Digital BW, The Print

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, Ernst Dinkla 
<E.Dinkla@c...> wrote:

> 
> However if you read the MIS 7600 information next to the Pro 
Archival 
> information then there's hardly any difference to find. I tend to 
think 
> that the better compatibility is in the name they gave it: Pro 
Archival 
> suits the total range of Pro printers better than MIS 7600.
> 
> Ernst

If it was just a different name, then they would have said "formerly 
MIS XXXX".

I read the info on the MIS site the other day too, it really had very 
little of anything there. The information about being more compatible 
with the Epson inks leads me to believe that these are the same inks 
that I use, however I don't think the colors are the same as what I'm 
using. On many papers, the full cyan hits the b* axis dead on, and 
the magenta hits the a* axis (L*a*b*). The light cyan and magenta are 
really a medium color. I don't think you can use them to produce 
great results with the Epson driver, at least not the 9500 epson 
driver. I know MIS have tested the same inks I use, Marc (from MIS) 
told me they were. The manufacturer told me to try and get samples 
from MIS (which of course didn't happen). When I tried to buy more 
from MIS, they gave me a hard time, even though I know they could 
have "ordered" them special for me. The big clue will be if the inks 
smell different from the old inks and different from Eboni. As soon 
as you open a bottle, you should notice the difference.

You can buy what I'm using from WeInk under the name of Chromium Pro, 
these are not for everyone, you will need a RIP to take advantage of 
their gamut (again at least with a 9500). Features are increased 
gloss for all the inks (excluding matte black), including photo 
black*. Lower dot gain giving even the older printers smaller dots 
(noticeably smaller in my 9500). Super concentrated, so you use less 
ink (theory, but makes sense). Improved gamut on gloss/semi, maybe 
more gamut on matte papers (waiting for a change in the RIP driver to 
finalize my thoughts).

Other benefits include being able to ask the real manufacturer what 
product to use to dilute the inks. Yellows, oranges, and reds are 
great. Black (matte) is very similar to Eboni in some ways, better in 
others. Clogging is about the same as most other third party inks, 
now that it's humid here, I've had no problems even after several 
days of no printing. Flow through my CIS was noticeably better than 
the previous inks.

* The photo black may require things like slow printing to get the 
most benefits. Putting the ink down too fast yields a lighter black 
because you have to use less ink. Theory is that uni-directional 
printing, and maybe a slight pause between passes will increase 
density, and give a better gloss. I won't be testing the photo black 
anymore, testing that reminded me of why I prefer matte papers. I'll 
only be using the photo black to make lighter shades, and then only 
if I can't get what I want from lighter mixes of the matte black. On 
some luster papers, you may have a problem where the inks are far too 
glossy as compared to the paper. I never checked a true gloss paper.

These inks have been a challenge. I did however just buy 500ml each, 
so I'll be with them for a while.