QTR-Quadtone RIP

Obviously the CMYK question sounds silly.


I'm doing some printing tests with Icefields. Icefields Halftones - Isis Imaging Corporation
I know bitmap is not supported by QTR, but Icefields can export FM halftones in TIFF, making a printable grayscale image that has only 0% and 100% pixels, up to 1800 ppi.
This might be of poor interest for printing positives, but I was surprised it makes negatives that are totally acceptable, though this would need extended trials.
Printing halftones might also interest - or not! - mostly the few dealing with all-gray ink sets and using single value droplets.


Then, not knowing exactly where this can lead, Icefields can also creates a quadtone file from a grayscale image and FM halftone it.
This makes a composite of 4 FM halftones, with real stochastic screening, exported in TIFF as a CMJK image.
It would be great to be able to print simultaneously those 4 FM channels, assigning each one to different ink channels.
But I can't find a turnaround in QTR to do so.
The calibration mode does print something, but again I don't know what conversion is made (RGB must be involved, maybe grayscale too) that probably "flattens" or mix the channels.
It seems that when printing from Print Tool, QTR converts the CMYK file to grayscale.
However, the CMYK composite converted in grayscale is something quite new that combines FM screening and pixel values.


Printing different file channels on the same print can certainly be made with this printer.
What a place, what a dream...
http://www.factum-arte.com/pag/15/Flatbed-printing


Then I don't really have further questions.


Stefan Christiansen