
Valerion
VisionMaster Pro 2
Great picture/gaming, but RBE and no lens shift are dealbreakers.
Running these analyses costs money. Buy through my links to help keep lights on! I may get a small commission.
The 9300 is the same as the Epson 5040UB/6040UB. On the used market it still performs very well as a solid 1080p product. You do need to be aware that Europe is cutting down on traditional lamps being available for sale. This is a massive issue long term as you won't be able to get new lamps for your projector at some point. You may need to get a couple of them to keep until the projector is dead. But, the projector itself is quite good. The lens on it is amazing with extensive zoom range and lens shift. It is a LARGE projector, so don't be surprised by it. You can read tons of reviews of the 5040 from Epson that are out there. All of them are likely to be really strong about the performance.
The 9300 is the same as the Epson 5040UB/6040UB. On the used market it still performs very well as a solid 1080p product. You do need to be aware that Europe is cutting down on traditional lamps being available for sale. This is a massive issue long term as you won't be able to get new lamps for your projector at some point. You may need to get a couple of them to keep until the projector is dead. But, the projector itself is quite good. The lens on it is amazing with extensive zoom range and lens shift. It is a LARGE projector, so don't be surprised by it. You can read tons of reviews of the 5040 from Epson that are out there. All of them are likely to be really strong about the performance.
im in the exact same boat. my 6040UB failed on me, too expensive to fix. looking for an alternative under 3k. Valerian looks the best but dang, missing out on the optical zoom and lens shift is a huge downgrade. I cant find anything else that has those options thats under 3k.
This is the way. https://preview.redd.it/qyrsjy79zbzg1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4ab20946f2c3b8c5d6dcad175bce3a735abb7059
It's surprising convienent too because you can use the same receiver, speakers, input devices, just need a HDMI switch or dual HDMI output receiver. Love it.
Yamaha RX-A780, Epson 6040UB, Akia 110" motorized screen, Elac center/right/front, NHT surrounds, Monster Cable subwoofer, Samsung 55" 4K TV (9 years old now), Nvidia Shield
I am not susceptible to RBE (have had Epson LCD projectors though for the last 12 years after previously having DLPs at the 480p and 720p days in the 2006-2012 era). I recently went from an Epson ProCinema 6040UB to a Valerion Vision Master Pro 2 and I am thrilled with the unit, its performance and the customer service I have so far received from Valerion. The loss of vertical and horizontal lens shift, lens memory and some optical zoom were all difficult decisions for me - I built my custom screen to project 110" at 16:9 and to zoom out to 127" at 21:9 aspect ratio, and to achieve this with the Valerion requires a lot more effort than the Epson - which was a simple button press and under 10 second adjustment by the motorized optics of the projector. For me, maintaining that ability to optically zoom the image from a 16:9 frame to a wider 21:9 frame for films was essential. The brightness and "pop" of the colors for the Valerion was far better than my Epson unit and the Enhanced Black Level (EBL) feature on the Valerion really made a huge difference as well. In the end, I have chosen to list my Epson for sale on eBay and have stayed with the Valerion as my projector. I did this with a coffee table side mount that requires keystoning to square the image (11' back from the screen, right next to my primary viewing location). I can't say that the longevity or reliability of the Valerion is there yet because I have owned it for less than a month at this point, but I can say that image quality, input options, Google TV convenience and true 4K @ 120hz gaming (over even 1080p @ 240hz) are game changers to me. I have the optional ceiling mount if I decide to later move the unit up to the ceiling location, but if no one wants to buy my Epson, it may just stay mounted to my ceiling while I use the lower mount on the Valerion! This attached picture is a bad representation overall, but its all I had on the phone... I corrected a few issues (like the noticable light spill outside of the projected image, the incorrect geometry of the image shown here, and the obvious mess on the floor in front of the screen...LOL). I also did not bother with the screen masks I have (behind Pennywise on the left...LOL) that mask the 21:9 screen size for 16:9 viewing if I choose to use them - frequently I don't care about the sides of the image for gaming or TV and most of my film viewing does not use them anyway!) Overall, I am very happy with my purchase and would willingly do it again at this point; even though I was dumb enough to buy a bundle which included a custom ceiling mount, 2 pairs of 3D glasses and a 135" fixed frame screen (which turns out to be too large for this space - the image would be 66" high which would take it down to just over 7" from the floor and speaker placement becomes an issue along with the image getting kind of ridiculously large in the space). The inclusion of Google TV out of the box also allowed me to ditch my RokuHD and minimized my inputs as well, so that 95% of my usage is now directly connected to the projector instead of routing through the AVR. I get all of my streaming services, access to my Plex account and files and my X-box Series X without any problems. https://preview.redd.it/5tmjjqscn8kf1.jpeg?width=8160&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0992708e46aeb455a318db6ddadf747539d94dbc
