As mentioned earlier, check out avsforum.com for wealth of info you need. There are three major front projection technology (LCD, LCOS and DLP). If you are not sensative to "rainbow effect", then DLP is the most popular technology as it gives you a nice balance of rich colors, deep black level, and great resolution. For $6K and short throw, I'd look at BenQ 8700 and a nice screen from DaLite, Stewart or Draper (grey material, hi power or classic white depending on your room/setup situation).
If you go with DLP, stick with a projector with HD2 chip (Sharp 10K, BenQ8700, Marantz vp12s2, InFocus 7200, etc.). They project awesome pictures and are cheaper than the new HD+ variants. You should be able to find them for $4.5K (for BenQ) to $10K (Marantz, Dwin, etc.) and once set up properly, their picture quality should be quite comparable to one another (don't let the sales people tell you otherwise). If you can spend another $2~3K, by all means get a HD+ model (Sharp 12K, Marantz s3, etc.). FYI, I am currently using a Sharp 10K with 106" Draper 1.3 gain screen and a HTPC, and the result is a breathtaking movie experience even with relatively modest 5.1ch audio set up (Denon 5700 with Gallo Micros).
I spend more time with the movie setup than I do with my 2Ch stuff (Kharma speakers with Berning amp), and that is saying a lot. Good luck.
Henry
If you go with DLP, stick with a projector with HD2 chip (Sharp 10K, BenQ8700, Marantz vp12s2, InFocus 7200, etc.). They project awesome pictures and are cheaper than the new HD+ variants. You should be able to find them for $4.5K (for BenQ) to $10K (Marantz, Dwin, etc.) and once set up properly, their picture quality should be quite comparable to one another (don't let the sales people tell you otherwise). If you can spend another $2~3K, by all means get a HD+ model (Sharp 12K, Marantz s3, etc.). FYI, I am currently using a Sharp 10K with 106" Draper 1.3 gain screen and a HTPC, and the result is a breathtaking movie experience even with relatively modest 5.1ch audio set up (Denon 5700 with Gallo Micros).
I spend more time with the movie setup than I do with my 2Ch stuff (Kharma speakers with Berning amp), and that is saying a lot. Good luck.
Henry