Epson Surecolor P900 lust

[FabienP]

AFAIK, it's the printer that sometimes comes with a special packing fluid in the lines, dampers (if any), etc., a sort of Cosmoline for printers. The starter cartridges do not contain any such fluid; they contain regular ink. In some printers the presence of starter cartridges may trigger the printer to run a purge cycle, where it pumps enough fluid through the system (dampers, lines, and head(s) to the waste tank) to make sure all the packing fluid is gone and ink is in its place.

[...]

Thanks for correcting this, looks like I misunderstood that part of the starter cartridges. IIRC the initial purge cycle can only be triggered by starter cartridges, but they are no longer accepted (as a subsequent set) once the initial purge has been done.

Cheers,
Fabien

[IPDOUGLAS]

I have seen recommends to buy a second set of inks as the initial load and priming of the printer feed tubes and printhead take most of the supplied set.  However the inks seem hard to come by just yet so hopefully they will become more readily available?  I am guessing this is true of the P700 also.

Perhaps Epson could supply a discounted second set on purchase of the printer?

Having watched a few webinar presentations by Epson themselves I did think the printers looked rather lightly built (fragile)?  I have not seen them in the flesh yet and am unlikely to for sometime so will be interested in owner feedback on this?

[tastar]

From Epson's web site:

https://epson.com/For-Work/Printers/Large-Format/SureColor-P900-17-Inch-Photo-Printer/p/C11CH37201

"In-box Cartridge Fill Volume:
50 mL each color x 10 colors total"

I would guess that if their website says this, that you would have a good argument on getting something from them if it comes with anything less than a full set of 50 ml cartridges.

Tony

[NAwlins_Contrarian]

From Epson's web site:

https://epson.com/For-Work/Printers/Large-Format/SureColor-P900-17-Inch-Photo-Printer/p/C11CH37201

"In-box Cartridge Fill Volume:
50 mL each color x 10 colors total"

I would guess that if their website says this, that you would have a good argument on getting something from them if it comes with anything less than a full set of 50 ml cartridges.

Except that the same page says, "What's in the box: ... Initial Ink Cartridges" (italics added). It doesn't tell you how much ink is in the initial ink cartridges, but the Q&As for the P900 at B&H contain responses that Epson had told the posters the P900's initial cartridges contain 25ml each.

Don't get me wrong: I think Epson should either (1) plainly state that the included ink cartridges contain a smaller-than-normal amount of ink, and preferably clearly say 25ml each or whatever; or (2) include the usual amount of ink in them. But this is nothing new for this class of Epson printer, and seems unlikely to get anywhere with Epson.

[budjames]

Unless you are a home printer with limited space these two printers have very limited appeal.(YOMV) When you figure in the cost of consumables they are crazy expensive to operate.
The P700 ink is coming in at almost a $1.60 a ml. The P900 .90 a ml. The P800 ink cost is around .73 a ml. I agree the no black ink change will be nice for many. Is it worth paying the higher ink cost, probably not.
Epson has you one way or another. You flush it with an ink change they have you. You buy the new printer with a 25% higher ink cost they still have you.
The best deal if you are an Epson person and have the room is a P6000 24" machine that can take 700ml carts. Full retail for those ink carts is $247 for 700ml.
I recently purchased some for $175@ Good dates too. You could buy 150's or 350's if you don't print that much.
That is .25  a ml. A huge savings.

I'm a hobbyist and print in spurts. My P800 can be off for months and fired up to make a few prints and I have never experienced a head clog. I also never had a head clog with my previous printer the Epson 3880.

I looked at the new P7570 to replaced my excellent Epson P800 because I wanted the ability to print wider, no loss black in switching, and lower ink cost per print. However, I cannot find any reliable information about the minimum throughput needed to keep the printer healthy. I would definitely go for this printer if my workflow would allow to operate without issues. I keep searching for user experiences and reviews on this printer, but I have not found any since the initial release.

The Epson P900 solves the black ink switching issue and improves print quality. I have one on order with B&H Photo. They are supposed to start getting stock on 7/15.

Do you have any experiences similar to my usage with the larger Epson 24" that you can share? That would be helpful.

Regards,
Bud James

Please check out my fine art and travel photography at www.budjames.photography or on Instagram at www.instagram.com/budjamesphoto.

[KeithR]

B&HPhoto has a July 16 date for availability

When I placed my order in late May the website listed June,  then after seeing your post I checked and sure enough it listed July 16th, even as late as yesterday (July  14th) it listed the 16th. Today I see that it now lists as "New Item - Coming Soon". I hope I'm wrong, but I'm guessing maybe August or September. However, at the same time I ordered the P900, I also ordered an extra set of inks and they were also listed as new item coming soon until today and it now states 7 to 14 days.

[gkroeger]

Do you have any experiences similar to my usage with the larger Epson 24" that you can share? That would be helpful.

Regards,
Bud James

Please check out my fine art and travel photography at www.budjames.photography or on Instagram at www.instagram.com/budjamesphoto.

