Not sure if this is the right forum.

We wanted to upgrade our home theater projector but have absolutely zero idea as to what to look for or what we'd need given the size of the room and overall quality. Right now we have an older Sharp Notevision that is ok but doesn't come close to the newer 1080 tv's we have in the house and it doesn't even have HDMI slots, its pretty old.

It's 7.5 feet in the air hanging from the ceiling and 11 feet from the screen which is 91 inches wide and 54 inches high.

I started looking online and the models mean absolutely zero to me; I can see that almost all are 1080 and differ with how many lumens they put out and what slots they have (HDMI, etc) but that's about as much as I understand. The unit is inside in a theater room that is roughly 20 feet long by 10 wide, so fan noise would be a concern as would it being too bright. Other than that, it would need to get to, or come close to being able to project on the 91 inch width from 11 feet away.

I'm seeing Epson makes quite a few models and have zero idea about the difference. Then there are brands I've never heard of like BenQ, and projectors can run from 500 to a few thousand and from reading the details, other than being 4k instead of 1080, I can't figure out what the price difference is for.

Anyone know specifically about HD home projectors and can tell me what I should be looking for, a good model (wanted to stay around 1k$) and what will work in the space I'd like to use it in? Is there a real difference in picture quality and fan noise from say the 1080 $600 units and the 1080 $1600 units?

Thanks

I'd start with projectorcentral.com.

Read, read, and read some more.  But the site is like arfcom technical forums for projectors.  They even have a calculator for just about every projector ever made.  You simply add in your screen size, your throw distance (how far the projector is from the screen), screen gain, etc and it will say whether it's going to work or not.

Their reviews have always been spot on and fair, too.  Im on my fourth projector (projectors are like guns--they just happen to multiply lol) and every projector Ive had, their review was pretty much spot on.

Epson, Optoma, Sony and JVC are all highly regarded PJs.  I personally have had two Epsons (a 1080UB and now the 5040UB) and an Optoma.  I have zero complaints with either brand.

Price differences usually come down to brightness (does the image 'pop'), black levels,  rainbow (DLP) or screendoor (LCD) effects, etc.  Fan noise also comes into play here.  Cheaper units are usually presentation projectors with home theater inputs so the fan noise is an after thought.

The contrast number used to be the king of PJ stats but manufacturers have so inflated the numbers that it's almost a joke.  But reviewers won't lie about the picture/black levels and will let you know if the contrast number matches up with the picture quality.  My point is pay attention more to what the reviewers are saying than a manufacture stating they have 2 billion:1 contrast ratio.  (And while I love the Epson PJs, they are probably the worst offender of contrast number inflating lol.)

Personally, I wouldn't worry about a projector being too bright even if you have a 100% light-controlled environment.  You can always dim a bulb by throwing it in ECO mode.  But you can never crank more lumens out of a bulb.  Plus, on occasions like Super Bowls, etc you'll want a little more brightness as the ambient light will be increased for your guests.

Also pay attention to bulb replacement costs and life.  You don't want to buy a 500 dollar PJ and find out the bulb is 400 bucks and only last 1000 hours (on the brightest setting.)

If there is any way that you can double your budget of 1K, I'd highly recommend the Epson 5030UB.  It just dropped 1000.00 when the 5040UB came out.  It is a fantastic 1080p projector.

This ^^^^^

projectorcentral.com is a great site to learn and compare different projectors.

just have an idea of what you want to use the projector for and what type of hookups you will need (HDMI makes this a lot simpler)
I use a simple 720p native resolution Optima (capable of 1080) and do my input selection with the home audio receiver.
I've owned a BenQ projector, long ago.  It was ok.
My last two have been Optima.  The first Optima got zapped by a power surge and when I replaced it with a newer, but similar model
I had to move the ceiling mount about 2 ft forward to align with the screen.

eta:  the room is about 15ft, projected onto a 110" screen.

I've been over there looking.

Is there an explanation as to what the linear bar graphs on their calculator actually translate to? I see numbers and green/yellow bars but am not sure what they actually mean.

Set the sliders to your throw distance and screen size.  If it falls in the red, then it means that PJ will be good to go with rooms with ambient light at that distance on that size screen at that screen gain.   Green means its good for rooms with very low ambient light.  Yellow means it's not bright enough to fill that size screen at that distance even with 100% lighting control.

The big thing I use that calc for is to make sure that the PJ Im looking at will accommodate my chosen screen size at the projector mounting point in your room (your throw distance.)  In other words, your projector sits at X distance from the screen and you want to have a 110" screen.  Will it work and if so, what zoom settings will you have to use on the projector to fill that screen.  

You can basically layout your whole room and then find projectors that meet your requirements or see if the projector you are looking at will work in your room/screen needs.

You need a projector with a zoom lens since your mounting location is is not adjustable.  I spent $2500 on a Panasonic about 10 years ago and it lasted about 8 years.  I replaced it with an Epson 8345 with much better specs at 1/4 the price.

I bought a refurb from Epson and have been happy with it. 8350 i think

Some other factors you might want to consider;
Is your room light controlled? (Can you get it dark, really dark)
Do you care about 3D?
Do you or anyone in your household plan on gaming? (Response times vary)
Is your viewing predominantly TV or movies? (If a mix, lens memory to do poor mans CIH might be beneficial)
Is brightness or black levels more important to you?

Do you have any local friends or retail stores (i.e. Best Buy Magnolia) with front projection setups you can demo?

Pretty sure i have the 5030 mentioned above out in my garage.   Bought it about 2 years ago and it ranked VERY well against much more expensive models.

Throwing a 130 inch diagonal and i love it when i go lights out.  I use it for movies and gaming with no issues.   Also have it just projecting onto a wall painted with egg shell white.   Damn screens were smaller as well as more expensive than the projector itself.

Ambient light in the room comes from a bunch of Neon on the opposing wall.

Nice.

You can get an Elite Screens Sable series 135" fixed frame screen for 300 bux.  And it will blow away a painted wall.  You honestly haven't experienced the capability of the 5030UB if you are only projecting it on a painted wall.

Silver Ticket is another option but for the same amount of money I'd opt for the Elite Screens.