The Valerion VisionMaster Max is a long-throw DLP projector with a laser light source and a pixel-shifted 4k resolution. For setup flexibility, it includes auto focus and auto keystone, a motorized zoom lens with a 0.90–1.50:1 throw range, and a large ±105% vertical optical lens shift to help place and center the image without physically tilting the projector. Connectivity is also robust, with three HDMI inputs (two HDMI2.1 at up to 48Gbps), two USB data ports, a 3.5 mm audio out, an optical (S/PDIF) output, Wi-Fi, and a 1Gbps Ethernet port. It runs an Android-based smart OS with casting support and includes two 12W built-in speakers.
Our Verdict
For movies and TV, the Valerion VisionMaster Max is amazing. It delivers an image bright enough for a large 100" screen without looking dim, and it pairs that with fantastic native contrast. Color is also a standout: it has an extremely wide color gamut, and its out-of-the-box accuracy is already solid in its more accurate picture modes, with calibration pushing it even further if you want the most faithful image. There's also an optional RBE Reduction mode for viewers who are sensitive to rainbow artifacts.
Very wide color gamut.
Flexible placement with motorized zoom and large vertical lens shift.
RBE reduction feature really works.
Very bright projector.
Fantastic native contrast for deep blacks in any content, no matter how bright or dark.
You need to make sure to set the IRIS feature correctly to get truly deep blacks.
For gaming, the Valerion VisionMaster Max is generally responsive enough for most casual and competitive play, and it supports high-refresh-rate inputs for smoother motion on compatible PCs and consoles. It also handles 1080p @ 60Hz with proper 4:4:4 chroma, which helps keep fine UI text and desktop use looking clean when you plug in a PC. It also projects a very bright image, with fantastic contrast and a wide color gamut, making it a standout product for most gamers.
Very wide color gamut.
Flexible placement with motorized zoom and large vertical lens shift.
Strong gaming feature support (high refresh rate, 48Gbps HDMI2.1).
RBE reduction feature really works.
Very bright projector.
Fantastic native contrast for deep blacks in any content, no matter how bright or dark.
You need to make sure to set the IRIS feature correctly to get truly deep blacks.
Its input lag at 60Hz and 120Hz isn't quite fast enough to satisfy very competitive players.
The Valerion VisionMaster Max is amazingly bright, so it works well for larger screens and doesn't immediately fall apart if you have some ambient light in the room. Bright scenes look lively, and you don't have to run a tiny image just to keep things watchable.
RBE reduction feature really works.
Very bright projector.
The Valerion VisionMaster Max has fantastic native contrast overall, excelling no matter how bright or dark the scene is. If we're nitpicking, the contrast is a bit worse in near black scenes, but it's still great. You just need to make sure to configure the IRIS correctly, as the projector's contrast is noticeably worse with it disabled or set to a low level.
Fantastic native contrast for deep blacks in any content, no matter how bright or dark.
You need to make sure to set the IRIS feature correctly to get truly deep blacks.
Changelog
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Updated Jan 23, 2026:
We've modified the text in our Brightness and Native Contrast text boxes as a result of our latest test bench, and we've also retested the projector at different IRIS levels to test its impact on contrast. We've also added Brightness and Contrast performance usages in the Verdict section.
- Updated Jan 16, 2026: We've converted the review to Test Bench 0.11, which renames our Contrast test to Native Contrast, and adds a Sequential Contrast test box. We also added new Brightness and Contrast performance usages in Our Verdict. See the 0.11 changelog.
- Updated Dec 17, 2025: Review published.
- Updated Dec 15, 2025: Early access published.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
Valerion sells multiple VisionMaster models, and the Valerion VisionMaster Max sits in the higher-end part of the lineup. Compared with the Valerion VisionMaster Pro 2, the Max is the more full-featured option for placement and connectivity, thanks to its motorized zoom lens, vertical lens shift, iris control, and more extensive input set.
| Model | Brightness | Contrast (Dynamic) | Native Contrast | Vertical Lens Shift |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valerion VisionMaster Max | 3500 ISO Lumens | 50000:1 with Dynamic IRIS | 7000:1 | Yes |
| Valerion VisionMaster Pro 2 | 3000 ISO Lumens | 15000:1 | 4000:1 | No |
| Valerion VisionMaster Pro | 2500 ISO Lumens | 15000:1 | 3000:1 | No |
| Valerion VisionMaster Plus 2 | 2000 ISO Lumens | 10000:1 | 3000:1 | No |
| Valerion VisionMaster Plus | 1650 ISO Lumens | 10000:1 | 3000:1 | No |
Our unit was manufactured in China.
