Used Epson 7900 or new Canon 6400

[jtunney]

I know the Canon vs Epson issue has been well covered, but I could use some input.  I've been considering a 24" printer and was leaning toward Canon (and might even go Canon 44" considering the value of the full ink set), but may have access to a used 7900 for $700-800 (it needs three cartridges).  I know the particular printer and have used it on and off for a couple of years.  The question is: Go for a used 7900 for $700-$800 or a new Canon for around $2k?  Money is a factor, but not necessarily the deciding one.

Thanks.

John

[Mark D Segal]

Buy a new printer complete with manufacturer warranty and on-going service plan options.

[MBrew]

Question:  Is it for home or business use?  7900's like to be exercised.  They also like 40%+ relative humidity.  If you know the printer and history and it hasn't been idle too long, jump on it and pick up the smallest inks to get it running.  I'm on my second 7900.  I use it sporadically and failed to maintain the humidity level properly on the first one so it died leaving me lots of unused ink.  I too struggled with brand change but another 7900 fell in my lap with lots of extra ink so I no longer worry about the price of ink and print up a storm on a regular basis.  I keep a humidifier in the office and when we are gone for a month or so, keep a bucket of water under it and the cover on.  So far it has treated me well.

[shadowblade]

What are you trying to do with the printer?

Are you trying to produce high-quality, but run-of-the-prints, using standard inksets and media, similar to the prints you can get at any high-quality commercial print lab?

Or are you trying to do something a bit out of the ordinary, e.g. with nonstandard inks (dye sub, Piezography, expanded gamut, fluorescent inks) or nonstandard media (printing on metal sheets, uncoated paper, non-inkjet fabric, etc.).

If the former, I'd go for the Canon. You'll get better reliability, cheaper maintenance, no clogs, equal print quality and better longevity (using the standard inkset). However, due to the curved paper path, you won't be able to print on rigid media. Also, unless you're printing commercially and need the ease of use, the ipf6300 is cheaper (second-hand) and gives equal results. You could even get an ipf8300 (44" model) second-hand for the price of a new ipf6400.

If you don't want to produce standard prints, there's really no alternative to the Epson. Unlike with the Canon, it can run most non-standard inksets (including mixing and matching from different sets), has a straight paper path and is generally much more customisable. On the downside, it's a pig of a printer to deal with, with many issues that are well-documented, both on this forum and elsewhere.