Digital BW, The Print

Robert,

>... with new materials and particularly coatings,
>it looks like quality can actually exceed silver.

The coating should still be considered experimental.  I, for one, have not
been able to produce a perfect, one-step coated 16x20 with my 3000.  Between
the need to use thin paper (EAM/EEM, for example) and the pizza wheels (even
when most have been removed per recommendations) the waviness of the paper
that was totally irrelevant for flat matte prints becomes a real problem for
coating with a rod.

Personally, as big a fan of the 3000 as I was, I've just grabbed a 7500.
One just sold on Ebay for only $1200.  People are dumping these to get the
7600.  I am making/MIS probably mixing Epson Archival K-based quads
(Piezo/FS-compatible as well as variable tone) for this as well as other
machines.  I will, of course, make any curves I write public.  I'd real
seriously look at a 7500 (or 7000) if you're thinking of coating large
display prints.  (And I think they will be terrific if we can do it with a
rod in one step.)

>Is [the 3000] significantly less sharp than the 1160?

No.  With quads in mine, I even printed most of my B&W Xmas cards with it.
I also have an 1160, and don't consider the 3000 second rate to the 1160 at
all.

>Has the Piezo driver banding problem been resolved?

Yes, the 1440 mode of the later versions is very smooth in my 720-banding
3000.  However, its dog slow.

>If I end up with a 3000 that won't tolerate the Piezo driver, how
>much am I giving up? How do the Epson Driver /separation workflows
>perform on the 3000?

I have the Piezo driver but prefer the Epson driver.  It has deeper blacks,
is faster than the 1440 Piezo mode, and allows me to continue to use my
computer and PS to do other work while it is printing.

>How does the MIS variable tone ink set perform with only
>3 black/gray inks?

I usually have the MIS vm-s (sepia-to-neutral) inkset in the 3000.  Some see
the blue dots of the standard vm inkset with the neutral or cool tones.
With the vm-s inkset, there is no toner in the neutral highlights.  Also,
the sepia toner seems to stand out less than the blue toner.  So, I've never
been aware of the dots in my 3000 vm-s prints.

Good luck.

Paul
http://www.PaulRoark.com