Ultra Short Throw vs Long Throw Projector - LG HU85LA vs Epson 5050UB

Thanks Chris! An IMPORTANT video for me. My short list is HISENSE L9 vs the 5050UB Or LG HU810PW. Chris, WHO WINS, for picture quality ?

I am in the middle of installing an ultra short throw projector in my living room, and plan on using blackout motorized blinds as the screen. I would love for you to give your thoughts on this.

The biggest issue for me was center channel placement and mounting the UST projector low enough. A standard height TV stand is much too tall when trying to throw a 120" picture on a wall with 8 foot ceilings. The top of the picture will end up almost on the ceiling. Ideally, you want your eyes centered at 2/3rds of the way down the screen when sitting. I ended up having to make a custom piece of furniture that is 11" in height for the projector to sit on with a cubby hole on the bottom to hold my center speaker on the bottom. The lower shelf that holds the center channel has a ridge in front to help 'aim' the center speaker directly at the listeners ears when in the seating position 13 feet away. It isn't ideal to place the center near the floor, but it was my only option.

Thanks Chris for the great review comparing both ultra short projectors vs standard ones. I have a question regarding the sound installation on the ultra short LG projector. I believe you mentioned that you need to install an amplifier right below the projector, but I am not sure why you would need that. In my case, I will install an amplifier next to the projector in order to drive the sound to my Technics speakers.
Many Thanks!!

Hey Chris, if I want to mount the ultra-short projector on the ceiling, what type of screen will be best since the ALR screens will be out of propose?

Hope you can provide some info and review for short throw projectors (not ultra short) , thank yoy

Trying to figure out which type of projector to get as I purchased the Sony 325es but would like to know your opinion on UST that may be better with contrast and HDR?

I would say a major downside for pet owners is the gaping vertical facing opening that most UST projectors don't have a cover for. My 4k BenQ has a lens cover that saves me a lot of grief and it's mounted high enough that the pets don't walk across it.

Hi Chris, which Cinema projector could you recommend to watch football in wide venue?

I'd love for you to make a video about "Best Projectors at $1k, $2k, $3k, $4k, and $5k" or something similar. I know there are preference differences like living room vs home theatre but it's nearly impossible for a first time buyer to know what they're doing without clear, well-explained comparisons.
Great videos! They help a lot.

I am indian this model in india epson tw9400 the projector light sourse of what tell me pls

Great video👍🏽 however many short throw's can be mounted on the ceiling close to the screen if placement on a console with a center channel speaker is an issue. Waiting on your 2022 comparison ✊🏽

Can you mount a UST to the ceiling?

Hey dude.

I want a projector for my back yard and a local business is selling of 25 epson eb1430wi for a cheep price - these projectors are more for businesses but will it play a good movie at 1280x800?? This epson is a short throw. Any feed back will be massively appreciated dude. I'm ready to pull the trigger on one for £125. With screen and brackets. ???

Thanks Nick

As for UST projector, XGIMI AURA is also great!

Thank you

I have a built in ceiling center channel speaker and I love it. All of my speakers are in-ceiling and most people don't even realize I have surround until it's on.

I think the main problem with the UST projectors is to buy a proper screen to avoid two things; the surface irregularities and reflected ambient light.

My wife bought a 100$ projector on amazon and when we close the blinds and turn off the lights it looks literally perfect lol. Its almost sad how good it looks because now I cant justify buying a nice projector cuz I dont wanna pay 2900$ more for slightly better, or even 900$ more. That said, most of what I watch isn't imax films or things with HDR, its like cartoons and tv shows and shit, many of which actually look better with a low end projector because it smooths the video compression artifacts with its lack of finesse im guessing.

If i had to make a comparison to an incredible imax projector id say its probably the equivilent of watching something on a original lcd computer monitor from when they first came out. Like its showing you 100% of whats there, it just wont go above and beyond and make it like a magical experience. Unless your like me and just having a 100" screen that takes up no space and only costs 100$ magical. in which case it is. it very is. and like if i took a 480 or a 720 picture and i stretched it to fit a 100" tv it would look like shit, hell even 1080 probably looks bad at that size. But on the projector it actually looks great. idk what kinda black magic this is cuz 10-15years ago when i looked into projectors they were incredibly expensive, pretty bad compared to tvs, and required frequent expensive bulb replacement.

i should add, my main screen for everyday use is a beautiful HDR 4k oled so its not like im saying this and then going and watching a old tube tv for 8 hours. My standard viewing is pretty high quality and the 100$ amazon projector still impressed me a lot. Another nice thing about it, and its gonna sound funny cuz most the good things about this projector are bad things with accidentally good outcomes, is that the speaker in it since it is actually loud enough that we don't need to setup speakers, but its shit enough that those huge sound spikes dont affect it, which is perfect cuz its a bedroom projector and the last thing i need is a scene tripling in volume suddenly.

