2. home-theater
  3. 971473090

NOVICE would like advice

Ladies and Gentlemen, I am new to the video projection market, and am looking for the best bang for my buck. I would like to purchase a digital video projector - or something similar (i don't really know the difference, in terms of quality, or really functional compatability between a "crt" and a "dlp") I am not a wealthy man - just a social character who likes to project films at parties and show films on sundays to 20-30 cinema fanatics on sundays over dinner - currently i am getting whats left at the public library - and showing 16mm - changing reels - and that's fun - but you can see only so many odd public service films from the 50's and 60's before you long for a good Akira Kurasawa Samurai Shakespeare Extravaganza - and the television is hard to crowd around i live in a loft, so i feel obligated to assist in the betterment of my friend's social lives (and implicitly romantic lives) - and so far we have finagled some lucky finds - but i would really like to find a source - the deal of the century - practically charity really - if any of you have advice on where to get decent video projectors for cheap cheap i would appreciate it - i don't have much of a budget - i know that this whole thing is probably a pipe dream - but if any of you tech-smarties could hook me up with some information, put me in the know - i would be deeply grateful Thanks for your time.
larkspurrc4f7
jkphoto
167 posts
 
Contact a corporate-type audio-visual firm in your area that sets up board rooms, conference rooms etc. THey have demo units that they replace on a regular basis and you may be able to purchase one of the units they are retiring for a decent discount.
bulldogger
262 posts
 
Look on ebay. CRT technology is more established and being replace by the new technologies. However, it is still the best format with the best picture for hometheater. Because it has been around so long you can get good used one. But make sure you check to see how many hours the bulbs have on them. The bulbs can be expensive. Go on ebay and check for used projectors. Another disadvantage is you will need a tech to calibrate the projector as it is beyond the capabilities of even astude hometheater buff. If you go with Digital Light processing, you can set the projector up yourself hence there popularity. But remember this is new technology and as always "new" comes with a premium price. I have seen Crt projectors go for as little as 1500.00 on ebay but dlp usually cost a few thousand at the minimum. If money is the determining factor, buy the used crt projector and pay a tech to set it up. You will need a very very dark room for crt as light control is much more critical which is a second reason why dlp is becoming more popular. A third alternative is an LCD projector. In general the picture will be similar to dlp and the cost about the same. Sony makes some very good ones but expect to pay at least 5 grand even on a good internet deal. I think there are some older LCD that do not cost as much.
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