Have the 3800. For matte work it's wicked. Big fan of Epson VFA. For glossy or semi-glossy work, I should warn you that with the 3800, as with any printer using a pizza wheels vs vacuum feed/hold-down system, scratches on larger sheets (13x19 +) of glossy or SG papers from the 'pizza wheels' and other sharp bits in the feed path as the larger sheets swell in reaction to the ink lay-down and the damp ink start contacting bits they shouldn't are a possibility.
Note some 3800 users have no issues, some have issues across a wide variety of papers, some just with select papers/circumstances (heavy B&W areas, etc). Like any mechanical device there there are manufacturing variances involved. My 3800 was bad out of the box with 13x19 and larger Harman FB AL and no issues with IGFS in sizes up to 17x22. Now is scratching probably 1/2 my 13x19 and larger IGFS prints. Have tried ALL the usual checks and remedies and even the unusual ones (wetting paper backs) - no notable improvements. Front feed printing of glossy (as per Eric Chan's excellent site) with a backer board works if the paper is FLAT out of box, you handle the paper very carefully when inserting it and get the various thickness guesstimates right.
Matte papers so far are no issues and again, neither are letter-sized Harman and IGFS as they don't seem to distort enough across their narrower width when wet to cause a problem during the feed process.
Again, just a heads up that you COULD see an issue. May not make an impact in your decision, hopefully will never be an issue, but just thought I'd toss you an FYI.
Personally, the 3800 while excellent in almost all respects, is my LAST printer lacking a vacuum hold-down system and am currently looking at a 48xx for my non-matte work. My PK ink tank is now empty and I intend to leave it that way. Wasted too much paper and time chasing remedies that never seem to solidly get rid of the issue. With a vacuum style system, the 3800 would be the perfect printer for sheet work for someone who needs/wants to switch between PK and MK ink. I tend to prefer Epson, but my understanding (IIRC) is that the attractively priced Canon 5100 uses a vacuum system but I've never used one.
As for papers:
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Matte: Have yet to try Epson USFA, but of all the various 'fine art' 'usual suspects' I've tried so far from Hahnemuehle, Harman and Epson, VFA is my fave for Dmax, saturation, subtle texture, etc.
SG/G: Harman FB AL (normal and warm-tone) is wicked for B&W, IGFS is my fave all-around SG paper (great performance, nice prices) and Epson Ex Fiber is simply excellent but spendy with a bit more texture, saturation and brilliance than IGFS. A paper I'd like to try is the new Photo Rag Baryta - gets great reviews.
Unfortunately as SG and G papers like FBAL, IGFS and EEF, etc strive to become more darkroom-like in terms of finish, Dmax, acuity, etc they also tend to become increasingly delicate, prone to distorting when heavy with wet ink and intolerant of contact with ANYTHING in the printer feed path when wet.