Ouch. I am sorry to hear that. Sounds like at least one of the LCD panels blew out. I'm sorry that happened to you. Those 6040UB units (at least the ones that work) are great projectors. On the flipside, there are options like the Valerion and Nebula laser projectors in the $2,000 - $2,500 range that can outperform it. Good luck, I hope you catch a break!
5050 has better contrast and deeper blacks than the 11000. The LS12000 is the laser update to the 5050 but it loses 3d for better 4k pixel shifting. I had a 6040 for just shy of 2 years and replaced it last April with a 6050. Lamps are $300 through a dealer, but can be found cheaper. ~9.5 months in and I’m just over 300hrs. I can get through this lamp’s life and probably another’s before seriously considering replacing it, and by then it’ll be a JVC for me.
5050 has better contrast and deeper blacks than the 11000. The LS12000 is the laser update to the 5050 but it loses 3d for better 4k pixel shifting. I had a 6040 for just shy of 2 years and replaced it last April with a 6050. Lamps are $300 through a dealer, but can be found cheaper. ~9.5 months in and I’m just over 300hrs. I can get through this lamp’s life and probably another’s before seriously considering replacing it, and by then it’ll be a JVC for me.
I love it. It seems noticeably brighter than the 6040 in the same picture profiles, especially in 3D. I went back and forth on a used JVC NX series, but opted for the 6050 so I could have a warranty and it’s in my white-walled living room, so the contrast edge of a JVC wouldn’t have been as noticeable but the less brightness definitely would have been. I don’t think I suffer from rainbow effect, but I haven’t don’t a ton of testing. Also, the chance that I invite a friend over and they might be affected, kinda scared me off DLPs for now. Supposedly Valerion’s new reduction algorithm pretty much eliminates it. But contrast and black levels on DLP’s is only just catching up to epson (while other features far surpass like Dolby Vision support). I want a few more years of maturity on the laser long throw options and hopefully more reasonable prices too before I consider swapping.
I started with a 5030ub and upgraded to a 6050ub for 4K and HDR support. I was immediately disappointed in the poor static tone mapping, and it felt like a downgrade from coming from a solid SDR projector before hand. I invested in building my own video processor for tone mapping using MadVR open source and video processor.org with a HDMI capture card and GPU. This is not for the faint of heart to setup, tune and calibrate, but the payoff is well worth it. I have a dedicated light treated home theater that benefits from high contrast. I have a 180" screen, and the 6050ub lights it up very well while achieving excellent contrast and shadow detail. I wouldn't say that natively without a video processor it is worth it at this point in time since projectors native tone mapping has come so far. I also added an HDFury inline which adds support for Dolby Vision using an HDR flag hack and is a really nice upgrade which means I have all the functionality of newer models with the excellent color, lens and contrast ratio. I am on my second bulb, which cost under $100. I echo others that say 3D is amazing and I agree, hands down destroys anything else I have ever seen. I would love love to side by side my setup with a Valerion Max to see how it compares, but I doubt it will given my configuration. Obviously technology moved forward and everything improves over time, but newer isn't always better.
I have a 6050ub, similar to 5050ub and project onto a 180" screen in my theater room. My dimensions are roughly 14x22' and it is light controlled and treated. If you can find one, I highly recommend it. There is a caveat, the HDR is not great since it uses static settings, so you will find constantly needing to change it depending on content source. I built a DIY video processor using a PC and MadVR which solves the issue and upgraded the projector to something double or triple it's price. I even added a HDFury Arcana to enable Dolby Vision. If you have the ability and don't mind the extra effort and calibration it is well worth it.

Valerion
VisionMaster Pro 2
Great picture/gaming, but RBE and no lens shift are dealbreakers.

Epson
Home Cinema 5050UB (V11H930020)
Great value with huge lens shift, but outdated lamp tech and poor HDR.
Epson
Pro Cinema LS12000 4K PRO-UHD Laser Projector
Superb 4K/120Hz gaming and no RBE, but requires calibration.

BenQ
W1070
Budget king, durable with good image, but RBE can be distracting.

BenQ
HT2060
Excellent 1080p contrast and quiet gaming, but low brightness for big screens.

Ranked #1
Valerion - VisionMaster Pro 2

Ranked #1
Epson - Home Cinema 5050UB (V11H930020)

Ranked #1
Hisense - Laser TV PX3-PRO

Ranked #1
Anker - NEBULA X1 4K Triple Laser Projector (D2351)

Ranked #1
JMGO - N1S 4K

Ranked #1
Anker - Mars 3 Air