Sanyo PLC-HF10000L Large Venue 2K Projector Review

PLC-HF10000L Technology Overview

Some projectors are designed for home theater, others for commercial applications. Anyone stumbling onto this review should be 100% convinced that this projector is designed, intended, and perfectly suited for large venue applications and is not created to compete with less-expensive home theater models. To be quite frank, the Sanyo PLC-HF10000L projector is in a completely different class altogether. First off, it's the world’s first "QuaDrive" projector with Real 2K resolution. What that means is this projector has, natively, a resolution of 2048 x 1080 pixels on each of its three 1.64" TFT Poly LCD panels. This not only exceeds the requirements for full HD resolution, it also makes this projector suitable for commercial cinema use. In fact, when comparing this style of projector with its 3-chip DLP counterparts, the Sanyo comes in at a very reasonable price that makes it exceptionally competitive. This widescreen 3LCD projector puts out an incredible 10,000 ANSI lumens when using both of its 380W UHP lamps.

The QuaDrive engine adds a yellow color control device to the red, green and blue elements of the projector’s 3LCD system. By automatically controlling the amount of yellow light in the image, it supposedly improves color accuracy, produces a wider color gamut and enables higher brightness levels. It was first introduced in 2008 in the PLC-XP200L, and in 2009 the technology was putting out effective color at high brightness levels of 12,000 lumens with the PLC-XF1000.

The PLC-HF10000L is new in that it's the first QuaDrive projector capable of native 2K resolution (Sanyo calls this "Real 2K"), with no image compression. Its dual high-output lamps are used in combination with three internal mirrors that produce uniform light output, reduce color irregularities and produce exceptional image quality even at the remarkably high image brightness of 10,000 lumens. We've seen it first-hand and will attest that the colors are impressive, even at high lumen output.

Sanyo's Durable Inorganic Optical System ("D.I.O.S.") works in tandem with QuaDrive to produce a 3,000:1 contrast ratio and also extend the life of the optical system. In terms of design goals, Sanyo wanted a lower total cost of ownership (TCO) - a feat they advanced through the use of an Active Maintenance Filter (AMF) system. The AMF aids long-term reliability and reduces maintenance costs by monitoring the intake air volume through the filter and automatically advancing the cartridge-like filter media to provide a clean surface once reduced airflow through the filter is detected. As with many of the other features available on the PLC-HF10000L, the AMF is designed to enable the projector to be used commercially, with a minimum amount of maintenance or adjusting - over a long period of time with high volume continuous use.

PLC-HF10000L Lens Options and Inputs

There are nearly infinite options for throw distances and projector placement with this system, mostly due to the available of nearly a dozen lens options. I can't imagine there is a venue in existence that cannot find at least one lens that will match up to get the image to the screen perfectly. Fixed and zoom lenses are available in standard, wide and long configurations and remote controllable powered vertical and horizontal lens shift facilitates installation in nearly any environment. Everything on this projector is powered and accessible via remote control, so setup is a breeze. Here are the available lens options:

• LNS-W01Z: Short-throw, fixed lens
• LNS-W02Z: Short-throw; zoom lens
• LNS-W03: On-axis, short-throw fixed lens
• LNW-W04: Short-throw zoom lens
• LNS-W06: Short-throw zoom lens
• LNS-S03: Standard zoom lens
• LNS-T02: Long-throw zoom lens
• LNS-T03: Ultra long-throw zoom lens
• LNS-S04: Standard zoom lens
• LNS-M02: Semi-long zoom lens

I'm not certain this feature will get used much in practical application, but the PLC-HF10000L supports multiple images in either picture-in-picture or picture-by-picture modes. In other uses, primarily when larger screens are required, the projector's Color Matching function corrects variations in hue for side-by-side projection. Additionally, the projector has Edge Blending which aids in blending multiple images on the same screen without sharply defined borders.

For commercial uses, Sanyo's built-in LAN networking facilitates control of the projector or a group of projectors through a standard CAT5 network. This is excellent for commercial installations where you want a unified projection system. The PLC-HF10000L also has a handy mechanical shutter system which means you can instantly shut off light transmission when necessary. Input options include HDMI 1.3; DVI-D; D-sub 15 pin RGB; BNC for RGBHV and CV/Y-Pb/Cb-Pr/Cr; and S-Video, with optional boards available for HD/SD-SDI and Dual Link SDI.

