Kudos: Greatly improved HDR handling; sharp, detailed image; great for gamers
Concerns: Would love a blacker black; no 3D support
Recently, I walked into my local Costco and was greeted at the entry by a pile of 100-inch Hisense 4K displays selling for $1699! Years ago, I posited that when we finally had a 100-inch LED display for under $10,000, that would likely be the end of the front projection market, and that price point has now been shattered to the point where 100-inch displays are within the budget of nearly any home theater owner. So, is the front projection market dead?
Far from it.
In fact, this past CEDIA saw major projector releases from Sony, JVC, Epson, and Barco! While LED might have the 100-inch market (and even up to 115-inch if you count the $20,000 TCL), projectors have gone bigger, with screen sizes now routinely selling in the 120- to 150-inch range and even larger. And when it comes to handling multiple aspect ratios for a truly cinematic experience, front projection is still king.
When I heard that Sony was doing a major update to its projector lineup, I was personally vested. Besides being a Sony dealer (to be fair, my company also sells JVC and Epson), I personally own the previous VPL-XW6000ES, which I’ve had installed in my home theater for the past two years. This model was replaced by the new XW6100ES (aka BRAVIA Projector 8 under Sony’s new unified BRAVIA-naming strategy).

Hearing about the upgrades didn’t totally prepare me for the side-by-side demo Sony put on in its CEDIA booth — comparing the previous flagship XW7000ES with the new XW8100ES. Frankly, I was blown away by the upgrades, and it was one of the most talked about demos at the show.
I also happened to be in the unique position of being able to replicate this demo with the 6000 and 6100 in my home, comparing picture quality with the same source on the same screen at the same time.
Is the new BRAVIA 8 worth the upgrade? TL/DR, yes! But you’ll need to read on to find out exactly why it is better…
Upgrades and Improvements
Sony has a long history of innovation in the home projection market, dating back 50 years to 1973 when it introduced the VPP-2100, the company’s first color CRT projector. In 2003, Sony debuted the Qualia 004, the world’s first full 1920×1080 HD projector, and then, in 2011, the company released the VPL-VW1000ES, the world’s first 4K home projector.

Two years ago, Sony introduced a major revamp to its projector lineup, going all-laser and redesigning its SXRD panels, shifting away from the digital cinema aspect 4096×2160 pixel array to newly designed, smaller .61-inch SXRD panels with a more “home-friendly” 3840×2160 resolution. These new panels also feature a flatter reflective surface, with 10 percent higher light reflectance, and achieve a 50 percent higher light resistance, which produces better contrast. Sony also developed a new optical system with a smaller optical block, new laser diodes, new lens, and a cooling system to deliver better laser efficiency.
Besides improvements in picture quality, these changes also allowed for a smaller chassis, with a new angled design that featured sleeker top and bottom panels, resulting in projectors that are about 30 percent smaller in volume and 35 percent lighter than Sony’s old VPL-VW915ES laser projector. The result is a projector that doesn’t look imposing hanging from the ceiling.
The key selling points of laser are a long life with virtually zero maintenance, with these models having an estimated 20,000 hours of operation to 50 percent brightness. Beyond longevity, a laser light source offers other benefits over lamp-based projectors such as consistent brightness and color across its lifespan, less turn-on “stress” on the light engine, and the ability to instantly turn off to deliver a true black. Laser can also have far quicker turn-on/off times, not requiring the lengthy warm-up or cool-down period of lamp-based models.
One of the big performance step-ups the XW6100ES offers over Sony’s entry-level VPL-XW5000ES (which remains unchanged in the lineup) is the motorized Advanced Crisp-Focused (ACF) lens. This is a 70mm aspherical lens designed to give sharp, focused images from corner to corner, with extra-low dispersion glass designed for accurate color reproduction and sharp 4K image reproduction. However, it is not to be confused with Sony’s legendary 18-piece, all-glass ARC-F (All Range Crisp Focus) lens, which is now only available for the flagship GTZ-380.
