Posted by Kelly Rowe on January 15, 2007 at 4:56 PM
Okay, here I sit looking at several different prints from my Epson R2400 realizing that I have mere step-function control over the process provided by Epson ABW. A couple of the prints are acceptable, but none of the images shows anywhere near the detail I see on screen. The image printed on the "light" ABW setting looks best, but there is no where to go from there. Would raster software help with this issue?
I've looked at QuadToneRIP and ImagePrint RIP (I darn near had to RIP myself when I checked on the price - more than my R2400!). Are there any others for Epson printers? Maybe something between the $50 shareware item and the $1000 Swiss Army Knife?
There's also ColorBurst and a couple of others. I suggest you download QuadTone RIP first and try it out before deciding whether to buy.
Note that it only comes with limited curves for the R2400 and my messages to the "support" email address and the associated mailing list asking about others were never answered (yes, I am a paying customer). I'm now in the process of having a friend help me create some custom curves for the papers I use.
The cost of the RIP is still entry level. If you want utmost control, you still need a densitometer or spectrophotometer (although a scanner can be used in a pinch with much less accuracy). I use Bowhaus IJC/OPM, and even though I use a fairly standard paper (Hahnemuhle Photorag) there were no supplied profiles for my 7600, so I've had to build all of mine from the ground up. This involves MANY hours of work, and plenty of ink and paper. It's not for everyone, but if you're a print control freak....
ImagePrint's profiles are all 'canned' just like profiles supplied with your printer, although a friend reports how great and neutral they are (for neutral profiles, that is), but be advised that with IP you cannot write your own or modify existing curves.
I'd go with Guy's suggestion and give QTR a try. I used it for a couple of years, but the awkward and unintuitive profile creation process sent me elsewhere when I was looking for more control.
Discussion
2 repliesI've looked at QuadToneRIP and ImagePrint RIP (I darn near had to RIP myself when I checked on the price - more than my R2400!). Are there any others for Epson printers? Maybe something between the $50 shareware item and the $1000 Swiss Army Knife?
Note that it only comes with limited curves for the R2400 and my messages to the "support" email address and the associated mailing list asking about others were never answered (yes, I am a paying customer). I'm now in the process of having a friend help me create some custom curves for the papers I use.
Guy
ImagePrint's profiles are all 'canned' just like profiles supplied with your printer, although a friend reports how great and neutral they are (for neutral profiles, that is), but be advised that with IP you cannot write your own or modify existing curves.
I'd go with Guy's suggestion and give QTR a try. I used it for a couple of years, but the awkward and unintuitive profile creation process sent me elsewhere when I was looking for more control.