Digital BW, The Print

I'm looking at getting one of the following printers:

HP8450
Epson R800
Epson R1800
Canon i9950 (aka i9900)
Canon Pixma iP5000


Now, for this thread i just want to talk about B&W performance.  How 
would you rate these printers in terms of B&W?  Which is best and 
worst?

Ability to print neutral tones is the biggest thing, followed by 
normal image quality (whether the dots are noticeable, detail, 
punch, longevity etc) and tonality in B&W (particularly how the 
blacks render).

Any thoughts on the performance in this regard of these printers?

how easy are they to get good, neutral B&W without profiling?  What 
about with some tinkering of the settings?  How about after proper 
cailbration and profiling?