Best B&W printer

[stan_woods]

I currently have an Epson R800 which does decent B&W's but no where near what

I could do in a darkroom. What is the best B&W printer out there that would be

under $700.00 ?

[roger_smith4]

Epson 2400 might be a bit more than $700. The R800 would be fine with a third-party B&W ink set if you can still order them from companies like MIS.

Some of the carts are no longer available due to infringement issues, but I hear people are working on refilling OEM cartridges and new designs.

[john_gleason1]

In addition to what Roger said:

 

Epson has refurbished R2400s for $600; includes free shipping and a full set of inks.

 

(And if you cehck the Classifieds here, you'll see a similar great deal on an R2400.)

[godfrey]

Another R2400 vote here. ;-)

 

Godfrey

[danielleetaylor]

Have you tried QuadToneRIP with your R800? I was never happy with B&W prints off my R800 until I found that program. Using QuadToneRIP with the UC_EEnhMatte-black and UC_EEnhMatte-cool profiles mixed to 50% each, at 2880 dpi, I'm getting prints remarkably close to my darkroom prints in tone and detail.

 

The drawback is that it works great on Matte paper, not so well on Luster or Glossy. But you may want to give it a shot.

[tom_swanson]

HP B9180

[Robin Smith]

I like the HP B9180 too, though the Epson R2400's good too, I particularly like the black and white glossy printing on the HP.

[cameron_ertman]

I guess you get what you pay for. After wasting money on a lot of ink trying to get a decent B&W print from a less expensive printer, I finally settled on the R2400 and have never looked back. Great B&W prints with their luster paper virtually identical to RC paper in the darkroom.

[stan_woods]

Thanks all. I was looking at the 2400 as well as teh HP8750. Any HP8750 fans out there?

[constance_cook]

I have been printin B&W on the 8750 since it came out. They are excellent with no color cast.

 

I have a print in my office from this printer that is next to a traditional print and most people can't see the difference. I can, but I don't think one is better than the other, just different because of the paper.

 

I have thought about the 9180, but it doesn't do anything my 8750 doesn't do except it's a bit faster.

 

Conni

[danielleetaylor]

Constance - how many B&W prints do you get out of an 8750 with the gray cartridge? I have a 7850 and I'm lucky to get a dozen 8x10's off the thing. It's one of the reasons I tried finding a solution for my R800 again and stumbled across QuadToneRIP. I can print all day on matte and the matte cart level barely drops.

 

Though I must admit the HP prints on semi gloss are excellent. I just wish the ink wasn't so expensive.

[ross_lipman]

I use an HP 7960, which is the earlier version of the 8750. I purchased it for it's B&W capabilities. 7960 B&W prints look like a proffessional print- according to a pro who has seen what I have printed.

 

I get ~12 8x10 prints per 59 cartridge. I purchase sealed HP 59 cartridges on Ebay for a fraction of retail cost, making the cost to print more managable. I recognise that I am paying more than a photo lab, but I love the ability to print at home.

 

Does a great job with color printing too !

 

Best,

 

Ross

[constance_cook]

Sorry. I went off to get some work done and dropped out.

 

I have a 7960 which I still use. It is terrific and my output with that printer is about the same as Ross gets. With the 8750, I get about twice that many prints with the caveat that if I print 13 x 19, output rates change. The cartridge for the 8750 is twice the size of the #59 for the 7960 and is about the same cost for new HP carts.

 

I have been a prime supporter of the quality of the 7960 B&W but I do think those I get from the 8750 are a bit better.

 

I had considered the new 9180 but in testing it in a store, the only advantage was speed which really doesn't matter to me when printing B&W. I also think I could probably do better with it if I had it at home to work with but that is a non-starter.

 

Conni

[rogerjporter]

any rumors as to when epson will put k3 inks into an 8 inch printer? that would be cool, i

am a weekend warrior and can't justify a ton of money for the 2400, but i would like to have

a little better quality at home on black and white.