PLC-HF10000L Build Quality and Setup

Like most high-end commercial projectors, the lens, as you can tell from our dossier on the available options, ships and is sold separately. After all, given how expensive the projector is already, why add more on top of that for a lens you don't intend to use? We requested the LNS-S03 standard zoom lens which would allow us to project onto our rear-projection screen that was configured for, to the glee of our neighborhood and friends, an outdoor Super Bowl party. Loading the lens is a bit more complicated than just screwing on an adaptor or pushing and twisting it into place. The lenses that are available for the PLC-HF10000L are active, meaning that they include connectors that supply power to the Focus and/or Zoom functionality of the system. We took the LNS-S03 lens from the separate box it arrived in and set it aside for installation. We then prepped the projector for the lens installation. The projector comes with a protective plastic cover in place to protect the inner electronics and LCD panels from dust and debris contamination:

The first step was to remove the plastic lens shroud. This allowed access to the front screws.

A total of four screws need to be removed. The two behind the shroud and the two on top which allow the lens cover plate to be slid forward. Once removed, we were able to load the lens into place. The installation was fairly easy once everything was removed. You line up the lens to the four protruding posts...

...and then activate the sliding locking clamp to hold everything securely in place.

Sanyo includes several foam-lined plastic surrounds to frame out the lens and block debris from entering around the lens. 

The finished lens installation leaves the projector with a beautiful, completed look.

PLC-HF10000L Viewing Evaluation and Conclusion

The output of this projector is absolutely stunning. It's super bright and puts out enough light to compensate for a larger screen, ambient light, or a larger throw distance. As a commercial product, this is a device that will do well on a number of levels.First, if you don't need the extreme light output, you can place the projector into sequential lamp mode, where one lamp will be used and then the other will kick in when the first lap needs to be replaced. This is an excellent mode for when you need to use the PLC-HF10000L for extended lengths of time, or in a venue that absolutely cannot tolerate extended downtime.

We weren't worried about downtime, so we operated the projector with its standard zoom LNS-S03 lens in dual lamp mode - with all 10,000 peak lumens outputting from the system's dual 380W UHP lamps. Since we were doing rear projection - and aiming for a really bright image, this seemed to be the perfect projector for this application (if not a little overkill since this wasn't exactly a commercial venue). Check out the images we captured:

Even the post-game show looked awesome

Of course, we couldn't help but also watch some movies. For this we turned to a couple of sources, namely The Fifth Element (a personal favorite of ours)...

...and a new favorite, the Blu-ray sample disc from AIX Records. From this piece we captured high-definition images from John Gorka singing "The Mercy of the Wheels" and Carl Verheyen playing "Henry's Farm".

Conclusion

While this isn't a budget-conscious home theater projector by any stretch of the imagination, it is a remarkable product for commercial applications. And, I suppose, for those looking for a truly high-powered solution, you could use the PLC-HF10000L to project a killer image on an outdoor rear-projection screen or large display surface. Its ability to play continuous images over the life of two lamps is impressive, as is its ability to engage dual lamp mode and output an impressive amount of lumens for filling screens up to 600 inches in size. In our testing the system maintained excellent color accuracy and really impressed with its incredible light output and flexibility. This is a projector that custom installers will love to install - for a number of reasons. The ease of use, exceptional configurability, and network features make it a force to be reckoned with.

Sanyo PLC-HF10000L 3LCD Projector
MSRP: $34,995
Sanyo North America
http://us.sanyo.com/

About Sanyo
Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. is a global, leading provider of energy, environment, and lifestyle applications. The Corporate Solutions Group, is based in Chatsworth, California, and is part of Sanyo North America’s Digital Solutions Division (Sanyo North America is a subsidiary of Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.). The Digital Solutions Division is a service and sales division that markets digital projectors, digital still cameras, digital media camcorders, home appliances, security video equipment, audio systems, portable and mobile electronics and HD televisions. For more information on Sanyo, please visit http://us.sanyo.com.

The Score Card

The scoring below is based on each piece of equipment doing the duty it is designed for. The numbers are weighed heavily with respect to the individual cost of each unit, thus giving a rating roughly equal to:

Performance × Price Factor/Value = Rating

Audioholics.com note: The ratings indicated below are based on subjective listening and objective testing of the product in question. The rating scale is based on performance/value ratio. If you notice better performing products in future reviews that have lower numbers in certain areas, be aware that the value factor is most likely the culprit. Other Audioholics reviewers may rate products solely based on performance, and each reviewer has his/her own system for ratings.

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Metric	Rating
Detail and Resolution
Contrast and Black Levels
Color Reproduction
Build Quality
Ergonomics & Usability
Ease of Setup
Features
Remote Control
Fit and Finish
Performance
Value