One of the big problems with digital greyscale prints is that the entire digital workflow is designed for colour. You need a very good monitor to soft proof " black and white". Evaluation of shadows and highlights is especially difficult. I use a profiled Eizo Coloredge monitor but interpret numbers at the ends of the scale. Colour profiles are not good enough. You need greyscale profiles. Even after all that, it is from the hard proof that decisions for the final edits must be made.
Another small point. As mentioned it is not really appropriate to compare injet prints with silver prints. The "on the surface" characteristics lends them to comparison with platinum/palladium prints.
When this occurs,inkjet prints often come off rather well.
One interesting approach which I have used, is to make an injet print, then via a digital negative fom a deep black separation , overlay a platinum/palladium image. Trump that.
The closest relation in the analogue world is the carbon print, also a process that has been highly regarded. Again the inkjet print , with from 2 to 7 carbon inks gives little away.
What would be interesting, would be a flatbed printer that allowed multiple head pass in perfect registration.
As for gloss problems the answer has to be coatings. Glop has to be on the right track , but there must be a lot of DIY solutions too....
Cheers,
Brian
www.pharoseditions.com.au