JVC DLA-HD750

By Philip Wong, CNET Asia
Jan 14, 2009

The JVC DLA-HD750 sits firmly at the top of the echelon for delivering deep luscious blacks, thanks to its no-nonsense ultra-high native contrast. For the layman, this capability guarantees revealing shadows and "pop" that add depth to the projection for highly sought-after 3D-like visuals. It's also one of the rare home theater projectors in the market to bear the stringent THX-certified display badge. This is another reassurance of fine picture quality, which somewhat offsets its jaw-dropping S$9,999 (US$7,199.74) sticker price.

Upside: The key differentiator that sets the DLA-HD750 apart from the competition is its no-holds-barred 50,000:1 native contrast. More importantly, JVC is able to achieve this class-leading performance without employing a dynamic iris which enhances blacks at the expense of light output. So you'll get to enjoy the best of both worlds: Solid shadows and bright pictures. To further boost picture quality, the company is throwing in an HQV processor renowned for its top-notch video upscaling and a THX movie mode with pre-calibrated settings optimized for DVD and Blu-ray playback.

For those not blessed with the luxury of a large home theater room, its powerful 2x zoom is a godsend, capable of casting a huge 100-inch screen from a mere 3m throw distance. Furthermore, the onboard wide vertical and horizontal lens shift functions allow a variety of setup positions without requiring a dead-center installation or image degradation that comes with digital keystone correction. Best of all, the above-mentioned adjustments, as well as focus and lens cap, are fully motorized and can be fine-tuned through the remote control from the comfort of your couch.

Another strong feature is its comprehensive suite of connectivity options. Most notable are its dual HDMI 1.3 terminals compatible with film-centric 1080p24 signals and Deep Color for richer hues. On the analog side, it comes with component-video and 1080p-ready PC input in addition to the usual legacy jacks such as S-video and composite-video. Rounding up the selection are the automation-oriented 12V trigger and RS232 serial port. These will come in handy for a custom installer to hook up a motorized screen and control the DLA-HD750 remotely through a computer, respectively.

Downside: At S$9,999 (US$7,199.74), this "premium" premium home cinema projector is almost twice the price of lesser models such as the recently reviewed S$5,999 (US$4,319.56) LCD-based Mitsubishi HC6500. But in terms of brightness, the DLA-HD750's humble 900 ANSI lumens is a lot lower than some of these entry-level equivalents. In other words, a dark room is crucial for this JVC to reproduce the best pictures. Based on an onsite preview we had last year as reference, the overall image quality can be a little soft. To be fair, this can be quite subjective. Some videophiles may even call it film-like just like in the movie theaters.

Outlook: You'll be hard-pressed to find a better beamer that can match the DLA-HD750's excellent black output. However, with a hefty S$9,999 (US$7,199.74) price tag, this JVC is out of reach for most consumers and will appeal mainly to discerning users with deep pockets. Those willing to wait should also keep a close watch on the latest development in DLP projectors' LED lighting. This has the potential to inject a new lease of life into the upcoming DLPs by improving their color gamut and eliminating rainbow anomalies.

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