The AOWL Vision is a new company in the field founded in 2020 by a group of “enthusiasts” of the big screen presenting its first Laser TV model just 2 years later, in March 2022.
Its vision was to create a triple Laser RGB video projector model that would deliver brightness comparable to a conventional television.
And thus, the LTV (Laser TeleVision) series was born.
The company introduced 2 variations of the same model with the only difference between them being the brightness performance, the LTV-2500 with a nominal brightness of 2000 Ansi Lumens and the LTV-3500 with a brightness of 3500 Ansi Lumens.
In this article we will present to you the smaller model of the series, the LTV-2500.
So sit back, make yourself comfortable, pour a cup of your favorite coffee and enjoy the ride…
Who is the LTV-2500?
Reading the specifications of the LTV-2500 you can’t help but be impressed.
The latest advancements in image technology are incorporated into the small AWOL projector.
from the latest version of High Dynamic Range (HDR 10+)…
…to the expanded color palette of REC.2020, which it covers by 107%
The first DLP UST projector that can accurately reproduce 24 frames per second on our screen
With 15ms input lag in 4K and 8ms in 1080p, it may be the best “low input lag” performance for a 4K DLP projector currently available on the market
Completing the puzzle with the built-in Dolby Atmos capable soundbar
3D capability is also not missing
“Here, I should clarify that the reviews you read on projectorjunkies are not sponsored reviews and the projectors we test here are either purchased by us or provided by our readers.
If a manufacturer wants to provide us a model (which has happened several times i must say) for reviewing it, it is certainly welcome but our collaboration begins and ends with this provision, no compensation, no affiliate, no commitment to what we will write in our review, and of course, we do not sell projectors! No conflict of interest here, sorry guys. In this particular review, the LTV-2500 was purchased directly from AWOL and is now our main projector, so in this review you will read more of an “owner’s” perspective rather than a reviewer who had the projector for a certain period and tested it. This is a clarification i had to made“.
From the box of the LTV-2500, you can tell that you’re dealing with a huge projector.
Those of you who own previous generation UST (Ultra Short Throw) projectors like the Xiaomi 4K and the Fengmi Cinema 4K will be shocked once the LTV-2500 arrives at your home.
Its size is literally almost twice as big.
With dimensions of 60cm x 35cm x 15cm and weighing around 12 kilograms if I remember correctly, you will need space and arms to place it.
The build quality doesn’t really impress at first touch.
The plastics feel somewhat rigid, and during assembly, they seem like they might creak if pressed.
Despite its weight of 12 kilograms, it gives you the impression that it’s somehow empty inside. It lacks the solid feeling that the Xiaomi Cinema 2 or Formovie Theater give.
Inside the package you will find the remote control, an Amazon Firestick 4K Max, a lens cleaning cloth as well as a basic manual.
As for the cable with analog audio and video connections, I’m not sure what role it plays in those days, but it is included.
Unfortunately, 3D glasses are not included in the package, which personally bothers me as they are included in the packaging of the LTV-3500, the larger model of AWOL. Shame, it’s a 20$ accessory, it should including in the package in my opinion.
Inside you will also find a warranty card that allows you by registering the LTV-2500 on the AWOL site to activate another warranty year so that the total reaches the 2 years.
I consider what AWOL has done with this Amazon Firestick a very smart move.
They have installed a minimal version of Android 9.0 on the LTV-2500 with simple menus for settings and options, and for the smart part of the case, they have created a hidden third HDMI 2.0b port that is revealed when you open a cover on the front. There you can connect your Amazon Firestick and automatically have a clean smart TV environment as soon as you select it or automatically when the projector starts (if you have chosen to start with this HDMI).
I am a fan of this design because I like my projector to have a clean menu where I can easily and painlessly adjust my image settings, and also not have to wait for a heavy graphical environment to load during startup.
The Firestick 4K max is provided for free by AWOL inside the projector package and works perfectly.
On the front, we find the other connection ports of the LTV-2500. Its HDMI ports are 2.0b and can easily accept 4K 60Hz signals.
The digital audio output that is of interest to those who have older models of AV receivers works perfectly without any sound delay, something that is not true for all UST models I have tried.
