sxrd lcd panel brands

Sony’s super popular VPL VW285ES projector uses SXRD display technology. SXRD, which stands for silicon x-tal reflective display, is Sony’s take on liquid crystal on silicon display, more commonly known as LCoS.

As a refresher, LCoS, which has been on the market for several years now, is a hybrid of DLP and LCD display technologies. It’s basically constructed of a layer of liquid crystal sitting on top of a reflective surface. The light created by the lamp reflects off this surface, unless the liquid crystal twists to block it.

Since their debut, LCoS projects have been notoriously difficult to manufacture. Sony streamlined the process by producing their SXRD panels in their own dedicated manufacturing facilities.

Sony’s SXRD panels are just as advanced as LCoS, if not more so. The SXRD projectors use a vertically aligned nematic (VAN) liquid crystal that changes state with lightning-fast speed. This enables the microdisplay to run as fast as 200 frames per second, with very little image smear.

Liquid crystal displays - whether in a LCD or LCoS panel - have an inherent minuscule motion blur. To overcome this, Sony’s HW40ES SXRD projector has a high 240HZ refresh rate. Advanced settings like film projection mode and a built-in motion smoother make for ultra smooth movement.

Cathode-Ray Tube (CRT) projectors remained on the market for a few decades. At that time, the competition was strong between various brands, such as Barco, Electrohome and Advent. Heavy, large and suffering from low brightness, CRT projectors had to be replaced by a newer technology. Hence, Tri-LCD and DLP technologies appeared in the 90’s. After some years of development, Sony launched in 1993 the LPH-350J, Sony"s first LCD projector for domestic consumer use. This was the first home projector to adopt three-panel LCD architecture (VGA resolution).

Since then, 3-LCD technology has evolved, becoming capable of dealing with higher resolutions. Ideal for business projectors, 3-LCD technology paved the way to a premium type of panel that has been developed by Sony to meet the needs of Digital and Home Cinema. It is in this context that Silicon X-Tal Reflective Display (SXRD) panels have been developed. First adapted to TV sets, Sony then decided to dedicate this technology to front projectors. So, how are these panels working and what are their advantages?

2003 was a revolution for Home Cinema with the arrival of the Qualia 004, the world"s first Full HD-compatible projector for domestic consumer use! It was the first home-use projector in the industry to be equipped with the newly developed pure Xenon lamp. The Qualia 004 also came armed with the first generation of SXRD panels (0,78’’ - Full HD - 1920 x 1080). Only one year later the first 4K Digital Cinema projector appears on the market – the SRX-R105, with its 1,55’’ 4K native (4096 x 2160) panels.

SXRD brings key advantages to the most demanding projection needs; Sony has now been developing this technology for more than 15 years to bring the most advanced video projection to Digital Cinema, High-End Home Cinema, Planetariums and Flight simulations. All these specific markets are addressed by Sony SXRD panels. So what are the key advantages of this technology?

As indicated by its name, SXRD panels are a “reflective” kind of panel. With a very small pitch between each pixel the light is reflected in a very straight way. The issue with standard panels which have a bigger pixel interstice is the fact that reflective light is “polluting” surrounding pixels. This is well explained in the graph below. This scattered light diminishes black levels and clearly has a visible negative impact on the projected image.

Over time, the size of SXRD panels has been reduced as well as the pixel pitch, as described in the graph below. This has allowed us to develop a more compact chassis and to introduce 4K into Home Cinema projectors, as well as drastically improving the black levels and contrasts levels achieved. This advantage is recognized by our customers.

Cité de L’espace in Toulouse has chosen the SXRD projection technology to equip its newly refurbished planetarium. “The very tiny pixel pitch is providing us the best black level on the market as well as cinematic images. Being a Planetarium, we have to display stars and the black level is critical for us” comments Pascal Prieur, Head of Audiovisual Projects at Cité de L’Espace in Toulouse.

When talking about Sony’s 4K SXRD panels, it is all about Native. This is a major advancement enabling us to faithfully reproduce content. Many projectors on the market are equipped with simulated 4K systems which are based on moving panels to simulate the existence of the whole 4K or Ultra HD resolution.

By using one panel for every colour (Red / Green / Blue), SXRD panels can achieve very high colour reproduction. The colour reproduction in Sony’s projectors is also improved by our expertise in the broadcast industry. Now, many of our 4K SXRD projectors even have a DCI-P3 colour gamut.

