Digital BW, The Print

Antonis wrote-

>Bruce,
>
>here are some thoughts and comments on your post:


>  > Today, however, an affordable used 7000 unexpectedly landed in my
>  > lap; I can pick it up tomorrow. It had been used with Indelible pigs,
>>  but has been flushed and has new ink pads reset by the Epson rep. No
>>  ink presently installed, and presumably in good shape (it is being
>>  replaced by a 7600).
>
>No inks, means, I hope, some kind of cleaning fluid is in there. You 
>don't want
>dry heads.

Yes, cleaning cartridges in place.

>As for the inkpads, you can search on the 9000 list. Most people
>replace these with their own solution - anything from diapers to 
>juice bottles!.
>For an out-of-warranty unit, it saves several hundred $ in service calls. You
>also have to reset the inkpad counters, for which you'll need a service
>manual.
>
>
>  I don't know what (if any) accessories should
>>  come with it (I know it has no stand), any particular problems I
>>  should look out for, etc.
>
>Look for permanently clogged heads or mechanical problems that may
>prevent smooth operation across the 24 width. It's wise to print 
>bands of color
>running the length and check with a loupe for  signs of trouble. Do 
>that before
>you move it, if possible.

Oops, it's here. I own it:-) I understand the heads were replaced 
previously. Was in operation before 7600 arrived.

>  It would be nice if it came with the 3" roll adapter,
>which is too expensive to buy as an accessory.

2" only. I assume that means sheet feed for 300g+ paper?

>
>
>I just checked, and the Piezo Pro 24 RIP has
>>  disappeared from the Inkjet Mall site, presumably a casualty of the
>>  Cone/Sundance divorce. It seems to have been reincarnated by
>>  R-9/Sundance and is available, for $1495, from Digital Art Supplies.
>
>R-9 makes software to go with Sundance inks. It so happens that their profiles
>may also work with piezotones and MIS FS, but they are not  officially
>supporting these other inksets, so this may be a limiting factor for you.

That's a PT problem, mostly, I suspect. It prints a bit different on 
my 1160 too. Other than Dmax, I presume I can throw an adjustment 
curve at it.

>
>
>>
>>  The Piezography page is now touting a new "about to grow up" Piezo
>>  Pro RIP: "Stay tuned for the release date later this summer!" Well,
>>  the Vernal equinox is just a few hours away, and Conetech does have a
>>  tendency to promote wishware. Does anyone know if this will be a real
>>  product? Heard about any beta testers?
>
>Why wait for wishware. ImagePrint ships now  and supports color and bw.
>They are also open to profiling other inks and papers, since they have no
>interest in "bundling". I would call Colorbyte,  if I were you, and 
>discuss your
>situation.

Will do. Is IP5 significantly improved over 4, in your opinion?

>
>
>  >
>  > IJM is also pushing Imageprint 5.
>
>IJM is hardly "pushing". They are selling it because they need to have 
>software for their inks after the R-9 break up.

There seems to be an uneasy relationship between Cone and Colorbyte 
too, and some mutual involvement in the Piezo 2 product?

>
>>However, they recommend the Windows
>>  version, and I'm on a Mac [...]. I've seen other comments that the Mac
>>  version is clunky at best.
>
>The problems lie with OS 9. Colorbyte is soon to have an OS X version
>shipping. Yes, it is clunky, and I can get into details if you like, 
>but once you
>get the hang of it (with excellent tech support from Colorbyte) it 
>works fine. But
>be prepared at first to do a little head scratching!

I'd love some info, off list I presume. I've been sticking with OS 9 
because of the Piezo driver.

>
>
>>And it is dongle-tied to a specific
>>  printer, so if I use the 7000 for BW, I get to pay extra for a color
>>  printer, even a 2200.
>
>Actually the way it works is that you buy a licence for a given 
>format (like large
>format or desktop etc) and for a given number of printers. You can add
>licences later (by getting a new encryption "key").  But you can always
>"deinstall" one printer and "install" another within the same 
>format. So if you
>have a 2200 and a licence for 1 desktop printer, you can change to a 1280
>without extra cost as long as you remove the 2200 from the list of licenced
>printers that IP recognizes. As for the dongle... many RIPs use 
>them, including,
>I think the R-9 (for the 7000).

So if I replace or supplement the 7000 with a 7600 (or whatever) I'm covered?

>
>>  I also get the impression that the IP BW dither
>>  is not quite as smooth and dotless as the Piezo/R-9. Comments?
>
>
>It's the other way around, actually, but the differences may get 
>lost in an actual
>photograph. This is not always a fixed entity - it depends very much on how
>the profiles are written. The new IP5 has already improved on the dither of
>IP4. Keep in mind that a 7000 puts down fairly coarse dots. It works OK for BW
>because the software can mask some of it, but in color it looks very crude
>compared to, say, a 1280 which is a newer engine.
>
>
>>  Amazingly, it also costs $1495.
>
>For the large formats, yes. You then have to add a licence for desktops
>(around $500) if you want the option to use the same software for both. It may
>be beneficial to have consistent output from large and small printers and use
>the latter for proofs. Of course, if you have a whole farm of printers and you
>need to print to all of them simultneously, this can get very expensive. But I
>think that's a problem for service bureaus.
>
>
>>
>>  Finally, as the original Piezo Pro RIP has been discontinued, my
>>  personal reservations about second hand software might be irrelevant.
>>  If anyone has a copy of the Mac version they would care to sell, I
>>  could be interested.
>
>Keep in mind that the value of any RIP is directly tied to the quality and
>availabilty of profiles for the inks and papers you use. We are in a period of
>rapid change. After the fiasco with the Piezotone black, who knows what other
>inks are coming down, or if people are using the MIS FS K etc. Also, profiling
>for specific papers is an issue. Colorbyte is willing to profile any 
>given paper
>you use provided they already support that particular inkset (i.e. they have a
>recipe for it). If you buy second hand, make sure there is a company behind it
>that is willing to keep up with new inksets and profile your papers.
>
>InkjetMall / ConeTech currently makes no profiles for their inks and papers.
>Instead you are expected to use trial and error until you find  an existing
>profile that works for your paper and ink. Likewise, R-9 only supports
>Sundance inks.

That is one really big sticking point. But there are not many quad 
profiles yet from Colorbyte.

>
>Unfortunately, things change fast and you have to make decisions based on
>what's available right this minute - even if a year from now the game may
>change alltogether. And even Colorbyte, willing as they are to support new
>inks, may be delayed in their efforts because of problems with ink 
>availabilty.
>So, for example, they haven't been able to profile the piezotones for the 1280
>because they can't get carts for it. And their profiles for the 
>piezotones are now
>up in the air because the black is in question. And so on...
>
Thanks for all the info.

Regards,

Bruce
-- 
PS: Please note new ISP address, pvx@...