October 30, 2006
Just a warning that this will probably be a very long blog entry. Decided to post about the research I did for the TV room I put together at the house. Maybe it'll help somebody else interested in the same sort of thing as I am. From an earlier post I stated how I wanted to turn the back room in the new house into a full blown theater room. That idea has since changed. I thought it would happen because we are finally at a point where the technology that I've been waiting for is here and available to the consumer. However, the technology is still brand new and in my opinion... still about at least a years away from where I'd like it to be.
The goal of the back room in the new house was to set up a front projector. The front projector has to be able to support the latest technologies that I believe will be around for a long time. Here are a couple of those technologies:
- Full 1080p Video output - which just means outputting 1080 lines of resolution (as opposed to just 480 - which is what regular standard TV output is) in progressive mode. The "p" which stands for progressive mode describes how frames are outputted to the screen. The other letter you’ve seen is "i" which stands for interlace mode. In interlace mode, every other line on a screen is produced in a single frame... and then filled in on the next frame. With progressive mode, every line is produced in a single frame from top to bottom. Hence, more flicker in interlace mode and a more sharp fuller picture in progressive mode.
- HDMI - the new cable connections between different components. Now that almost everything is digital, HDMI solves the problem of having that nest of cables behind your TV. HDMI is able to transfer digitally all video and audio content - and it's just one cable. Component video used to be the previous "best" - and that was only capable of transferring video content. Component video also uses three separate connections - 1 each for the main colors (Red, Blue, and Green).
Believe it or not, these projectors exist to us right now and can output a screen size to a little over 100". They will even accept multiple connections from different sources. The problem is that it really hasn't caught up like everything else has. The front projector technology is slightly behind the curve. Sure these projectors are available today but you can hardly find them (with the specs above) at stores right now... and if you do, the cheapest one in the market right now is $4500. Still very pricey. You can, however, find front projectors that output 720p... for a very decent price. You can find them for less than $1000 now. But why would you buy one... seriously. 1080p just seems like the technology that we've all been waiting for... the goal that all the different components have been trying to reach. So I've decided to pass on the front projector for now and will take a look at the market about a year from now.
So what did I end up doing... While front projector technology is still slightly behind the curve... everything else isn't. There are a bunch of TV technologies out right now that, for the most part, all support 1080p. Here's a breakdown of the different TV technologies and what I ended up getting:
- Old Fashion Tube TV - yea, this is pretty much a no. If you're looking for something really cheap that has a small screen size... then definitely this is the way to go. Otherwise, on to the next
- Flat-panel TVs - arguably the best technology. Not only are these amazing space savers... the video quality is amazing. The downside is that these are pretty expensive and you have the potential for screen burn-in. Flat-panels come in two flavors - Plasma or LCD. Plasma having better video quality but more potential for screen burn-in. LCD having less chance of burn-in but not as good as Plasma in terms of video quality
- Rear-projection TVs - these have gone through the biggest change in my opinion. Rear-projection TVs have been around for so long... but if you go back and look at one from back in the day... those things sucked. The Rear-projection TVs of today are affordable and have great picture quality. Three main flavors of this category - DLP (Digital Light Processing), LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), and LCoS (Liquid Crystal on Silicon).
