Excitement for the JVC DLA-Z1

Estimated reading time: 7 minutes

Excitement for the JVC DLA-Z1, it’s fast becoming Rapallo tradition to have a July demo night featuring what’s new in the world of projectors. This year, we couldn’t ignore the new JVC DLA-Z1.

If you keep an eye on reviews, you will have noticed that the superlatives fly aplenty. What Hifi calls it ‘the best home theatre projector they have ever tested’, and that is something that I would assume they wouldn’t say lightly.

So what is so amazing about this projector?

We will start off by saying that we haven’t tested the projector ourselves yet. We’re very keen; we actually can’t wait. But demo projectors are shared between all suppliers and each get their turn. Patience is the word. So no Rapallo review just yet. But what we have done is make a compilation of the reviews that are around. We had a look at what its competitors are and what the technology is behind the ‘amazingness’.

Consider it a prelude to our demo night, where we will check for ourselves whether what’s said on paper matches up with what we see for ourselves.

Here goes…

It is no secret that we are big fans of the JVC home theatre projectors. JVC has made quite a name for itself due to its ground-breaking D-ILA 4K enhanced e-shift technology. Our love for JVC projectors stems from the fact that they are an excellent compromise between cost and performance, as well as their easy set-up and use.

With the DLA-Z1, JVC has finally taken the full native 4K plunge, an area that was previously dominated by Sony.

But it’s not the only first for a JVC projector. It’s also the first JVC domestic projector to use a laser lighting system, that is capable of delivering up to 3000 lumens. On top of that, it is THX certified.

Here’s what the specs read: ‘The Z1 uses three 4096 x 2160 D-ILA panels with a light engine based on JVC’s proprietary BLU-Escent laser projection technology. It uses blue laser diodes to offer 3000 lumens of brightness and 20,000 hours of operational life.’

We all assume that this is great, but what does it mean?

What’s the importance of the laser light source?

In short, there are 3 main light sources used in home theatre projectors: a projector lamp (incandescent light), LED (Light Emitting Diode), and Laser.

(For more background, we refer you to a previous blog here) Bottom-line is that when specs say that our projector uses JVC’s proprietary BLU-Escent laser projection technology, it means that like most domestic laser home theatre projectors it uses two lasers; one for red and green and one for blue.

Why not a laser for each primary color? That comes down to economics.

Both laser diodes are blue; one excites a phosphor that creates yellow light (for the red and green primaries) and the other remains blue by using a neutral phosphor. This explains the generic name ‘laser-phosphor projectors’.

The big advantages of using laser light source is the increased output (3000 lumens as opposed to 1800 lumens for the other JVC projectors using a ‘high-power lamp’ light for instance) as well as the increased life span (20,000 hours instead of 4500 hours for the JVC DLA-X5500 when used in low-mode)

Laser-phosphor projectors also offer superior and more consistent picture quality, they aren’t as fragile as other light sources, and offer nearly instant on/off unlike normal lamps resulting in less fan noise (25dB).

Other projectors that use this laser –phosphor technology are the Panasonic PT-RZ570B and PT-RZ575E, the extremely high-end Sony VPL-VW5000ES, the Epson LS10000 and its announced successor the LS10500. Out of these, only the Sony is a true 4K projector.

But there’s more: The D-ILA panels mentioned in the specs refer to the LCOS technology responsible for the colour display. It stands for Liquid Crystal on Silicone and it is what turns the white light into colour. LCOS is different from LCD and DLP display technology, but at the same time, it has elements of both. Sony is the other main projector manufacturer using this technology under the name of SXRD.

We have previously dedicated a blog on projector display technologies and the benefits offered by each that you can find here.

In short: the great thing about LCOS technology is the really tight pixel structure resulting in very accurate performance and excellent contrast ratio and black levels.

JVC claims that the combination of laser technology and their D-ILA technology create infinite contrast ratio. Now that is a bold claim and definitely something we will put to the test.

The 4096×2160 refers to the Digital Cinema Initiatives (DCI) 4K format. This comes down to about 8.8 million pixels, which is higher than the UHD format used by Optoma and BenQ 4K projectors and representing 8.3 million pixels.

DCI’s 4K spec has the same vertical resolution as 4K UHD, but is about 7% wider. It has an aspect ratio of 1.90 compared to the standard 1.78 in Full HD and UHD. Sony is using the 4096×2160 format in its line of 4K home theatre projectors, with now JVC joining the ranks.

And then some more…

Just as important as the projector technology is the lens system, and again the JVC engineers have not succumbed to compromise. The lens assembly is an 18-element affair with a 100mm diameter. It’s designed to reduce colour distortion to a minimum while maintaining transparency.

As far as HDR goes, the Z1 can process the recently introduced Hybrid Log Gamma alongside the more established HDR10 standard. Plenty of HDR pre-sets that are said to work a treat. The 3000 lumen handles HDR according to the reviews…just. As this was an issue with other projectors, it is again something that requires our own scrutiny.

The Motorised lens shift, zoom and focus makes positioning the image a breeze, while setup controls offer plenty of flexibility and exceptionally sensitive adjustments.

As we mentioned in the intro: one of the great things about all JVC projectors is the fact that they are so user friendly; from set-up to remote and including the menu. The Z1 is claimed to be no different. Menus are easy, despite the myriad of bells and whistles. Set up is claimed to be a breeze. Trusted reviews has a little grumble about the fact that the remote is the same as the one for the other (read cheaper) JVC home theatre projectors, but since we have no issues with the current remote, we think that is a bit nit-picking.

It will come as no surprise that this projector is huge. It’s about the size of a suitcase and, at 38kg, weighs as much as a suitcase lined with lead. It is said that provided you can cope with the bulk and put it in a sensible position relative to the screen, the rest is straightforward.

As for minor details such as price-tags, The JVC DLA-Z1 retails for NZD 46,999, but don’t let that spoil the fun. Its closest competition would be the Sony VPL-VW1100ES. It’s also a true 4K projector flashing (similar to D-ILA) SXRD panels resulting in pretty awesome contrast ratios and black levels. It however boasts ‘only’ 2000 lumen and no laser light source. Sony has that honour reserved for its VPL-VW5000ES boasting a whopping 5000 lumens. Its price tag is almost double that of the JVC though…

Bottom-line: we have high expectations. We actually expect to be blown away. Will it have a place in our own home theatre? Considering we are still saving up for our first private jet, it is not really a consideration. We rather look at the JVC DLA-Z1 demo along the lines of awesome drool-worthy test drive with the Bugatti Veyron. As we said, for our humble wallet, it’s the e-shift 4K enhanced projectors that find a spot in our home theatre, and frankly we think that is freakin’ awesome too!

Feel free to contact us if you are interested in joining us for our Rapallo JVC DLA-Z1 demo night on July the 27st at 5pm or 6pm or 7pm at the Rapallo Demo Room. Seats are limited. Reservation only.