[BlueSky]

After doing a search on this forum, I gather a lot of you like Canon. Unfortunately, they seem to have 13 x 19 as their maximum paper size (i9900).

I'm looking for a minimum paper size of 16 x 20, either roll-feed or paper feed or both. The printer will be used to print my art and sell.

I don't necessarily need 6 or 7 color ink systems, nor do I need something capable of doing giclee print quality. Just a good printer that doesn't suck up ink ridiculously fast.

I saw a HP DesignJet 110plus in the Mac Connection catalogue, any input on that or HP in general?

Any advice will be appreciated.

[Lee33]

Blue,
I have the same needs as you do. I've been looking at the HP Designjet 130 (retail around $1,100). More than I was hoping to spend but I have been through two home printers that retailed for about $299 and am tired of this. My research just started so don't have any other suggestions for you at this stage.

[tooki]

Canon makes large-format printers, too. But they're not listed in the "consumer" section of the website. Look at this page. (If that link expires, look at http://www.usa.canon.com/ then move the mouse over Products, then Office, then Printers. Load that, and click on large-format printers.)

tooki

[Norty]

Epson Printers are the way to go. I'd get the Epson 4000 ($1700), or the Epson 2200 ($699). Both have seven color ultrachrome inks. The quality is unmatched and you can replace individual ink tanks when needed. Go to www.epson.com

[im_noahselby]

Originally posted by Bluesky:
After doing a search on this forum, I gather a lot of you like Canon. Unfortunately, they seem to have 13 x 19 as their maximum paper size (i9900).

I saw a HP DesignJet 110plus in the Mac Connection catalogue, any input on that or HP in general?

The following is in reference to a lot of the stuff about HP you have read in your search:


This is worst place to ask about anything HP, as certain members here absolutely hate HP and will stop at nothing to belittle this company. HP isn't nearly as bad of a company as some members here would have you believe. I suggest you ask for unbiased advice reltaing to HP and their printers over here: http://www.dpreview.com (look in their printer forums).

My problem with some of the immature, ill sighted comments some people make about HP, at macnn, is that new people coming here looking for advice will think that HP printers wont work on a mac or will be nothing but problems for them, which couldn't be further from the truth.

I'm beginning to think it has something to do with:
a) mac users already hate HP because they along with printers and other products, are a maker of PC's that use Windows.
b) during the early days, during the transition to osx, a lot of people who owned HP printers got burned by HP's questionable driver support at that time. this is no longer an issue! (for some reason i wasn't affected during this time, my HP printer worked fine).
c) hp has generally speaking the highest cost of ink, compared to other inkjet printers (Not in all cases, but in most). forgive me for not realizing that this is the only factor in choosing a printer these days.

later,
Noah

[BlueSky]

Originally posted by Lee33:
Blue,
I have the same needs as you do. I've been looking at the HP Designjet 130 (retail around $1,100). More than I was hoping to spend but I have been through two home printers that retailed for about $299 and am tired of this. My research just started so don't have any other suggestions for you at this stage.

I think the 130 might be the way to go. I found it yesterday and so far the reviews are positive.

Still looking. Thanks everyone.

[jersey]

as a freelance designer/printmaker/printer i would recommend the epson ultrachrome series. i use the 7600, and the 9600 on a regular basis. i havent been able to get my hands on a 4000 yet, but if it has the same print head as the 76/9600 (which i think it does) thats the way to go.

[tooki]

HP has some nagging driver issues (in particular with all-in-one units) that need to be worked out. HP also has extremely high ink costs in its consumer-level devices, top-notch plain-paper text output, good quality but slow photo output. HP's large-format printers are very good.

Epson's consumer-level devices have convoluted and slow drivers (in particular, the runaround method to doing borderless and small-border printing), abysmal photo printing speed, and very high ink costs. On the other hand, Epson's large-format professional inkjets are excellent.

Canon has the consumer market nailed. Top-notch photo print quality, good draft text mode, extremely high print speed for all types of print jobs, and low ink costs combined with top-notch drivers. Canon's large-format printers aren't too widespread at this point, so I haven't read much about them. But if they are even just as good as their consumer printers, they'll be a treat.

tooki

[Athens]

Originally posted by Bluesky:
After doing a search on this forum, I gather a lot of you like Canon. Unfortunately, they seem to have 13 x 19 as their maximum paper size (i9900).

Look under there business solutions, the BJ-W9000 can do up to 106CM or 42" for you yanks and unlimited length. Prob isnt cheap though but it does have Mac Support.
http://www.canon-europe.com/For_Work...cePageID=26333

thats a link to the Europe site cuz its picture was better then the US site and you dont need to enter a zip code or anything.

6 Color printing, 12 print heads, can do 4.3 Meters per hour or around 12 feet.

[Lee33]

The only reason I have not looked too much at Epson is the fact that the print heads clog up a lot on my 890. One of the home printers I mentioned above that "died" on me was this Epson. It worked great for about 6 months but then would need cleaning EVERY time it sat unused for 2 or three days. It got to be a real pain in the butt. I had read about this problem in other forums before buying it so I have no one to blame but myself.

I had not considered a Canon until reading tooki's post. Might have to look into those, too.

Thanks for all the input, everyone.

[iomatic]

We may go with the 130... anyone have experience/reviews for this?

[OreoCookie]

Originally Posted by Norty

Epson Printers are the way to go. I'd get the Epson 4000 ($1700), or the Epson 2200 ($699). Both have seven color ultrachrome inks. The quality is unmatched and you can replace individual ink tanks when needed. Go to www.epson.com

The 2200 is outdated (at least in Europe), it's been replaced by the R2400. However, I think it cannot print 16x20".

[tooki]

Did you notice that the post you replied to was 9 months old? It's only natural that the model assortment has changed!

tooki

[OreoCookie]

Dang, damn time shift.

[iomatic]

that's a 'NO' from everyone with experience with the 130/130nr?


thanks.

[X-Ray]

I'd really recommend going to dpreview and check out the printer forum. There is a definite pro Canon bias on these forums. By the way I have never had any problems with hp's drivers. Also, the Designjet 130 is very frugal with ink. If you want to check out longevity of prints go to: http://www.wilhelm-research.com/. If you want your prints to fade buy a Canon! As an aside, all printers have their pluses and minuses, but for your needs I think the 130 is the best bang for the buck.

[tomrock]

I'm a full-time photographer and I'm casting another vote for Epson. The latest model that does the size you want is the 4800 but if that's too expensive you can porbably find a deal on the previous model the 4000.

The HPs do a nice job for banners, I don't know about the Canons but if longevity is important to you -- you want an Ultrachrome Epson. Nash Editions is a fine-art printing company that prints for museums and they use Epsons.

[iomatic]

We just got our 130nr... holy crap the box is the size of a small coffin!

[bowwowman]

There is nothing wrong with HP's printers, or scanners for that matter, especially in the mid to upper market items.

It's their suk-ass OS X software that causes so many people here to hate them....

That, and their outrageous ink prices, but that's almost universal nowadays for inkjets anyway