Nobody mentions aspect ratios in these reviews. Movies are NOT filmed in TV’s 16 x 9 aspect ratio yet all the reviewed projectors I have seen display 16 x 9 as their native aspect ratio. I don’t see how so-called “cinema” projectors ignore this issue. Why not Panavision, CinemaScope, ToddAO, vista vision, Camera55 OR CINERAMA aspect ratios? Younger readers can google these terms and discover the movies are not just TV shows on a bigger screen!

Considering you can get 77 inch OLED TV's at 2000 euros, yeah, these short throw projectors has a lot of catching up to do.

Hi Chris, thank you for this review. My worry with kids and pets is if I had an expensive UST sitting on a cabinet, it would end up getting a peanut butter sandwich shoved into it or slept on by a cat with dirty feet. Ceiling mounting a UST gets confusing... lm not sure if an inverted light rejecting screen would work.

So you can use an acoustically transparent screen with a UST? The jury either seems out or against it in av forums. For my needs, I'd need a AT screen and a UST on ceiling. Anyone ever do that? Can you make a video of that setup?

For picture quality Let compare them site by site

Are you able to mount a short throw to the ceiling? Or does it have to be from below the projector screen?

It would be cool if somebody did a ceiling mounted short throw projector

What’s up guys ….ffs

I am ceiling mounting Samsung LSP9T. I currently have a vu tech white screen. Should I install an alr screen and should the screen be installed upside down?

Why doesn’t anybody talk about the height from the floor to the bottom edge of screen length and alter shirt throw laser projectors just forward and backwards. Measurements of up and down is the most important. Nobody says what it should be. Mine is 120 inch screen with a bomaker Polaris 4K laser projector!

This is an old posting, but hoping you can tell me what system you use for the reactive LCD surround light behind the screen. I like this setup because it's subtle.

Would love your take on the new Phillips Screeneo U5 that was just announced. I placed my order, and they ship in March. Crossing my fingers that its a good purchase.

2 years have passed since this video was made, have ultra short throw projectors' picture quality caught up with long throw? If you had to choose between Epson LS12000 or ForMovie, which would you recommend?

Hey Chris please I need your help , I just got a 72 inch rising screen but I don’t know whats the best affordable projector (brand ) and how much lumens I need 😟?? For a bright living room

How bad does image get when you move ultra short throw bigger than what it’s rated for? So let’s say I moved the 130in ls500 from epson to 200 inches?

Projectors -- were great in the 19th and 20th century. But in the year 2023 and beyond? No way.... they are old school with tons of problems and issues. Get an LCD or OLED panel display, preferably a commercial-class display that are built to run on 24/7 and 16/7 mode. Or get an LED video wall. You'll be much happier, trust me. Once you leave projectors for new-tech, you'll likely never go back.

2 questions for you...I found an Epson 2250U that's 5,000 lumens for about $1,500. Wouldn't that work better than the Epson 5050UB that's only 2,600 lumens? Also, what's brighter...a 5,000 lumen projector at 10 feet away from the screen or a 2,500-lumen ultrashort projector at less than 18 inches from the screen?

Thanks for the video! Are there any LCD projectors that can reproduce 3D?Seems like the Qumi2 could project 3D. You said LEd projectors reduce the rainbow effect and give better colors, so maybe in the future I should look at LCD projectors. Currently I am very happy with my Optoma 343x long throw. Only had it a year or so and only use it on some weekends.

Another great video. Thanks Chris!!

I just want to see side by side pictures of the same content in the same room of a good long throw and good short throw projector. I need to replace my old long throw and can't decide if I want to go with the formovie or some regular long throw

What Projector gets it through- the LOOKIN-GLASS.

Hi Chris, could you review lg PU700R projector? Thanks!

RBE on DLP is only on the older models with a spinning color wheel. The laser pulse width is much faster, thus eliminating this effect. I am a repair tech with over 25+ experience.

Do the Short throw projector have to have a special screen or can I use my Gray 16:9 SI 110inch screen already?

Great review Chris. What are your thoughts on the Epson LS800, and what's the best acoustically transparent screen to go with the short throw projectors??? The Hisense L9 has a screen to go with it.

Cost is deal breaker for Ultra Short throw.

In 2024, where do you stand on the topic?

How does noise level from the projectors compare I used a Epson 2265U for movies which I thought was amazing but loud once you took it off eco mode.

Kickstarter has a remote hdmi connector. It's been funded!

A few people have mentioned that the laser light source (lamp) can't be replaced. LG has assured me that it is indeed replaceable and that dealers have replacement lamps available. So there's no need to throw the projector out when the lamp dies. This is welcome news.