A3 Printers

T

taxboy

Suspended / Banned
Messages
1,985
Edit My Images
Yes
I've started looking at replacing my ageing Epson 1270 for a new A3 printer. I have narrowed my choice down to the following as I would like to do some quality B&W as well as colour prints

Canon 9500
Epson 2400
HP B9180

My initial research suggests the following - the Canon is pretty good but also the most expensive. It also won't print to the edge on heavier weight media

The Epson produces excellent quality prints but might be susceptible to clogging (although I've not really suffered in my current Epson from this) and can be expensive to run if you regularly swap the black cartridges

The HP produces excellent prints but there are question marks over its mechanical reliability and reports of it leaving pizza wheel marks on the paper.

I'm looking for any comments from real world users of any of these printers to see if what I've discovered is valid or just internet chatter

TIA
 
I've not long purchased a HP B9180 and there's only one word to say for the print quality is awesome!

I haven't noticed any pizza wheel marks on the paper! I first saw it when I went to a course at DigitalDepot in Stevenage. If you had seen the quality you would have brought one! I couldn't because I didn't have the car and it's not the lightest printer! I eventually puchased it over the internet.

It takes a little while to set up but it's worth it. If the mods on here don't mind here's a link to another photo website where they did a comprehensive review of the 3 printers you mention. I belive the HP just edged it. On one of the pages they show you how to set the HP up. As you'll see the review of the 3 printers is over several pages so it's very comprehensive. If you click on where it says the 3 pigs review there is a drop down menu to link to all the various pages!

http://www.photo-i.co.uk/Reviews/printers/Pigs/page_1.html
 
Northstreet1 said:
I've not long purchased a HP B9180 and there's only one word to say for the print quality is awesome!

I haven't noticed any pizza wheel marks on the paper! I first saw it when I went to a course at DigitalDepot in Stevenage. If you had seen the quality you would have brought one! I couldn't because I didn't have the car and it's not the lightest printer! I eventually puchased it over the internet.

It takes a little while to set up but it's worth it. If the mods on here don't mind here's a link to another photo website where they did a comprehensive review of the 3 printers you mention. I belive the HP just edged it. On one of the pages they show you how to set the HP up. As you'll see the review of the 3 printers is over several pages so it's very comprehensive. If you click on where it says the 3 pigs review there is a drop down menu to link to all the various pages!

http://www.photo-i.co.uk/Reviews/printers/Pigs/page_1.html
Click to expand...


Thanks for that it's very helpful - do you have a preferred media type e.g. matt, glossy etc or does the printer handle them all equally as well ?
 
I have a Epson R1800 and the print quality wows me everytime I do an A3 print, the pigment inks are superb and you could get an inkflow system to combat the cost. I wanted the R2400 but it was too expensive at the time but I believe it has now been reduced so might be a good buy now.
 
I currently have a 1290, and have been thinking about an upgrade for almost a year now. I had my heart set on the B9180, but the main problem is that there is not enough paper profiles for it. I tested one at a friends place, and while the output is good the fact that she recommended only sticking to HP papers worries me alot.

I think the 2400 may be the pick here as it is the only one you can use roll paper with.
 
FranchiseJuan said:
I currently have a 1290, and have been thinking about an upgrade for almost a year now. I had my heart set on the B9180, but the main problem is that there is not enough paper profiles for it. I tested one at a friends place, and while the output is good the fact that she recommended only sticking to HP papers worries me alot.

I think the 2400 may be the pick here as it is the only one you can use roll paper with.
Click to expand...


I've used Fujifilm paper in it!
 
taxboy said:
Thanks for that it's very helpful - do you have a preferred media type e.g. matt, glossy etc or does the printer handle them all equally as well ?
Click to expand...


I'm still deciding which paper I prefer! However several people have recommend to me HP Advanced Satin-Matt paper as the one to use.
 
I bought a R2400 about a month ago, the output is simply stunning with the archival matte paper. Looking forwards to getting a bigger supply of the stuff in the new year plus a CISS for it. It seems very well built. The Mac drivers are a little flakey with leopard but were fine with tiger. The PC drivers seem much better :bang: The printer itself seems very well put together with lots of paper handling options.
 
Just a quick word of warning regarding those inkflow systems.I had one for my R300 as i printed quite a lot of disks at the time, after about 3 months my printer had to go in for a service. I was told by my local repairer that the printer had flooded.Whenever i tried to use the system my printer flooded within a couple of weeks.

Just something to be mindful of before you make that purchase.

Hope this is helpful.
 
The R1800 / R2400 are very good printers. I have 2 R1800's as we speak and an Epson 9800. All of which use the standard Epson cartridges.

I dont think theyre too expensive at all to run - and the print quality has never really been compromised.

Like all inkjets, the inkheads can get clogged if putting media in with dust on / not keeping no top of maintenance correctly.

The 9800 has two maintenance tanks which takes off the excess bleed, any dirt from the inkhead jets. Thus i've never had a problem with them.

OK - the inkhead itself blew on the 9800 but what do you expect running 44" prints all day long for many many months.

I've started experimenting more now with the R1800 with different Epson media. Sure enough, with the correct profile you can sucessfully print on matt, canvas, roll gloss, luster, fineart paper with no problem.

Cartridges are approx £8 each if bought online and last due to it having 8 different inks.

For the R1800, you can also purchase a silver-ink system. This is, 8 different black cartridges for black and white prints that will blow your mind !!
 
Lee Eccles said:
Just a quick word of warning regarding those inkflow systems.I had one for my R300 as i printed quite a lot of disks at the time, after about 3 months my printer had to go in for a service. I was told by my local repairer that the printer had flooded.Whenever i tried to use the system my printer flooded within a couple of weeks.

Just something to be mindful of before you make that purchase.

Hope this is helpful.
Click to expand...

I have one on my R300 now. It depends on the system, I bought a cheap one first and that happened so I had to fix it. I then bought a decent one and have printed 2000+ pages since! The system I am buying costs half as much as the printer but it will pay for itself !!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top