Some opinions on Durst or modern DeVere's for B&W printing.
Some opinions on Durst or modern DeVere's for B&W printing.
Never used a Durst, my Devere 504 is a joy to use. Rock solid. When I align it, it stays aligned. If you're in the US they're not especially common, which could be a problem.
I have never used a DeVere, but I don't think you could go really wrong with either choice. Are you eyeing two units at the moment? Which offers you the best overall financial deal and compatibility with the formats you shoot?
I have a DeVere and a friend has a Durst -- what can you say really is there much difference between a Rolls and a Bentley
Probably only because I have a DeVere I prefer it over the Durst.
Steve
I own 2 Durst L184's and from personal experience I can state that due to the extreme unreliability of service, parts and repairs for them that I wish I never bought them. Go with a DeVere and buy or get it serviced from KHB in Ontario.
I have two De Vere's. They're great.
“You often feel tired, not because you've done too much, but because you've done too little of what sparks a light in you.”
― Alexander Den Heijer, Nothing You Don't Already Know
I have a Durst L1200 with colour head.
Great machine.
I've used some incredible Durst enlargers, as well as some incredible DeVere enlargers, both are excellent and more or less over engineered for the job.
If you are after a simple enlarger, built like a rock, will never ever have alignment problems once aligned, DeVere.
Durst simple models are also built like a rock, but a lot of Durst machines came with many electrical wonders.
The Durst enlargers are technical wonders, generally, they are a dream to use, but dependent upon the model, can be a bit iffy with little technical stuff sometimes going awry.
Think of a shutter in the 8x10 models not working perfectly.
I myself run a free standing DeVere 504 with a colour head for B&W printing. It is a simple enlarger, with effectively the only moving part being the cooling fan in the head. I don't think there is a part on this enlarger I cannot fix myself.
The 507 DeVere would be my pick of the enlargers, it is still small enough to fit in most darkrooms, yet can handle 6x17 panoramic negatives, something a 504 cannot. The 8x10 DeVere enlargers start to get a bit on the big side if they are free standing.
The focusing system of the DeVere enlargers is far easier to use than almost all other enlargers, which require you to reach up to either knobs, or focusing sticks.
The Durst enlargers with a colour head, generally have one very good feature, a neutral density filter. This is a two stop, or 60 units, density filter. For speed in a busy darkroom, this is a brilliant feature.
Basically you run the filter at 30 units as a standard. You know your enlarging time is say 20 seconds, which gives you ample time to hold (or dodge) back some part of the image. You are happy with your 8x10 full frame print, of which, you have just done 26 prints of.
Then you have to do the same thing on a 16x20 piece of paper.
No problem, you wind up the enlarger, take out one full stop of neutral density, then expose your first print for 20 seconds with the same amount of dodging, within reason your first larger print, will be almost identical.
I say almost, my experience is that you will have to add about 1/20th of a stop extra exposure.
Some food for thought.
Mick.
Given that most Durst professional enlargers and their components were discontinued 10,20,30 years ago and that any support for them is extremely unreliable, it is best to either not consider them, or to consider the simpler designs for which most parts can be easily repaired or manufactured by ANY machinist. If one buys the really complex Durst colorheads one is then reliant on buying new dichro reflectors every few years, at a cost of around $1500. The computerized Durst heads may use chips and electronic components that are no longer made or available.
As I stated earlier I own 2 durst L184 color enlargers and would not do so again if I knew then what I know now.
One big difference I have noticed is the attention to detail in the negative handling. The Durst is far more refined than the De Vere in this regard. On the Durst L1200 for example the entire carrier slides on roller bearings into the light path. The De Vere 504 clamps the head down tight onto the negative "sandwich" a bit more crudely. I sometimes wonder whether all that pressure is hurting strips of roll film.......
Just curious, how do other De Vere users get around this?
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