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Archive 2014 · Best printer for under $1,000

  
 
StowePhoto
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Best printer for under $1,000


Hi,

I am currently using a Canon iP4820 for my printing. It's been a decent printer for the past 4 years. In the last few printing sessions I am simply not coming close to the level of quality I want from the prints. I shoot with a 5DMKIII, edit on a Thunderbolt 27" screen and generally have the images looking perfect prior to printing, and then get muddy, off colors when I print. It is also limited to A4 paper size. Not that I absolutely need to go bigger but it wouldn't hurt.

Before making a purchase I was curious if you could chip in with advise. If you had a budget of about $1,000 for a new printer, what would you go with? What is most economical when it comes to ink? What papers would you recommend? I'm not selling many prints, but a handful of jobs have come up lately where I've had to make about 50-100 5x7 prints on site. The iP4820 isn't cutting it anymore.

Thanks-



Feb 10, 2014 at 07:07 AM
howardm4
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Best printer for under $1,000


epson 3880 should be on your short list



Feb 10, 2014 at 08:29 AM
Mirek Elsner
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Best printer for under $1,000


StowePhoto wrote:
If you had a budget of about $1,000 for a new printer, what would you go with? What is most economical when it comes to ink? What papers would you recommend? I'm not selling many prints, but a handful of jobs have come up lately where I've had to make about 50-100 5x7 prints on site. The iP4820 isn't cutting it anymore.

Thanks-


I would buy Epson 3880 again. It uses large cartridges where the ink (per ml) is cheaper than small cartridges used in smaller printers. It has wide user community so you can get some good advice online and it is supported by most if not all paper manufactures and you can get profiles and setting instructions for their papers.

It is a heavy printer and not suitable for transport and printing on site, though.

I don't know anything about the iP4820, but if your prints are dull, I suspect the problem may be in your settings rather than the printer.



Feb 10, 2014 at 11:22 AM
rdcny
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Best printer for under $1,000


Canon Pro 100 - a dye ink printer for about $100 after rebates


Feb 10, 2014 at 04:44 PM
Whaler
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Best printer for under $1,000


Epson 3880


Feb 10, 2014 at 09:55 PM
codyconway
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Best printer for under $1,000


Epson 3880 as others have said, you can pick up a refurbished directly from Epson for 150 below your budget. . . http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/consumer/consDetail.jsp?BV_UseBVCookie=yes&infoType=FandB&oid=63089025&category=Products


Feb 11, 2014 at 07:11 PM
maxx9photo
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Best printer for under $1,000


Canon Pro-1


Feb 11, 2014 at 11:03 PM
Bifurcator
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Best printer for under $1,000


I think, these days, feed is good from all brands. And I also think the resolution needed is available from all brands. And I also think the sophistication of their dithering and ink depositing/distrobution is good across all brands. And I also think the build quality is close to the same across brands (relevant to price).

So really what's left? Well, there is the ink. There's a couple of interesting aspects of ink. Once is the type of ink. There's enough difference between certain kinds to make an actual difference. And then there's perhaps the most distinguishing trait between printer brands and models: The number of them (No. of Inks). When I look at a print from an 11 or 12 ink printer I can tell a difference in a lot of different shots - - not all though - some look the same on a 5-ink as they do from a 12-ink machine.

Anyway, these days, if I were you, then I would take my $1,000 around to all the different manufacturers and see how many inks they'll give me for it. Then I would search around for opinions about the various types of inks out there and maybe consider that secondarily.

So far from here the recommendations are:

The Canon Pro-1. It has 12 inks. The Epson Pro 3880 was mentioned - it has nine I think. Somebody said Canon Pro-100 which has eight inks. Shrug…



Feb 12, 2014 at 06:17 AM
phcorrigan
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Best printer for under $1,000


Mirek Elsner wrote:
I would buy Epson 3880 again. It uses large cartridges where the ink (per ml) is cheaper than small cartridges used in smaller printers. It has wide user community so you can get some good advice online and it is supported by most if not all paper manufactures and you can get profiles and setting instructions for their papers.

It is a heavy printer and not suitable for transport and printing on site, though.

I don't know anything about the iP4820, but if your prints are dull, I suspect the problem may be in your settings rather than the printer.
...Show more
I would agree with this. I have the 2880 and the image quality is excellent. The 3880 will give you much larger ink cartridges and it can handle material up to 17" wide.



Feb 12, 2014 at 11:42 PM
Mike M. Kraus
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Best printer for under $1,000


+ 1 on all the 3880


Feb 12, 2014 at 11:49 PM
Lars Johnsson
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Best printer for under $1,000


Epson 3880


Feb 13, 2014 at 12:58 AM
Dustoff06
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Best printer for under $1,000


Epson 3880


Feb 13, 2014 at 09:05 AM
KatieInTexas
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Best printer for under $1,000


I went with the Canon Pro 1. Seemed to have less problems with head clogging issues, and since the head is interchangeable, you don't have to ditch the whole printer when it goes out; just replace the head yourself and your GTG.


Feb 13, 2014 at 09:41 AM





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