Thankfully, with COVID, things appear that they are going
back to somewhat normal. But over the last two years or so, there have been a
lot more people staying at home, and binge-watching shows or movies. It’s been
a great time to enjoy new 4K content, or maybe upgrade to 4K if you haven’t
already done so. And of course, the best way to do that is to go big, with the
biggest picture size that you can. In order to do that, the best way is with a
front projector. The Sony VPL-VW325ES is a great one to do that with, which is
up for review today.
Features and specs:
X1™ processor for projector brings you the best of Sony’s
image processing
Dynamic HDR Enhancer brings a wider contrast range scene by
scene for striking and realistic picture quality
Full Native 4K resolution on 3 SXRD imagers: 4096 x 2160
pixels each
Motionflow™ provides smooth motion for 4K & HD1
High Dynamic Range brings a wider contrast range for
improved realism
High brightness of 1,500 Lumens
Advanced Reality Creation for upscaling and sharpening
images without sharpening picture noise2
Input lag reduction ensures faster refresh rate for gamers
TRILUMINOS™ Display for wider array of rich colors
Enjoy the latest 4K content services with HDCP 2.2 compatibility
on both 18 Gbps HDMI inputs3
Anamorphic lens compatibility for 4K signals (V-stretch for
4K)
Size & Weight
Dimensions (W x H x D) 19
1/2" x 8 3/32" x 18 1/4"
Weight Approx. 31 lb
(14 kg)
Display
Display Resolution 720
x 576/50p, 720 x 480/60p, 1280 x 720/50p, 1280 x 720/60p, 1920 x 1080/50i, 1920
x 1080/60i, 1920 x 1080/24p, 1920 x 1080/50p, 1920 x 1080/60p, 3840 x 2160/24p,
3840 x 2160/25p, 3840 x 2160/30p, 3840 x 2160/50p, 3840 x 2160/60p, 4096 x
2160/24p, 4096 x 2160/25p, 4096 x 2160/30p, 4096 x 2160/50p, 4096 x 2160/60p
Light source High-pressure
mercury lamp, 225 W type
Picture processor X1™
for projector
Effective pixels 26,542,080
(4096 x 2160 x 3) pixels
Projection lens shift Vertical:
+85% -80% Horizontal: +/-31%
Throw ratio 1.38
: 1 to 2.83 : 11
Hardware
Input and Output Terminals HDMI
(2 INPUTS)2 - Digital RGB/Y Pb/Cb Pr/Cr, IR IN - Minijack, LAN - RJ45,
10Base-T/100BASE-TX, REMOTE - RS-232C, D-sub 9-pin (male), TRIGGER - Minijack,
DC 12 V Max. 100 mA, USB - DC 5 V, Max. 500 mA
Operating Conditions
Operating temperature / humidity 41 °F to 95 °F (5 °C to 35 °C)/35% to 85% (no
condensation)
Storage temperature / humidity -4 °F to +140 °F (-20 °C to +60 °C)/10% to 90% (no condensation)
Power
Power consumption 390
W
Video Features
Light Output 1,500
lm (Lamp mode: High)4
Color Light Output 1,500
lm (Lamp mode: High)4
Eco and energy saving
Power Consumption (Standby Mode) 0.4 W (When "Remote Start" is set to "Off")
Power Consumption (Networked Standby Mode) 1.0 W (LAN) (When "Remote
Start" is set to "On") When a LAN terminal is not connected, it
becomes a low power consumption mode (0.5 W).
Standby Mode Activated After
about 10 Minutes
The Sony VPL-VW325ES came shipped in a nice and sturdy
cardboard box. It’s a good thing too, as the projector weighs in at over 30
lbs. opening up the box revealed a very well-made projector held by custom
molded Styrofoam. Pulling out the projector, the materials used in the
construction was mostly plastic with some metal. Quality of materials used, as
well as the fit and finish was excellent. The case was not quite black, more of
a really dark grey. But I can see it being called black. And the casing had a
bit of a speckly to it, almost like a metallic paint. It is really cool
looking! Also included was the remote, power cable, and owner’s manual.
I liked the design of the Sony VPL-VW324ES. All of the
connections are on the left side, with the controls and buttons on the right.
The power cord jack is on the rear. And so there are no concerns for
installation location, there are IR sensors both on the front and back. For
added convenience for those that ceiling mount the projector, you do not need
to take it down for maintenance. There is no dust filter to worry about
cleaning or replacing. And the access cover for replacing the lamp is located
on the top. I had a previous, older model Sony projector, and the lamp access
panel was on the bottom of the projector. That meant every time I needed to replace
the bulb, I also had to take down the projector. Now taking down the projector
to replace the bulb is not necessary. And for me, this is so exciting! You can
mount it just once and call it done!