The new XW6100ES and XW8100ES projectors utilize the same chassis, lens, and SXRD panels as the previous 6000 and 7000 projectors, and the XW6100ES is still offered in either black or white. Externally, there is almost nothing that differentiates the new models from the old. The one cosmetic difference is the lack of the 3D SYNC OUT mini-jack connection on the new models. So, if you are specifying a projector for an application where 3D might be desired, know that Sony has eliminated this feature on the new models.
Besides losing the ability to do 3D, what are you getting for the $4000 premium of the 6100 over the 6000?
First, Sony has upgraded both HDMI inputs to 2.1, and they are both 4K/60 and 4K/120 capable. These inputs also support Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM), which is a key feature for gamers. And Sony has an industry-leading lag time on its models — 21 msec for 4K/60 and 12 msec for 4K/120. If serious gaming is a key consideration, the new Sony models should definitely be on your shortlist.
You also get a small bump in brightness, going from 2500 lumens on the XW6000ES to 2700 on the XW6100ES. (When it comes to HDR, any additional light output is usually a good thing!) I was told this is not due to a new laser engine, but rather Sony changed the way it was doing laser dithering to get more light output. Sony also upped the number of lens memory settings, going from three to five, so if you are using a constant vertical height system, this will let you dial in all of those new ratios Netflix is using.
Also, for the first time, Sony has added the ability to do digital corner keystone correction. Of course, actually using keystone correction should be avoided if at all possible, as even a single click will add distortion to fine details, and the 1.34:1 to 2.87:1 throw ratio lens with ±85% vertical and ±36% horizontal lens shift should give enough flexibility to position the lens in a way where you wouldn’t need to use the keystone correction. But it’s there if you need it. (But, you know, don’t use it!)
Okay, I’ve purposefully been burying the lede. The massive upgrade here is the integration of Sony’s new XR Processor for Projector, a major step-up over the X1 Ultimate for Projector used in the previous models. This new XR processor performs four key functions: XR Dynamic Tone Mapping, XR Deep Black, XR Triluminos Pro, and XR Clear Image.
As the name implies, XR Dynamic Tone Mapping optimizes brightness on a frame-by-frame level, using signal processing to enhance the brightest areas on the screen to retain better gradation and contrast. This also works in conjunction with Sony’s XR Deep Black technology, which enhances dark scenes by dynamically controlling laser dimming and optimizing highlight processing.
So, if you’ve read anything about projectors in the current HDR world, then you’ve doubtless run across the term “tone mapping.” Why is this so important for projectors? Theatrical content is mastered on studio monitors capable of reaching 1000 nits, with Hollywood’s workflow shifting to Sony’s latest BVM-HX3110 mastering monitor capable of displaying 4000 nits. The problem is, most projectors would struggle to produce 350 nits. So, this content needs to be translated from 0 to 1000 (or even 4000, or up to 10,000!) nits, to a range of 0 to 300 that the projector can handle. But this needs to be performed dynamically in a way that maintains both the bright and dark details in the image. When performed correctly, the image will retain the shadow details in dark images while also keeping the specular highlights found in really bright images like shots of the sun, lightning flashes, or snowy mountains. If a projector tone maps poorly, the darker areas or the brighter areas (or both) can be “crushed,” losing detail that was meant to be visible and having no subtlety.
XR Triluminos Pro is a feature carried over from the XR Processor. It enhances color with high brightness and expanded color volume, and the XW6100ES is capable of producing up to 95% of the DCI-P3 color gamut without using a filter. XR Clear Image is the next generation of Sony’s video processing, analyzing individual objects on a frame-by-frame basis to extract the most sharpness and details while eliminating noise and other artifacts. The process utilizes Human Cognitive technology to enhance depth and texture, and also recognizes focal points in the image, highlighting areas where your eyes are naturally drawn within a scene.
