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Author Topic: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?  (Read 4743 times)

Brookie

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i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« on: August 23, 2020, 11:11:45 pm »

Is the i1 Studio worthwhile for calibrating a printer?  I can’t afford a full blown spectrometer.  If the i1 Studio is good I will consider getting it. Otherwise I figure I’ll just get an i1 Display Pro and be happy enough with just calibrating my monitor.  I am assuming the i1 Display Pro and i1 Studio will be similar insofar as their quality at calibrating the monitor is concerned - please advise if that is incorrect.

Thanks for the input,
Brookie
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digitaldog

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #1 on: August 24, 2020, 11:43:06 am »

You must have a Spectrophotometer to build printer profiles and one is supplied with this package (ColorMunki hardware). It builds pretty good profiles considering the low number of patches used and limited options for the Perceptual Table.
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Brookie

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #2 on: August 24, 2020, 12:47:05 pm »

with this package (ColorMunki hardware)

Thanks Andrew. Did you mean to include a link, or are you still talking about the i1 Studio?  Sorry, I’m not fully conversant in all this hardware by any stretch.
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digitaldog

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #3 on: August 24, 2020, 01:09:07 pm »

Thanks Andrew. Did you mean to include a link, or are you still talking about the i1 Studio?  Sorry, I’m not fully conversant in all this hardware by any stretch.
i1Studio is a new name (with a few new features) using the same ColorMunki Spectrophotometer.
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Brookie

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #4 on: August 24, 2020, 04:14:15 pm »

Thanks Andrew!
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DP

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #5 on: August 24, 2020, 06:04:44 pm »

Is the i1 Studio worthwhile for calibrating a printer?  I can’t afford a full blown spectrometer.  If the i1 Studio is good I will consider getting it. Otherwise I figure I’ll just get an i1 Display Pro and be happy enough with just calibrating my monitor.  I am assuming the i1 Display Pro and i1 Studio will be similar insofar as their quality at calibrating the monitor is concerned - please advise if that is incorrect.

Thanks for the input,
Brookie

if you are interested I have a like new (never used really, as I have i1Pro2 + 2 GmB spectrophotometers) ColorMunki device (ColorMunki Design)...

https://www.xrite.com/categories/calibration-profiling/colormunki-design

$250 all inclusive (CONUS)
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Brookie

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #6 on: August 24, 2020, 06:27:24 pm »

Andrew, DP:
I have a BenQ 2700PT monitor. Do you know if I will still use the BenQ Palette Master Element software to calibrate my monitor (Using either the i1 Studio or ColorMunki) or if I will need to do it outside of the BenQ software?

Also if they are compatible with a Canon Pixma Pro-10 printer?

Thanks for your input!
« Last Edit: August 24, 2020, 06:34:02 pm by Brookie »
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digitaldog

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #7 on: August 24, 2020, 07:02:15 pm »

No idea what BenQ supports, you'll have to check with them.
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NAwlins_Contrarian

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #8 on: August 24, 2020, 09:56:06 pm »

Is the i1 Studio worthwhile for calibrating a printer?  I can’t afford a full blown spectrometer.
IMO yes. I have rented an i1Studio spectrophotometer, and later I bought (used, for $175) its predecessor (maybe twin) the ColorMunki Photo (which even X-Rite recommends you run with the new i1Studio software, see https://www.xrite.com/service-support/product-support/calibration-solutions/colormunki-photo). Every profile I've made with them was IMO at least as good as, and often better than, the corresponding 'canned' profile.  However, I don't doubt that a profile made with an i1 Photo Pro 3 and a 6000 patch set could be better. So it probably depends in part on how demanding you are / what are your expectations.

Also, if you're printing with a reasonably-recent model of Epson or Canon photo printer, the paper manufacturer probably supplies canned profiles for their papers in your printer. In most cases you'll probably find those are fine--again, probably depending in part on how demanding you are / what are your expectations.

I am assuming the i1 Display Pro and i1 Studio will be similar insofar as their quality at calibrating the monitor is concerned - please advise if that is incorrect.
Again, how demanding are you? Lots of people seem to be happy calibrating their monitors with the i1Studio and ColorMunki Photo spectrophotometers. However, some experts / demanding users report that a colorimeter such as the i1 Display Pro (or even a ColorMunki Display) produces better monitor calibration.

