In the front projector market, it has become common practice for manufacturers to use a dynamic iris to boost contrast numbers and deliver blacker blacks. By temporarily reducing light output during dark sequences, blacks appear deeper making for a better picture. Unfortunately, it’s usually easy to tell whether or not a projector is using a dynamic iris; when a dark scene cuts quickly to a bright one, the iris needs to adjust and some can take up to a second or more before the image suddenly returns to normal brightness. Some machines also have a noisy iris and every time it adjusts you can hear it happen. None of this is a problem with the DLA-HD100.
Considering its price tag, the DLA-HD100 is likely destined for a ceiling installation in a dedicated home theater more often than not and thankfully this is one flexible projector. Vertical and horizontal lens shift adjustments work in conjunction with a generous 2.0x zoom to make the DLA-HD100 a snap to locate in your room. This zoom capability means you can achieve a 100-inch diagonal image with a throw distance anywhere between ten and twenty feet. For rear shelf installations, the DLA-HD100 offers the added convenience of front air intake and exhausts. The only downside of this arrangement is some minor light spill from the front grille.
The remote control supplied with the DLA-HD100 is one of the better ones I’ve seen for a front projector. First and foremost it’s completely backlit. Secondly, you get direct access buttons for each of the various inputs. Menu navigation is merely average but nothing was terribly difficult to find. There is a convenient set of test patterns which you can access quickly by hitting “Test” on the remote. This is also where you can adjust the unit’s electronic zoom and focus. The focus adjustment is rather annoying as you can only base your setting on the word “Focus” which takes center stage above a test grid. I’d prefer the ability to pause my own test material and focus on the fly.
The DLA-HD100 I received from JVC had clearly been reviewed before, and whoever had it last was kind enough to leave me with some pretty accurate video settings. After taking some readings with my Datacolor SpyderTV PRO, I ended up leaving most of the sliders where they were and chose not to engage the “High” lamp output for my image which was plenty bright. As with any projector—especially when you’re already spending this much money—I can’t recommend strongly enough a full ISF calibration to achieve optimum grayscale tracking and proper color balance.
After connecting my Philips BDP7200 with a BetterCables HDMI cable, I threw in one of my favorite Blu-ray test discs, Christopher Nolan’s The Prestige. Put simply, I was absolutely floored by the depth and quality of blacks put forth by the DLA-HD100. Whether you looked at top hats, tuxedos or the black bars above and below the 2.35:1 image, things that should be black were precisely that: black—not charcoal gray. Switching over to some broadcast high def, colors were punchy with natural skin tones and again, those wonderful blacks.
There’s no question that JVC’s DLA-HD100 is a top tier performer. The big question is one of value versus performance. With a slew of 1080p projectors now available in the $3,000 neighborhood, the DLA-HD100’s $8,000 price tag causes more sticker shock than it would have two years ago. The law of diminishing returns has forever been a difficult (and subjective) thing to quantify as you move up from “very good” to “great” gear. As always, you need to weigh what’s most important to you. The only thing I can tell you for certain is this: the DLA-HD100 is a great projector. Also, despite the recent onslaught of bargain projectors, there are just as many high-end machines priced equal to or above the JVC. And the DLA-HD100 outperforms everything I’ve laid hands on, so far. yy
JVC DLA-HD100 Front Projector
$8,000 • 1920 x 1080p • 30,000:1 contrast ratio • 2 HDMI inputs (v1.3) • 2.0x motorized zoom/focus •
www.jvc.com
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