The remote control
The remote control of the LTV-2500 is cleverly designed, let me explain…
Initially, the feeling it leaves in your hand is that of a premium metallic remote control, because AWOL has used a hard plastic with a metallic finish in its paint.
On its back a clever design touch is this pattern of dots that gives a textured surface and conveys a confidence in the owner’s hand as far as its grip is concerned.
The remote is Bluetooth technology, but it also has an infrared sensor on the front and this may confuse some of you.
Which of the two technologies does the LTV-2500 use, you will wonder, and rightfully so.
AWOL did something very clever here. Instead of the projector’s Bluetooth receiver always being open in stand-by mode to receive a signal whenever it is needed, as in almost all models that use Bluetooth technology, in the LTV-2500 it closes completely and the projector is started with infrared after marking the projector with the remote control. After the start up procedure, the remote control turns into Bluetooth, even for the power off command.
I would say brilliant because firstly the projector goes into a real stand by mode and secondly we avoid accidental starts from accidentally pressing buttons on the remote.
Especially if you have a Vividstorm screen connected to a usb trigger like I do, a random press while cleaning the remote for example, means the screen will rise too, something not so pleasant.
Also, the functions selected by AWOL to be shortcuts on the remote are exactly what a user needs to make his life easier when using the LTV-2500.
An independent button for sound, very useful as you can choose the audio output between your amplifier and the built-in soundbar of the LTV-2500 directly and quickly if you use the optical audio output like I do.
Personally, I use the built-in sound of the AWOL when I watch TV channels and switch to my multi-channel amplifier for movies and series.
There is also a button for direct HDMI input selection, as well as a button for adjusting the Laser intensity (adjustable in 10 steps).
There is also a separate button for screen sharing.
Adding to the equation the proper feeling of the buttons and the tiny LED that lights up when using the remote so that we know if our command was accepted, I can confidently say that the remote control of the LTV-2500 is one of the most well-designed ones I have encountered in a UST projector.
Simple enough to avoid confusion, complex enough to provide us all the necessary functions.
There is of course one button that personally I wouldn’t mind if AWOL had added, and that is the 3D function button as every time you want to watch a 3D movie, you have to go to the menu and enable it manually, something that after few times it becomes annoying .
Of course, how could the company foresee something like this when the 3D feature was added with a firmware update months after the presentation of the model?
Lets proceed with some tests…
Fire up the LTV-2500
The projector was set up on my furniture and adjusted relatively easily without the use of digital frame adjustment, also known as keystone correction.
I would suggest you avoid this setting if you can and use it only in cases where correcting the frame is impossible in any other way.
The reason is that it brings a noticeable reduction in sharpness.
Attention, its throw ratio is not the “Well known” 0.23 of Xiaomi and Fengmi but 0.25 which means that AWOL has to be placed a few centimeters further back to give us the same inches picture.
I connected Vividstorm’s USB trigger to one of its 2 USB ports and by pressing the remote control of AWOL, the projector turned on directly and the screen rise like it should.
The welcome screen of the little AWOL is impressive because it directly shows you its teeth.
Raw brightness, tremendous saturation in colors, and an audio that prepares you for the capabilities of its built-in sound.
The Welcome sound, of course, is set at a fairly high volume which sometimes creates an issue if you want to turn it on silently (e.g., during late-night hours when some people are sleeping at home).
Fortunately, with the latest firmware update from AWOL, there is an option to disable it.
Before we dive into a detailed overview of the menu of the LTV-2500, let’s talk about its clarity, as it is essentially the first parameter of the image that you encounter right after positioning and aligning the projector in front of the screen.
One thing that bothers me in all RGB UST laser projectors is this color deviation that reminds me of poor convergence in Epson LCD projectors.
The LTV-2500 is no exception as a Triple Laser (RGB) projector. I sent a question to AWOL regarding this issue and their response was that this phenomenon is characteristic of the technology and does not exist in real viewing conditions, and they are right.
The phenomenon only occurs in white pixels with a dark background, nowhere else. In movie scenes, you will never see it, and of course, it does not affect the clarity as one might possibly assume.