With a high contrast, high colour reproduction and high response speed, native 4K panels are the best solution to the most complex projection needs. From high-end Home-Cinema to demanding flight simulation needs, our engineers are continuously improving this technology to fit with the highest expectations from our customers.

A lineup of two types of liquid crystal devices - the reflective type SXRD™ and the transmissive type BrightEra™. The type can be selected to fit the application.

The SXRD utilizes SSS’s original fine pixel pitch technology, pixel flattening technology and inorganic alignment technology to achieve a compact size, high reflectivity and high contrast ratio performance.

SSS"s unique high image quality signal processing function maximizes the characteristics of SXRD/BrightEra. In addition to the keystone correction that is found on many general projectors, there is also a “geometric correction function” for correction to an undistorted image when the projection screen is curved, and an “edge blending function” to eliminate the feeling of joints when multiple projectors are used to create a single image. These functions make it possible to increase the freedom in the projector installation.

But not so fast. Sony has just introduced three new native 4K home theater projectors, the lamp-based VPL-VW715ES ($9,999 and the replacement for last year"s VPL-VW695ES, available in black or white), the laser-driven VPL-VW915ES ($19,999, available in black only), and the VPL-GTZ380 (available this winter). The latter"s price is TBD, but at over 100 lbs. with brand new SXRD panels, a new laser light source, and a rated 10,000 lumens of brightness, it"s Sony"s premier home theater projector and will likely command enough to equip six to eight rooms in your manse with their own VPL-VW715ES.

As I write this there"s as yet no announcement yet of a replacement for the VPL-VW295ES—Sony"s entry-level 4K projector— but the VPL-VW715ES, the subject of this review, likely has a few well-healed enthusiasts reaching for their platinum credit cards. Its SXRD panels (SXRD is Sony-speak for LCoS) are the same imagers used in its predecessor VPL-VW695ES. What"s new, however, is that the VW715ES incorporates an X1 main microprocessor, a projector-centric cousin to the powerful X1 processor used in Sony"s premier flat-screen sets. A Dynamic HDR Enhancer feature is said to make use of this increased processing power to analyze sources "scene-by-scene to deliver the best contrast performance when viewing HDR content." The idea of analyzing HDR content on the fly to optimize the tone-mapping is a good idea in principle given the brightness differences among HDR movies that would otherwise send you back to the menus to make adjustments on every title, and one that"s being implemented with varying degree of success by a couple of projector manufacturers to date. Given the penchant of all manufacturers to create unique names to differentiate their features from those of the competition it isn"t clear how Sony"s approach might be similar or different. What is clear is that the Dynamic HDR Enhancer definitely affects the projector"s PQ curve in a positive way (PQ, in general terms, is gamma for HDR). More on this a bit further on.

There are 10 available Gamma Correction settings for SDR (standard dynamic range) content. Sony"s Panel Alignment feature is also included, offering full convergence of the dedicated red, green, and blue imagers across the entire screen. I didn"t feel the need to use it with my sample, but it"s there for those who do.

The VW715 isn"t a terribly bright projector and is really intended for dark room viewing. Although you can get a decent image in moderate ambient light, it"s great strength -- the excellent black levels and contrast delivered by its LCoS-based SXRD imagers -- is largely lost once you have ambient light washing on the screen. It doesn"t make sense to pay this much for a projector and not get the key benefit you"re paying for (along with superb color accuracy and detail...which you CAN find in other projectors.

The VPL-VW325ES is Sony"s new replacement for the VPL-VW295ES, which in turn replaced the VPL-VW285ES back in October 2018 as the company"s least expensive native 4K SXRD projector. After holding both prior models to $4,999, Sony has raised the price of the VW325ES to $5,499. And thus marks the formal end to Sony"s long-running claim of offering "4K under $5K." I guess nothing is forever.

Also still missing in this upgrade of the VW295ES is any kind of dynamic iris that might help deepen the blacks. That can also be found in—you guessed it—the VW715ES. Still, the VW325ES at least starts with the excellent native black level of Sony"s 0.75-inch LCoS-based SXRD panels. Having a trio of them—one for each primary color—allows the 325ES to fully dodge two troublesome issues common to single-chip DLP projectors: unequal white and color brightness, and rainbow artifacts. Another benefit of LCoS imagers generally is the high "fill factor" that comes from requiring little space between the pixels. With LCoS, all the electrical leads for addressing the pixels are behind the reflective layer at the back of the chip. So the pixels on this projector are vanishingly small and the grid between them virtually undetectable with a 100 inch image, even with your nose at the screen.

