Video Projectors

I checked image quality using the Video Essentials test DVD for 480i and 480p image quality, and an AccuPel HDG2000 signal generator provided 720p and 1080i test patterns.

Using the Progressive Labs CA-1 color analyzer and Minolta CL200 light meter, I took brightness, contrast, and color-temperature measurements with the zoom lens set to its midpoint and the Contrast and Brightness controls adjusted for best gray scale, with no white clipping or black crush.

The brightness varied, depending on which gamma setting was selected. My measurements ranged from 345 ANSI lumens (Film 1 gamma) to 475 lumens (Computer 2 gamma). The projector can make brighter images, but at the expense of a clean gray scale. The readings I took should be more than sufficient for screens of up to 100 inches (diagonal) in a darkened room.

The contrast measurements were quite good. Using the 16-square checkerboard ANSI pattern, I measured 459:1 (average) in Film 1 mode, with a peak ANSI reading of 1017:1. Contrast readings didn't change substantially (6% maximum) among different Gamma settings. That's because, with some Gamma settings, both brightness and black levels are increased, while with others, brightness and black levels decrease.

One thing the Action! Model One mk.II did very well was track a clean gray scale. With the factory settings for RGB drive, color-temperature readings were in the low to mid-7000s and varied by 740 kelvins from 30 to 100 IRE. I was able to retweak those to lower the overall color temperature closer to D6500 from 30 to 95 IRE, spiking to 7440 kelvins at 100 IRE.—PP