Want to buy a new printer

[SignBoy]

Hi,

I would like to buy a new 44" printer to print pictures, canvas and giclee. The research I did, I found the Epson 9890/9900, HP z3200 and the Canon ipf8300. Which one is the best?

Next, do you print from Photoshop stright to your printer, or do you use software drivers like Onyx or ImagePrint? Which one is the best?

For ink, do you guys use OEM ink, or after market ink?
I know a lot of questions, and I know you guys are the best.
thanks,

Greg

[bill t.]

Hi Greg, welcome to LuLa!

I have owned an Epson 1700, 2000, 2200,2400, 3000, 7800, 9880 and a Canon iPF8300.  My experience with the 8300 is still in the honeymoon phase, so I can't comment rationally yet.  I like it, and it cost me less than the cost of a set of cartridges during a promo sale.  But those all made great prints.  I must say, however, that the 8300 and I have yet to have a serious nozzle cleaning war, and that's pretty nice.

No need for a RIP IMHO.  Photoshop is happy to apply all the color management you need whilst sending the file to the printer.

Spend the money you would have spent on a RIP on a ColorMunki, Spyder, or other print profiling system.  Now that does make a difference.  IMHO.

Don't use third party inks.  I killed two small printer with those things.  At the very best the color will vary from batch to batch, and at the very worst your nozzles will clog forever.

Anyway, glad you're going for a 44".  As soon as I bought the 7800 I realized it was too small.

[Wayne Fox]

The search function is your friend.  There is a wealth of information about all of these printers contained in many previous discussions, as well as articles and reviews on the main site.

[Sven W]

All three have pros&cons and as Wayne suggest, take some minutes and search LL and the forum.
Their have been miles of discussions (battles) here, and I think many of us are bit tired to hear it again.
But good luck with whatever printer you choose

/Sven
( Four Epson LFP + ImagePrint and Efi)

[SignBoy]

There is a lot of information, but again, some people love it, other people hate it.....
Again it is all about pros and cons. Which one I would buy? No clue anymore.
Thanks,

Greg

[Light Seeker]

I found this review very helpful when I faced the same decision as you late last year. It draws a comparison between the three manufacturers that you're considering.

http://www.on-sight.com/2010/04/25/canon-x300-printer-review/

If the Canon catches your fancy, this site has some very useful information. . .

http://canonipf.wikispaces.com/home

Finally, if you've not done so already I suggest that you develop a list of needs and wants. That will give you a structured decision framework for assessing each option in the light of what matters most to you. I could tell you which one I felt was "best" for me, but that may have little bearing on which one is best for you. It's a great time to be buying a large format printer, and you have some strong options to select from.

It's a complex decision. My best wishes to you as you sort through this.

Terry.

[ftbt]

I bought the Canon 8300 last November during the "black-Friday" sales. My net cost was around $2,300.00. Honestly, at that price, when I ran the "cost-benefit analysis" buying the Canon was a no-brainer. (Assuming you have the room for it.) I use it with a Color Munki and a wide-gamut NEC monitor, printing directly from Photoshop with Canon's print plug-in. I have printed quite a few large canvases and on some fine-art paper, using Breathing Color Lyve and Optica One. I have found the Breathing Color ICC and am1 profiles sufficient for my needs. I have also done several prints on LexJet's Sunset Metallic Photo Paper, using their profiles, and overall I have been quite happy with the results. I did experience some initial head strikes with the Metallic Photo Paper, but I quickly sorted it out.

I am in no position to compare Canon to Epson to HP. At this level, I am sure that all the 44" printers are more than adequate to get the job done ... and what was "best" for me may not be "best" for you.

[abiggs]

I own all 3 of the printers you mentioned in the first post. I use the Canon iPF8300 the most. That probably says quite a bit when it comes to usability. Good quality output comes from all 3 of them.