With so much directly carried over from the VW295ES—including its most obvious omissions—you might be wondering what you get for your extra $500 when you step up to the VW325ES. The answer starts with inclusion of Sony"s new "X1 for projector" processor family that has resulted in recent updates to nearly every model in Sony"s pre-existing home theater line-up (the exception so far being the former flagship, the 5,000-lumen VPL-VW5000ES). The X1 Ultimate for projector processor is the most powerful and is found currently only on the VPL-GTZ380, while the others have the X1 for projector chip. Both are optimized versions of the X1 processor used in Sony"s best panel TVs. Across all the new models, the extra speed and brain power enable two key new or updated features: Dynamic HDR Enhancer and Super Resolution Reality Creation.

For background, I"ll first repeat what we"ve previously reported in reviews and in this comprehensive article on HDR about the challenges of reproducing HDR on a projector. HDR video, and specifically the HDR10 format we"ve seen employed for most content, was designed with flatpanels in mind that are capable of peak highlights that hit close to 1,000 nits or more. By contrast, home theater projectors typically top out around 150 nits, sometimes closer to 100 nits depending on the lumen specification.

With some HDR content being mastered today with peaks of 4,000 nits or greater (and with a theoretical maximum of 10,000 nits for HDR10), today"s consumer panel TVs and projectors must all perform "tone-mapping" to adapt the brightest highlights and deepest blacks to the capabilities of the display. The best TVs have self-emissive pixels (as with OLEDs) or multizone local-dimming backlights (as with LED-driven LCD sets) to allow the TV to simultaneously darken specific pixels or zones while pumping up the brightness on others. This makes them well-suited to HDR.

Moving on to other features: the side connection panel on the VW325ES mimics that of the VW295ES it replaces; it is modest but sufficient for most applications. The pair of HDMI ports are version 2.0b, not the latest HDMI 2.1 ports that could potentially support 4K gaming at 120 Hz from the newest game consoles. It"s another disappointment to see a new generation of projectors from Sony that doesn"t have HDMI 2.1. But this model does carry over from the VW295ES the Input Lag Reduction switch in the menu that cuts input lag from a rated 80 ms to approximately 27 ms with 4K 60Hz signals. That"s not exactly gaming projector territory but is far better than most projectors. Unfortunately, I couldn"t fully verify this spec because our Bodnar 4K lag meter wouldn"t sync with the projector when putting out 4K/60 signals (I had the same problem with the VW295ES). But we got 36.2 ms with 1080p/60. The Input Lag Reduction function is available for any preset picture mode and has essentially the same effect, though it is only on by default in the Game mode.

Contrast and the overall dimensionality of the image were also really outstanding thanks to the deep native black of the SXRD imagers. A big part of the allure of this projector is that things pop so well off the black floor, even if the letterbox bars don"t exactly disappear into the velvet frame on my screen. In particular, typical mixed scenes with both dark and bright elements really had an amazing sense of depth and dimensionality.

Jeff, I was very impressed with the contrast and black levels on this projector despite lack of an iris. I do believe that Sony"s latest SXRD chips are very likely far superior in this regard to what"s in your HW15.

Matt, two things to put in perspective here. One is that Tom is a bit more stringent than I am in wanting things to measure right and there was no way to get the 715 to look the way he wanted on the HDR EOTF curve in Calman. I initially agreed with him when I began watching HDR on the 325 that Sony"s HDR tends to look dark and bury the shadows, but I was perfectly happy to move to one of the slightly less color accurate brighter modes and adjust by eye to get a result I liked. HDR is one of those things with projectors that just doesn"t calibrate easily, especially with Calman software designed for flatpanels,and I have almost given up on using it for HDR beyond a bit of tuning to get RGB in balance on the grayscale and reasonably close to whatever color temperature you"re targeting. At this point, I believe my HDR assessment of a projector should be based on whatever image the manufacturer provides out of the box and whatever else I can do (mostly by eye) to make it look satisfying to me.

