CurtPalme.com Home Theater Forum

jkruger · Joined: 24 Oct 2007 Posts: 2435 Location: Carlsbad, CA

One of my buddies bought a Faroudja DLPHD10 recently. He asked me if I wanted to take a look at it and maybe help set it up. Anyone here familiar with this one of these?

WanMan · Joined: 19 Mar 2006 Posts: 10273

I prefer to look on the horizon for my rainbows. Sorry.

jkruger · Joined: 24 Oct 2007 Posts: 2435 Location: Carlsbad, CA

Hahaha! That's a good one. I'll tell him that.
But seriously guys, anyone had any experience with one of these?

Person99 · Joined: 09 Mar 2006 Posts: 4901 Location: Flower Mound, TX

Hey, I missed this and it is months old, so probably don't need the info. That PJ is really a Sim2 HT300 Plus. This is a 5 year old that was a high end unit back then, but the technology was evolving rapidly. It uses an HD2/Mustang chip which means a few things:
1) very high black level
2) poor on/off contrast ratio (calibrated it will be under 1500:1).
3) visible pixel spacing from what I consider "normal" viewing distances (like 1.6x 16:9 screen width). Try defocusing a tad to get a smoother more film-like image.

Also, it has a 4x color wheel, so rainbows are a bit more visible than on a 5x device.

For the good parts: Sim2 has a corporate bias in that they like the way CRTs look--in particular CRT red. Thus, they actually make a conscious decision to make reds more like CRT reds than dead on accurate reds. They do so in a way that still keeps flesh tones looking good. I for one actually like the reds of Sim2 digi projectors.

If he does not mind 720p, a later good DC3 machine like a used Optoma H79 will throw a better picture and can be had for around $700 (in other words, sell the SIM2 for about $350-400 and the cost for a quite visible upgrade is fairly minor). If he can pop a little more, a 1080p LCD like the Panny AE2000 can be had these days for around $1500 and will have a markedly better picture than the Sim2. My 2 cents.