The clarity of the LTV-2500 is the best I have seen to date from any other UST projector I have tried, that’s for sure.
It is the first UST (Ultra Short Throw) projector that in both upper corners of the image (where most UST projectors in the market suffer) the focus and clarity are close to perfection. You can almost see the pixels appearing when you get too close. I have never seen such precision in the focus of a UST projector before.
This was something that immediately won me over with the LTV-2500 as I had almost gotten used tthe defocus with previous UST models..
(upper right corner in the following photo)
I suspect that its good uniformity in image clarity has to do with the high-quality “made in Japan” lens system from RICOH that the AWOL uses as well as the size of these lenses, as compared to the competition (Xiaomi & Formovie) the optical system and the final mirror are almost twice the size!
Let’s move on to see the simple and highly functional graphical user interface of the small AWOL.
This is the image we encounter as soon as we turn on the LTV-2500 and it hasn’t automatically connected to any HDMI source, or we can return to it by pressing the central button with the house icon on the remote control.
In the settings we find a very organized and comprehensive tree of options that won’t even confuse the novice user. Everything is organized and separated into basic subcategories.
Inside the Image category, we can find all the settings we will need to adjust the image…
I will make an explanation that will be of more interest to any AWOL owners
MEMC a slider that smoothes motion by adding interstitial frames
Low delay mode reduces the input lag of HDMI ports
Noise reduction reduces digital noise from the image
Dynamic contrast increases the dynamic range by making the dark parts of the image darker and the bright parts brighter
Enhanced Black Level is the new laser dimming function that was added after the latest major firmware update. This is responsible for the increase in contrast from 1000:1 to 2200:1.
Gamma is the adjustment of intermediate brightness levels of the image.
Color temperature is the adjustment of the white temperature.
Color correction, also known as CMS (Color Management System), allows us to adjust the colors of the image in terms of hue, saturation, and brightness.
The photo shows the four options provided by the MEMC (Motion Estimation/Motion Compensation) control.
The Movie option was added after the last major upgrade and it is related to the playback of 24fps material.
If we select USER in the Color temperature setting, we have the ability to individually adjust each color and correct the white temperature with precision, both in the high end of the scale (Gain) and the low end IRE (Offset).
In the Color correction, AWOL provides us with all the controls we need to accurately adjust each primary color (Red, Blue, Green) and each secondary color (Yellow, Cyan, Magenta) separately.
It even includes a separate setting for skin tones, which is extremely useful.
Finally, there are settings for 3D mode.
Frame Packing is for playing Blu-ray 3D material, and there are other options for playing 3D content through a media player.
In the Light menu you will find several useful settings such as the one for adjusting the power of the Laser with different modes as well as manually at 10 positions. Another important feature that I will discuss about it later is the Actuator control which disables the XPR function and converts the AWOL to a pure 1080p projector.
There is also an option for Intelligent Light Sensor, where if enabled the LTΒ-2500 automatically adjusts the Laser intensity based on the ambient lighting conditions in the room.
Interestingly, it works very well. In a dark room it automatically reduces the power while in a bright room during daytime it automatically maximizes the Laser power.
In these photos, you will see the difference in image brightness between 0 and 10 on the manual adjustment of the Laser intensity.
In the Light menu, we can find the keystone correction settings…
…as well as the focus adjustment. The electric focus mechanism of the LTV-2500 is characterized as smooth and allows us to make fine adjustments to the image focus easily, with very small steps.
In the Sound menu, there are several settings related to the built-in audio. If we select USER, additional options such as Equalizer, Virtual DTS, and ATMOS are unlocked, which are included in the capabilities of the small AWOL.
In the Network menu, we can configure the wired or wireless connection of the LTV-2500 to our network.
Finally, there is a General category that includes settings such as Eye Care, which reduces the laser power in case we approach the projector to protect our eyes.
Even the Key Tones (the sound heard when pressing a button on the remote control) can be deactivated if desired.
I forgot to mention that the LTV-2500 has a storage capacity of 128GB (with 3GB of RAM), the largest I have encountered so far in a UST projector.