Thanks for that thought, Sean. I admit my 92 is a bit small by most standards. I expect to upgrade to a 100 inch soon in a similar 1.3 matte white gain, but I do feel that this is a very common screen size and the starting point for most folks in making a decision to go with a projector vs. a big panel display. We have a 110 inch in our studio, which is a little bigger and right in that 100-120inch range I think a majority of users probably fall into. It"s also a reasonable size for typical 4K home theater projectors today to be able to drive to decent brightness for HDR and perhaps moderate ambient-light viewing of sports or news. But I"m glad you"ve gotten satisfying performance from your 45ES, which is a great 1080p projector.

Thanks Rob, you helped make the decision to go with the WV325 when I was at the store to see the 5050 (which also impressed). This article was posted while I was there. As we sit 8 feet or less from a 130" screen, I worried about seeing the pixels with LCD. This thing is incredible with none and the picture just pops. I saved and waited years to replace an old Panasonic PT-M1083 CRT (no pixels and 1080) that had great blacks. This is lots brighter than that, even in low lamp mode. I wouldn"t fear the brightness if using in a totally dark room.

Hi Rob, Great review. I am definitely considering replacing my Epson 6040 with the VW325ES. This will be my first Sony projector and I have read in various forums that there is an issue with all Sony projectors having degradation problems with their SXRD panels. Have you heard of this and/or should it be of material concern? Thanks!

Years ago Sony"s early SXRD rear projection models (and pesumably their earlier SXRD projectors) had some issues with this, but I don"t know about the current generation models that mostly use the same late-gen SXRD chips. I think information found on the forums can usually be deemed accurate but not necessarily as widespread as it might seem to be based on a few periodic posts as opposed to a legion of people complaining about any given problem

I"m trying to decide whether to plunge into a new projector like this one, or suck it up and grab a similarly priced 77" OLED Bravia. Based on what I"ve read, the OLED panels can produce a "better" image, but (in my opinion) they kinda lack the whole "theater" experience you get with a projector.

Is there even such a thing as an OLED projector? You"d think if they can make a native 4K OLED cell phone, they could pack panels into a projector... but what do I know.

I"d recommend this excellent projector to replace your old projector over an OLED panel. Size matters, as does the unfatiguing quality of a projected image.

LCoS Projectors currently dominate home theater space in the $3500 – $12,000 price ranges in the US. This is the result primarily of two major players in Home Theater space:  Sony offers two LCoS projectors at in the low and middle of that price range, (and also an amazing 4K projector costing $25,000 in 2013. JVC offers four LCoS projectors in that price range. We have found both brands to offer “best in class” calibre projectors. While there are a few serious competing DLP projectors, right now, the LCoS projectors rule, whether they are JVC’s DiLA, or Sony’s SXRD. Mass market DLP home cinema manufacturers like BenQ and Optoma seem to be retreating to the less expensive markets, and those pesky

LCoS projectors are more expensive than the competing technologies, typically costing between $3,000-$25,000. In contrast, entry-level DLP projectors are available for under $500 and LCD projectors don’t start out much higher.  LCoS projectors offer the least visible pixels, and excellent dynamic range.  In the home theater projectors that translates into images that pop, and excellent black level performance.  On the business, education and government side of things LCoS is associated with precision, and the ability to project difficult images such as medical CATs, MRIs, and X-Rays.

LCoS (“Liquid Crystal on Silicon”) projectors are a more recent variation of LCD technology, as LCoS also uses three panels of red, blue and green. However, LCoS uses reflexive technology as opposed to transmissive, which allows the pixel structure of LCoS projectors to be much less visible than the competition (virtually invisible at normal seating distance). This minimizes the visibility of individual pixels, eliminating the “screen door” effect. With no spinning color wheel (unlike DLPs), there is no annoying rainbow effect that is visible to some people.

JVC, Sony and Canon dominate the LCoS industry… Each designs and manufacturers their own LCoS panels, unlike the DLP world, where Texas Instruments manufacturers all DLP chips for all the DLP projector companies, or LCD projectors, wherelmost all the world’s LCD panels come from Epson.

In the business segment, LCoS projectors are about the same size as LCD models because they are both “3-chip” technologies. Both technologies are offered in small portable as well as larger projectors.

Like LCD, even the smallest LCoS projectors are still a size larger than the smallest DLP projectors. Recently, though, the first pico projectors using LCoS technology are entering the market (well, back at the end of 2010).

