Harman Matt Cotton Smooth

[danielleetaylor]

<p>I'm making this post primarily because I didn't find any posts about Harman Matt Cotton Smooth in the archives (could have been my search skills) and I am really impressed with it. I wanted to post my notes and give others the chance to comment, recommend similar papers, or just try this paper if they haven't already.</p>

<p>I received a Harman paper sampler pack today and printed color and B&W test images on all of the papers except Canvas. I'm using an Epson 3880.</p>

<p>I got this sample pack primarily to test the Gloss papers. But my favorite paper by a significant margin turned out to be Matt Cotton Smooth. I have to say this might be the best paper I've tried to date, period. I immediately ordered an 8.5x11 30 pack for further testing.</p>

<p>Images seem exceptionally "clear" and crisp on MCS. The paper has the saturation of the glossy papers, but there is no gloss or texture imposed on the image. The tonality on the B&W test print is fantastic.</p>

<p>As for the other papers...</p>

<p>* I couldn't get Matt Cotton Textured to feed into the printer.<br>

* I didn't care much for the Gloss Art Fibre papers due to the surface texture.<br>

* I did like the Gloss Baryta papers, and Gloss Baryta specifically is the closest to MCS.</p>

<p>MCS also seems to have a very durable surface. Unfortunately the other papers do not. Even though I was careful with the papers, the Gloss Art Fibre and Gloss Baryta papers ended up with multiple specks where either ink flaked off, or something became stuck to the print. Worse I happened to set one page on top of another about an hour after printing and ended up significantly scratching part of the bottom print. These are very delicate gloss papers. I imagine you would have to immediately protect them with tissue paper and let them dry 24 hours after printing. Even after that I'm guessing they need to be immediately framed or placed in an album.</p>

<p>Any way, I can't wait to try more prints on Matt Cotton Smooth.</p>

[howard_m]

<p>Given the relationship between Harman and Hahn these days, I wonder if it's a re-brand of an existing Hahnm. paper.</p>

[alan_goldhammer]

<p>The specification sheet is <a href="http://harman.hahnemuehle.com/media/harman_mattcottonsmooth.pdf">here</a> and it looks pretty much like Hahnemuhle Photorag Bright White. My only problem with the paper is the presence of OBAs which I don't like because they can decay, sometimes quite rapidly.</p>

[diane_madura]

<p>Daniel, interesting comments. Now I'd like to try the matte cotton as well. My favorite paper, of those I've tried, is the Gloss Baryta. I use it almost exclusively. I like the subtle sheen, and the rich colors. I've never had a problem with specks, however. I emailed Harman with a question about the gloss baryta, and the rep claims that the formula is exactly the same as it was before they merged with Hanemuhle. </p>

[howard_m]

<p>there was a thread on, um, fredmiranda I believe a couple of weeks ago and someone representing Hahn came on (I believe Ashleigh was their name) and in no uncertain statement said that the formula and everything else is the same between the Harman version and the Harman by Hahn version of the FBAI paper.</p>

[david_woeltjen2]

<p>Diane, can I ask what printer you are using and what paper selection you use in the driver?<br>

Thanks! </p>

[danielleetaylor]

<p><em>Now I'd like to try the matte cotton as well. My favorite paper, of those I've tried, is the Gloss Baryta. I use it almost exclusively. I like the subtle sheen, and the rich colors. I've never had a problem with specks, however.</em></p>

<p>Gloss Baryta is very good. I'm not sure what to make of the specks. I've since tried scratching the surface and can't seem to scratch more ink off. It's possible the paper just wasn't perfectly clean. I've seen that happen before with a box of Epson Premium Luster. Once I realized what was happening with that box of paper I just used compressed air on each sheet before printing.</p>

<p>I'll have to try Gloss Baryta again, but this time I'll double check the surface before printing, immediately cover them, and let them dry 24 hours.</p>

<p>To be honest though, ignoring the specks and just focusing on image quality, I actually like the Matt Cotton Smooth better. I normally like gloss papers because of the higher saturation and deeper blacks, but MCS seems to match the gloss papers here. Take away the gloss and it's just that much more...clear. The clarity is just amazing to me.</p>

[danielleetaylor]

<p>Alan - I spent some time reading up about the OBA issue last night. I found a lot of forum posts and short statements against OBAs, but not a lot of hard evidence. I thought the two best pieces on the subject, in terms of reasoning and depth of discussion, were the articles stating that OBAs did not pose a real risk to longevity.</p>

<p>http://www.hahnemuehle.com/news/en/239/122/hahnemuehle-fineart-on-the-subject-of-oba-s.html</p>

<p>http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=2&sqi=2&ved=0CBwQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.lexjet.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2009%2F10%2Fsbjuly43-45.pdf&rct=j&q=lexjetblog%20brighteners&ei=cbsXTfGYHo_CsAPk9ojuAQ&usg=AFQjCNEEDdOLna63OrE16bC6eFYbAexXAg&cad=rja</p>

<p>Although Wilhelm has a note against OBAs (http://www.wilhelm-research.com/ep9600%20print%20permanence.html - see #7 at page bottom), his own testing doesn't show a consistent or dramatic difference between papers with and without OBAs. As I understand the chemistry his tests should reveal if OBAs will significantly degrade a print over time, i.e. they should "burn out" under accelerated testing conditions. They age and fail because they can only take so much UV, just like the ink sets.</p>

<p>My own take is that as long as OBAs do not themselves stain the print as they age then having them is not a big deal. The paper will end up the same as if OBAs had never been used. The image itself might end up looking a bit more yellow than if it had been printed on an OBA free paper simply because the OBA free paper profile would have taken the natural paper white into consideration. But I don't think we're talking about huge differences here. Again, as long as the OBAs themselves don't stain the paper, you should be able to simulate the final look of the print by viewing it under a UV filter.</p>

<p>Of course that raises the point that if you are going to frame your print behind UV filtered glass then there's not much point in having an OBA paper since the brightening effect comes from UV light.</p>

[francesco_mallamo]

<p>I was impressed too by Harman matte cotton. I was trying to find a similar one in hahnemuhle catalogue. The Photorag Bright White is not as smooth as the Harman one. The Photorag ultrasmooth is not as white as the harman one. I can say that the Harman matte cotton is smooth as PR ultrasmooth and it is white as the PR brigth with. I love it.</p>