One of the amazing screen savers of the Amazon Firestick 4K Max…
This is the graphical user interface of the Firestick and it contains everything we may need to enjoy our projector…
For those who are not familiar, I would recommend the PLEX app which creates a connection between your projector and your computer, allowing you to effortlessly stream anything from it, including heavy 4K files and movies.
It has an amazing library that automatically organizes our movies with covers, etc. It also has its own content, worth exploring…
I forgot to mention that the LTV-2500 also has an in build screen sharing app called EShare which allows us to easily share the screen of any of our devices (mobile, tablet, computer), as long as we are connected to the same network.
For those of you who have made it this far, it’s time to read what may interest you the most, the performance of the LTV-2500, so here we go…
Performance
The LTV-2500 is bright. When I say it’s bright, I mean it’s brighter than anything else out there in the UST (Ultra Short Throw) category, except from its big brother and maybe the Samsung LSP9.
I don’t know what the numbers say in the various reviews, but as an owner of four UST projectors (including the RGB Laser Formovie Theater), I can confidently say that the little AWOL is anything but small when it comes to brightness.
It has a raw brightness that on smaller screens like mine (100″) may require you to lower the Laser power. I play everything except 3D and HDR with the Laser setting right in the middle, at 5.
This raw brightness is also present in the color palette and makes the image so impressive that your eyes are glued to the screen from the first seconds of projection regardless of what content you’re watching.
Now, why AWOL lists the brightness of the LTV-2500 as 2000 Ansi Lumens when the projector exceeds 2500 Ansi Lumens is something I can’t explain.
Maybe they want to maintain a significant gap in specs compared to their larger and considerably more expensive model, the LTV-3500, in order to justify the price difference? It’s possible…
On the manufacturer’s website, Elevation Technology Partners, the brightness listed is 2500 Ansi Lumens, which is much closer to reality.
Unfortunately, obtaining a “measurable” brightness measurement from a UST (Ultra Short Throw) projector is extremely difficult.
Even slight changes in the angle of the photometer or millimeters of distance can significantly alter the measurement. Additionally, due to the construction of UST screens, the brightness that ultimately reaches the viewer’s eyes does not align with what the projector produces, and I’m not exclusively referring to the negative gain.
I’m referring to the degrees of the angles of the grooves on a UST screen which in combination with the projector’s actual throw ratio result in different amounts of brightness reaching the viewer’s eyes compared to what one would expect or what comes out of the projector’s lens.
Based on my experience, I would say that a 0.25 throw ratio that AWOL has chosen is better suited for pet crystal screens compared to 0.23 (or even 0.19 of the Samsung LSP9) in terms of the amount of light is horizontally projected towards the viewer’s eyes. Perhaps I will write an article at some point explaining in more detail with measurements the relationship between UST projectors and UST ALR screens in relation to the angle of light projection.
I will end the topic of brightness here so as not to tire you and move directly to the next important parameter, contrast.
Contrast
Those who were expecting to see the well-known excellent black levels of Appotronics UST Laser projectors (Xiaomi & Fengmi) will be disappointed. The contrast of the LTV-2500 flirts with the classic 1000:1 for DLP, and of course, it is far from the +3000:1 of the competition.
This is something that an experienced eye perceives from the first few seconds of projection.
“How bad can it be?” someone may ask. “Yes, my friend, it’s that bad, but…”
This difference is significant, or rather chaotic I would say, only if we are talking about projection on a white classical screen. In the special UST ALR (Ambient Light Rejecting) screen, which looks dark gray and due to the ANSI contrast that such a screen achieves, the difference is significantly reduced.
And here comes the active AWOL and presents a firmware update that was released about a month ago, which with an incredibly subtle laser dimming combined with a type of dynamic gamma increases the real on/off contrast of the LTV-2500 from 1000:1 to a respectable 2200:1 (I measured 2330:1).
And I ask you, how can you not love a company that from the first day of presenting its models, never stopped evolving its software and constantly providing significant updates for free to the owners?
With an update all LTV-2500 & LTV-3500 owners gained the ability for 3D projection, with an update an increase in contrast and with an update, as the company has already announced, DolbyVision will be added!
Nikos, with this increase in contrast, can the AWOL compete with the Appotronics models in terms of contrast?