I have a BenQ 2700PT monitor. Do you know if I will still use the BenQ Palette Master Element software to calibrate my monitor (Using either the i1 Studio or ColorMunki) or if I will need to do it outside of the BenQ software?

There you need to be careful, because some monitors won't calibrate as designed with some some hardware and/or software. I think you ought to ask both Benq and X-Rite about your 2700PT with specific X-Rite hardware.

Also
The suggestion that you buy a ColorMunki Design, or any i1 Pro spectrophotometer that is not specifically a "Photo" model, ought to be reviewed carefully. AFAIK, these devices will not work the the X-Rite printer-profiling software. So if you want to use them to profile a printer, then you have to use Argyll CMS--which appears to be a good (arguably excellent) system, but using it is a relatively deep dive for a newbie, and its complexity is far higher than the regular X-Rite software's. It interests me, but it also intimidates me a bit.
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DP

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #9 on: August 24, 2020, 10:21:37 pm »

The suggestion that you buy a ColorMunki Design ....  ought to be reviewed carefully. AFAIK, these devices will not work the the X-Rite printer-profiling software.

dear - they come with X-Rite software that profiles for printers too...

http://www.northlight-images.co.uk/i1studio-calibration-profiling-review/
« Last Edit: August 24, 2020, 10:33:47 pm by DP »
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Brookie

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #10 on: August 24, 2020, 11:04:26 pm »

Guys,
Thank you for your comments.

Andrew,
So here’s the deal. I am still new to printing. I posted here back in Jan or Feb about problems I was having and mentioned that I was using a Spyder5 to calibrate my monitor. You made several reply’s to that post including comments that the Spyder was less reliable than the i1 Display Pro and suggesting I switch to Xrite. Not long after that I learned that I was calibrating my monitor incorrectly. The folks at BenQ helped straighten me out on that and using their Palette Master software I have definitely had better results. I am now thinking I will pull the trigger on getting an X-Rite.

Looking at X-Rite’s website I see that the new i1 Studio software now includes an improved calibration for B&W printing which is a keen interest for me. In fact, B&W is still causing me some frustration at times. Particularly with matte paper - now I’m sure you are going to say that matte paper can’t give you good blacks, but......  I’ve made a couple of really nice prints on matte paper (Red River Polar Matte) with pretty good blacks. I like this paper’s surface and feel. But I’ve certainly made  more prints on it that I’m not satisfied with. So, I am wondering if perhaps the i1 Studio can help me with this.

Now as I said, I’m still new at printing and I’m not sure that going so far as working on printer/paper calibrations is a wise move for me at my present skill level. But, it might make sense to pay a bit more now for a i1 Studio since I could use it for the printer in the future?  Rather than go cheaper now only to replace what I get in a year or three.  Or so I am thinking....

So that is where I’m coming from, where my skill level is at, etc.  I do tend towards the picky side, but I know I have a long steep learning curve in front of me and there may be equally or more important skills to master before worrying about calibrating my printer. I will be very interested in your comments/suggestions.

Also, I forgot to mention, I have the brightness on my monitor turned down. I’ve already become familiar with the bright monitor / dark print issue. I think I’m mostly out of that rabbit hole. LOL!!

And, I do plan on calling BenQ tomorrow to ask about using the i1 Studio to calibrate my monitor.

Thanks!
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HarveyM43

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #11 on: August 25, 2020, 07:49:32 am »

If you're worried about buying, you could rent an i1Studio or colormunki from Lensrentals at less than $50/week (shipping extra). That's enough time to profile a some papers & check it's monitor calibration. For myself I preferred the i1Studio profiles to the Canon (Pro-10) profiles even for Canon Pro papers. If you think you're going to stick to one or two papers it's probably more cost effective to have custom profiles made for you.   
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David Eckels

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #12 on: August 25, 2020, 09:41:35 am »

I have an i1Studio that I just started using a few months ago. I use it to profile my Dell 3216Q monitor and Canon ipf8400 printer. Until I started making my own profiles I was making up to a dozen test prints and they still were not quite right. When I dove in and made my own, I saw immediate improvement. I also reduced my display brightness to 80 Cd/m2. Now, I pretty much get it right on every time especially with soft proofing. I say pretty much because AFAIK, the i1Studio only does 100 patches, which is not the same as what the others are capable of. There is a way to further modify vs individual images, but I have not delved into that capability or the B/W profiling. All in all, I can say I am very pleased.

