QTR-Quadtone RIP

Hi Tony,

Thank you for the details of your test results.

Is anyone using K7 in the 4000 or larger machines yet?

What you experienced was exactly what I would expect from what I have
read up until now. Personally I haven't had my hands on either inkset
yet and look forward to working with both soon.

From what Roy mentioned about the K7 inkset, I would expect the
slightly more subtle tonal transitions to be the strong point along
with an easy to achieve purely consistent color tone, which is
someting in itself. 

I imagine that what one might consider a very subtle and almost
neglegable difference in tonal transition in a small print could
translate into significant luminance delicacy in a large print from a
great drum scan at say 30"x40" or so. I don't know. I have seen
certain prints for instance done with Epson K2 and QTR that look
indistinguishable from Piezzotone with one type image and another
where super delicate highlights predominate can show major differences
in the rendition of that part of the upper highlight scale, while
maintaining texture up there.

Have you tried QTR with the K3 inkset? Is it available for those
printers yet? I would expect a tonal improvement with a rip on both of
these inksets, especially if the individual printers are carefully
linearized with a spectrometer.

What about DMAX? I was concerned about that when I first received the
K7 sample print but have heard since then that DMax is about that same
as what we've been experienceing in the past. I hope so. If so this is
going to be fun.

It is going to be an interesting year for monochrome and watching how
all this shakes out. 

John 




--- In QuadtoneRIP@yahoogroups.com, "tony_morielli"
<tony_morielli@y...> wrote:
> 
> Hi John,
> 
> I have an Epson 2200 loaded with the Piezography K7 inset.  I also
> have an Epson R2400 loaded with Epson's K3 inset.  As a result, I've
> been able to compare both inksets using the same image and paper. 
> I've also used the MIS Ultratone inks in the 2200.  Overall, the
> R2400/K3 does a great job in BW mode but the Piezography K7 does give
> somewhat smoother tonal transitions.  The Piezography K7 inkset is
> also superior to the MIS Ultratone inks since the K7 inks do not clog
> the printer, whereas the MIS inks frequently did.    
> 
> Regarding the quality of the K7 inks compared to the Epson R2400 BW
> mode prints, I've noticed the following:  The R2400/K3 prints are
> excellent.  There is no color cast and it is difficult to tell the
> difference between a BW image printed using the R2400/K3 (matt black
> in this case) vs. the 2200/K7.  However, close inspection of images
> with fine tonal gradations reveal that the 2200/K7 print is noticeably
> superior in its ability to generate very smooth and soft tonal
> transitions.  This is not to say that the 2400/K3 transitions were not
> excellent.  Instead, it is to say that the 2200/K7 prints were
> superior even to the excellent 2400/K3 prints.  To my eye, the
> differences are only noticeable in the transitions in the mid to high
> tones.  They are fine but are not hard to see.  The shadows looked
> pretty much the same to me.  The tone produced by the K7 inkset
> closely matches what I would call truly neutral gray.  It also looks
> very close to neutral gray produced by the R2400/K3 inks.  All images
> were printed on Epson Enhanced Matte (EEM) paper.  The R2400 prints
> were made with Epson's curves for EEM and the BW driver.  The 2200
> prints were made with Quad tone RIP and the curves for EEM.  Attempts
> to fiddle with the images in Photoshop to get the 2400/K3 print to the
> level of the 2200 print were not successful.  There was always a bit
> of a difference.  
> 
> The test described above was the only one I've done so far, and it was
> all with visual inspection.  Perhaps making my own curves for the 2400
> and tweaking them will bring those prints to the same smoothness as
> the 2200/K7 prints.  Of course, the same tweaking might also improve
> the 2200/K7 prints to a quality beyond where they are now.
> 
> So, the K7 inset produces outstanding results.  It compares favorably
> and is slightly superior to the 2400/K3 BW mode prints and to prints
> using MIS Ultratone inks in the 2200.  Importantly, the K7 insets have
> never once clogged the printer.  Unfortunately, I cannot say the same
> for the MIS inks.  
> 
> With all of that said, my view is that the R2400/K3 prints and the
> 2200/K7 prints are so close in quality that it will not be worth it
> for most R2400 owners to consider the K7 inkset.  My original plan was
> to buy the 2400 and then sell the 2200.  But I've decided to keep both
> only because it lets me use the R2400 for color and glossy prints and
> the 2200 for matte BW and because I'm perhaps a bit too picky about BW
> image quality.
> 
> Finally, please note a recent post by me regarding problems with QTR
> for Windows and the Epson 2200 printer.  It does not address image
> quality, but instead a problem with the program's ability to
> communicate with or control the printer.   
> 
> 
> Best,
> 
> Tony
> 
> --- In QuadtoneRIP@yahoogroups.com, "john dean" <deanwork2003@y...>
wrote:
> > Who is using QTR with K7 Piezzotone, and how is it working for you.
> > 
> > John