No, it cannot compete with them, clearly. But it came close enough that contrast is no longer a buying criterion for me.
Before the update? Yes, before the update there was a difference that easily constituted a buying criterion, but not anymore.
In the photos taken with the exact same exposure on the camera, you can see the difference in black levels between the LTV-2500 (top) and the Formovie Theater (bottom).
What does this “Enhanced Black Level” do, as it is called in the menu of the LTV-2500?
I can describe it to you with a simple and understandable example, as I have understood it after numerous tests.
The maximum brightness that the projector can produce lets call it 100%. If the black level of the projector in a scene is 2% brightness and there is a bright spot that is 40% brightness, then the LTV-2500 algorithm will reduce the power to the laser so that for example, the black level drops to 1% (deeper black) and in order to prevent the bright spot dropping to 20% from 40%, it “boosts” the gamma so that the bright spot is displayed again with 40% brightness.
This was the simplest explanation I could think of, I hope you got the idea.
In real life Enhanced Black Level works perfectly not only in completely dark scenes, but also in less dark scenes, helping to make them more detailed and with deeper blacks and most importantly, discreet enough that it is impossible to notice.
In the photos below, you can see for yourself the difference that Enhanced Black Level makes in a dark scene.
(The photos have not been edited and are taken with slight overexposure and with the following settings: ISO100 F1.4 1/10)
Even in less dark scenes, Laser dimming works wonderful (although it’s more difficult for the camera to capture)
Congratulations to AWOL engineers for such an impressive firmware update that resulted in such a significant enhancement in image quality, and most important for free! This company truly demonstrates that it values its customers, and that’s not something you come across easily these days.
Color
With 107% of REC.2020 color space coverage and comprehensive CMS (Color Management System) settings that work correctly, I could hardly say a word more, and I could have already fully described the color performance of AWOL.
The color palette and behavior of the LTV-2500 is perhaps the main reason i chose to buy it.
Here’s a random REC.709 color triangle to show you what we used to see in the past, and what we see now with the AWOL.
You don’t come across this CIE1931 color gamut easily. It’s truly impressive and incredibly satisfying for the human eye.
What’s even more important though, is that the AWOL handles this color palette flawlessly whether it’s for SDR or HDR content.
Of course, it’s one of those projectors that require adjustments to achieve the maximum performance, that’s the truth. But once it’s calibrated, you won’t have to worry about anything again. You’ll simply enjoy your movies.
Later on, I will provide all the settings that you can copy to your own LTV-2500.
Closing the chapter of color I would like to say that the LTV-2500 is a chromatic feast that your eyes have probably never experienced before.
HDR Performance
The performance in HDR content is something that has personally troubled me in the past. AWOL won’t be an issue as long as it’s properly calibrated. Two parameters are significantly off by default in AWOL, and even with their adjustment without instrument measurement, the projector can be transformed.
One parameter is the blue color in the gray scale, so just fair reducing the blue gain in the white balance.
Factory performance on grey scale is like this…
…but we want it like this.
The other parameter is the saturation of the red color, so just reducing the red saturation in color correction.
Factory settings for the saturation of intermediate shades of red are somewhat like this…
…but we want it like this.
If we correct these two parameters of the image, even just by eye, the color behavior of AWOL improves significantly in both SDR and HDR content.
There is an important setting for HDR content that can help us improve the performance of a specific film in LTV-2500 by changing the HDR EOTF values (think it as the “gamma” of HDR)
Take a look what is the effect of EOTF values at the final result
The tone mapping on LTV-2500 its fantastic and the details on dark areas is the main AWOL weapon. The LTV-2500 has the best “HDR dark details” behavior on the market right now. Does not crash the blacks like Formovie in order to present you “better” blacks but keeps the HDR EOTF calculations on the correct path so the viewer can see absolutely exactly what the producer of the movie create on the post production. Well done AWOL.
SDR & Full HD Performance
I don’t know about you but for me, half of the movies/series I watch in my personal home cinema are still in Full HD resolution. This is either because Netflix offers this resolution for much of its content or because certain movies that I want to watch are not available in 4K, or because I already have several movies on regular Blu-ray.
