I recently bought an all-in-one Epson printer to replace our old HP printer as a way to quickly output half-decent prints on the spot for cards, calendars, etc for family or small sale items as well as everyday printing with auto-duplexing. While testing out Red River Paper samples it became painfully obvious that the little bit of ink in each tank runs out really fast (only about 28 8x10's). To say the least, $120 for a set of inks is an insane price - almost the price of the printer itself!
Notwithstanding the claim of 800 pages of text per high capacity tank (I estimate 50 or so 8x10's), does anyone out there know of a reliable source of cost per print for picture printing from the major manufacturers? I plan to print calendars and A7 greeting cards possibly for sale mainly as well as everyday usage from this machine (that's why duplexing is a must). Is this typical of an inkjet printer?
To make the ink costs anywhere near affordable, there are inkjet tank systems out there. Knowing that this will void the warranty and these systems have been around for a while, any advice on this? Is there a tank system that is better than another?
I installed a Lyson continuous ink system on my Epson 2400 about a month ago and so far, have been very happy. Easy to install, it just requires some care and thought in doing so, and the IQ has been every bit as good as the Epson inks. Don't know if it will actually reduce ink costs by the claimed 80% but my guess is that it will be close. With the caveat that I have only been using it for a month, it would get an unreserved two thumbs up from me.
Personally I will not use a continuous ink system, too many possible issues I don't want to deal with. Profiles, print life, batch consistancy, ink shelf life etc.
There are some ways to lower your per print cost and stay with standard ink. A lower cost supplier, I use atlex.com or a higher end printer like a 3800 or 4800 depending on your volume.
I use the R800 and the cost per print is higher then a lab, the control and turn around time make it worth it for me. With any Epson printer below the 3800 your cost per print will be higher then many labs. The higher end large format printers us much larger ink tanks 80-220ml at a much lower cost per print.
This is all based on Epson printers as that is what I use but should be similier with others.
I recently bought an all-in-one Epson printer to replace our old HP printer as a way to quickly output half-decent prints on the spot for cards, calendars, etc for family or small sale items as well as everyday printing with auto-duplexing. While testing out Red River Paper samples it became painfully obvious that the little bit of ink in each tank runs out really fast (only about 28 8x10's). To say the least, $120 for a set of inks is an insane price - almost the price of the printer itself!
Notwithstanding the claim of 800 pages of text per high capacity tank (I estimate 50 or so 8x10's), does anyone out there know of a reliable source of cost per print for picture printing from the major manufacturers? I plan to print calendars and A7 greeting cards possibly for sale mainly as well as everyday usage from this machine (that's why duplexing is a must). Is this typical of an inkjet printer?
To make the ink costs anywhere near affordable, there are inkjet tank systems out there. Knowing that this will void the warranty and these systems have been around for a while, any advice on this? Is there a tank system that is better than another?
I was of the same opinion regarding print life ect until recently, when i spent 300 dollars in ink during a power clean on my 9800. Inks from big manufacturers are a ripoff. The system above pays for itself with 16 oz of each color included. If you are under the impression tha non Epson inks can't possiby be that good, call Epson and tell them that they are doing a good job with the scare tactics.
I plan on getting a system soon. I spoke, at length, with the owner of the company and he gave me some pretty powerful references.
I just bought an Epson 7880. I have been looking around at 3rd party inks for my 7600.
First, download a copy of the ICC profile for each ink on a standard paper, like Epson Premium Luster. There are tools online that will let you compare two profiles.
Compare the profile for the 3rd party ink to the same profile for the Epson 7880, 7800, and 7600.
I have yet to find a 3rd party, 7 or 8 color ink set for the 7600 that is more than marginabally better than the older Ultrachrome inks in the 7600. None even approach the gamut of the 7800, much less the 7880.
