billybobg

I have an AE8000. There is still a joystick present, to get the picture close, then you can use the onboard calibrations.

Try AVS Forum. The sub forum is $3000 and up Projectors and look for the Panasonic AE8000 pages. You will need to state how far back the projector is, the screen type. Does the room have ambient light or is it a bat cave? There is a low power output setting on the projector you may also want to check. It extends bulb life, but affects brightness. If I remember correctly, the bulb life on the projector is about 4000 hrs, so you're leaning toward the end. Using the high power setting may help. If you decide on a new bulb, go with the Panasonic replacement. I've had bad luck with previous projector bulbs from other suppliers. I can't remember how many hours I have on my AE8000, but I'm sure it's not over 2000 hrs. Love the projector.

Watched The Great Wall. I can see where the critics who disliked this movie were coming from, but having watched a lot of Singapore Cinema it was pretty much what I expected. The visuals were great as are most in this genre. This is not a movie great in story telling, but it does provide a good entertaining experience IMO.

It really comes down to how much you value the finish. If $10 seems high, then the alternative by dirtmudd and what I did may seem extreme. I've used Dr. Color Chip brand. My Mercedes had over 200k on it at the time so I had a lot (probably 50-60) of chips. It worked very well on my black paint. What I liked was that you didn't have to be exact with the placement. Just dab it, squeegee it, let sit a few minutes and rub off. Pretty much like the video dirtmudd provided. Blended beautifully. The Dr. CC cost me about $60 for the kit. It ain't cheap, but it did the job.

I ordered The Kingsman from Netflix as the promos for the second installment look interesting. The movie has a lot of action, but just wasn't satisfying. Some of the scenes within the "bad guy's" liar reminded me of 70s Bond or Our Man Flint movies. I did like the quote, "This is not that type of movie.". Other than that, meh. As I watched in order to prepare for Kingsman II, I guess I'll watch it once it's out on video. It's not a movie I'll pay theater prices to see.

MetropolisLakeOutfitters pretty much covered everything. I recommend going over to AVS Forum and check out the DIY Screens sub forum. Probably the best source for DIY screens info available. If you want to buy commercial screen material and mount it, there is still a lot of info on frame construction. If you want to go more DIY there is a lot of info on stretching and treating other materials. Mississippi Man gives the best advice as far as I'm concerned. He gives good, honest info if you ask for help.

Maybe it's my provider, but many streams come up short on the audio. Amazon did give me a refund on Suicide Squad which failed to deliver 5.1. I'll wait for Netflix discs for most movies from now on.

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Actually felt quite the same. I liked the cast, but the movie in general just came up short. The theme for too many movies these days is the destruction of the world, universe, multiverse. Buyers remorse on this one.

Mine are in my HT. Lights are generally out. I'd like to restore, but I'd have to shut the theater down while I did it.

LaScalas for HT? Why yes! Space being a factor, I have LR LaScalas and a custom short LaScala as my center. Surrounds are 4 Academys.

I don't use a meter and I don't want to harm my hearing. I like clean conversations and loud enough during actions sequences appropriate to the on scene. I like action sequences to be at a volume that immerses me into the scene. My speakers have never been pushed to distortion, but imagine that short bursts at 110dB may be as hard as they're pushed. It all comes down to what you're comfortable with.

Owned both a 61 MGA and, I believe a 67, MGB. They had their challenges but I really loved them. Not really practical. Cornering was exceptional and both fun to drive. Very hard to start in the winter and yes I did live on a hill which often served me well. I used to get them tuned regularly and had the exhaust manifold gaskets replaced. The sound with new gaskets was exceptional. I didn't have the electrical problems most have talked about. Biggest issue was the cold weather starts.

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=218&ad=42065835&cat=&lpid=&search=klipsch&ad_cid=9 At $1600, I'd say .... nope.

I was curious as to how stones was used as a measure of weight. Pretty accurate, give or take a bag full of gravel.

