Should I buy Epson 9890 or 9900?

[disneytoy]

I have a $3k budget. My plan was for a 9890. But I see with rebate the 9900 say $150 cheaper than the 9890.

I primarily print fine art paper and glossy photos.  My understanding the extra color tanks on the 9900 are really only beneficial for people doing spot color matching.

Can anyone quickly compare any hardware/software benefits between the two models?

Is it just the 2 inks? Processor speed etc?


Thanks.

Max

[JRSmit]

I have a $3k budget. My plan was for a 9890. But I see with rebate the 9900 say $150 cheaper than the 9890.

I primarily print fine art paper and glossy photos.  My understanding the extra color tanks on the 9900 are really only beneficial for people doing spot color matching.

Can anyone quickly compare any hardware/software benefits between the two models?

Is it just the 2 inks? Processor speed etc?




Thanks.

Max

the only difference , as far as i am aware is the two inks, and that maes a difference, primarely in the upper part of the gamut. With fine art papers that can be worthwhile. All depends also on the images of course. And also if you make your own profiles.

[disneytoy]

So I know  k3 ink is the same. If I can get the 9900 $150 cheaper than the 9890 That would be the way to go? So mechanically and electronics (Processors) are the same?

Thanks

[Ken Doo]

The 9900 and 9890 are identical except for the additional orange and green ink cartridges used in the 9900.  Both break your back when setting them up on the stand with the diminutive little bolt that must perfectly centered under the printer.... 

Some say the orange and green aren't used much at all in their work; I definitely see the orange and green inks being used on my print jobs.  The only downside I see is that you will need to buy two more ink cartridges to maintain the 9900, but you can also mix and match cartridges of different sizes.

ken

[disneytoy]

Thanks Ken,

I'm not high volume, but need to print large. I can't wait to get one.  Waiting for the price to get back to $3000.

[Jglaser757]

I am new to this too! ITsupplies says  the 9890 comes with a RIP. Special till end of month.9900 has two extra inks.

I heard rumor that epson was doing something at pdn convention.

[Yvan Bedard]

I use my 7900 for landscapes. I print a lot. Insofar, the orange and green cartridges have been used about 75% of the other colors. The most used colors are light black and light light black for my landscapes (from Canada, Europe, Western USA, Canadian Rockies, etc.).

Hope this helps.

[BobDavid]

Orange and green are primarily required to match PMS colors in the graphic design industry. I used to offer fine art repro services, I rarely, if ever, detected a difference between the output of the 9900 and 9890 printers. I have yet to see a difference when printing pictures from medium format all the way down to iPhone files. I had a 9900 that went kaput on me. The orange ink, so rarely used, clogged up to the point where I ran nozzle checks every day to keep the head free and clear. If you are printing photographs and are not matching colors for graphic design, save yourself the trouble and get the 9890. It's a pleasure to not have to buy unnecessary ink carts.

[Stefan Ohlsson]

If print permanence is important to you, you might find this article interesting http://www.luminous-landscape.com/essays/the_weakest_link.shtml

We wanted to see if there was any difference in permanence if you used the Epson driver or the Imageprint. We thought that there would be a difference when you printed B&W, but we're surprised to see that even with colour prints you could see a huge difference. That's because that the Imageprint profiles uses much more of the orange and green inks than the standard profiles. The yellow ink is the weak link and when you minimise the use of that ink you get prints that will keep better.

[ddubler]

Max,

          I came upon your post by accident and don't know if you have made your decision but based on some of the other comments I felt compelled to add my two cents.  To qualify my comments I was one of the beta testers for that printer so my experience goes back quite some time.  I do not work for Epson.
           The difference between the two printers is primarily the ink sets.  The 9900 uses HDR and the 9880 uses UltraChrome K3 w/ Vivid Magenta.  Despite what some of the other people have said the difference is considerable when printing photographs especially on photo paper ( my recommendation Exhibition Fiber by Epson ).  Looking at my latest custom profiles, the difference between my 3880 ( same ink set as 9890 ) and the 4900 ( HDR ink set ); over 20% more total color gamut with the HDR inks.  In my world that's huge.  This printer was not aimed at the CMYK press proof market as some people commented.
            I would further encourage you to use custom profiles and for the most precise results, you should consider using a RIP.
            Hope this helps.  At present B&H is selling the 9900 for $1750 off the retail. $3700.