Then do a breakeven analysis. Figure in the cost for replacement carts, cleaning system (if required), new profiles, etc. For one manufacturer the breakeven was 4.5 sets of 220ML carts - 32+ carts. More ink than I will use in the 7600 in 1.5 years, so 1.5 years just to breakeven. For poorer gamut, unknown and totally unproven longevity, no standard profiles when trying new papers, no AStkinson profiles, etc.
Don't accept the manufacturers claims of $$ savings over Epson. For the 220 carts, for example, they use the list price of $112. I can buy Epson ink for $82 per cart, shipped (www.mpex.com) Pantone ink costs $76 for a 220ml cart, so does Cave Paint! (Cheaper in bulk though. Still, compare the per liter cost.)
I am either going to upgrade my 7600 to the K3 Vivid inks, or install cheap dye inks and use it purely as a proofing system. But I have not found a 7 color pigment ink set that is worth bothering with just to save $200 or $300.
The 12 ink systems may be another story. I'd like to hear how you fare with the Symphony inks! Good luck.
Well, my printer is hardly as high volume as those mentioned above. Like I mentioned, I needed an everyday printer for now with the possibility to quick print some pro-like items from time to time. So I got an Epson RX680. And I did just purchase the high-capacity tanks from Epson direct. I didn't find them anywhere else, but I guess I should Google that again.
Since this is planned to be an everyday printer with the hopes of getting a dedicated photo printer next time, I might become the guinea pig for the tank system. I dunno, I'm still on the fence.
mmurph wrote:
I just bought an Epson 7880. I have been looking around at 3rd party inks for my 7600.
First, download a copy of the ICC profile for each ink on a standard paper, like Epson Premium Luster. There are tools online that will let you compare two profiles.
Compare the profile for the 3rd party ink to the same profile for the Epson 7880, 7800, and 7600.
I have yet to find a 3rd party, 7 or 8 color ink set for the 7600 that is more than marginabally better than the older Ultrachrome inks in the 7600. None even approach the gamut of the 7800, much less the 7880.
Then do a breakeven analysis. Figure in the cost for replacement carts, cleaning system (if required), new profiles, etc. For one manufacturer the breakeven was 4.5 sets of 220ML carts - 32+ carts. More ink than I will use in the 7600 in 1.5 years, so 1.5 years just to breakeven. For poorer gamut, unknown and totally unproven longevity, no standard profiles when trying new papers, no AStkinson profiles, etc.
Don't accept the manufacturers claims of $$ savings over Epson. For the 220 carts, for example, they use the list price of $112. I can buy Epson ink for $82 per cart, shipped (www.mpex.com) Pantone ink costs $76 for a 220ml cart, so does Cave Paint! (Cheaper in bulk though. Still, compare the per liter cost.)
I am either going to upgrade my 7600 to the K3 Vivid inks, or install cheap dye inks and use it purely as a proofing system. But I have not found a 7 color pigment ink set that is worth bothering with just to save $200 or $300.
The 12 ink systems may be another story. I'd like to hear how you fare with the Symphony inks! Good luck.
best,
Michael ...Show more →
You don't have to take my word for it. Call Scott and he will be more than happy to send you some print samples to compare.
I didn't think any of the inks were backward compatible.... I know the x880's won't work in earlier printers...
Your math seems pretty accurate, but I've already gone through quite a bit of ink just printing a few 16x24's and 24x36's.
The inkjetcolorsystems set includes patches for custom profiles, which they will do at no charge and it comes with Epson profiles.
Unless you speak to a company and get a few facts straight, it would seem inappropriate to make blanket statements such as: ink won't last, colors are weak...ect.
In 75-100 years, maybe we will see that Epson was lying about their archival ability...... How difficult would it be to test that anyway? I would bet it is eiter a simple chemical test or some special light.
Anyway, I am not pimping this or any bulk system. I was just trying to provide the poster with some help.
. How difficult would it be to test that anyway? I would bet it is eiter a simple chemical test or some special light.