Epson P900... here we go again

[Eric Brody]

I've written a fair amount in various fora about my problems with the Epson P900

In the last day it has started spewing small amounts of black ink on the margins and onto the print area. Of course, I'm preparing for a workshop and need to have some prints.

My first P900, purchased in November 2022 worked well for about six months and then it would not feed even thin papers through the rear feed. After much fuss, Epson replaced it with a refurbished unit in June of 2023. I had a few problems with the front feed popping out in the middle of a rear feed print and ruining the print. Then it seemed to work reasonably well.

For my luster paper I use Canson Platine, with the rear feed as it is 0.4mm thick, less than the 0.5mm recommended for the front feed. My matte paper is Canson Arches 88, a fairly thick paper at 0.48mm which I use with the front feed.

Nozzle checks are fine and in desperation I even did a print head cleaning to no avail.

I have read reviews of the Epson 5370 and, according to both Mark Segal and Keith Cooper, it sounds like a solution even with the almost US$2K price tag.

The 5370 seems to be hard to get. B&H isn't even allowing backorders which makes me nervous. I'll likely call Epson tomorrow and see what they might do.

Any thoughts would be welcome. At this point Canon printers seem attractive (?) but they do not run QTR Rip which I like to use for my black and white work.

Thanks to all,

Eric

[dgberg]

I feel your pain, you should not have to be going through these issues.
My take. Some one at Epson says we need to fix a few things from the P800. So it gets passed on to engineering and the first thing they address is size as they already have the P5370 on the drawing board. So their thoughts are to make it smaller for the photo printers at home. Smaller also means lightweight which also means more plastic. They are stuck at a certain price point which again puts restrictions on the final build. Now that it is smaller the 80ml carts no longer fit so they design a new smaller ink cart to fit which of course the consumer has to pay for.. Now a $1.00 a ml instead of .80. And it just goes on and on trying to shoe horn this new design in this new smaller frame. I still have a 3880 and P800 along side the 5370 because they run and run.  When you see the two older models next to a 5370 it is just built on truly a different level. With a big shop printer size is not an issue so when I heard they were working on the 5000 replacement I knew I wanted one. Back to your issue, that printer should work and work a long time without issue. If they would replace it with a refurbished one it would be easier to sell and get more of your money back. I paid just under $2000 for the 5370 and yes it was hard to find. Took around 4 months total. Hope you get your unit straightened out.

[Randy Carone]

After reading many posts about P900 problems I hope to keep my low usage P800 for many more years. It replaced a 3800 that ran flawlessly for many years until Magenta would not clean completely. Knock on wood - the 800 has given me the same flawless performance. Super machine with finicky thick paper feed from the front. I solved that by simply using a piece of plain copy paper, inserted from the rear, to be a 'sled' for the thick paper I sometimes use. I still have a decent supply of Arches discontinued 13x19 sample packs from years ago. Amazing paper in Natural and white versions.

[budjames]

I've owned a number number of Epson 17" printers over many years. My current printer is the P900 with is 4-1/2 years old now. The printer can remain off for months at a time and run just fine without clogged heads or streaks. I print now often, at least a few times per week because I print my own photo greeting cards. I have never had any issues and the IQ is excellent.

That said, I stick to using Epson papers and Red River 6.25" x 9" glossy and satin greeting card stock. I also use ImagePrint Black which greatly reduced the need to make test prints while speeding up my workflow.

Regards,
Bud James

Please check out my fine art and travel photography at www.budjames.photography.

[Eric Brody]

Thanks to all who replied. I have no doubt than many, even most P900's work just fine for many years. However, I believe the P900 has had considerably more problems than Epson's previous generations of 17" printers. My 3880 was a workhorse for 13 years. I sold it only because I was seduced by the ink switching of the P900.

Mirabile dictu, (miraculous to say)  (I took Latin in high school and rarely get a chance to use it).

I've managed to solve my problem, at least temporarily. I called Epson Tech Support. They were polite and pleasant as usual but ultimately were not much help. I was disappointed to hear that the one year warranty does not cover replacement units and is based on the date of purchase of the original machine (which I sent back to them). My original purchase was November 2022. That machine was replaced by a refurb in June of 2023, less than a year ago. So the machine is off warranty and repairs are at my expense. 

I called around to see if there were any 5370's available and there are none (if anyone reading this knows of somewhere I can get one, please let me know). The nearest official Epson Approved Service Center is in Idaho! I live in the Portland, Oregon area. I called a local service shop and was told the machine could be cleaned for US$144 with any parts added to that and that it could be US$400-500. To me that makes repair of the machine a non-starter. I cannot sell this machine in good conscience but considered buying a new one, and assuming it works well, selling it when the 5370 becomes available but decided to hold off.

I then opened the Epson Media Installer and copied the settings for both Premium Luster (the media for Canson Platine) and Enhanced Matte (the media for Canson Arches 88). I increased the platen gap for both papers and also adjusted the paper thickness. I renamed the settings for Platine and Arches and proceeded to make prints.

Amazingly, the prints had no black smudges!

I'm holding my breath that it continues to work.

Best to all,

Eric

[budjames]

Eric, I too owned the Epson 3880. It ran great without any issues for about 6 years. I upgraded to the P900 because of the automatic photo black and matte switching without wasting ink and time. This feature alone was my reason to upgrade since I was very happy with the print quality from the 3880.

