But as of now LEDs are nowhere near bright enough even for small sanctuaries, and they won't be for quite some time. Mercury lamps, once popular at the high end, seem to be waning in prominence. So for the present and the near future, the options are xenon and UHP lamps.
Page 1 of 5 next page >>
Trevor Boyer is a freelance writer living in Brooklyn, New York. He likes to write professional A/V and video production stories (like this one) that can be reported via subway travel.
Post a Comment
ADD NEW COMMENT