Install
Like virtually every modern projector, the XW6100ES offers the ability to be front-, rear-, ceiling-, or shelf-mounted. Sony doesn’t offer a ceiling mount for this, but your favorite Chief, Peerless, Strong, or other universal projector mount capable of supporting 30-plus-pounds should work. One thing I dislike about this — and all recent Sony projectors — is that it only provides three holes for mounting the bracket, not four. This just makes it needlessly more difficult to balance and level.

As it was a review sample that would not be a permanent resident in my theater — and because my XW6000ES was already ceiling mounted — I set the XW6100ES on a box in my kitchen, which happens to line up centered on my screen. Once I got it square and level to the screen, install was as simple as adjusting the lens to fit and focus on the screen.
The projector has a generous 1.34:1 to 2.87:1 throw ratio lens, which in practical terms means for a 100-inch, 16×9 image, the projector could sit anywhere from 117 to 250 inches from the screen, and for a 150-inch image, it could sit from 175 to 375 inches. This generous range should give it the ability to replace almost any existing projector at the same location.
Because I have a dual-aspect Draper screen — 92-inch diagonal in 16×9 and 115-inch in 2.35 — I appreciated (and used) the 6100’s lens memory positions that store the zoom, shift, focus, and blanking settings for up to five different aspects. Sony also increased the amount of blanking available in the new models, optimizing it for 2.35-aspect screens. For those with an anamorphic lens, the Sony has digital image stretch settings that work with both 1.24 and 1.32 lenses.
The projector includes two HDMI 2.1 inputs along with connections for hardwired IR, a 12-volt trigger out, DB9 RS-232, and an RJ45 for connection to a LAN, all located on the side near the back, with a detachable power connection on the opposite side. (There is also a USB connection used for service and firmware updates.) These connections are on angled sections on the sides of the projector and are accessible when ceiling-mounted.
Another feature not to be missed is the Panel Alignment adjustment that lets you tweak the pixel position at multiple points on screen for the most accurate panel convergence. Like the old point adjustment on CRT projectors, you navigate a grid pattern on screen and align the red and blue panels for the sharpest image. This process can take a few minutes to complete, but it certainly makes tiny details and things like text sharper with less color fringing. This alignment is global, and not tied to any lens memory positions or picture modes.
Sony has proven itself very friendly to the CI channel by providing loads of discrete commands and IP integration, and this continues with the new PJ lineup. There is a wide range of integration possibilities for getting the XW6100ES to work with your preferred automation system. Beyond the mini-jack IR and RS-232 inputs, it supports Control4 SDDP, Crestron Connected, Savant, and AMX DDDP. It also works with OvrC and Domotz. You have full access to all the projector’s settings and configurations over the local LAN.
A look through the IP command set for Control4 reveals discrete access to virtually every option or setting you would want, letting you give customers access — or pre-programming commands — to switch to the ideal picture mode or setting when watching different sources or resolutions.
One note: The login and password for accessing the projector across the network — which are necessary before you can complete IP integration with any third-party system — for the Control4 driver is incorrect in the documentation. You need to log in as user “root” and password “Projector,” and then you need to turn ADCP Service ON but disable the Requires Authentication tab. There are also tabs for announcing C4 via SDDP, Crestron Connect, and AMX Dynamic Device Discovery. Once I logged in and added it to my Control4 system, the control was fast and reliable.
While users will likely use it very sparingly, if at all, the included remote control has discrete access to all the preset picture modes (except for IMAX Enhanced), as well as Motionflow, Contrast Enhancer, and Reality Creation settings. Unfortunately, there is no direct access to the HDR tone-mapping settings. It is also backlit for easier operation in a darkened theater. In a bit of salt-in-the-wound, Sony has kept the same remote as used with the previous models, which retains the now non-functional 3D button.
Sony has gone to a new BRAVIA Connect app for controlling its 2024 soundbars and TVs, however this app doesn’t work with the BRAVIA projectors.