I ended up going with rear-projection technology mainly for its affordable price and great image quality. It was just a matter of deciding on the type of Rear-projection. LCD rear-projection was already off the list as there are no 1080p models yet. Blacks are not as deep on them anyway and not as bright as DLPs. So it was down to DLP versus LCoS. I narrowed down to two actual rear-projection sets. A 61” DLP from Samsung and a 60” SXRD (rebranded name for its LCoS chip) from Sony. The only downsides to the Sony model is that it is more expensive (about $600 more than the DLP Samsung) and has slight (if any) uniformity issues (which just means slight discoloration with flat fields). There are two main downsides to the DLP technology – Rainbow effect and wobulation. Rainbow effect describes brief streaks of color caused by the color wheel that DLP sets use. Wobulation is a bit more complicated but basically describes the technique used to create the full native resolution. DLP chips actually have half as many physical pixels as stated. For example, a 1920x1080 resolution actually uses DLP chips that have 960x1080 pixels. Wobulation describes the process of tiny mirrord/lens that moves rapidly back and forth to alternately create the first and second halves of an image and create that 1920x1080 resolution. LCoS sets use chips that physically have all 1920x1080 pixels. Wobulation isn’t necessarily bad… and in some cases is actually better. It really depends on the TV at this point. In some TVs, wobulation causes a softer image and/or low-level noise. On other TVs, none of the downsides are present… which is the reason why I went with the Samsung DLP. The Samsung has a fast color wheel, so the rainbow effect is not even present. In addition it uses 2 additional colors (in addition to the red, blue, and green) – cyan and yellow. The wobulation is also negated by faster DLP chips that have mirrors that switch on and off at more than 15,000 or more times a second. Total price for this set is roughly around $2600. Fairly decent price with great video quality... next up... choosing a DVD Player!
October 16, 2006
46 photos
46 photos
Here's some recent pictures from the house in Tampa. Still with the old camera... I really need to get a new one. Lotz of new work completed. Trying to get the house as "done" as possible before November because a lot of friends and family are coming to visit! The latest major work that was completed was the new microwave and stove which looks awesome. I also set up the new table saw so Jill and I can start working on the kitchen cabinets. It's all coming together slowly. Next on the list is to finalize the kitchen - all the cabinets need to be primed, new molding, gripper paint, then re-painted. Need to also get the entry-way wall up so we can stop looking at fiber glass lol. That'll need a paint job. Then mainly just cosmetics before November... getting new blinds, some outdoor yard work, etc...
Oh, also... the game/bar room idea I think is shot. It's now going to be a theater room. I got plans for the latest and greatest and hope to get this equipment soon. I've been doing a lot of research on it and just need to narrow it down soon. I want to go with a projector... all HDMI connections, Blu-ray or HD-DVD, etc... - My wish list:
- Max 1080p DLP Front Projector (mounted to the ceiling) and then playing to the front red wall (roughly 100" screen), probably using a pull-down screen
- Updated sound system and speakers. Found a nice one about 840W that has two HDMI inputs to one HDMI output. Speakers I'm still trying to figure out but definitely want some front floor speakers
- Leaning towards Blu-ray DVD player. Although HD-DVD is half the price. I saw a bluray DVD player hooked up to a nice screen at Best Buy and it blew me away
If anybody has any recommendations on the theater project... leave me a comment!
October 2, 2006
36 photos
36 photos
Here's some pictures we took awhile back of us re-modeling the house. I hope to get more recent pictures soon... there's a lot that's been done with it so far, and yet still more to do! It's been a fun experience though. I'm constantly learning new things with the house everyday :)
7 photos
7 photos
Here's pictures of Jill's dog Max... he's so cute. He looks so much like our old dog Gizmo. I still haven't found my camera... which is why I haven't updated the site in awhile. I took these pictures off of Jill's camera. I'll start posting more pictures of Max as soon as I buy a new camera.
July 8, 2006
62 photos
62 photos
I visited Rich's family on July 4th... and had a blast. I always love seeing the kids even though they haven't warmed up to me much yet :( so hard for me to see them often. Anyway, I had a chance to go through some of Rich's pictures on his computer and uploaded a bunch of them. This album has a bunch of pictures of my niece and nephew over the past couple of months. Enjoy.
