Would appreciate help with choosing a higher end printer.

[riooso]

Thanks for the link Paul.

Concerning the problem of not printing enough I have seen some general ideas of flushing the system with solutions to better battle the clog situation. I would consider this part of the hassle of owning a printer and taking an extended trip to the wilds. Clogged heads is one reason that I have always used HP for general printing because when you buy the ink you buy a new head. My primary concern is print quality. I have been able to get prints that rival the professional prints that I get by sending out work with the 3880, at a fraction of the price. At $35 to $50 per print a ten image project makes a 3880 affordable. I do my own matting and framing and printing is just an extension of being fully connected from the snap of the shutter to the hanging image. At no time would I berate a professional shop for what they charge because I think it is a fair price. But, as I am retired it just makes sense under the right circumstances to do my own printing. I do both color and B&W because, for me, neither one can do everything so it is good to have a wide range of possible paper output.

Thanks again,
R

[cdavis324]

The 3880 is the one Epson model that doesn't have issues with clogging.

[Peter De Smidt]

I have two Epson printers, a 4880 and a 7600. If I were in the market for a new printer, I'd seriously look into Canon or HP. When they're working the quality from the Epsons is fine, but ink clogs are a huge pain, both in lost time and money. Some people don't seem to have problems, but I certainly do, and so do a lot of others. It could be humidity, regularity of printing, or sample-to-sample equipment variation, or something....

[Muizen]

John: You wrote that Epson will no longer offer the Pro 3880?
What will be it's successor?
Harry

[cdavis324]

I had a Canon 5100 before my 3880, and the great thing with Canon's is that you never have to deal with a clog - the printer takes care of it for you. The downside is that you need to buy a new set of printheads ever year to three at a cost of $500/each(and there are 2 in every printer). The 3880 is the least clog prone - all the larger models tend to have more severe clogging issues. Even if it's sitting for many months the 3880 cleans with one head cleaning... the larger models I've used require multiple cleanings after leaving the printer for the weekend.

Epson support is really great. Canon not so much.

The print quality isn't a reason to pick one over another - although if you like glossy prints consider one of the consumer Epson's with the gloss coating.

[Noah A]

I've been using my Epson 4880 for five years or so with no problems. I occasionally go months without using it and then I'll use it heavily for a few weeks. After a long idle period I may have to do a head cleaning, but I've never had to do more than one to clear up the heads. I've also used a 9900 at a local photo center with no problems.

Many labs and photo centers use Epsons, so for me it makes sense since I can do at least preliminary proofs at home, then go somewhere else to print. If my printer dies, I wouldn't hesitate to replace it with the current Epson version.

[Jim Jones]

My Epson 3800 has produced over 6000 prints in almost 8 years with almost no problems. Sometimes it sits idle for a few weeks. If it should ever fail, another Epson would be the first choice.

[riooso]

Wow! Thanks guys. After all the input for the money it looks like the 3880.


R

[bob carnie]

The 24 inch Canon with 12 inkset and onboard spectrometor is a thing of beauty.. testing the profile maker right now as it can then be used with my other Canon printer.

[Peter De Smidt]

Which model is that, Bob?