Digital BW, The Print

Hi Marko,

>I am trying to understand drawbacks of using UT-3D inks on R200...
>Benefits seem to be many, such as not having to switch 
>cartridges for glossy/matt, and having ability to relatively 
>easily create icc profiles with PrintFix PRO. 
>I realize it is not as plug-and-play, but
>I don't mind tweaking - I enjoy it - for as long as 
>ultimate results are possible.

>Are there any inherent drawbacks in UT-3D image quality 
>compared to sing UT-R2 inkset on R200?

The R2 is mostly just easier.  If you enjoy the working the controls and are
comfortable with Create ICC-RGB (in QTR), then I'd go with the 3D.  It is
considerably more flexible and there should be no quality difference.

>Also, I see that there are light black inks in UT-3D inkset 
>for 7 or 8 color printers. Does this make a big difference 
>compared to using 6 color printers like R200?

I dislike the LK and LLK inks in the 7 and 8 ink printers.  In fact, I
pulled the recommendation for the inkset and the 2400.  The Epson driver's
gray substitution in the 2400 made it very hard to profile.  The inkset
works best in 6 ink printers when the Epson driver is used.

>... I don't know what problems Ultratone prints suffer from. 
>For example, can you get perfectly smooth shadow
>detail without visible posterization or grainines?

Yes, that should be no problem.  Nothing is perfect in the sense that if you
enlarge the prints enough you'll see some dots, but they are not, I
believer, visible without a loupe.


>The ip4300 I'm using looks OK from 3ft away but not good enough 
>up close. 10% and 20% gray look smooth, but 15% gray is a little 
>grainy, so when you have a transition between these shades it 
>just doesn't look good enough up close - the texture changes.

I don’t have a Canon printer, but from what you've said, I doubt it is can
compete with these dedicated inksets.  When used properly, the Epson printer
+ B&W inkset approach works very well.  

Paul
www.PaulRoark.com 





--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Paul Roark"
<paul.roark@...> wrote:
>
> I used the UT-3D regularly on an R220. See
> http://www.paulroark.com/BW-Info/UT-3D_Readme.pdf So, in the
abstract, the
> inkset should perform well on the R200, but I can't say whether the 220
> profiles will be well matched to the 200. I've never tested that. 
My guess
> is that the curves may need to be re-linearized. See
>
http://www.paulroark.com/BW-Info/Embedding_Photoshop_Curves_in_ICCs.pdf
for
> the basic procedures to do that.
> 
> 
> 
> The UT-R2 inkset is one you might want to consider, particularly if
you're
> just starting to get into B&W digital printing. See
> http://www.paulroark.com/BW-Info/R200_R2_Readme.pdf 
> 
> 
> 
> Good luck with the system.
> 
> 
> 
> Paul
> 
> www.PaulRoark.com <http://www.paulroark.com/> 
> _____ 
> 
> From: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com
> [mailto:DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of
> marko.mili
> Sent: Monday, August 27, 2007 4:44 PM
> To: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [Digital BW] Epson R200 with Ultratone 3D?
> 
> 
> 
> I can get unused R200 locally to get me started with B&W printing. One
> thing that is not clear to me is whether R200 can be used with UT-3D
> inks (it seems that this would be the best choice of inks for
> versatility and for learning).
> 
> Can I use R200 or should I try to find R220?
> 
> (I have PrintFix PRO for profiling, if that makes a difference)
> 
> Thanks.