[SignBoy]

I bought the Canon 8300 last November during the "black-Friday" sales. My net cost was around $2,300.00. Honestly, at that price, when I ran the "cost-benefit analysis" buying the Canon was a no-brainer. (Assuming you have the room for it.) I use it with a Color Munki and a wide-gamut NEC monitor, printing directly from Photoshop with Canon's print plug-in. I have printed quite a few large canvases and on some fine-art paper, using Breathing Color Lyve and Optica One. I have found the Breathing Color ICC and am1 profiles sufficient for my needs. I have also done several prints on LexJet's Sunset Metallic Photo Paper, using their profiles, and overall I have been quite happy with the results. I did experience some initial head strikes with the Metallic Photo Paper, but I quickly sorted it out.

I am in no position to compare Canon to Epson to HP. At this level, I am sure that all the 44" printers are more than adequate to get the job done ... and what was "best" for me may not be "best" for you.

I think that the Canon is one of the best this moment. Best price I could find so far is $3700. For sure for $2300, that is a great deal.

The Canon printer is a big printer and you need a lot of space. Is there a better price this moment?
Thanks,

Greg

[bill t.]

Lexjet.com has them for $3299.  You'll be happy to hear a $1000 rebate ended on March 31.  But rebates come up pretty often.  Canon is VERY aggressively competing for market share, I'm sure there will be another rebate or dealer incentive soon.  I've noticed the best printer sales tend to come up in December.

You know, it's not like any one of those printers is bad in any way.  They've all got their quirks, and they all can produce astonishing prints.  There will probably never be anything as electromechanical and chemistry dependent as a printer that isn't a little wiggy somewhere.  Quite frankly, for the price any of them is so very nearly miraculous we have absolutely no right to complain, but that doesn't stop us.  Living with a printer is a kind of marriage, it takes a while to figure each other out.

My feeling is, the only thing that really matters is the carriage size, and bigger is better.  Wish I had a 60".  And I do think the fancy ~12 color inksets make a difference. I've had two ugly duckling images that turned into lovely $wan$ thanks to the voluminous blue through red gamut on the 8300 versus my dear old (and still much loved) 9880 with its one-size-fits-all blue quadrant.

[Luca Ragogna]

I have to give a vote to the 9890/9900. I have the 9890 and I'm very happy with the image quality and the printer in general. I print straight out of Photoshop, Lightroom or Indesign. I also use a 9800 and I've had no real issues with it in the 5 or so years I've used it. It was the build quality of that printer that made me decide to buy Epson.

I'm pretty sure you're not going to go wrong with any 44" printer from Epson, Canon or HP.

[Roscolo]

I own the 44" z3100. Normally I would recommend the z3200 to you, but you missed the deal a few weeks ago where the z3200 44" was selling for around $2,000. They should have kept the price around there to be competitive. Now the price is back up to around $5,000. That's too much. If you can get the Canon for closer to $2K-$3K, I would go with Canon.

[wigpic]

Hello SignBoy. I have moved away from Epson, which let me down a bit too often, and have been using the Dell V313, which is a genius all-in-one photo printer. It does a beautiful job. You can find it here: http://accessories.euro.dell.com/sna/category.aspx?c=uk&category_id=4014&l=en&s=dhs&cs=ukdhs1. Good luck with the printer hunt!

[artbot]

that onsight review/comparison link was amazing.  best i've seen. pretty much make the canon the hands down winner.

strange this discussion of build quality.  build quality can sometime be like "the way a car door sounds when you shut it"  or "the way the machine sounds when it operating".  i prefer the "sound" of money in my pocket.  i'm thinking i'm going to go with a ipf9000 out of warranty, tear it down, and turn it into a flatbed.  

[Sven W]

I have moved away from Epson, which let me down a bit too often, and have been using the Dell V313, which is a genius all-in-one photo printer. It does a beautiful job. You can find it here: http://accessories.euro.dell.com/sna/category.aspx?c=uk&category_id=4014&l=en&s=dhs&cs=ukdhs1.

Read the OP, please.
He wanted a 44" printer.

/Sven

[milt]

I think you are getting generally good advice here in this thread.  I have only one small addition.  I agree an expensive RIP is a waste, but straight from Photoshop doesn't give you nice things like multiple prints per page and mirror images for gallery wraps.  I'd recommend taking a look at Qimage.

--Milt--