Popular Projector Comparisons
The Valerion VisionMaster Max is a premium long-throw projector with excellent overall image quality, very strong brightness and color, and a feature set that targets both movies and gaming. It also includes an RBE Reduction option that can make rainbow artifacts less noticeable for some viewers. The trade-off is price: it's positioned as a high-end option, and you're paying for that extra polish and feature set. At this price, the XGIMI HORIZON 20 Max is the more compelling value pick, with similarly flexible placement tools and stronger overall performance for less money. If you're comparing within Valerion's lineup, the Valerion VisionMaster Pro 2 gets you a very similar experience for less if you don't need the Max's step-up features. Still, the Valerion VisionMaster Max is certainly no slouch, and its RBE reduction and iris control features might be worth the extra cost for some.
Check out our recommendations for the best 4k projectors, the best projectors for home theater, and the best projectors for home. If you're shopping for a projector for smaller rooms or want to place the unit close to the screen or wall, consider the best short-throw projectors instead.
The XGIMI HORIZON 20 Max is a bit better and cheaper than the Valerion VisionMaster Max, although the Valerion is a bit better for gaming. The XGIMI is incredibly bright, giving it a very striking image. Still, the Valerion has tricks up its sleeve: a solid dynamic contrast option and an RBE reduction feature that truly works, at the cost of more audible noise from the unit. For gaming, they're both solid, but the Valerion has much lower input lag at 60Hz, which makes it better for console gamers who like to game at 4k/60. For 120Hz and 240Hz gaming, the XGIMI has a very small edge, but they're very close.
The Hisense C2 Ultra and Valerion VisionMaster Max are very closely matched; the Valerion edges the Hisense by a small margin, but also costs much more. Ultimately, the biggest difference between the two is placement: the Hisense is a short-throw unit, so it's meant to live relatively close to the screen or wall, while the Valerion is a long-throw unit, so it stays further away from the screen.
The Valerion VisionMaster Max is better than the cheaper Valerion VisionMaster Pro 2, but not by much. The Max is a bit brighter with slightly better contrast, but its biggest advantage is its better color accuracy right out of the box, alongside its IRIS control feature, which gives it better contrast. The Max also has a nifty RBE-reduction feature that truly reduces perceived RBE. Still, the Pro 2 is far cheaper, and the Max isn't likely worth the cost for most users.
We've independently bought and tested over 60 projectors, and we've published all the detailed results for each so you can decide which one to buy. These have all been tested under the same standardized methodology, allowing you to compare them side by side. We still have all these projects in our lab so we can continually go back and compare them to ensure our reviews are still accurate. All our test methodology is also public on our website, so you can validate the results yourself.
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Test Results
The Valerion VisionMaster Max is very bright overall, so it holds up well in rooms with a few lights on and is easily suitable for a 100" screen. That said, its colors don't look quite as vibrant as on the brightest projectors, which maintain stronger color light output, but they're still great. Brightness uniformity is fantastic, but there's some vignetting in the corners.
Note that enabling the IRIS feature reduces overall light output; with IRIS set to 'Manual' and Iris Size set to '6,' we measured about 1468 lm for White Light Output and 1472 lm for Color Light Output, but the results shown in the review are with IRIS 'off.'
There's also an RBE Reduction option. Turning it on reduces perceived rainbow artifacts for RBE-sensitive viewers, though the amount of improvement can vary from person to person.