To clarify things, 4K HDR is impressive, especially on larger screens but a good Full HD Blu-ray still holds up well in terms of image quality.
So, how my projector handles Full HD content is still very important to me.
Unfortunately with the UST (Ultra Short Throw) projectors I had before the AWOL, I wasn’t entirely satisfied.
The focus across the entire frame was not as good as I would have liked and the upscaling to 4K was not great resulting in a soft image for my tastes.
With the LTV-2500 now, that’s a thing of the past.
The AWOL gives you the option to disable its 4K resolution and turn it into a pure Full HD projector with the Actuator control adjustment.
The native resolution, combined with the excellent focus and clarity deliver a strong performance with Full HD content. The screenshots speak for themselves I believe.
Generally i would say that in terms of SDR performance the AWOL is a top of the class projector. I don’t remember any other UST projector performing so well in SDR material. Even TV content seems magnificent. AWOL can be a real TV replacement for sure.
Let’s talk about motion
The AWOL also has an option to add intermediate frames for smoother motion, like many other latest models on the market.
It’s called MEMC, which is our familiar frame interpolation. It offers 4 options, with the latest one (Movie) added with the latest firmware update and it makes the difference here.
Choosing Movie, the LTV-2500 delivers the original 24Hz to our screen without adding extra frames and without the known and annoying 3:2 pulldown. I think it’s the first DLP 4K projector that offers this capability. I’ll take it!
In terms of motion, the LTV-2500 performs excellently. Whether you choose to add frames for smooth motion or opt to display the original 24 frames of the film, it will not disappoint you.
3D
And now we come to a big feature that may not interest everyone but for me it’s a game changer…
I was never a fan of this technology because i felt so much tired with the constant putting on/off the 3D glasses, the crosstalk and the reduced brightness so I had completely abandoned the hobby.
My mistake is that i watch 3D on the AWOL. Big mistake!
I did it once, and since then there’s been no turning back for me. I watch a movie or a documentary in 3D at least once a week. My mind craves it, you could call it addiction.
From having just a few 3D Blu-ray discs counted on one hand, I have now reached over 90 and I continue to add more to my collection.
Although there are no longer new 3D Blu-ray releases (let’s hope for Avatar-Way of Water), there is still a lot of worthwhile content out there to build a large and beautiful collection.
As for the 3D performance of the AWOL, what can I say? It’s something you have to see it with your own eyes in order to believe it. The depth, the realism, the brightness, the balanced color reproduction and the zero crosstalk turn 3D viewing into an absolute delight.
I watched Steven Spielberg’s Ready Player One the day before yesterday and I haven’t had such an immersive “journey” with a movie in years. You feel like you’ve put your chair in a corner inside this Spielberg’s fantastic world and everything unfolds around you. You don’t just enjoy an incredible movie, you feel like you’re a part of it!
In the settings of the AWOL concerning 3D you will find the familiar Frame packing, Side by Side, and Top and Bottom options as well as the important inversion of the two eyes. This is important because many movies use opposite polarization and you may need to change the setting from left to right eye and vice versa.
Now, someone might ask, “Are you really talking to us about 3D in the year 2023 Nikos, when almost all companies have abandoned it?'”Well folks, I’m not just talking, I’m telling you that this 3D of this projector is perhaps a very compelling reason to buy it!
Sound
The LTV-2500 features built-in audio with Virtual DTS and Dolby Atmos capabilities. It has a very loud and powerful 2X36 Watt power system.
Literally, you can have a party in your living room with just the use of the AWOL build in sound system.
In terms of sound quality I would say it’s not the best I’ve ever heard but it’s not significantly lacking either.
It can’t reach the audio quality of the top-rated Formovie Theater and his B&W build in sound system but it also doesn’t sound terrible like the Epson LS5000.
However, it compensates with its deep bass and the amplifier pure power. If you play around with the equalizer and the sound modes, you will definitely find the golden sound for your own tastes.
Overall, the sound is simple characterized as “good” and AWOL can easily stand as the sole source of audio in your personal Home Cinema if needed.
Noise & Cooling
The LTV-2500 is the quietest UST projector that has ever land in my living room. AWOL claims 27dB of operating noise and definitely telling the truth.
