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XR-32X Great for HD Home Theatre and Gaming
Pros
Bright, quiet, HDTV capable, Bulb life extended to 4000 hours. Plays Blu-Ray movies 1080p-60.
Cons
Needs an HDMI input.
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
It is my second Sharp projector and really enjoy it. Works great for PowerPoint presentations too!
I purchased the Sharp XR-32X as a replacement for my 2 year old Sharp XR-10S. The XR-32X is brighter, sharper, lighter/smaller and much more quiet than the XR-10S that it replaces. The XR-32X still offers all the TV pictures plus goes up to 1080p. While I still have to upgrade the rest of my HD Theatre to take advantage of the 1080p output of the 32X (I need to upgrade wiring from RGB component to HDMI plus my A/V receiver also needs to be upgraded to 1080p feature) I am very pleased with the purchase of my new projector. The Sharp XR-32X offers a great value for HD Theatre setups.
I think the new design of the case/enclosure for the 32X should keep the lamp much cooler - the air circulation pathways have been improved over the old design of the 10S/10X models; they list 4000 hour bulb/lamp life in the eco/quiet mode which works just fine in my totally dark HD Theatre in my basement - I have no windows. I use a throw distance of about 17 feet and the 32X is mounted to the ceiling. I used the same ceiling mount that I purchased on eBay for my 10S/10X unit and it fit perfectly without any changes. Sharp did, however, mount the power-plugin on the opposite side.
Only con is that the XR-32X should have incorporated an HDMI input.
The 32X has a 15-pin female VGA [you need a cable to convert your RGB-component cable to the 15-pin VGA - but the limit is 1080i because component can't handle 1080p signal] and a DVI input [that supports 1080p]. They do sell HDMI-to-DVI cables on eBay for about $40 to $50 for a 50-footer; not typically found at your local AV-Stores. So you need to plan ahead for your cables needs.
I also run my HD Home Theatre in 7.1 audio with 10 speakers [2 front presence speakers, 2 front tower speakers, 1 center channel, 1 powered-sub-woofer, 2 side speakers and 2 rear speakers using a Yamaha A/V unit - sound is awesome - the Yamaha A/V software/firmware allows you to have 2 extra "presence" speakers"]. While my Yamaha unit does not have HDMI hookups, my Dish Network DVR-722 and Panansonic DVD upscale-1080p units do have HDMI outputs. So I directly wired-and-tested the input signal on the 32X for DVI-signal input and it worked perfectly. I have yet to download a Dish-On-Demand (DOD) 1080p movie to test the 32X in 1080p mode.
An aside is what I learned about DOD: once you order a 1080p movie - it takes 24-to-48-hours to download to your DVR-722 [which has to be turned off during the download] and then you have only another 24 hours to watch it (as many times as you want)! Not sure how often I'll be doing that! More likely to rent a DVD than to do a DOD.
I purchased the 32X from my local Sam's Club for just under $700 but they can be found at other online vendors such as Staples online [I called my local Staples and they did not stock the 32X; my Sam's Club, however, had a few on hand] for close to the same - sometimes they offer rebates too.
Updated - Feb. 13, 2009 - I finally acquired a Sony BDP-BX1 Blu-Ray Player; yeah! When I first contacted Sharp - they told me that the XR-32X wouldn't support 1080p - that it was a mis-print and that their product packaging and Web site were in error. I went ahead and bought the BX1 [I believe the BX1 is a 2nd generation Blu-Ray player which loads faster and has the ability to be updated via the Internet]. Once I got through the initial set-up of the BX1 with it being cabled directly from the HDMI port to the DVI-D port of the XR-32X [used a 50-ft cable purchased on eBay] the Sharp XR-32X projector recognized and stated that it was in 1080p mode! Surprise - Surprise!
Sharp needs to train their support employees how to support the products that they market! I emailed them back and told them they were wrong.
Some other info that you should know is [after I did extensive studying on this 1080p HD topic] - the BX1 by Sony is capable of translating the Blu-Ray movie signal and converting it the 1080p-60f that the Sharp XR-32X displays. The XR-32X is not capable of a "Blu-Ray" 1080p-24f rendering of the movie signal. However, the Sony BX1 takes care of translating its movie output so the XR-32X can handle and display the movie in its "1080p mode" which is at 60f. The BX1 is optically cabled to my Yamaha A/V unit for 7.1 audio.
