Digital BW, The Print

Hi,

I am new here.  I used to be a 4x5 black and white photographer 
with my own darkroom - pretending I was Edward Weston or 
Paul Caponigro or some other hero. In more recent years I have 
been a color medium format landscape photographer and am 
now using an Epson 10000 with archival pigment inks to make 
my color prints.  

I have an interest in trying to scan some of my old B and W 
negatives and print them digitally.  My question is can I get 
excellent inkjet b and w prints from my Epson 10000 or would I 
need to buy a second printer (such as an Epson 7000 or 9000) 
that will let me use third party quadtone inks.  I am very 
interested in prints that have some degree of permanence (thus 
the Epson pigment inks).  

I must admit to having seen very few b and w inkjet prints and 
thus don't have a good feel for how they compare to silver 
darkroom prints (I suspect you have discussed this one at great 
length).  I have printed at least one almost b and w image I like 
by simply turning the saturation down to almost zero in a Hue/Sat 
adjustment layer, but this started as a color image not a b and w 
negative.  

So would I be wasting my time to try and get an excellent b and w 
print from my Epson?  

Many thanks!

Tom Andrews
www.wildlandart.com