Performance
Sony claims that 95% of dealers sell/install projectors with out-of-the-box settings — not performing greyscale or other calibration — so Sony optimizes these settings for the best cinema-watching experience out of the box. Should you wish to perform a full calibration, the 6100ES does offer the hue, saturation, and brightness adjustments needed for primary and secondary colors, and also works with Sony’s Projector Calibration Tool and Calman.
Sony’s recommendation was to use Cinema Film 1 in darkened rooms and Bright Cinema if viewing with ambient lighting. So, I spent nearly 100% of my time in Cinema Film 1 mode. The only “tweaks” were to optimize black level performance, and I switched the HDR Tone Mapping into Mode 3 (default is Mode 2), set HDR Enhancer to Low, and put Laser Light Setting Dynamic Control into “Limited.”
While you might think setting Laser Light output control to “Full” would give you more range, Sony commented, “Limited focuses the optical blades more narrowly than at full, allowing for higher contrast in low-light scenes. By limiting light output around the edge of the lens the image can improve in key scenes or viewing environments.” Functionally, with the Laser Light dynamic control setting set to “Full,” the screen would go completely black when nothing was being projected, say, during a cut scene or a film’s opening/ending credits, plunging the room into OLED-level blackness, and Limited doesn’t go to this full black.

If your thought was to use the Reference mode, thinking that it would provide the best image, don’t. This defeats some processing, including the HDR tone mapping, so unless you are using this with an outboard processor — like a Lumagen or madVR — stay away. All 10 of the picture modes have both SDR and HDR modes, and save settings independently for each, meaning there are a total of 20 modes to configure if desired.
Having lived with the XW6000ES for nearly two years, I was already very familiar with the baseline performance and felt the XW6100ES produced fantastic images from the jump. Pictures were bright, sharp, and detailed, and always a pleasure to watch. What I really wanted to see was how much of an upgrade it was over my 6000 when directly A/B’d.
So, using a two-way HDMI splitter from my Trinnov Altitude 16, I sent identical signals to each projector. Then, in Control4, I created a couple of custom buttons that would mute the image of either projector, allowing me to instantly compare and contrast performance, switching back and forth at will. To replicate the CEDIA demo, I downloaded the 4K HDR version of Zero Dark Thirty from Kaleidescape and had Sony supply me the clip used from Alpha, which is mastered in 4000 nits.
At home, the test revealed the same results as the CEDIA demo. Watching the dark scene from Zero, where the SEALs are flying toward the compound in the stealthy Blackhawks, the helicopters and terrain had far more detail and resolution with the XW6100ES. In comparison, there were moments with the XW6000ES when the helicopters and mountains smudged into near invisibility. I also noticed that my XW6000ES pushed heavily blue in dark images compared with the XW6100ES.
Turning to the Alpha clip — which tests the brightest end of the HDR spectrum — the differences were equally extreme. With the 6100, the tone mapping pulled down the levels of the searing sun, making it a visible, brilliant orange-white circle in the sky with lots of detail and gradients around it, but with the 6000 it just became one large, undefined super-bright orange-white sky with no detail.
These were extreme examples but were certainly visible and repeatable with other content. There were scenes from Black Adam, Oblivion, Mad Max Fury Road, and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 where bright lightning strikes had more definition and detail in the branching and fingers of light. Flipping between the projectors, the 6000’s image sometimes appeared overall brighter because more of the lightning was fully illuminated at the same intensity, whereas the 6100 had far more gradation, variance, and detail in the image brightness. Other scenes, like say bright light streaming in through a window, allowed for far more modulation in the brightness with the XW6100ES, whereas the XW6000ES was more one-note to the bright highlights.
I also noticed in the shafts of light shining out of the projectors that the 6100 almost did light beamsteering (is that a thing?), where the processor would pump more light output to small, really bright areas onscreen that needed extra pop. Between the combination of the XR processing and the additional 200 lumens, the 6100 produced images that really popped.