July 4, 2006
I know, I haven't posted in awhile. Things have been pretty busy trying to close on the house... I haven't had much time for anything else. The big news with me lately is that I did actually close on the house June 29th. I know, pretty exciting... and a bit overwhelming at the same time. After I closed on the house I immediately had to fly to DC for a friend's wedding. I brought Jill with me and we also drove to New York to visit family. I had such a blast. Now I'm finally back home and have been working on the house like a madman. The house is great... but sort of a fixer upper. Not much, but am planning to redo the flooring before I move in. I hope to take some before and after pictures - and possibly start a house upgrade site. Unfortunately, I misplaced my camera and haven't found it in the past month. Hopefully it'll show itself or a may end up buying a new one soon. Till next time... -Danny
Happy July 4th BTW
June 1, 2006
Well, it looks like I might finally become a new homeowner soon. I've been looking to buy a new home for years but the prices in the DC area were just insane. The prices here in Florida are not even close. I didn't think I would buy a place so soon after moving down to Florida but I saw one advertised at work that I could not pass up. I'm still in the early stages but I just found out today that the seller accepted my offer. So as long as everything else works out, I should be moving within the next two months. Here's some pictures of the place. Picture quality isn't so great but will try to get some better ones next time.
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Family Room (with built-in Desks/Shelves)
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Outdoor Screened in Pool
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Outside (front)
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May 29, 2006
13 photos
13 photos
April 25, 2006
157 photos
157 photos
Here's pictures from our 4-day cruise to Cozumel, Mexico. Jill and I had a blast. We both finally went on a cruise for the first time (although Jill's been stationed on Navy ships in the past). I've been dying to do a trip like this for years. We took off from the Tampa port at 4:00pm on Thursday, April 20th. We stayed out at sea until our arrival in Cozumel Saturday morning at 8:30am. We spent a few hours on one of the ship shore excursions, enjoyed some shopping and relaxation at the Puerto Maya Pier, and then got back aboard the ship around 6:00pm. The rest of the weekend we set sail again until our arrival back in Tampa Monday morning. It was sooo hard going to work on Monday! I would definitely recommend this trip, especially for first time cruisers. Below is a short clip on the main pool desk, shows what it's like on a typical afternoon. Sigh... now back to reality.
April 20, 2006
31 photos
31 photos
Sorry I haven't posted in awhile. I haven't had a chance to get on the computer lately.
Here are some pics of the kids for the past month. Hope you enjoy them.
Also congratulations Ochie!
-R
April 16, 2006
6 photos
6 photos
Easter Sunday this year for me was small but tons of fun. With family far away, Jill decided to cook for me and our close friends. The food was so amazing. Jill truly surprises me every day. I had to work on Easter Sunday at about 3pm so we had company from the morning up until around 1pm when we sat down to eat. I have more pictures from Tom's camera that I'll have to add to this album later. -Danny
April 11, 2006
Jill and I went to see Delirium (A Cirque Du Soleil Live Music Event) last night at the Ice Palace in Tampa and had an amazing time. I truly enjoyed this new one. It's hard to compare this one to some of the other Cirque shows as this one kinda sits in it's own category. Truly a creative piece. The show has some of what you would expect in a Cirque show and then has a whole lot more that you've probably never seen before. The only picture we were able to take at the event was of Nitza, the opening act who performs for about 20-minutes before Delirium. Some of her music can also be heard on the Cirque Du Soleil CD. She definitely set the mood. Her band was amazing... especially the violinist who was insane. -Danny
April 9, 2006
Who knew that there is a large Filipino community in Tampa. We heard about this Filipino Festival but at too late of a notice that Jill and I only caught the very end of the weekend festival. The picture on the left is of me in front of the festival gate. The second picture is of the Philippine Cultural Foundation symbol found in front of the new Bayanihan Arts and Events Center
April 3, 2006
22 photos
22 photos
Zachary (not sure if I got spelling right) Ethan was born on March 23rd, 2006 to Ate' Ochie and Steven. All the Floridians drove to visit Ate' Ochie and the new baby on April 2nd. Christine and Uncle Willie were also in town... as well as Auntie Nora and Uncle Steve. Enjoy the pictures! - Danny
March 26, 2006
41 photos
41 photos
This weekend they had the Tampa Bikefest at USF's sundome which is about 15 to 20 minutes from my place. Jill and I went for a couple of hours to check it out. It wasn't as good as we were expecting but we did get a chance to see a lot of custom made bikes. I bought some cute little bike shirts for Ben and Chelsea so I need to send that over when I get a chance. Enjoy the pictures. -Danny