Installation was simple for me. But I also chose its
location very carefully. The Sony VPL-VW325ES was mounted in our reference
theater room in our basement. I knew where the projector should be, to be
exactly in the middle of the screen, and I prepared that spot accordingly. So
once the room was drywalled and finished, I was able to drill and secure it’s
mount. With the mount up it was ready to install the projector. With the Sony
VPL-VW325ES, it doesn’t have to be direct center, however, it does have a good
amount of lens shift. Now that it’s installed I felt like a little kid with
cash in hand in a candy store. Now let’s fire it up!
With it installed, I still had to go through the initial
set-up. And the owner’s manual was very easy to follow in taking you through
the steps. While I had the projector centered, I still had to adjust it to my
screen. The Sony VPL-VW325ES has power zoom and focus. So with the remote in
hand, this was easy to do. After a few minutes of picture shifting, and zooming
in and out, I found the perfect size to fill in my screen. To get that in your
room, you will also need to know your room, where you want to mount the
projector, and the projector’s limits. A previous projector, due to the mount I
used previously, had a little bit of a trapezoid-ish image. Knowing this I got
a mount where the projector was mounted about 15 inches from the ceiling. And I had a great looking picture that filled
my screen.
I couldn’t wait to see how it performs. It has some
excellent features and specs, so the picture should be stellar. Thanks in large
part to the processing power of the new X1 for projector processor. These
features include Dynamic HDR Enhancer works to works to increase the contrast of
HDR content. And the Reality Creation works to upscale the resolution of the
image. Sometimes specs look great on paper, but can fall short in reality. Sony
has impressed me in the past, and I have high hopes for this new model, thanks
to the new projector version of the powerful X1 Procession. Now that it’s
installed, and all set up, let’s see how it performs! To test its performance,
we will be using our HD cable box, Amazon Fire TV Cube, and the Panasonic
DP-UB9000PIK 4K Ultra HD Blu-Ray Player.
For the 4K in all of its sweetness, I turned to the
Panasonic BP-UB9000PIK. The resolution was nothing short of stunning! Skin
tones were so natural looking, with pore details the actresses I’m sure would
rather us not see. Texture details of the various uniforms of the avengers, as
well as their enemies was pleasant to behold. And then there was the excellent
contrast and the plethora of colors so spectacular they were pure eye candy. The
blacks were inky black. There was even excellent depth to the images as well!
For streaming, 4K also came out really well. The picture was
only slightly less as high quality as found on the Panasonic 4K player. The
resolution was still excellent, and the same for shadow details, only just
slightly less. The image depth was just about as good, and contrast as well as
the vibrancy of the colors were also just a smidge less. While the picture was
still excellent, it was just a little less life-like. This is why I still prefer discs over
streaming.
Lastly it’s time to turn to my cable box. It’s college football
bowl season, so one of the many bowl games was on. The image was very crisp,
with very good resolution of the uniforms and helmets. Colors were vibrant, and
very well saturated without being overly saturated. Seeing the black uniforms,
and the uniforms of the refs, it was easy to see how well the Sony VPL-VW325ES
does with blacks. Especially seeing the DVR black bar from pausing the game.
Blacks are inky black. And while the image clearly wasn’t 4K, it still looked
very good, and looked better than regular 1080p. The Sony Reality Engine does not create 4K
out of regular HD, but it does help make it look better!
I was extremely happy with the picture quality of the Sony
VPL-VW325ES. It looked very well with all source material. Obviously, the real
visual nirvana came from the 4K discs, but I was truly happy with the images
from all source material. And I was completely floored at how good the picture
looked, fresh out of the box, without any adjustments! Unless you are an avid
videophile, most people would be happy with the image quality at factory
default settings. And that’s saying a lot!
Getting a projector calibrated adds a bit of cost, but with this Sony
VPL-VW325ES you don’t need to. It looks
great right out of the box!
The Sony VPL-VW325ES is not for everyone thanks to its MSRP
of $5,500. But if you want a true 4K picture, the price of admission isn’t
cheap. If you have the means, it’s worth every penny. Throwing a 100 inch image
at about 12 feet away, it looks like I’m just watching a huge flatscreen TV! Being
in a fully light controlled theater room in the basement I know also helps.
It’s a well put together projector. And with it being a Sony, you know you’ll
get many years of use. Based on its design, features, quality and performance
the Sony VPL-VW325ES has earned our Editor’s Choice Award. Kudos to Sony for
such an excellent product! For more info and complete specs, check out their
website at www.sony.com.
Reference gear used: Onkyo TX-RZ920 Receiver, Outlaw Audio Model 7000X Amplifier, Emotiva BasX A-500 Amplifier, Helios AS-P603W Smart Power Surge and Line Conditioner, Panasonic DP-UB9000P1K 4K Player, RBH Sound SI-663R Signature Reference Series In-Wall Speakers, RBH Sound SI-760R Signature Reference Series In-Wall Speakers, RBH Sound SI-615 Signature In-Ceiling Speakers, RBH Sound SI-1212 In-Ceiling/In-Floor Subwoofer with DA-1802DSP Subwoofer Amplifier.
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