3D Projector Reviews

Full-On/Full-Off Contrast Ratio: 24,500:1

Pre-calibration measurements were made in the Cinema preset at the default settings. Post-calibration measurements were made in the User 1 mode. Maximum contrast measurements were made with the Manual Lens Aperture setting at –11, Clear Black at Low, and Lamp Power at Low. With these settings, the JVC’s black level measured 0.001 ft-L and peak white 24.5 ft-L, for a contrast ratio of 24,500:1.

Highest peak brightness was delivered by the default settings in the Anime mode: 56.2 ft-L. Fan noise in this and other modes with Lamp Power set to High was notably louder, making Low the better option.

Before calibration, the JVC’s 6,500-K color temperature preset displayed a reddish bias at all IRE levels. The Delta E of its pre-cal grayscale averaged out to a reasonably good 3.6; calibration left that basically the same at 3.5, with a high of 5.6 at 100% brightness. (Delta E is a figure of merit that indicates how closely a display adheres to the Rec. 709 HD color standard. Experts generally agree that levels below 3 are visibly indistinguishable from perfect color tracking.)

The Delta E of the JVC’s color points in its Cinema mode’s default settings averaged a very good 2.09. Calibration using the Custom Color Space color management system adjustments left that average about the same at 2.1.

With the 2.4 Gamma preset selected, gamma in the Cinema 1 mode averaged 1.9 and displayed a gradual brightness boost at steps below 50 IRE. Post-calibration, gamma was considerably more linear, averaging 2.2.

Picture uniformity was excellent. The JVC passed most of our high-def video-processing tests, with the exception of 2:2 pulldown. The projector doesn’t accept 480i-format signals, so standard-definition processing couldn’t be tested.—AG