Putting on the Spears & Munsil UHD HDR Benchmark 4K Blu-ray let me check out how the tone mapping was handled in a variety of video scenes and, much like with the 4000-nit clip from Alpha, the 6100 walked on the 6000. In the bright snowy scenes, details in the landscapes and mountains were crushed into bright white on the 6000 where the 6100 retained detail and texture. Also, in the geothermal water pools, much of the bright color detail was lost/crushed on the 6000, whereas the 6100 produced a far more lifelike image.
However, unless I was pausing to A/B the differences between the projectors, for general movie watching, these differences in the brightest areas weren’t as apparent. I mean, that I was missing a bit of detail crushed by the 6100 in a momentary lightning strike or fireball didn’t leave me feeling wanting.
For me, the most consistently noticeable difference — and what really stood out — was in the black image handling. This is possibly because there is not as much real-world content mastered at the highest nit levels, or that the low-light level handling of the XW6100ES is just that much improved. Regardless of the content or resolution, the XW6100ES just brought out more detail and clarity in the darkest parts of the picture, and dark movies like The Batman, Underwater, and Alien: Romulus just looked so much better and more revealing. Besides just having a lot more low-level detail, blacks just looked cleaner and had more depth and dimension. Switching between the projectors, the XW6000ES’ image often looked flat in comparison.
I rewatched many of the same scenes in Blu-ray (SDR) quality, and while the bright levels weren’t impacted due to not having content the 6100 couldn’t handle, the same black level disparity was visible, showing that the XR processing is working on all images, not just HDR.
It doesn’t appear that the overall black floor — the projector’s ability to produce an inky black — has any improvement with the XW6100ES. With even a single pixel illuminated, there is noticeable light across the entire screen in a dark room. So, if getting the blackest black is your goal, the XW6100ES might not get you there.
Sony is known for its terrific motion handling and upconversion, and the 6100 certainly shined here. In comparing scenes with lots of fine details, there was a slight uptick in sharpness with the 6100, but this would be difficult to notice in moving images. I also really liked the Smooth Gradation adjustment, which did a great job of reducing banding in lower-quality, streamed content.
Two small things I wish Sony would change. While there are five position memory presets, you can’t name them. So, you’ll need to remember what Custom 1 through 5 actually do. (To be fair, this is not really an issue with an automation system, as you just have it trigger the appropriate position.) Second, I wish Sony would show you numeric values for the adjustments made to focus and keystone. Sometimes it is hard to tell if you’re bumping it one way or the other, and it would be nice to see a value on screen to use as a baseline.
I think the BRAVIA Projector 8 (VPL-XW6100ES) stands as the highlight in Sony’s current projector lineup. It offers some much-needed and justified premium step-ups over the VPL-XW5000ES in the form of an upgraded ACF lens, 35% more light output, motorized lens with memory, and the new XR processor, while costing less than half of the 8100ES, which only adds 700 lumens and Sony’s Live Color Enhancer; not much for an $18,000 premium. Sony said the XW6100ES is suited for screens up to 150 inches (16×9), so unless your project is going larger, the 6100ES is a fantastic solution!
877-865-7669; sony.com
Product Specs:
- Native 4K SXRD panel with full 3840×2160 resolution
- Z-Phosphor laser light source delivers 2700 lumens
- Rated to 20,000 hours of operation to half-bright
- ACF (Advanced Crisp Focus) motorized lens; 1.34:1 to 2.87:1 throw ratio
- XR processor with frame-by-frame HDR tone mapping
- Wide Dynamic Range Optics achieve 95% DCI-P3 color gamut
- Supports Control4 SDDP, Crestron Connected, Savant, and AMX DDDP; OvrC and Domotz
- Inputs: 2 HDMI 2.1 (4K/60, 4K/120), mini-jack IR, RJ45 LAN (10/100), RS-232C, USB-A (service) Outputs: Mini-jack 12-volt trigger, detachable power cable
Dimensions and Weight: 18.13 x 8.28 x 20.34-inches (WxHxD); 31 pounds