This projector has fantastic native contrast overall, delivering deep blacks no matter how dark or bright the scene is. Its iris control is a big part of that story, as with Iris Size set to '6' and Enhanced Black Level disabled (except for Dynamic FOFO, where it is set to 'High'), dark content looks noticeably richer; without it, the projector gives up a lot of that dark-scene impact, while brighter scenes are less affected. Here are some results with the IRIS set to different levels:
IRIS disabled:
- 1% APL Native Contrast - 1,029:1
- 5% APL Native Contrast - 723:1
- 10% APL Native Contrast - 524:1
- 15% APL Native Contrast - 399:1
- 25% APL Native Contrast - 260:1
- 50% APL Native Contrast - 139:1
IRIS Off
- 0.1% APL Native Contrast: 1405:1
- 0.5% APL Native Contrast: 1393:1
- 1% APL Native Contrast: 1382:1
- 5% APL Native Contrast: 1258:1
- 10% APL Native Contrast: 1120:1
- 15% APL Native Contrast: 1020:1
- 25% APL Native Contrast: 847:1
- 50% APL Native Contrast: 595:1
- Native Full-On/Full-Off: 1430:1
- Dynamic Full-On/Full-Off: 13411:1
Iris Size Level 0
- 0.1% APL Native Contrast: 1496:1
- 0.5% APL Native Contrast: 1481:1
- 1% APL Native Contrast: 1456:1
- 5% APL Native Contrast: 1315:1
- 10% APL Native Contrast: 1168:1
- 15% APL Native Contrast: 1056:1
- 25% APL Native Contrast: 872:1
- 50% APL Native Contrast: 606:1
- Native Full-On/Full-Off: 1514:1
- Dynamic Full-On/Full-Off: 13433:1
Iris Size Level 1
- 0.1% APL Native Contrast: 1784:1
- 0.5% APL Native Contrast: 1774:1
- 1% APL Native Contrast: 1742:1
- 5% APL Native Contrast: 1527:1
- 10% APL Native Contrast: 1325:1
- 15% APL Native Contrast: 1171:1
- 25% APL Native Contrast: 938:1
- 50% APL Native Contrast: 628:1
- Native Full-On/Full-Off: 1818:1
- Dynamic Full-On/Full-Off: 16219:1
Iris Size Level 6 (Filmmaker Mode)
- 0.1% APL Native Contrast: 3304:1
- 0.5% APL Native Contrast: 3230:1
- 1% APL Native Contrast: 3032:1
- 5% APL Native Contrast: 2198:1
- 10% APL Native Contrast: 1659:1
- 15% APL Native Contrast: 1320:1
- 25% APL Native Contrast: 932:1
- 50% APL Native Contrast: 545:1
- Native Full-On/Full-Off: 3434:1
- Dynamic Full-On/Full-Off: 39656:1
Optical Zoomed Out, Iris Size Level 6
- 0.1% APL Native Contrast: 3479:1
- 0.5% APL Native Contrast: 3408:1
- 1% APL Native Contrast: 3241:1
- 5% APL Native Contrast: 2394:1
- 10% APL Native Contrast: 1790:1
- 15% APL Native Contrast: 1453:1
- 25% APL Native Contrast: 1028:1
- 50% APL Native Contrast: 615:1
- Native Full-On/Full-Off: 3598:1
- Dynamic Full-On/Full-Off: 40833:1
The Valerion VisionMaster Max has a fantastic color gamut, covering the full Rec. 709 color space and most of Rec. 2020, so it can display very saturated colors without looking dull. That said, it runs a bit oversaturated in the Rec. 709 color space, so some colors can look more intense than intended, especially in already vibrant content.
The Valerion VisionMaster Max is already quite accurate in SDR out of the box. Its grayscale and white balance track the targets very closely, so skin tones and neutral grays look natural without an obvious color tint. Colors are a bit less precise than the grayscale, but they're still solid overall, as only whites, light blues, and yellows show some accuracy errors, and they're far from drastic. Its color temperature is very close to 6500K, so it doesn't look noticeably too warm or too cool out of the box.
After calibration, the Valerion VisionMaster Max's color accuracy is fantastic. In the calibrated 'Theater' Picture Mode, it's extremely close to the targeted values, so whites look neutral, and colors look properly balanced instead of tinted or oversaturated. Gamma tracking is also solid, which helps keep midtones and skin tones looking natural rather than too dark or too bright.
