just ordered a 3800 return from epson for $800. My question is, how many 16x20's can I expect to get out of a full set of inks printing with good quality settings and on Epson luster paper?
Iknow you can't give me an exact because of too many factors come in to play but an estimate would be great. I'm just trying to see how mch per print this is going to cost me.
It is very tricky to give exact numbers, and ink is not used in a linear fashion, so some inks will run out before others. This is much more evident in printers with larger ink tanks. One nice thing is you can buy inks with a just in time policy, ink below say 10% order a new cart, if you print commercially or have a big job coming in you may want to go with below 20%.
From what I've read Epsons use about 2mls of ink for each square ft, so a 16x20 is 2.2 sqft so that is 4.4 mls of ink for each 16x20. So you have 9 inks assuming a linear response from the inks, since the blacks are split I called it 8.5 inks x 80ml = 680mls total ink gives you 154.5 16x20s. There is a little loss of ink changing from photo to matte papers, there is a loss through clogs (seemingly not a big deal with the 3800). With the initial carts you will have 55-60 mls of ink to use instead of 80 because of initializing the printer.
Hope this helps.
hmm good good.... I know giving exact numbers isnt very accurate because of different factors, what I'm printing and such. but a rough idea is nice. I am guessing with the guess you made that it will run me about $8.50 per 16x20 print and about $1.50-2.50 per 8x10. I am going to like this. More in house printing for me.
I know some people say just get a damn lab print. It is better, blah blah blah.... In some regards I agree. But with the way ink jet printers are going, it is just as good to print at home. Especially with a good printer and good paper. Plus it is faster.
I did a test with a client a few weeks ago just to see how they would react. I called them (one of my best brides from 2007) and asked if they would like a few free prints because I was testing a new paper and wanted to see what they thought. I gave her 3 8x10's and 2 11x14's on epson luster. She called crying that they were beautiful. I asked her honost opinion in comparison to the other prints I gave her(prints from a lab) and she said they looked the same in quality but the latest prints looked more punchy in her words.
best bet is to keep track yourself. I know my 4800 keeps track of job history so I can keep a running total and cost per print. I can only assume the 3800 does as well.