Even a few centimeters away from the projector you won’t hear a thing, it’s like it’s not even running.
Even the classic high pitch noise from the XPR module is missing here, what can i say…
AWOL has also done an excellent job in temperature management. Even after hours of operation, the chassis of the projector remains cool, and nothing gives away that such a bright Laser unit is operating inside.
I am confident that this low temp operation will significantly contribute to the reliability of the LTV-2500 over time.
I have prepared a small video for you to get a taste of the LTV-2500 performance.
Conclusion
The AWOL LTV-2500 is now for me possibly the most comprehensive proposition in the RGB Laser TV market.
-Crisp optics and excellent edge-to-edge focus on the screen.
-Bright and capable of daytime viewing on screens up to 120 inches.
-Out of this world color performance with true coverage of 107% REC.2020.
-Native motion handling of 24 frames per second, something truly groundbreaking for a 4K DLP projector that we were eagerly anticipating.
-Turbo mode that reduces input lag to an outstanding 15ms in 4K!
-Improved contrast with nice Laser dimming trick.
-Excellent performance in both HDR and SDR content.
-Stunning 3D performance.
-Completely silent operation and very low operating temperatures.
-Continuous firmware updates (Dolby Vision support has already been announced for the next update).
-Built-in Dolby Atmos sound that can easily cover a small space.
-Exceptional communication and support directly from AWOL (something very important to me).
-Also i would dare to say all these for a fair price!
Just like I have promised, I’m giving you the settings that I have personally applied to my own LTV-2500 for you to try. You have nothing to lose…
(The settings I’m giving you have been tested with i1pro spectrometer and align with what the ISF organization recommends, but my believe is that we should watch according to our own preferences and not be dictated by standards or organizations. So, my settings should only serve as a reference and from there you can make any adjustments you desire for your eyes. Trust me, it won’t be wrong).
Brightness 50
Contrast 50
Chroma 50
MEMC Movie
Dynamic contrast on
Enhanced black level on
Wide color gamut on
USER mode (SDR)
Gamma Dark or Middle (depends on your preferences)
Red Gain/Offset 3/3
Green Gain/Offset 1/2
Blue Gain/Offset -26/2
HDR user
Gamma Dark or Middle (depends on your preferences)
Red Gain/Offset -8/0
Green Gain/Offset -4/-4
Blue Gain/Offset -32/-5
Red
hue 43/50
saturation 42/75
brightness 51/51
green
hue 52/52
saturation 47/69
brightness 46/46
Blue
hue 49/47
saturation 48/64
brightness 55/58
Yellow
hue 51/57
saturation 47/67
brightness 56/57
Cyan
hue 40/48
saturation 48/63
brightness 52/54
Magenta
hue 53/52
saturation 46/70
brightness 57/61
Skin
tone 42/46
saturation 39/51
brightness 41/59
Wide color gamut on
I hope you enjoyed the review!
If you don’t, enjoy at least your Home Cinema!
See you in the next review friends
Nikos Tsolas
Coming next…
AWOL LTV-2500 vs Formovie Theater
AWOL LTV-3500 Review
12 Comments
I sent a more detailed comment thru the support link but to summarize:
Excellent , comprehensive, LONG OVERDUE review of the LTV-2500.
My hope is that your forthcoming review comparing the Formovie Vs AWOL is for the 2500 model.
There are already a bunch of reviews comparing the Formovie vs LTV-3500.
I believe that the 2500 would be more comparable in capabilities, especially brightness.
And those models are in the same pricing range for us budget conscious consumers.
No one to date is comparing those 2 models.
That is my ask/request for this review. it would be much appreciated.
Thank you for a great review, Nikos
The comparison is coming my friend, and couldn’t be better as i have run both projectors more that 200 hours each. Yes, the LTV-2500 its much closer to Formovie than LTV-3500, thats the truth.
One of the most thought out, thorough and fair reviews I’ve ever seen for any projector. It seems as though you unlocked the magic of the LTV 2500 and paved the way for ordinary Users to experience something they may have never experienced before. Great work!
and this is one of the most encouraging and kind comments i ever read in my blog my friend. Thank you.