Since the upgrade, I really enjoy printing on old paper stock of various matte papers even if I only one to print one image. It's a great feature.

I use ImagePrint Black to print because their ICC profiles are awesome and very easy to install on the fly.

Regards,
Bud James

Please check out my fine art and travel photography at www.budjames.photography.

[wickedweather]

Thanks to all who replied. I have no doubt than many, even most P900's work just fine for many years. However, I believe the P900 has had considerably more problems than Epson's previous generations of 17" printers. My 3880 was a workhorse for 13 years. I sold it only because I was seduced by the ink switching of the P900.

Mirabile dictu, (miraculous to say)  (I took Latin in high school and rarely get a chance to use it).

I've managed to solve my problem, at least temporarily. I called Epson Tech Support. They were polite and pleasant as usual but ultimately were not much help. I was disappointed to hear that the one year warranty does not cover replacement units and is based on the date of purchase of the original machine (which I sent back to them). My original purchase was November 2022. That machine was replaced by a refurb in June of 2023, less than a year ago. So the machine is off warranty and repairs are at my expense. 

I called around to see if there were any 5370's available and there are none (if anyone reading this knows of somewhere I can get one, please let me know). The nearest official Epson Approved Service Center is in Idaho! I live in the Portland, Oregon area. I called a local service shop and was told the machine could be cleaned for US$144 with any parts added to that and that it could be US$400-500. To me that makes repair of the machine a non-starter. I cannot sell this machine in good conscience but considered buying a new one, and assuming it works well, selling it when the 5370 becomes available but decided to hold off.

I then opened the Epson Media Installer and copied the settings for both Premium Luster (the media for Canson Platine) and Enhanced Matte (the media for Canson Arches 88). I increased the platen gap for both papers and also adjusted the paper thickness. I renamed the settings for Platine and Arches and proceeded to make prints.

Amazingly, the prints had no black smudges!

I'm holding my breath that it continues to work.

Best to all,

Eric

I think if you don't have a need to print under 8X10, can afford it, and have the space, the 5370 is a no brainer. My P800 has been pretty bulletproof and I need the smaller print sizes so the 5370 isn't an option. I'm not sure why Epson limits the 5370 to 8X10 and higher - guessing it's a hardware thing.

[dgberg]

I think if you don't have a need to print under 8X10, can afford it, and have the space, the 5370 is a no brainer. My P800 has been pretty bulletproof and I need the smaller print sizes so the 5370 isn't an option. I'm not sure why Epson limits the 5370 to 8X10 and higher - guessing it's a hardware thing.

I purchased the 8550 for small prints and what a great little printer it is. Especially on high gloss and white film, just stunning. Yes it is dye ink but that is what is required to get that cibachrome look on those hi gloss papers. 50 years instead of 100 doesn't really matter when you can print another for a couple of bucks. Worth every penny of $599.

[wickedweather]

I purchased the 8550 for small prints and what a great little printer it is. Especially on high gloss and white film, just stunning. Yes it is dye ink but that is what is required to get that cibachrome look on those hi gloss papers. 50 years instead of 100 doesn't really matter when you can print another for a couple of bucks. Worth every penny of $599.

I agree 100% on your take on the archive-ability of the 8550. What paper are you using with it for your gloss and your white film images?

[dgberg]

From my previous post on the 8550.

Mitsubishi Hi Gloss white film is one. (Might be the same as Pictorico) It's amazing how all of the hi gloss papers look almost as good.
Epson Premium Photo Paper Glossy
Canon Pro Platinum
Pictorico Gloss White Film
Graphica Hi gloss white film from China is by far the best bang for the buck.

[langier]

Got mine in June 2021 and within a few months, it wouldn't take more than a sheet or two of luster and always scratched my Exhibition Fiber... After Epson suggested using the front feed and I couldn't get the tray to deploy, Epson replaced it with a refurbished P900.

That lasted about a year. It worked better than the first and didn't scratch the Exhibition Fiber any more, after a year it started having feeding problems, this time pulling several sheets of Prem. Luster before spitting ink blobs on the margin. It finally bricked...

So I went to Craigs List and found a second-hand, low milage 3880. It had the notorious black ink valve issue which dropped the price considerably... It went to my printer guru to be rehabbed and in a little over a week, I was back printing with a nearly like-new machine, twice the weight and much larger than the P900 but with no issues!

IMO, for all practical purposes, PK on mat paper is no big deal and I just keep printing along, this time with no worries that the this printer will crap out after a few months. I just wish I hadn't stocked up on ink for my P900.

I wish I would have purchased a P800 but I had access to another 3880 that had been refurbished a couple of times. That printer got refurbed for the 3rd time a couple of years ago and may last another 2-3 years before it gives up the ghost; maybe more. It's been in the family since 2011 and keeps going.

In the mean time, my second-hand 9900 that I purchased in early 2011, keeps going and going. I've had it serviced once and the head replaced with the updated part a few years ago and it's doing well. For now I'll wait and see how that 5370 does for a few years and if I ware out the 3880 or need to get another production machine, it certainly looks like it will do. If it's built on the heritage of the 4000 I had 20 years ago, that 5370 will go for years.