The "visual" difference [IMHO] between the 1080i and the 1080p-60f on my set-up is hard to discern - but then I already am spoiled with a 106" HD diagnol screen in 7.1 digital 10-speaker surround sound. Now I can play Blu-Ray movies with my XR-32X.
I think the new design of the case/enclosure for the 32X should keep the lamp much cooler - the air circulation pathways have been improved over the old design of the 10S/10X models; they list 4000 hour bulb/lamp life in the eco/quiet mode which works just fine in my totally dark HD Theatre in my basement - I have no windows. I use a throw distance of about 17 feet and the 32X is mounted to the ceiling. I used the same ceiling mount that I purchased on eBay for my 10S/10X unit and it fit perfectly without any changes. Sharp did, however, mount the power-plugin on the opposite side.
Only con is that the XR-32X should have incorporated an HDMI input.
The 32X has a 15-pin female VGA [you need a cable to convert your RGB-component cable to the 15-pin VGA - but the limit is 1080i because component can't handle 1080p signal] and a DVI input [that supports 1080p]. They do sell HDMI-to-DVI cables on eBay for about $40 to $50 for a 50-footer; not typically found at your local AV-Stores. So you need to plan ahead for your cables needs.
I also run my HD Home Theatre in 7.1 audio with 10 speakers [2 front presence speakers, 2 front tower speakers, 1 center channel, 1 powered-sub-woofer, 2 side speakers and 2 rear speakers using a Yamaha A/V unit - sound is awesome - the Yamaha A/V software/firmware allows you to have 2 extra "presence" speakers"]. While my Yamaha unit does not have HDMI hookups, my Dish Network DVR-722 and Panansonic DVD upscale-1080p units do have HDMI outputs. So I directly wired-and-tested the input signal on the 32X for DVI-signal input and it worked perfectly. I have yet to download a Dish-On-Demand (DOD) 1080p movie to test the 32X in 1080p mode.
An aside is what I learned about DOD: once you order a 1080p movie - it takes 24-to-48-hours to download to your DVR-722 [which has to be turned off during the download] and then you have only another 24 hours to watch it (as many times as you want)! Not sure how often I'll be doing that! More likely to rent a DVD than to do a DOD.
I purchased the 32X from my local Sam's Club for just under $700 but they can be found at other online vendors such as Staples online [I called my local Staples and they did not stock the 32X; my Sam's Club, however, had a few on hand] for close to the same - sometimes they offer rebates too.
Updated - Feb. 13, 2009 - I finally acquired a Sony BDP-BX1 Blu-Ray Player; yeah! When I first contacted Sharp - they told me that the XR-32X wouldn't support 1080p - that it was a mis-print and that their product packaging and Web site were in error. I went ahead and bought the BX1 [I believe the BX1 is a 2nd generation Blu-Ray player which loads faster and has the ability to be updated via the Internet]. Once I got through the initial set-up of the BX1 with it being cabled directly from the HDMI port to the DVI-D port of the XR-32X [used a 50-ft cable purchased on eBay] the Sharp XR-32X projector recognized and stated that it was in 1080p mode! Surprise - Surprise!
Sharp needs to train their support employees how to support the products that they market! I emailed them back and told them they were wrong.
Some other info that you should know is [after I did extensive studying on this 1080p HD topic] - the BX1 by Sony is capable of translating the Blu-Ray movie signal and converting it the 1080p-60f that the Sharp XR-32X displays. The XR-32X is not capable of a "Blu-Ray" 1080p-24f rendering of the movie signal. However, the Sony BX1 takes care of translating its movie output so the XR-32X can handle and display the movie in its "1080p mode" which is at 60f. The BX1 is optically cabled to my Yamaha A/V unit for 7.1 audio.
The "visual" difference [IMHO] between the 1080i and the 1080p-60f on my set-up is hard to discern - but then I already am spoiled with a 106" HD diagnol screen in 7.1 digital 10-speaker surround sound. Now I can play Blu-Ray movies with my XR-32X.
