Digital BW, The Print

Thanks Paul & Clayton.  I made progress - prints are crisper and the
tones less muddled.  Not where I hope want to be but way ahead of before.

Following Paul's settings to the letter plus taking a page from
Clayton's online suggestions, I did some experimenting and concluded
the following:

This 1280 with UT2 inks wants very different file pre-processing than
I did for the simpler BO on a 785EXP.  Higher contrast and lower dpi
for starters.  Additionally, it seems to respond better to alternative
Media types than the Epson Matte setting on the driver.  This is now
fun as it reminds me of when I first started doing my own prints.

Two new questions:

Paul - I downloaded both your "Purging test pattern - 6 color" and the 
21-step files.  The test pattern printed the 6 distinctly different
tones without any problems.  Does that mean it "passed" or is there
anything else it can tell me?

Also, the 21-step patterns (I printed all of them) printed a very
smooth set of transitions from dark to light.  In fact, it was
downright impressive how subtle the density changes were.  You
mentioned that you use different ones depending on the dmax of the
paper-ink combination.  How to I find that combination for the
paper/inks I'm using - is it a published?

Thanks, Dan 



 

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Paul Roark"
<paul.roark@...> wrote:
>
> 
> 
> > Paul and Clayton both suggest the 1280 is out-of-date and difficult to
> > use.  You each suggest a different one   - Paul the R220, $100 from
> > Epson and Clayton the 2400, $849.99 ...
> 
> The R220 can often be found for under $70.  Some even sell the OEM
inks on
> Ebay to reduce the price further.
>  
> > My first reaction is that the 1280 produced great prints before, I see
> > no reason this one won't...
> 
> The 1280 can produce excellent results.  However, the newer printers are
> more consistent in their production.  So, the chance of getting a
1280 that
> is marginal is higher than with a more modern printer.  I also think the
> carts for the 1280 are not as good as the individual modern carts.  
> 
> When marginal printer performance is combined with partitioning
curves, the
> results can be a grayscale ramp that is not smooth.  A flat spot on
the ramp
> could be what is causing the "muddy" look in your prints.
> 
> Workflows that use all the inks (as Epson intended) or just the
black ink
> are more likely to hide the problems of a printer that is a bit off.
> 
> > From Paul: Test files to trouble shoot the system.  Paul thanks. I
> > will, of course try the alternative purge pattern (I run a standard
> > nozzle check before each new file run) as well as see if I can run the
> > 21-step file correctly.   I look forward to trying your more
> > sophisticated approach and reporting back.  I'm betting on "operator
> > error" as the root cause.
> 
> Most of the problems are settings.  So, pay close attention to the
settings
> in my 1280 UT2 notes at http://home1.gte.net/res09aij/UT2-Readme.htm .
> 
> Paul
> www.PaulRoark.com
>