Digital BW, The Print

On 12/12/02 9:57 AM, "Paul Roark" <paul.roark@...> wrote:

> The FS/Piezo-compatible quad I've mixed from Epson Archival black (a 7500
> cart) looks to be a very interesting and neutral inkset.  Assuming the Epson
> claims of longevity are true, this could be a 200 year inkset.  Unlike the
> color Archival pigments, the all-black-ink quad prints show no significant
> metamerism.
> 
> The X-Rite readings of representative 21-step test-strip midtones of my "Eps
> Arc FS2," printed with the Piezo driver, EAM profile, on my 1160 are as
> follows:
> 
> Paper    %    Cyan    Magenta    Yellow    Visual
> 
> Epson Archival Matte
> 
> 25%    .34    .35        .35        .35
> 50%    .63    .64        .63        .63
> 75%    1.02    1.02        1.02        1.02
> 
> Legion Photo Matte
> 
> 25%    .35    .36        .35        .36
> 50%    .63    .63        .61        .63
> 75%    1.02    1.02        1.00        1.02
> 
> Eclipse Satine Bright White
> 
> 25%    .29    .30        .29        .29
> 50%    .56    .56        .55        .56
> 75%    .88    .87        .86        .88
> 
> The magenta reading being slightly above the average of the cyan and yellow
> is typical of selenium-toned silver prints (and the PiezoTone selenium).
> Cool shadow tones are also typical of selenium-toned prints.  With the MIS
> Matte Black ink that I currently have in the printer, this is carried right
> through to the 100% black position on both LPM and Eclipse.
> 
> The "Eps Arc FS2" mix is as follows:
> 
> Cyan = 50% Arc K
> Magenta = 11% Arc K
> Yellow = 5.13% Arc K
> 
> These percentages need a bit of fine tuning, but, as can be seen from the
> density readings, they are very close.  (The 75% readings will probably
> increase 0.01 as they age.)  I'm not sure what Piezo profile people use for
> Eclipse and LPM, so I just used the EAM profile.
> 
> The Epson Archival black can be harvested from large format cartridges.   I
> used the standard MIS clear base to dilute the black ink.
> 
> While I have no fade tests yet -- and the results of those will be affect
> which direction I go -- I tentatively think that a quad based on the Epson
> Archival black is in my future.  What black-position ink I will use is too
> early to tell.  Fade tests and paper choice are major variables there.
> 
> The pure Epson Archival K-based midtones look great to me, and the use of
> Epson Archival inks (without the baggage of metamerism and weak blacks,
> since that position is wide open) could be significant.  Once diluted, the
> prices are competitive.
> 
> Paul
> http://www.PaulRoark.com
> 
Paul, what the dmax for this ink on these papers?  As I recall it was quite
poor.  In fact, my memory suggests that all papers were actually less than
1.5. I really receive proof prints from a printer that uses a 10000 (same
inks as the 7500) and the blacks are always very poor.

Also, the 200 year estimate is certainly a bogus figure.  I know that these
inks do fade in sunlight quite quickly...but I haven't actually seen CYMK
fades so I don't know specifically about the black.  But it will be
interesting to see how they do in your fader compared to the current
competition.

Robert