BTW, watch every one of Andrew's YouTube videos; it will save you a lot of "wandering in the desert." Have fun.

I also learned the hard way that I was not maintaining my printer properly. I don't know about the Pro-10, but you should check out InkJetCarts.com; Ross knows what he is talking about and has done some excellent tutorials.

Brookie

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #13 on: August 25, 2020, 09:49:37 am »

Harvey, David,
Thanks for the input guys, it is music appreciated. 

David, yes I also have monitor brightness set at 80.
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Brookie

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #14 on: August 25, 2020, 12:49:01 pm »

For anyone following this thread and potentially interested, I just spoke with both X-Rite and BenQ. The i1 Studio is supported by the recent update to BenQ’s Palette Master Elements. According to X-Rite the BenQ SW2700PT monitor can be calibrated either through X-Rite’s software or Palette Master. Also according to X-Rite the i1 Studio is compatible with the Canon Pixma Pro-10.  So everything should be good to go.
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digitaldog

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #15 on: August 25, 2020, 12:50:19 pm »

For anyone following this thread and potentially interested, I just spoke with both X-Rite and BenQ. The i1 Studio is supported by the recent update to BenQ’s Palette Master Elements. According to X-Rite the BenQ SW2700PT monitor can be calibrated either through X-Rite’s software or Palette Master. Also according to X-Rite the i1 Studio is compatible with the Canon Pixma Pro-10.  So everything should be good to go.
IF this BenQ is anything like SpectraView or Eizo, you absolutely do NOT want to use X-rite's software. You could, but you'd be limiting the calibration functionality.
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Brookie

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #16 on: August 25, 2020, 01:00:50 pm »

Hi Andrew,
Yeah, in the past BenQ told me very specifically NOT to calibrate the monitor with The Spyder5 software and that is partly why I was having problems with everything last winter.  Once I started calibrating with Palette Master things improved quite a bit. The real question XRite couldn’t answer was whether or not the BenQ software had been update to support this new i1 Studio.  BenQ confirmed that the latest Version of Palette Master does indeed support it. 

Thanks for your help!
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NAwlins_Contrarian

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #17 on: August 25, 2020, 01:15:20 pm »

Quote from: NAwlins_Contrarian on August 24, 2020, 09:56:06 pm

    The suggestion that you buy a ColorMunki Design ....  ought to be reviewed carefully. AFAIK, these devices will not work the the X-Rite printer-profiling software.

dear - they come with X-Rite software that profiles for printers too...

http://www.northlight-images.co.uk/i1studio-calibration-profiling-review/

That review you link to is for the i1Studio spectrophotometer, not the ColorMunki Design. The ColorMunki Photo spectrophotometer clearly will work with the i1Studio software (I use it myself); but as I understand from multiple reports, the ColorMunki Design will not work with the X-Rite printer profiling software. I have heard the same thing about various i1 Pro spectrophotometers that are not "Photo" models. So in my view, before anyone buys for printer profiling either a ColorMunki Design or i1 Pro that's not an i1 Photo Pro, that person should check very carefully about whether the X-Rite printer profiling software actually works with the device being considered for purchase.

[EDIT]
By the way, if you look at the photo about 80% of the way down Keith's review, you can see that the ColorMunki he was discussing is marked "ColorMunki PHOTO", not ColorMunki Design. Evidently they were two different versions of the same basic hardware.

[EDIT #2]
I was wrong about the ColorMunki Design--see below.
« Last Edit: August 25, 2020, 02:24:26 pm by NAwlins_Contrarian »
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digitaldog

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #18 on: August 25, 2020, 01:24:31 pm »

but as I understand from multiple reports, the ColorMunki Design will not work with the X-Rite printer profiling software.
It's all the same hardware (what we called ColorMunki Spectrophotometer), whatever you purchased from X-rite with such a product comes with supporting software to create printer profiles. Yes, i1Studio is newer but it's nothing really special; a few new features that are questionably useful (B&W profiles).
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digitaldog

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Re: i1 Studio - are people happy with these?
« Reply #19 on: August 25, 2020, 01:28:17 pm »

https://www.xrite.com/categories/calibration-profiling/colormunki-design

Use ColorMunki Design for optimized printer profiling to make sure that the color your see on your display is the color you will get on your RGB or CMYK printer. It’s high quality printer profiling gives you complete color control, even with spot colors.
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