I replaced a P800 with a P7000 two and a half years ago.  All was fine with only a very occasional clog that usually cleared with just another nozzle check. Then, in April, I had a complete yellow head failure. Fortunately, I had Epson's extended service coverage, so they replace the head and other components, and it seems back to normal now, although the latest firmware has me baffled about auto-clean frequency. This is the first head failure I have had in 5 Epson printers, including the P800 and a 7800. With the smaller printers, I take my chances, but with a 24" or 44" I think the three-year service plan is wise

[Kenneth Sky]

I've been getting very good results with the P800 for 3 years but as the OP stated GAS appeared with the announcement of the P900. Has anyone done real world comparisons of prints using the same file? Whatever "savings on ink" are surely lost to depreciated sale of my printer and ink to trade up. So that leaves the appreciable gains in print quality. Until the printer is in the hands of a respected agnostic reviewer, it seems we are all guessing.

[FabienP]

I've been getting very good results with the P800 for 3 years but as the OP stated GAS appeared with the announcement of the P900. Has anyone done real world comparisons of prints using the same file? Whatever "savings on ink" are surely lost to depreciated sale of my printer and ink to trade up. So that leaves the appreciable gains in print quality. Until the printer is in the hands of a respected agnostic reviewer, it seems we are all guessing.

Indeed, which is why I would recommend waiting if you can.

Improved paper handling for thick media (front loading on the P600/P800 is a chore) and for rolls could trigger an instant buy.

Cheers,
Fabien

[KeithR]

I hope this is good news forth coming!
Back in May, I placed a pre-order with B&H for the P900 along with a second set of inks. While the printer is still listed as "Backordered", the set of inks is now listed as "Order in process" and my CC was charged this morning. B&H usually doesn't charge the card until it is ready to or has begun to ship an order.

An update! Today I received notice that the whole set has shipped and ETA is 6 August (Thursday).

[rdonson]

Keith, here's hoping the inks aren't tiny. 

[FabienP]

Keith, here's hoping the inks aren't tiny.

Standard cartridges are a known quantity at 50 ml. But it is unclear if all the ink in a cartridge can be used. Some users of the P800 were suggesting that up to 20% might be wasted so the same could apply to the P900, assuming a similar ink delivery system.

Cheers,
Fabien

[rdonson]

Standard cartridges are a known quantity at 50 ml. But it is unclear if all the ink in a cartridge can be used. Some users of the P800 were suggesting that up to 20% might be wasted so the same could apply to the P900, assuming a similar ink delivery system.

Cheers,
Fabien

Fabien,

I have a P800 and it has 80ml cartridges.  Its hard for me to grasp why the P900 carts are 50ml.  When my 80ml carts require replacement it doesn't seem like 20% is left in the cart to me.

This will all get sorted out I guess when the P900 starts to ship and is the hands of people.  I looks like a nice printer but I'm not looking my P800 anyway so this is just curiosity on my part. 

[unesco]

[...]When my 80ml carts require replacement it doesn't seem like 20% is left in the cart to me.

In fact, ~20% is left. Empirically proved for number of colours for 3880 and P800. Finished cart disassembled, ink that remained taken out, weighted, capacity measured.
Number of cases also reported for 24 and 44 inch Epsons.

[Randy Carone]

It doesn't matter how much is left. What matters is how much ink was delivered to the printer. Can that be calculated? Weight before and after use? BTW, both my original 3800 (what a printer!) and my current P800 were refurbs bought direct from Epson. Both came with full ink carts. Both functioned as new.

[unesco]

It doesn't matter how much is left. What matters is how much ink was delivered to the printer. Can that be calculated? Weight before and after use? BTW, both my original 3800 (what a printer!) and my current P800 were refurbs bought direct from Epson. Both came with full ink carts. Both functioned as new.

It was delivered about 75%-85% out of 80 ml. I weighted number of new carts and then "empty" ones. Disassembled them after use measured weight and capacity of left ink. Number of times.
My 3880 still works like a charm as well. I consider to go to P7500, so need to sell P800 or 3880 and probably I will sell P800 and keep 3880 :-).

[rdonson]

If that holds true for the P900, owners are going to really be %^&*(  about the smaller carts.

[FabienP]

It was delivered about 75%-85% out of 80 ml. I weighted number of new carts and then "empty" ones. Disassembled them after use measured weight and capacity of left ink. Number of times.
My 3880 still works like a charm as well. I consider to go to P7500, so need to sell P800 or 3880 and probably I will sell P800 and keep 3880 :-).

Thanks for confirming the 80% assumption.

Some of that 80% will also land into the waste ink pad, but that tends to heavily depend on the usage pattern of the printer. I suppose it wouldn't make sense to weight the waste ink pad given the evaporation of ink that will take place over its life?

Anyway, the P900 makes sense for someone like me who currently owns a P600 and is not a high volume printer. As Ron points out, not so for P800 owners, unless one wishes to leave black ink switching behind.

Cheers,
Fabien

[rdonson]

Fabien,

My photography and printing is my pastime.  I don't sweat the ink switching as I do B&W prints in batches to minimize the switching.

[Eric Brody]

Initially I jumped on the instant switching, no waste of ink or time, idea. I've been printing with Epson 38xx printers for many years and while I realize it's not much ink or time, it still bothers me. However, the 50ml ink cartridge really put a crimp in my enthusiasm. As I've said before, I'll await a review by Mark Segal and or Keith Cooper. My current beloved 3880 continues to function.