Epson R3880 Output Color Space

[IanBarber]

Will the Epson R3880 with OEM Inks and Manufacturers Canned Profiles accept an image in ProPhoto or is it best to convert the space down to Adobe RGB.


Ian

[Mac Mahon]

Will the Epson R3880 with OEM Inks and Manufacturers Canned Profiles accept an image in ProPhoto or is it best to convert the space down to Adobe RGB.

Assuming your printing software is properly colour managed, then yes.  The conversion from ProPhoto to the output space is done in software, not in the printer.
Photoshop, Lightroom, QImage, PrintTool etc are all colour managed.

Tim

[digitaldog]

Will the Epson R3880 with OEM Inks and Manufacturers Canned Profiles accept an image in ProPhoto or is it best to convert the space down to Adobe RGB.

You can (and I'd submit probably should) use ProPhoto to convert TO the output color space. Here's why.

The benefits of wide gamut working spaces on printed output:
This three part, 32 minute video covers why a wide gamut RGB working space like ProPhoto RGB can produce superior quality output to print.
Part 1 discusses how the supplied Gamut Test File was created and shows two prints output to an Epson 3880 using ProPhoto RGB and sRGB, how the deficiencies of sRGB gamut affects final output quality. Part 1 discusses what to look for on your own prints in terms of better color output. It also covers Photoshop’s Assign Profile command and how wide gamut spaces mishandled produce dull or over saturated colors due to user error.
Part 2 goes into detail about how to print two versions of the properly converted Gamut Test File  file in Photoshop using Photoshop’s Print command to correctly setup the test files for output. It covers the Convert to Profile command for preparing test files for output to a lab.
Part 3 goes into color theory and illustrates why a wide gamut space produces not only move vibrant and saturated color but detail and color separation compared to a small gamut working space like sRGB.
High Resolution Video: http://digitaldog.net/files/WideGamutPrintVideo.mov
Low Resolution (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLlr7wpAZKs&feature=youtu.be

[mshea]

Thanks Andrew. Very helpful to have this all laid out so succinctly.
Merrill