Ready to buy a Printer

[Flash Hit]

Toni, I have the Pro 9500 MkII. Great printer, A3+ (10 inks which include photo black, matte black and grey) and the B&W prints are stunning.
Have a look at http://www.digitalyes.com.au/prodVie...dproduct=48057 and read up on the reviews before buying.
It also includes Adobe Photoshop Elements-6 (Full Version).

[NikonUser]

EDIT: - I went and ate dinner after starting this post.... it seems many people have already given great suggestions before I pressed submit :-)
EDIT EDIT: - Just realised that this is quite an old post.... only the latest couple appeared when I first clicked on the thread though.... weird. ... and now I am just talking to myself..... lol. Sorry



If you are looking at doing any decent sort of print volume then I would suggest you look past the A4 and A3 sized printers and look at the larger A2 sized ones.

The A4 and A3 printers have TINY ink carts (about 10-13ml on most models) and if you are printing anything more than a couple of prints a day then you will constantly be swapping ink. The A2 printers (Epson R3880 etc) have much larger carts (80ml+) that will last a lot longer between changes. Also, the ink cost per/ml is significantly lower with the larger carts (The Epson 110 and 220ml carts are the best value per ml in the Epson Range).

From what I can gather from my own very crude research is that anything below A4 size and you are better off going to a lab (cost wise).... above that and it starts to get better (assuming you aren't doing test prints or wasting prints etc).

With my Epson 3800 I use the rough guide that an A4 full page colour print costs about $1 in ink (it's probably actually slightly less than that) and I get my A4 paper (Moab Lasal Luster) for around 80c a sheet at A4 size.

When you look at the outlay for the Epson R1900 vs 3880... yes the 3880 is a lot more expensive, but you also get a LOT more ink (9x80ml vs 9x13ml) in that price. I read once that if you take the ink out of the equation, the actual printer hardware of the larger printers isn't all that much more than the smaller ones.

Hope that info helps a little
Paul

[rafikicat]

Thanks Flash Hit, that's helpful advice and Paul I'm sure people will find your post helpful too.

[GoldenOrb]

All the advice that you have been given is wise advice. I own a Epson 4880 and use it regularly. The one thing I was told when I looked at a large format a couple of years ago was that they need to be regularly use. ie every day.... leave them too long and the head clogs up etc. You cant afford to have it sitting around doing nothing.
Inks can cost me anywhere from 150 -220 for a 220ml tank (each) , 45-55 for a waste tank and only use ilford pearl which is about 170 for 30 mtr rolls.

There is also a considerable bit of wastage was well

Its heavy at about 60kgs and a serious pain in the arse to move it from house to house.

For me... with the previous franchise..... it turned out cheaper to purchase my own. They had a 9800 and would charge us some exorbitant prices to print on inferior media, then postage, then royalties..... Each print could cost us a extra 20-30 bucks to get it to the door. Thats with them printing at 225 and me at 300. The difference is probably overkill but the end product is what will get you repeat customers.

In what I worked out for my costings I have calculated into it "% for error and wastage" as well. I will never be able to compete at photo lab prices. I know this, but at the end of the day I have the confidence that it will give a far better picture then the photo lab any day.

We also recently purchase a Epson B510DN (business printer).. which allows me to print brochures etc, even in duplex on photographic media.... and I must say for a 4 cartridge printer it still does really good. It basically does everything that Epson claim to do... but after 6 months I am still toying with it to get a better knowledge of it

[rafikicat]

Now here is another question that leads on from GoldenOrb's post. Using dye based inks I've never had any trouble with the print head in my old A4 Canon drying up. I've heard that it has been a problem with Epson printers, but does it apply to pigment dyes too?
The Canon Pro9500 uses pigment inks and the Pro9000 uses dye based inks (the same ones used in my A4 Canon, ChromaLife).
There seems to be a lot of discussion on the internet about whether it is really worth going for pigment inks, and as I am not about to start selling my photographs, do I really need pigment inks?

[kiwi]

now, somewhere there is a websitem the name and the ink escapes me right now, that compares the life of various printers (ie the inks and papers used) that will answer that question which I believe is more about permanence than it is about initial quality

[kiwi]

http://www.wilhelm-research.com/

[rafikicat]

Thanks for that kiwi - what I was really asking was not about permanence, but whether or not there is a problem with pigment inks drying up on the print head.
I'll have a look a wilhelm.

[GoldenOrb]

Have a gander at
http://www.macworld.com/article/5421...2/inktype.html

http://www.earthboundlight.com/photo...etamerism.html

doesnt say much about the head drying out, but either way the printer head should be cleaned every few weeks.
I know with mine when I last moved house nearly 2 years ago, I didnt use it for about 2 months and it took some time, a lot of paper and inks to get it right again, but thats just the nature of the beast I guess

[GoldenOrb]

In hind sight, any form of fluid with a pigment/ dye or foreign object in it. it would surely have to evaporate over a period of time and leave some sort of residual behind??...

[GoldenOrb]

here ya go...
read on

http://www.marrutt.com/digital-ink-myths.php

[rafikicat]

Thanks so much GoldenOrb for all those links, just what I needed to read. It's beginning to sound like it would be "overkill" to go for the 9500 and its pigment inks, when the 9000 with dye based inks should fill my requirements, as a reasonably competent amateur photographer.
Now I just have to find the best deal.

[GoldenOrb]

have a look at the US.... their prices for printers ... even second hand.. are unbelievable.... Even with what they charge for freight you'd still be miles ahead with the way the Aus dollar is right now