Canon 5100 Printer

[ippolitois]

I'm almost at the end of my rope with my Epson 4000. When it prints, it prints beautifully, especially with IP9. But I've been fighting a nasty clog this week that emerged after one of those auto clean cycles. If I could disable that Auto clean, I'm sure I would never have a clogging issue. I'm in the hunt for another 17" printer, and I'm seriously considering a used Canon 5100. I just wanted to know what the pitfalls are with getting a used one, other than the heads going. Is there a history of the carriage and transport motors dying? Also, can I get profiles for papers for this printer as easily as for the Epsons. I'm a sporadic printer, and it may sit idle for weeks at times, and I know that the Epson's clog if left unattended. I would consider a 4900, but it appears that the heads and capping stations don't seem to hold up over time and they still suffer from clogging. Replacing the heads on a 4900 is a lot more expensive than the Canon. No matter how great it is, I'm not prepared to drain ink doing head cleans anymore.

Also, is there a replacement printer for the 5100 on the horizon? It's quite old now, and Canon hasn't updated it for a long time. Finally, can I get third party inks for the Canon other than the Cone inks?

Sorry for all the questions, but I'm hoping to get some answers before I decide what to do. Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated too! While I wait, I'll continue to do a puddle cleanings with hopes of reviving the beast.


Paul

[Gary Damaskos]

Yes there are several sources for non-oem inks. Ebay is just one place to look. Some have ok to good reputations for the inks. Lots of speculation about new models - look through the threads at this site - I know I saw a long one about just that a few days ago and 17" models were discussed too.
gary

[nemophoto]

I had an Epson 4000 for years. Pain in the butt dealing with constant clogs, etc. I switched to Canon printers and NEVER looked back. (I have a problem with technologically advanced companies that COULD create a printer a head that accommodates either matte black or glossy black ink, but instead force you to waste 10-20ml purging an ink line every time you switch ink types. Thank you Epson.) I currently own a Canon 6100 and 8300. There have been rumors for years about a 5100 replacement. I'm sure there's one in the pipeline, however, I'm not so sure it's imminent. My reasoning (though it may be faulty): no major rebates/trade-ins are/were offered on the 5100. By comparison, the 6300 and 8300 have had heavy discounts/rebates/trade-ins for the past couple of months. Currently, the 5100 only carries a $350 mail-in rebate. Even though the 5100 is an older printer, it's still an excellent choice. (I use my older 6100 as much as my 8300, and frankly don't see a huge difference in the color gamut of the two. Actually, there are some prints I prefer on the 6100, because I don't like the rendition on the 8300.)

Either way, RUN, don't walk away from Epson to a Canon printer. My 2-cents.

Nemo

[Wayne Fox]

ink vs. heads, thats the difference.  Your usage patterns (daily or infrequently), humidity (for both printers 40-45% is ideal) will determine how much ink it will take to keep the Epson heads performing vs how long the Canon will consume it's spare nozzles (a nozzle can clog so a new nozzle is remapped, a nozzle can also wear out and need remapped).  The 5100 heads are more expensive than those for the newer Canon printers, so much so that most people don't even replace the heads but buy a new printer - the 5100 is really an old printer with much older technology.   Which is "cheaper"?  Just depends. The difference between a 4000 and a 4900 in ink usage is significant ... the new printers do clog less, often you only need to clean 1 channel (so 2 inks) and takes less ink when cleaning. I'm an infrequent user on my 4900, sometimes going a few weeks.    It's doubtful I've used more than $25 in the past year to clear the heads.

If you are print infrequently the Canon will still consume some ink to maintain nozzles. It requires less intervention and is more convenient  Could be TCO is really quite comparable but I have a 6 year old Epson 11880 and I there is no way I've used anywhere near the cost of replacing heads on a Canon in ink. 

The convenience factor is a big factor ... how valuable is your time.  You may have to wait 5 minutes or so, perhaps longer, while you clear the head of the 4900. Most turn the auto cleaning off unless they use the printers daily (we have many customers who are printing 40 to 100 8x10's and larger a day on their 4900's and they use the auto detect/auto clean, and rarely the printer perform a clean).  But the canon you can leave on all the time, it will maintain it's nozzles and so it's ready to go.

That being said, I would never even consider a 5100.  While the 5100 may best the 4000 , it isn't in the same league as the 4900. I'm not sure why Canon has never updated the 5100 to the 5300. If print quality is a concern the two choices really would be a Canon 6300 vs a 4900 ... both have terrific output and are solid printers.  If you don't need roll paper and want a 17" then the 3880 is by far the best choice.  If you switch between matt and PK frequently  then the 6300 is definitely worth considering if you have the space. (I know people don't understand why Epson doesn't put another set of nozzles, but that raises the price quite a bit, and considering fewer than 5% of the high end Epsons sold are ever switched it really doesn't make sense for the vast majority of their users).