Piezography B&W Printing System Advice

Guillermo

Hi Ya'll,

I'm considering buying a second Epson 1280 exclusively for a Piezography ink system.

Before shelling out the $300, anyone using it? Total investment would be less than $600 (actually, I can pick up a "like new" used 1280 for $200 or less) making it a $500 investment.

Any advice would be much welcomed.

Thanks!

patch29

It would be a little more money, but the new Epson R2400 is worth looking at. No need to dedicate a printer to color or B&W it does both very well. See if someone locally has one you can test. I have no experience with the piezo system, but have had a 2400 for a month or so and I have been happy with the B&W results.

Guillermo

patch29 wrote:

It would be a little more money, but the new Epson R2400 is worth looking at. No need to dedicate a printer to color or B&W it does both very well. See if someone locally has one you can test. I have no experience with the piezo system, but have had a 2400 for a month or so and I have been happy with the B&W results.

Thanks, I had a similar thought. I ordered samples from West Coast Imaging. All I hear are raves about the Piez. Reason for not seriously considering (until now) the 2400 is the ink cost. But then, the color prints from the 2400 are amazing. Haven't seen any B&W yet. . . will later today at my local Calumet shop.

G

colourbox

I am running a 1280 with PiezoTones. It's a great system. However, I do have the following comments.

• I bought it because the 2400 did not exist and the other Epsons at the time did not do B&W well. The 2400's light black inks and improved driver make the decision harder now.
• Piezography is a great system on matte papers, with excellent tonal reproduction. But the Piezography inks are essentially useless on glossy. If you want glossy B&W, reports are that the 2400 does a great job, solving the bronzing problems of the 2200.
• The 1280 cartridges are small. They run out way too fast. It's expensive to run with cartridges, especially when cleaning cycles are run.
• Therefore I spent even more money to get the continous inking system (CIS). I don't regret this. The up-front cost is horrendous, but the 4 oz. bottles of ink last forever. It makes sense for me because I print shows. I would not recommend a CIS to anyone who only prints B&W occasionally.
• With Piezography, you only get the B&W tone you have in your ink set. The 2400's driver, from what I've read, makes it easy to change the B&W tone from print to print.

If I were buying today, I would be seriously tempted by the 2400. It has larger cartridges than the 1280, can print excellent, excellent color at the same time, and prints on glossy paper. Right now I still like my PiezoTones-loaded 1280 because it's saving me money on ink (well, after the savings pays off the initial cost) and there will never, ever be any danger of crossover from color inks, because there aren't any. But for someone printing occasional black and white, especially on glossy, the 2400 could very well be a more sensible choice.

Guillermo

colourbox wrote:

I am running a 1280 with PiezoTones. It's a great system. However, I do have the following comments.

• I bought it because the 2400 did not exist and the other Epsons at the time did not do B&W well. The 2400's light black inks and improved driver make the decision harder now.
• Piezography is a great system on matte papers, with excellent tonal reproduction. But the Piezography inks are essentially useless on glossy. If you want glossy B&W, reports are that the 2400 does a great job, solving the bronzing problems of the 2200.
• The 1280 cartridges are small. They run out way too fast. It's expensive to run with cartridges, especially when cleaning cycles are run.
• Therefore I spent even more money to get the continous inking system (CIS). I don't regret this. The up-front cost is horrendous, but the 4 oz. bottles of ink last forever. It makes sense for me because I print shows. I would not recommend a CIS to anyone who only prints B&W occasionally.
• With Piezography, you only get the B&W tone you have in your ink set. The 2400's driver, from what I've read, makes it easy to change the B&W tone from print to print.

If I were buying today, I would be seriously tempted by the 2400. It has larger cartridges than the 1280, can print excellent, excellent color at the same time, and prints on glossy paper. Right now I still like my PiezoTones-loaded 1280 because it's saving me money on ink (well, after the savings pays off the initial cost) and there will never, ever be any danger of crossover from color inks, because there aren't any. But for someone printing occasional black and white, especially on glossy, the 2400 could very well be a more sensible choice.

Leaning that way. Thanks!

4labs

I have seen prints from a printer dedicated to piezography. The person bought the system from Inkjetmall.com. I have to tell you the results were amazing.