In the business segment, LCoS projectors are about the same size as LCD models (or slightly larger), afterall, they are both “3-chip” technologies. Both technologies are offered in relatively small sizes, but if small, or low cost is what you need, whether home cinema or commercial use, then your choice is probably another technology.

LCOS is a reflective LCD display panel with high open area ratio. Basically, by placing the wiring area and switching elements under the reflection layer, there is no black matrix area - so it is possible to view a near-seamless image. LCOS systems can be created as 1 chip and 3 chip systems.

At the moment (meaning the next 15 minutes), LCOS technology is fairly competitive in terms of price and performance advantages compared to LCD and DLP systems. Pixels on LCOS panels can be made smaller than is possible with most other microdisplay technologies, without compromising picture quality or manufacturability. LCOS displays can be scaled to 1080i/p resolution (1920x1080 pixels) and beyond, without increasing the size and cost of the panel and other optical components in the light engine.

The future, we hope, now that manufacturer Syntax-Brillian has entered the picture and picked up where Intel dropped the ball. Better, faster, cheaper. LCOS technology is still relatively expensive compared to LCD and DLP, and with Intel opting out of mass production in 2004 that can be expected to remain for some time. This means that HDTVs based on LCOS technology may remain more expensive than the competition. Right now the main players are JVC, Philips, Sony and Syntax-Brillian (with a one-off from Mitsubishi and a couple front projection products from Canon) so we"ll have to look out to see how effectively they manufacture and market their products.

Despite a lot of hoopla, Sony Electronics actually seems to be driving this market single-handedly - at least as far as the consumer market is concerned. While companies like Brillian continue to post endless press releases of financials and new marketing initiatives (including the acquisition of Syntax Groups and the Olevia brand or LCD TVs) the name recognition is through SXRD and Sony.

Liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS or LCOS) is a miniaturized reflective active-matrix liquid-crystal display or "microdisplay" using a liquid crystal layer on top of a silicon backplane. It is also referred to as a spatial light modulator. LCoS was initially developed for projection televisions but is now used for wavelength selective switching, structured illumination, near-eye displays and optical pulse shaping. By way of comparison, some LCD projectors use transmissive LCD, allowing light to pass through the liquid crystal.

At the 2004 CES, Intel announced plans for the large scale production of inexpensive LCoS chips for use in flat panel displays. These plans were cancelled in October 2004. Sony has made it to market (December 2005) with the Sony-VPL-VW100 or "Ruby" projector, using SXRD, 3 LCoS chips each with a native resolution of 1920×1080, with a stated contrast ratio of 15,000:1 using a dynamic iris.

Whilst LCoS technology was initially touted as a technology to enable large-screen, high-definition, rear-projection televisions with very high picture quality at relatively low cost, the development of large-screen LCD and plasma flat panel displays obsoleted rear projection televisions. As of October 2013, LCoS-based rear-projection televisions are no longer produced.

Commercial implementations of LCoS technology include Sony"s Silicon X-tal Reflective Display (SXRD) and JVC"s Digital Direct Drive Image Light Amplifier (D-ILA/). Every company which produces and markets LCoS rear-projection televisions uses three-panel LCoS technology,

Developers and manufacturers who have left the LCoS imaging market include: Intel, Philips, MicroDisplay Corporation (the only company to successfully bring to market a single-panel LCoS televisionSyntax-Brillian.

There are two broad categories of LCoS displays: three-panel and single-panel. In three-panel designs, there is one display chip per color, and the images are combined optically. In single-panel designs, one display chip shows the red, green, and blue components in succession with the observer"s eyes relied upon to combine the color stream. As each color is presented, a color wheel (or an RGB LED array) illuminates the display with only red, green or blue light. If the frequency of the color fields is lower than about 540 Hz

Both Toshiba"s and Intel"s single-panel LCOS display program were discontinued in 2004 before any units reached final-stage prototype.Philips and one by Microdisplay Corporation. Forth Dimension Displays continues to offer a Ferroelectric LCoS display technology (known as Time Domain Imaging) available in QXGA, SXGA and WXGA resolutions which today is used for high resolution near-eye applications such as Training & Simulation, structured light pattern projection for AOI. Citizen Finedevice (CFD) also continues to manufacturer single panel RGB displays using FLCoS technology (Ferroelectric Liquid Crystals). They manufacture displays in multiple resolutions and sizes that are currently used in pico-projectors, electronic viewfinders for high end digital cameras, and head-mounted displays.