I tried several Monoprice splitters when I finally decided that I wanted to play 3D BD on my projector. I couldn't get them to work. There were handshaking issues from the receiver to the Sony player I had that prevented splitting the signal. Handshaking only allowed one protocol at a time. I lieu of buying a new receiver, I bought a Panasonic BD player that had dual outputs that accommodate this issue. I know it doesn't solve your problem. I did see other more expensive splitters advertised that I didn't try, but the Panasonic BD player solved my issue at a price point I liked. Do a search on HD Splitters or 2.2 HDMI splitters. It will have to be one that can handshake with multiple HDMI protocols. Good luck.

If 1080p is a monster jump over 1080i, then I'd be truly amazed. Watching F1 and football I'm totally satisfied. I watched the Singapore F1 race under the lights and it was very sharp. I can see individual grass blades on the football field. I really don't see any noticeable difference between a 1080p movie and the HD cable channels. YMMV, but it's all good to me.

Trackball for a laptop since the computer usually is on my....wait for it.... lap.

Sorry to hear twk. When I lived in the downtown area of SLC I had a well. It was artesian from the main aquifer under the valley. I loved the water right out of the well, but any storage period brought out a sulfur smell and occasionally iron stains on the clothes from the washing machine. The second owner after I sold the house added city water. He wasn't much of a do-it-yourselfer which is required to maintain the pumps and filters. Fact is, his lawn looks like sh*t now and his effort at xeriscaping are pitiful. I hate to go by the property any more due to how run down it looks compared to when I owned it. Then again, it ain't my property any more, I just hate that the neighborhood where I still have friends is suffering. Anyway, wells can be a blessing and a curse. Francis, up here in the mountains, now has well trouble that is restricting our water use. We consistently had what was judged as the best water in the state. Now, who knows.

Just dropped to $1000 today. I want to do this deal, just can't swing it right now.

As I said, " It's just the reality of today's technology." If you still want to go component wiring, that would be a choice I wouldn't make, Today most Bluray players are HDMI. Your experience may vary.

This reminded me of the time I helped a friend down the street with a sprinkler valve. It was buried six feet underground and he was hand digging down to get the plumber access to replace the valve. I thought, why do 90% of the work and pay a guy a couple of hundred to replace a $15 part? So he let me help him with the valve. When I loosened and pulled the connection apart I got a pretty good tingle standing in a foot of water and realized I had current running through my body. I calmly asked him to please go and throw the main breaker. The power company came out and fixed the issue. Seems the previous owner, an electrician, had reversed a ground and the power lead at the circuit breaker. Why? Who knows. Maybe it circumvents the meter some how. Kinda shows that even people with a little knowledge can really screw things up. As I only got a tingle and didn't end up in the morgue it's sorta humorous now.

Unless there are other factors, go with the narrow wall. You didn't mention how "good" of movie experience you're after, but I would not go with an amp that I intended to watch movies on without HDMI. It's just the reality of today's technology. Also with a room that size, what is your intended size with a screen? Big sound on a small screen will not be satisfying. I'd look for a closeout on a better 5.1 AVR that you can select to use the center channel when listening to music and many come with a phono input.

The 8000 is active and the amount of 3D offset is adjustable so you can play with how much standout from the screen you want. I have the two set of glasses that came with the projector and 4 more Sony PS sets that I picked up off of Ebay for very little. That gives me a room full worth, but the kids only get up to these parts occasionally. Like I said earlier, it's a novelty for me.

Well...... I notice significant drop off with 3D. That doesn't mean I don't occasionally put the 3D disc in to watch a movie that way. A lot also has to do with the source material. I have Polar Express and almost all of that movie is night scenes, so it's dark to start with. While I have the AE-8000, I don't have Gravity so I can't comment on that movie and my 3D collection is limited. I will say that 3D movies are more of a novelty to me rather than a hardcore desire to have to watch. YMMV.