A3 Printers

[Lynsnow]

I am looking to upgrade my printer and would like to print up to A3 size i have narrowed it down to the canon pixma pro 9500 or the epson 2400 i would be interested on hearing any good or bad points on them. thanks

[eeyore]

both are good machines and you will find the diffrences /prefferences between them come down to teeny tiny things which are largely a matter of interpretation.

I like the epson (though I have a 1290) the one bad point about them is the ink can be quite expensive - however you can get round this by using a bulk print kit (essentialy a load of presurised bottles which connect to your print head via plastic tubes - tho this is only worth the investment if you are going to print a lot.

Another consideration is how much you are going to print at A3 anyway - if its only occasionaly you might be better off with a good A4 machine and ordering your A3+ prints from a printing service - I use a very good one based in newport who is very reasonably priced (If you want his details let me know and i'll email them to you - since we arent supposed to make supplier recomendations on here)

if you are wondering why I buy my printing in when i have an A3 printer basically it comes down to the pressures of time - my guy can turn prints round and despatch them straight to the client in very short order - which avoids tying up my own time when i could be out with the camera ..... or on wab - I have the printer for the rare occasions when this isnt possible , and also for printing stuff for my own use.

[MalcolmX]

the epson 2400 is the very best (imho) but it is a fine art printer and k3 inks are not as glossy as a print from the 1290 series . if you do get a 2400 you will need to profile your monitor and use corrected profiles for each type of of paper .it does produce stunning resolution and can produce a dynamic range in black and white that is unbeatable .if you do not need this quality of print then look at the replacement for the 1290 which is i think the 1400 again a very good a3 printer
from memory the 1400 is about £200-£300 cheaper

[ARGON]

I use the Epson R2400 and it is very good all round B&W is very very good only bad point from me is the ink runs out too quick. There are a lot of photo paper out there that can compliment this and other printers. So you also have to spend out some dosh on decent paper for the very best results.

[Lynsnow]

thanks for the info Eeyore, malcom x and argon i am not in a mad rush so perhaps will look at the 1400 as suggested. thanks again
Lynda.

[Interpreter]

I use the Epson R2400 and as previously stated, it is a very good printer. It allows poster printing to A1 with ease as long as the user is adept with the sticky tape!
The B I G problem is the ink. It is expensive and the machine drinks it by the gallon. I have been using compatable ink cartridges from Printerinks, but even then the amount of ink used makes the machine expensive to use. In an attempt to reduce costs I have purchased a CIS from specialistinks. I have gone for the Media Street version at £145 which includes 9 x 60mm bottles of ink. It is not yet fitted as I have just inserted six new ink cartridges and these should last me for a day or two.
I also find that photopaperdirect has some very good gloss photo paper at a very good price, especially if the bulk items are purchased.

[Interpreter]

I have now fitted the Mediastreet R24 Continuous Ink System to my Epson R2400 and it appears to be working perfectly. I cannot see any difference between A3 prints using this system and those using the original Epson cartridges. The CIS system is reputed to reduce the cost of producing A3 prints by £1 a go.

[Purplepixii]

I have a Canon i9100 which I guess now is an "old" A3 printer - I bought it 3-4 years ago. It has individual ink cartridges which I find great value for money as one will always run out before the others.

The quality from this printer is fantastic. I am a keen amateur photographer and have always printed my own photographs on this printer for competition entries.

Like I said, it's probably classed as old now, and I am unsure of what the replacement would be, but it would be my personal recommendation.

[Pete W]

The Canon 9500i is real quality. Tis on my shopping list. I had use of one at a Canon day... One word = WOW

[Interpreter]

The write up on the 9500 puts the machine on a par with the other top A3+ printers and it appears to use less ink. However, I am very wary of Canon printers, as I had the 5000 which must be the worst printer ever made. The paper handling was terrible and it was a real ink guzzler.

For a top grade 'Pro' printer it has some amateur software included, but so has the R2400, which I use.