Digital BW, The Print

----- Original Message -----
From: "Steven Karafyllakis" <stevek@...>
To: <DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Saturday, March 08, 2003 7:16 AM
Subject: Re: [Digital BW] Epson3200 - Test results


> --- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Vladimir
> Kabelik" <artcoreproductions@s...> wrote:
> > Hello Ernst!
> >
> > I am following very carefully this discussion since, as you
well
> know,
> > I am ready to jump and buy the Epson 3200 (finally, they
arrived to
> > Toronto). Before I do so, one more question:
> >
> > In Canada and US this scanner comes in two packages:
> > Epson Perfection 3200 Photo and Epson Perfection 3200 Pro.
> > The only difference is the addition of:
> >
> > *SilverFast AI 6 software (over SE 6 version)
> > *ArcSoft Suite
> > *Monaco EZ Color SW
> > *and IT8 Targets
> >
> > The price difference is approximately $300.00
>
>
> >
> > My question is whether the SW package is worth it, since the
> scanner
> > itself seems to be identical. Well, I do not have any
experience
> > with the above software, do you???

> Hi Vlad;
>
> Arcsoft is probably worthless, I never bothered to even try it,
but
> if you do color printing and don't have profiling sodtware, the
> Monaco is a good place to start, though there is a catch: It
works a
> lot better if you have the monitor sensor, which is another
$300.00?
>
> The Silverfast is more difficult to use than the Epson driver,
but
> it has a major advantage: it will make the scanner do multiple
> passes, which is an excellent feature for scanning color negs
as it
> removes much of the 'grain' that color negs often produce. It
also
> has MUCH better color editing features than the Epson. The
price for
> those two is $320 USD, so you're not saving much; In fact, if
you
> check the Silverfast website you may be able to ugrade the SE
and
> save a little!

So the cheaper package comes bundled with Silverfast SE 6 ?

It has been my experience that Silverfast SE is better on colour
than the Epson software. However with reflectance scanning the
contrast is too high in auto exposure but that can be controlled.
I have some experience with the full Silverfast version for the
Nikon 8000 and in that case I prefer NikonScan even with the
flaws that program has. Maybe there's just too much Silverfast on
the screen with the full program.Vuescan with the 3200 is not
very compatible in my experience so far but that will get better
(could be me even). I've set my hopes on that package. Next to
NikonScan that's the one I use on the Nikon.

No experience with ArcSoft Suite and Monaco EZ Color SW. For the
PC there are some free scanner calibration packages
www.littlecms.com . Targets from Wolf Staub are cheap and good
(Silverfast's targets could even be from his stable, at least his
targets are quoted in Silverfast docs). Good monitor calibration
software with a puck did become a lot cheaper over the last two
years. It probably will be the same $ 320 USD together. This is a
B&W list so I have no knowledge what you actually need. The Pro
version is almost a turnkey solution but I agree with Steve that
monitor calibration may be more important in the first place and
that isn't included. If you got a solution for that already then
it is a choice between saving money and convenience.

If the choice was the same in Europe I would have bought the
photo version and in fact that's the only option here so I didn't
create any doubts :-). I have Vuescan, a free scanner calibration
package + some targets, Prove It! + the Spectrocam. The last can
be replaced with equal results by Colorvision's Spyder + software
if no printer profiles have to be made.

Ernst