This projector uses a single-chip DLP imaging system with a laser light source, so you get a sharp, crisp-looking image without needing lamp replacements over time. It’s a good fit for big-screen use, and DLP's inherent clarity helps fine detail look clean from typical viewing distances.
Its spectral power distribution shows distinct red, green, and blue laser peaks, which help it produce very saturated colors and contribute to its wide color gamut. The tradeoff is that some screens can show faint laser speckle in certain scenes, and as with most single-chip DLP projectors, RBE-sensitive viewers may notice occasional rainbow artifacts on high-contrast edges and subtitles.
The Valerion VisionMaster Max is very flexible to place for a long-throw projector. You get a motorized zoom with a 0.90–1.50:1 throw range, plus autofocus and auto keystone, so it's easy to dial in the image across typical living-room distances.
It also supports a very wide vertical optical lens shift range of ±105%, which helps you center the image without physically moving the projector much, but there's no horizontal lens shift. For exact screen sizes and distances, use our Throw Calculator.
This projector isn't a truly portable projector. It's fairly large and heavy, and it doesn't have a built-in battery, so it's best treated as a stay-at-home unit that you move occasionally rather than something you toss in a bag. That said, setup is convenient: it has autofocus and auto keystone, two built-in 12W speakers, and adjustable front and rear feet to help you quickly level it and dial in the projection angle.
The Valerion VisionMaster Max is quiet at maximum brightness. You'll still hear a fan in a silent room, but it generally blends into the background once content is playing and shouldn't be distracting for most setups.
One thing to note: enabling the RBE Reduction feature makes the projector noisier and may add a higher-pitched whine, so it's best used only if you need the reduction rather than left on all the time.
The Valerion VisionMaster Max has excellent connectivity for a home theater or gaming setup. You get three HDMI inputs total, including two HDMI 2.1 ports (48Gbps) and a third HDMI 2.0 port, so it’s easy to leave multiple sources connected at once.
It also has two USB data ports (one USB 3.0 and one USB 2.0) for media playback or powering accessories, plus 3.5 mm analog audio out and optical (S/PDIF) for simple audio hookups. For networking, it includes Wi-Fi and a 1Gbps Ethernet port for a stable wired connection, along with a standard DC power jack.
To get the expected signal support out of the Valerion VisionMaster Max, you have to pay attention to a couple of menu toggles. For proper 4k output, Ultra Sharp Mode needs to be enabled, and your HDMI input also needs to be set to the Enhanced format. High Refresh Mode has to be enabled for proper 120Hz operation across resolutions, but the projector scales down 4k @ 120Hz signals with it on. With that setting off, the projector outputs proper 4k @ 120Hz, but it frame-skips. It can also accept 1080p @ 240Hz, but only when HDMI 1 or 2 is set to Enhanced Pro.
Input lag is decent overall, so most people should find it responsive enough for casual and even some competitive gaming at 60Hz and 120Hz. You also don't have to force a dedicated 'Game' Picture Mode to get good results, since 'Theater' is just as responsive when the low-latency setting is enabled. That said, if you turn on the projector's High Refresh Rate Mode while gaming at 60Hz, responsiveness takes a noticeable hit, so it's best left off unless you're actually gaming at 120Hz or 240Hz.
This projector has proper audio passthrough support, with eARC on its HDMI eARC port for sending audio from connected sources or the built-in Google TV apps to a soundbar/AVR. With passthrough enabled in the settings, it supports a wide range of formats, including multichannel LPCM and common Dolby/DTS bitstreams (up to object-based formats). It also includes an optical output for older setups.
This projector supports 3D playback, including the most common consumer formats like side-by-side, top-and-bottom, and frame-packing.
The Valerion VisionMaster Max runs an Android-based smart OS and is cast-capable, so you can stream directly on the projector or send content from a phone/tablet when supported. It also has two built-in 12W speakers, making it usable as a standalone setup without external audio right away, though you'll still get a fuller, more cinematic sound with a separate speaker system.