InFocus SP 5700 and HDMI.

[georgev]

I have been running and IF SP5700 with my Marantz DV8300.
I changed the player to the Denon 3910 and want to run HDMI to the projector(currently component).
The input on the back is an M1 DA(peculiar to Infocus), hence I will need to get an HDMI to M1 DA adapter.
Question:
Is there any sort of conversion of the signal when converting from HDMI to the M1 DA?
Is there a degradation when using an adapter?
Could the picture be significantly better than the already great component picture.

[Brandon B]

No
No
Yes (depending on your definition of significant).

Going to DVI made a worthwhile difference to me on a digital PJ.

BB

[georgev]

Phew, I thought no one would help.
Thanks.
When you went to DVI, were all the other components the same? i.e the DVD Player as well as the PJ?

[Nosoforos]

A question to Georgev:

Do you notice the severe temporal dithering on the screenplay 5700? I own this machine as well, and during pans this artifact really bothers me.
I'm stil hoping a proper calibration will somewhat reduce this effect.

[georgev]

Forgive my ignorance Nosoforos, what do you mean by "temporal dithering"?
In plain speak pls.

[Nosoforos]

I'm sorry, I'm using a term that I too only know of since I've encountered it recently. I'll try to explain:
DLP projectors create different shades of colours by a process called dithering. It works like posters for publicity or photographs in newspapers, which don't actually show the colours that appear to you, but that simulate them with different combinations of dots in various colours.
It is a weakness of all sinlge DMD DLP projectors that they have to apply this process and that it can become distractive to the human eye. What happens is that, especially in darker scenes, the mirrors of the dlp chip cannot switch between their on and off state fast enough to keep up with the action in the movie. So, with pans or tilts, the image can become pixelated/ blurry. It looks very digital and weird. I think it is a far worse artifact than rainbows and screendoor effect on a DLP. The worst is when it happens in a close-up, since the human eye reacts very critically to human faces, every abnormality stands out. You can get a picture sometimes referred to as "clayface".

[George Bellefontaine]

Although I have heard of this dithering thing, I have yet to see it on my NEC HT1000 dlp. I do notice an occasional quick blur on fast pans in action scenes, but I see this also on my Yamaha lcd projector, and saw it, too on my old Sony VPL400Q. It is always fleeting and it doesn't bother me.

[georgev]

I have't noticed it and am pretty happy with the projected image for now.
What is your player and what is your screeen. How are you running it?

[Nosoforos]

The player I use is now a Pioneer 567A, connected through component. I do have the feeling that somehow my unit has something wrong with it, since I have only found a couple of other person on the internet with the same complaints. I wil have it ISF calibrated and perhaps filtered and checked as soon as possible, maybe this will make a difference. Otherwise I might contact the dealer.

[Brandon B]

Back to your DVI question, it was a new deck (Bravo), but some of the differences were largely attributable to the fact it was a DVI signal (noise level in the signal, etc.).

If you want to check without spending a lot of money, get yourself an inexpensive DVI cable (3 feet can be had for about $20), temporarily locate your deck very near your PJ, and A/B the DVI vs. component. I would be pretty sure you'll find the difference worthwhile.

BB

[georgev]

Ehx Brandon, I have already taken the plunge and bought the cable, and had it installed. It is an HDMI cable. Now I am waiting for the HDMI to M1-DA adapter.
I should have tried that option first.
What were the differences that you noticed?
George.

[Chris D]

I really don't know why Infocus does the M1 adapter thing. A royal pain in the rear, and just forces you to buy another connector instead of it being easy to connect. One reason I stayed away from Infocus.

[georgev]

You are right. It is a pain, and now I am having to wait till it arrives(the adapter) from the States. But it projects an awesome image(IMHO).

[Dean McManis]

I believe that InFocus wanted to integrate a USB interface into the DVI connection (kind of a pre-HDMI) so that you could easily update firmware and allow PC control for more features when using the projector with a PC for presentations (most projector's primary market/use).

I just bought the M1 adapter to convert InFocus' DVI to standard DVI, then got a regular DVI to HDMI cable. Personally, I don't think that there should be any visible image degradation from the M1 to DVI conversion because it's digital, with error correction.

-Dean.

[georgev]

Which Infocus are you running?