Thank you for the well done review and the optimized settings. I couldn’t agree more regarding 3D material. It is a stunning visceral experience watching 3D content on the AWOL.
It has been unbearable for me over the last half year to decide which UST projector has the attributes I desire based on my limited budget. My choice is rather limited because one of the prime criteria is that the projector must have 3D and there are not many of them out there. The AWOL LTV-2500 is within my budget but I would love the LTV-3500 for its brightness. However, the LTV-3500 pricing is way too high relative to the LTV-2500, and the only difference is just the lumens. I had an online chat on the AWOL website today and was referred to your excellent review of the LTV-2500 – very exceptional to have someone from any company personally replying to a guest’s query instantly. I am now convinced to go for the LTV-2500 instead of the XGIMI AURA. I think that the LTV-2500 possesses sufficient brightness for 3D [a concern as #D needs higher brightness] and general viewing – I have a dedicated home theatre with a dark room environment. What do you think?
i choose the LTV-2500 for my home cinema if this says something to you. Go for it, the 2500 is the best value for money at the moment.
Thank you, Projector Guru!
Siew, If it weren’t for the name on your comment I would have thought that I wrote it. I have the exact same concern deciding on a bright enough UST projector for 3D viewing. But I also have the added problem of preferring to use the unit in a room with some ambient lighting. I was also referred to this article by the AWOL company whom is very interactive on their chat support concerning their products. It was explained to me by AWOL that they us a proprietary technology which utilizes the pure RGB laser design , which contains 3 separate lasers for RGB , which is found in those professional units like the Christie. Most of the other consumer UST products uses a “hybrid” laser phosphor technology which utilizes a similar color wheel design found in DLP lamp projection units. Some of the advantages of the pure RGB design are in brightness, contrast, improved color performance and longer laser lifetime. Nikos can correct on that if I missed something in the translation. (I hope Nikos does another article comparing the 2 technologies pros and cons) . FYI, AWOL plans on releasing a PRO version of the LTV-2500 in June which bumps the Lumens up to 2600. Of course it comes with the increased price tag which is estimated to be around $4000, but its still $1K less than the LTV-3500 model. I also appreciate that AWOL continues to work on their products to improve the performance of their units, issuing periodic updates to increase performance . This is noted in Nikos comments on their upgraded Enhanced Black feature which bumped the contrast ratio up from 1000:1 to 2200:1 (as currently advertised) Nikos measured it as 2330:1 which is near Cinema quality. i.e 2500:1. I’m told by Nikos, that he is working on a comparative review of the LTV-2500 versus ForMovie Theater. Right now the Formovie only holds a slight contrast advantage at 3000:1 by way of Appotronics “Advanced” Laser Phosphor technology.(ALPD 4.0). Given the great reviews, I might have already purchased the ForMovie UST if only it had 3D mode. This is one time that I’m glad that I hesitated before making a purchase. Let’s wait and see what Nikos has to say about this. Hope my comments are useful. Good luck , fellow UST hunter.
I was really intrigued by this projector but ended up buying Formovie Theater.
I have total respect to Nikos’ objective and subjective notes on the image and projection.
On another note, while I haven’t heard the Epson, I have heard the LTV and Formovie on the same day and they are.. night and day! Nobody should buy an LTV based on sound. The LTV sound though is terrible and no matter the settings it cannot be made to sound well. The B&W sound of the Formovie is impressive in as how balanced, even 3D its sound is! And that is back to back with a 10.000€+ 7.1 HT setup!
Finally, the plastic cover of the LTV feels cheap and the size overwhelming.
I’m just waiting on Nikos’s Formovie Vs Awol LTV-2500 review. The Formovie sounded great but I see that AWOL uses pure RGB laser technology instead of the color wheel design used in ALPD UST’s. Awol also seems to be very interactive with their customers and they seem to continuously improve their products thru firmware upgrades. I’m a holdout unless I see Formovie breakout with a 3D mode model. We’ll see.
Nikos,
From a technology standpoint, why does the ALPD 4.0 laser design which uses a color wheel, found in the ForMovie and other USTs, produce a better contrast than the pure RGB design found in the AWOL UST projectors.