Topic:- JVC Projector – LX-NX3 Review 2021
In this blog, we will be going over a new front projector from JVC the LX-NX3, JVC is mostly known for their very high performance dedicated to home, theatre projectors but this new model brings great JVC picture quality to a new much lower price point.
We’ll go over the new tech in this new model and discuss the pros and cons so you can make an informed decision to know, if the LX-NZ3 is the right projector for your home, theatre or media room for simplicity, we will call the new projector the NZ3, throughout the rest of this blog.
Let’s get started, we have to say, the NZ3 sure has a lot going for it from a feature and technology standpoint, you have probably heard a lot about the latest picture technology HDR and particularly HDR 10.Â
HDR greatly improves colour and contrast, the brighter parts of the picture become much brighter, while the shadow details and blacks get even closer to real life, this all sounds great but there is a catch for front projectors.
JVC Projector – LX-NX3 Review 2021
The HDR standard wants the display device to be able to output at least 1,000 units, which is a measurement of brightness, in other words, the metadata, the display to be able to get bright for flat-panel TVs, this is no problem but most front projectors can produce about a max of 200 units far short of the 1,000 unit, minimum when HDR first came out.
The projector manufacturers had to scramble to come up with a software solution that prevented the darker scenes from being way too dark, JVC developed a system they call auto-tone mapping, which looks at the incoming signal and makes adjustments.
So the picture is best suited for a front projector, this is the same technology they use in all of their high-end front projectors, all the way up to their thirty thousand dollar model, they also keep evolving this tech by providing free software updates that take advantage of anything new, they develop.
The video world has given JVC tons of praise for their auto-tone mapping and it’s considered to be one of the best systems out, there to make HDR great on a front projector, the wonderful news about the NZ3 is, it has the same tech so you can enjoy HDR content like, it was meant to be seen when you look at the higher end JVC models.
You’ll notice most of them are typical lamp-based projectors which is how almost all front projectors have been designed for years, however, the very top of the line model uses a laser as the light source, JVC calls it their blue scent laser phosphor illumination system.
Ever since we saw our first laser-based front projector a few years ago, we have been in love with several things about it first, the colours are just amazing to our eyes, and they look closer to real-life secondly, unlike a lamp which lasts around one thousand to fifteen hundred hours.
The laser light engine is good for up to twenty thousand hours which means, you’ll never have to worry about the lamp dying, on you right before the big game finally laser light engines are capable of producing a very bright image, which allows you to overcome light spilling into a media room where you may not be able to get things to pitch dark like a dedicated home theatre space as you might have guessed.
The NZ3 uses JVC’s blue scent laser phosphor illumination system for a spectacularly beautiful and bright image, this is pretty amazing for this price point in a dedicated home theatre space where you can control the lights this means, your image will have just a ton of picture pop or in a media room where you might not have the ability to make, the room dark.
You will still have a super bright image for you and your guests to enjoy as far as screen sizes go, you’ll be able to go big with the NZ3, it should light up a huge screen with the right screen material choice.
those of you who are contemplating a do-it-yourself installation of the NZ3, you’ll be happy to know it’s also compact and fairly lightweight, it’s just a shade over 13 pounds and it’s about 16 inches wide by 13 inches long and almost 6 inches tall coming from a company that has installed thousands of front projectors.
We like the fact the NZ3 has a large amount of both horizontal and vertical lens shift, you do not have to worry about getting it precisely centred on your screen in less than an inch since you can easily dial it in if you get pretty close.
Since this projector is so easy to physically install, we expect many people will do a daily installation for those who purchase their NZ3 from audio advice, we will send you our exclusive tips and tricks guide on how to get the best picture for your system.
Some early laser-based front projectors were pretty noisy to keep the light engine cool, this is not the case with the NZ3 at all, in the eco mode which for most rooms will give you plenty of light output, it is almost inaudible at 29 DB, even in full mode for maximum brightness.
It’s only 34 DB which is pretty astounding, the NZ3 has two HDMI inputs but HDMI 1 is the one you’ll want to use, since this one is the one that supports HD cp 2.2 and all of its wide range of colours, up to 4k at 60p, you can control the NZ3 with its included remote.
And JVC also gives you a RS 232 input for home automation control systems, so with all these pros for the JVC NZ3.
CONS & Features
There are three, first starting with the next model up the NZ5 JVC offers lens memory, this allows you to have different zoom settings which mean, you can have one for full widescreen for 2.35 or 2.4 screens to get the full movie theatre experience.
We do feel widescreen is the way to go with the NZ3, you can only do a 16×9 HD TV image and you will still be able to enjoy widescreen movies on your 16×9 screen, but just not in their full super-wide glory.
The second con is how you go about doing the initial setup, the bigger JVC models and a lot of the other home theatre projectors offer electronic adjustments of the zoom and focus, this means, you can be right in front of your screen to nail the focus, using your handheld remote with the NZ3.
There are knobs on the projector, you have to turn manually for zoom and focus, now this is only a one-time thing but you’ll probably need someone to help you dial into focus.
Finally, JVC has a super cool system in their upper-end projectors starting with the NZ5 for calibration that they call auto cal, if you want to get into it, it gets close to what a several hundred dollar video calibrations might cost.
You can do it for under two hundred dollars with the other models by purchasing a measurement device called a spyder x and using JVC’s free software, the NZ3 does not have this available, however, we felt, if you want to get deeper into calibration, you can do a lot with a spear and music test disc with the NZ3.
The cons or things you get, if you spend almost twice the price of the NZ3 but they are certainly in no way deal breakers for this simply amazing laser projector, if you have an older projector and you’ve been thinking about getting a new 4k model or if you’re considering moving to the fun of big-screen home theatres.
You should have the JVC NZ3 on your list it’s just simply amazing that you can get a laser light engine and JVC’s great HDR auto-tone mapping with the stunning image that the NZ3 produces for well under four thousand dollars.
We hope this review has given you a better idea of how this JVC front projector might fit in with your home theatre and this concludes the topic for JVC Projector – LX-NX3 Review 2021. If you have any questions about the NZ3 or any of the other upper-end models in the JVC line then leave a comment below.
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