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Author Topic: Epson 11880 - wait or buy?  (Read 3080 times)

narikin

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Epson 11880 - wait or buy?
« on: August 06, 2008, 02:07:49 pm »

I am in need of a 60" printer by October (more realistically mid September) and am headed to an 11880. any comments from users out there?

Buy now or hold out? I suppose there's a chance of a 11900 and therefore heavy discounts on the old model. Epson have held the $3000 rebate promo on 11880, so it seems they over-cooked the original list price, and are now fighting it out with special offers

People say the x900 range's extra inks are simply to hit offset proofing spot colors and not so much for photo gamut, though I can't find a gamut comparison anywhere. I'd hate to spend $12000 and have an out of date machine 4 weeks later.

good chance something will be announced at Photokina, but even if that happened it's highly doubtful they'd ship by early October anyways!
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Schewe

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Epson 11880 - wait or buy?
« Reply #1 on: August 06, 2008, 10:46:08 pm »

Quote
People say the x900 range's extra inks are simply to hit offset proofing spot colors and not so much for photo gamut, though I can't find a gamut comparison anywhere.
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Some people are full of shit too...you really want to be careful of who you listen to...the 11880 prolly won't change substantially in the near term. If you need 60" now, got for it at the best price you can get.
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Brian Gilkes

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Epson 11880 - wait or buy?
« Reply #2 on: August 06, 2008, 11:55:40 pm »

I reckon Jeff is dead right.
Adding a green and  red ink will significantly increase gamut but
for most applications  the 11880 will be more than  adequate.
I think the chances of an 11900 by October are pretty close to zero.
Epson will be concentrating on the 9900 and the 7900.
HP could well come out with a 64" 12 colour machine. So what?
The 11880 is a very very good machine .You should not be disappointed even if someone appears with a 48 colour printer with gold and silver inks that plays the harpsichord.
If a printer does the job, it is not out of date. To think otherwise is to fall for the constant spin.
I was in the same dilemma a few months ago and decided to buy a hardly used Roland FJ600.
it has orange and green inks (as well as CMYK). It will overprint and multiple print. It's a bit slow but the price was  right and it's one mean mother of a printer.
So, consider your options , buy , print and forget the hype
Good Luck
Brian
www.pharoseditions.com.au
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narikin

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Epson 11880 - wait or buy?
« Reply #3 on: August 07, 2008, 04:28:22 pm »

thanks all.

it is of course very likely that Epson will switch to x900 platform for every wide format printer including their biggest and most expensive one, at some point.
If they dont do that,then they are going to have a hard time selling them...

of course I too suspect the new inkset of the x900 series will be a significant improvement, but I need to make some prints above 44" width - so what choice is there, till Epson update everything.
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abiggs

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Epson 11880 - wait or buy?
« Reply #4 on: August 07, 2008, 10:22:45 pm »

I seriously doubt we will see a replacement any time soon. The 11880 is a superb printer. I hate to mention this, but I think you can get a much better price than $12,000. Not many of these printers have been sold, and Epson is more aggressive than you might think with regards to moving inventory.
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Andy Biggs
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Scott Martin

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Epson 11880 - wait or buy?
« Reply #5 on: August 07, 2008, 11:41:37 pm »

Well said Andy. All three brands are being quite competitive in the 60+" category. BTW, I loved seeing your work at my local Banana Republic last weekend - the prints came out well. [for those who don't know, BR is featuring Andy's work in every store throughout the year. It's great stuff - check it out at: http://www.andybiggs.com/gallery.php?gallery=timelessafrica ]
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jdoyle1713

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Epson 11880 - wait or buy?
« Reply #6 on: August 08, 2008, 06:53:55 am »

hey Gang

well The x880 series machines are not going away and The new x900 Will only be available in 24x44. Epson is targeting the packaging industry.. If you think that you need the extra width and the colors than The next step might be the New GS Solvent model..

Andy whas your work done on the Canon Or The Epson?

Also There is a 3K Mail in rebate on the 11880 still which means Andy is right after the rebate of course.

Cheers
Jim Doyle
http://www.shadesofpaper.com
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Jim Doyle
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abiggs

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Epson 11880 - wait or buy?
« Reply #7 on: August 08, 2008, 07:55:08 am »

Jim, I am doing all of my prints on the iPF5100 and 8100 machines right now, but I did have to kick around the idea of getting the 11880. In the end I didn't need an ultra wide format printer, and the Canon machines are very aggressively priced. The 11880 is aggressive on pricing as well, and I have spent some time using one. Great printer!
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Andy Biggs
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narikin

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Epson 11880 - wait or buy?
« Reply #8 on: August 09, 2008, 08:50:22 am »

thanks all,

I do see that the printers are now $13,000 with a $3000 rebate making them $10,000 final price, in the US.

still think Epson will need to discount further & harder when the 9900 comes out. - if that does have an expanded gamut that is truly noticeable in prints, then its going to be hard to shift these machines.
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abiggs

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Epson 11880 - wait or buy?
« Reply #9 on: August 09, 2008, 09:00:36 am »

You really should not use published prices on the web as a guide, if that is what you are doing. Establish a relationship with a reputable dealer and see what they can do for you. There are major limitations with being able to advertise these printers at anything less than a MAP (minimum advertised price) price. What you can advertise and what you can actually sell it for are two totally different numbers.
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Andy Biggs
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