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Author Topic: Thinking of Upgrading my current set up are 4800's  (Read 2314 times)

JTFOTO

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Thinking of Upgrading my current set up are 4800's
« on: March 13, 2009, 05:11:30 pm »

Well hello there..

I am fairly new to printing but have been doing it with Epson's since 2002.  I started with a 5000 and their RIP.  I then got a 4000 and now have two 4800's.  One for Matte and for Photo black ink.

I never really became proficient because it was just for small portfolio work.

I think it is time to upgrade?

I am using Image Print as my RIP now a days and there is really no better software out there.

But I am looking for a new 17" printer. That could take the place of the two.

Obviously Epson is the 800lb gorilla in the game.  But HP isn't anything to shake a stick at.  Although Canon has deep pockets, will they stick around?  I know Michael has tried them all, but every time I see a shot from his print gallery there are always Epson's around.

How have the converts been?  I most likely won't go Canon, but am open to debate.  I swear by HP on the office front and have only used HP for over 15 years in the office.  But on the photo front I am wondering.  Unless Epson makes a new addition with a lot more inks I am leaning toward HP.

I am tired of having two printers.  But I do love Epson.  They have never done me wrong.  But I do hear great things about HP.

Any and all thoughts, suggestions and advice would be very much appreciated.

JT







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marcsitkin

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Thinking of Upgrading my current set up are 4800's
« Reply #1 on: March 17, 2009, 04:09:41 pm »

Don't rule out Canon. They make a great printer, they are economical and easy to run. You get a lot of bang for your buck.
They will be around a lot longer than the new printer you buy.
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Wayne Fox

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Thinking of Upgrading my current set up are 4800's
« Reply #2 on: March 17, 2009, 05:16:41 pm »

My guess is you are not getting many responses to this because it has been discussed so frequently lately. You can probably find numerous threads discussing the merits of each with a couple of searches.
« Last Edit: March 18, 2009, 02:21:53 pm by Wayne Fox »
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Ryan Grayley

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Thinking of Upgrading my current set up are 4800's
« Reply #3 on: March 17, 2009, 06:11:59 pm »

Quote from: Wayne Fox
My guess is you are not getting many responses to this because it has been discussed so frequently lately. You can probably find numerous threads discussing the merits of each through with a couple of searches.

As Wayne states he, I and others have been dancing around these printers over the last few months and you will find lots of info if you spend a few moments digging.

I have both a Epson 7900 and an HP 3200.

When I sought help with my 7900 AID problems the Epson UK service was and still is appalling. It took over two months for an engineer to turn up (although the delay wasn't his fault).  To add insult to injury, a replacement set of starter cartridges was promised in early February and I am still waiting despite chasing Epson.

However, the print quality is as good as you would expect and the 7900 is four times quicker than my aging 9600.
Profiling with my Eye One Pro is excellent.

The HP Z3200 has been as good as gold except perhaps for one thing. Personally, I find that profiling third party papers with the HP tends to be a little different in the blues than with the same papers on the Epson. I am finding this with the  HP papers and canned profiles as well but to a lesser extent. The big pluses for the HP that makes it worthwhile for me is the vastly superior  print longevity and the again high speed.

In summary, if print longevity is less important and your local Epson service is proven to respond quickly to AID and potential clogging issues then sure get an Epson. Otherwise I think the HP gets my vote. Either printer will give stunning results but it is the other factors that decide things for me.

Good luck!

Ryan
« Last Edit: March 17, 2009, 06:13:04 pm by Ionaca »
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dgberg

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Thinking of Upgrading my current set up are 4800's
« Reply #4 on: March 18, 2009, 06:19:49 am »

I have a 3800 and 7900. Had cleaning issues with thr 7900. Called Epson on a Tuesday the parts came Fed Ex the next day and the Tech rep was here Thursday. The 7900 prints  are just fantastic.
Cost is now another issue
The 3800 is a great printer cost per ml is about .65. With the 700ml carts on the 7900 it is .31.
Startup costs for my 7900 was $7600.00 $1000 for paper and canvas rolls,$2600 for new set of 700ml carts and $3995 for the printer. Remember the starter carts are used up 50% as soon as you charge the lines,so don't wait to long to order your replacement set or you will be out of ink.
The 3800 printer is very affordable as the price is coming down,and the first set of ink may last you a year depending on how much you print. If you do not need the 24' prints The 3800 Epson is a great buy right now.
Dan Berg

Ps. Just now see that you never inquired about 24" printers. The 3800 is a very good choice.
« Last Edit: March 19, 2009, 05:32:19 pm by Dan Berg »
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photographist

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Thinking of Upgrading my current set up are 4800's
« Reply #5 on: March 19, 2009, 11:40:11 am »

A quick word for the IPF series from Canon.  I've been using the IPF5000 for the last couple of years with considerable success.  The downsides were the documentation and the figure-it-out learning curve.  However, with the IPF wiki, things go much smoother.    I'm upgrading to an IPF-6100 soon and am looking forward to it.     One note of caution.  I used to use Image Print's RIP too. I agree it's at the top of stack for RIPs.  But it does not support the Canon or HP series (I believe), so if you want to stick with Image Print, you may be locked into Epson.   I know that site states that new drivers / support are coming soon for both Canon and HP, but it's been doing that for 2 plus years.

My 2.5 cents...  
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Rob Reiter

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Thinking of Upgrading my current set up are 4800's
« Reply #6 on: March 19, 2009, 12:59:50 pm »

Quote from: JTFOTO
Well hello there..

I am fairly new to printing but have been doing it with Epson's since 2002.  I started with a 5000 and their RIP.  I then got a 4000 and now have two 4800's.  One for Matte and for Photo black ink.

I never really became proficient because it was just for small portfolio work.

I think it is time to upgrade?

I am using Image Print as my RIP now a days and there is really no better software out there.

But I am looking for a new 17" printer. That could take the place of the two.

Obviously Epson is the 800lb gorilla in the game.  But HP isn't anything to shake a stick at.  Although Canon has deep pockets, will they stick around?  I know Michael has tried them all, but every time I see a shot from his print gallery there are always Epson's around.

How have the converts been?  I most likely won't go Canon, but am open to debate.  I swear by HP on the office front and have only used HP for over 15 years in the office.  But on the photo front I am wondering.  Unless Epson makes a new addition with a lot more inks I am leaning toward HP.

I am tired of having two printers.  But I do love Epson.  They have never done me wrong.  But I do hear great things about HP.

Any and all thoughts, suggestions and advice would be very much appreciated.

JT

After 6 years of using Epsons as our main printers, and ImagePrint, we added a Canon iPF 8100 last summer. It's now become our main printer. In terms of raw image quality, comparisons I did convinced me the Canon, with custom profiles, was slightly superior to the 9800 and ImagePrint, but the differences were minor and not enough to be the deciding factor. The Canon is twice as fast and not once have the heads clogged, which is an almost daily occurrence on the 9800.

At first, I missed the layout capabilities of ImagePrint, but the Canon Plug-in module is excellent and I soon was happy with the workflow. Support from Canon is excellent and the manual and documentation are, apparently, much improved in those areas from Canon's previous generation of printers.

Although I also was happy to get both Matte black and Photo black in one printer, the new Epson x900 series also offers that, albeit in a slightly more cumbersome and wasteful way. And their speed now equals the Canon's.

So don't count the Canon printers out. They are a great value for the money, very reliable and do not suffer in quality to anything else out there.

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