Demo guys - Well, what can you say?

What am I using - I scan negatives on a Microtek ArtixScan 1800f. I adjust the image using Photoshop CS on a Windows XP machine. I generate prints on an Epson 9600, using the Epson driver and Bill Atkinson's profiles.

Part of the reason why RIPs like Colorbyte have a huge following is that, to a large degree, they solve the profile problem. Colorbyte have a huge number of profiles for various supported printers and various supported inksets and various supported papers available for their customers. It's perfectly possible that if you intend to print on a large number of papers, buying the Colorbyte RIP would be a cheaper way to go - if each custom profile costs you $100, and you'd need more than 9 profiles, you're ahead if you're printing on a 4000.

Remember, too, that they built their following back when ICC color management was shaky, and profiling services were non-existent. By providing profiling, they got a lot of customers who needed color contro.

But today, those issues are not as persuasive, or at least they're not $2500 persuasive to me.

Re: Mac - I'd think carefully before jumping. I've read more tales of woe from people who are struggling with driver issues on Macs as they upgrade OS's that I'd be gunshy of that approach.

If I were you, Kirk, I'd just use the Epson driver, buy custom profiles to get color neutral prints, and I'd tackle the monochrom toning problem with curves (the way I do, see http://www.butzi.net/articles/toning.htm )

It might be worth looking at a rip if you generate sets of prints for architectural clients, but I can't see it really working, I suspect you send them one print of 20 images and not 20 prints of one image, and a rip won't help too much with that.

Despite what the RIP people tell you, quality prints are a function of the person driving, and not the s0ftware. Sure, Clyde Butcher's prints look great - the man is an outstanding printer, both silver and presumably digital as well. That's because he knows what a great print looks like. He could probably produce good prints from a printer that used black crayon to output on toilet paper.

Remember, too, that Clyde has been doing digital output for a while now. Presumably he's learned a lot.

Re: color ink usage, monochrome tonality, metamerism, etc. I would definitely contrive to make comparison prints both with the epson driver and good profiles, and then with the RIP, and I would compare them side by side in several different kinds of decent lighting along with a silver print. Photography is rife with superstition, and I greatly suspect that digital output is no exception.