Posted by Emmett Ward on October 16, 2007 at 10:39 AM
Hello, just looking for some quick advice. I have been tasked by the Boss (my wife) to obtain a photo printer. After some study, the one that I am leaning towards is the Canon Pixma Pro 9000. Does anyone out there have experience with this model?
Posted by Carl Battreall on October 16, 2007 at 12:37 PM
9000 is a dye printer verse pigment ink printer. The printer will work great on glossy paper but dye printers perform poorly with matte and fine art papers. Dye is also not considered to be as archival as pigment ink. Dye printers have more saturated colors than pigment printers (on glossy paper). If its purely for hobby or home use than it will work great, but if you want to sell the prints produced by them, you should look at a pigment ink printer.
Posted by Emmett Ward on October 16, 2007 at 12:44 PM
Ok, that is exactly what I was looking for information-wise. This makes me want to look more into the Epson line. Do you have any recommendations there? I understand it depends on the size that I wish to print.
Thanks,
Emmett
Posted by Rene de Heer on October 16, 2007 at 12:46 PM
I would take a look at the HP B9180.
Rene de Heer
Posted by David Bostedo on October 16, 2007 at 12:57 PM
I bought this printer about 4 months ago, and I've been very very pleased with it. A couple of things to note, particularly with regard to dye vs. pigment :
1) This printer is great on matte paper - I've used a couple of Hahnemuhle papers and the prints are wonderful. (Now I haven't seen very many prints from a pigment printer, but I doubt they're much better). Some reviews I've read seem to confirm this.
2) The longevity of dye inks is getting pretty high now, mitigating the advantage pigment has. Pigment will still give a much longer life, but you're probably talking over 50 years for dye on suitable paper. Both dye and pigment will likely last longer than traditional photo print methods. Unfortunately, Wilhelm Research, which is regarded as the authority on this, hasn't released results for the 9000 yet.
A really good site to look at for printer reviews is Photo-i. I would definitely look at the HP B9180. If it were similarly priced to the 9000 (which I got for $399), I would have probably gone with the HP.
I have the Pixma Pro9000 and have had great success with Canon's Fine Art Papers (Rag and Etch).
If you would like Pigment Ink then look at the Pixma Pro9500. 10 ink wells as opposed to the 8 in Pro9000
Posted by Gene Lugo on October 24, 2007 at 11:22 AM
Canon paper with Canon ink will have fewer fading issues than using third party products. If you like the "look" of a dye print, then you should look at the HP Designjet 90. For about $900 you will get a 6 color printer that is capable of archival quality (according to Wilhelm Research, 82 years or better with all but the photo matte which would be 24 yrs) when using HP media and inks, is miserly on ink, has user-replaceable printheads (a biggy) and can print 18" X 24" or longer, depending on the application. It can also be accessorized with network printing, integrated color RIP and calibration software, roll feed and cutter, and it can still print on postcard sized paper. The quality of the blacks on this (and the bigger 24" wide 130) remains unrivaled by any other printing technology. Dyes are noticeably more vibrant than pigment, and somewhat less likely to clog the printhead when not regularly used. Because it is economical on ink, after a few hundred prints you will be considerably ahead of the Canon in ink cost. You should definitely look at your anticipated volume when considering this printer. A complete set of ink for the Pixma will cost about $75 delivered, and it consists of 8 - 13ml cartridges. A set of ink for the 90 will be $184, but the differents are substantial. Each Pixma cart is 13ml, you will use approximately two each of the yellow, photo magenta and photo cyan to each one of the others, so for all intents and purposes a set of Canon ink will really be about $105.
With the HP ink you will get four 69 ml carts - yellow, lt magenta and lt cyan and black, and two 28 ml carts - cyan and magenta. This somewhat approximates average ink consumption.
For $105 you will get 130 ml of ink from Canon, and for $184 you will get 332 ml, or 2.5x more ink from HP. From 3 yrs experience with a Canon i9100, I will tell you that the Canon produces amazingly beautiful prints, but in doing so it uses an equally amazing amout of ink. By the time you are into your fourth set of carts ($420 later) with the Pixma I predict that you would not have yet had to replace a single cart on the HP. So it is clear that in short order the price difference between the two printers paid up front will go away, and in the long run the HP will be considerably cheaper. I don't think you will give up much, if anything in terms of image quality, and you will have prints that theoretically will outlive you or anyone receiving them. There is an argument for the 10 in Pro 9500 and the wider gamut it offers, but once again, you are dealing with the different look of pigment. One last thing, there is no doubt that either Canon is by a wide margin, faster than any other print out there.
Decisions about how the prints will be used, how they will be displayed, and whether or not you will be using matte paper will weigh heavily in considering which print technology (dye vs pigment) to get. If dye works for you, the choices are easy - Canon Pixma pro9000 for up to 13x19 or the HP for up to 18x24, or if you need pigment, the Pixma Pro9500 or a corresponding Epson, but I caution you that there may be a trade off in operating and maintenance costs, with the Epson being the more costly in comparison. Something just bothers me about having to purge the black ink line each time you change cartridges from matte to gloss ink or back again - the cost of that is absolutely prohibitive.
Discussion
6 repliesThanks,
Emmett
Rene de Heer
1) This printer is great on matte paper - I've used a couple of Hahnemuhle papers and the prints are wonderful. (Now I haven't seen very many prints from a pigment printer, but I doubt they're much better). Some reviews I've read seem to confirm this.
2) The longevity of dye inks is getting pretty high now, mitigating the advantage pigment has. Pigment will still give a much longer life, but you're probably talking over 50 years for dye on suitable paper. Both dye and pigment will likely last longer than traditional photo print methods. Unfortunately, Wilhelm Research, which is regarded as the authority on this, hasn't released results for the 9000 yet.
A really good site to look at for printer reviews is Photo-i. I would definitely look at the HP B9180. If it were similarly priced to the 9000 (which I got for $399), I would have probably gone with the HP.
If you would like Pigment Ink then look at the Pixma Pro9500. 10 ink wells as opposed to the 8 in Pro9000
With the HP ink you will get four 69 ml carts - yellow, lt magenta and lt cyan and black, and two 28 ml carts - cyan and magenta. This somewhat approximates average ink consumption.
For $105 you will get 130 ml of ink from Canon, and for $184 you will get 332 ml, or 2.5x more ink from HP. From 3 yrs experience with a Canon i9100, I will tell you that the Canon produces amazingly beautiful prints, but in doing so it uses an equally amazing amout of ink. By the time you are into your fourth set of carts ($420 later) with the Pixma I predict that you would not have yet had to replace a single cart on the HP. So it is clear that in short order the price difference between the two printers paid up front will go away, and in the long run the HP will be considerably cheaper. I don't think you will give up much, if anything in terms of image quality, and you will have prints that theoretically will outlive you or anyone receiving them. There is an argument for the 10 in Pro 9500 and the wider gamut it offers, but once again, you are dealing with the different look of pigment. One last thing, there is no doubt that either Canon is by a wide margin, faster than any other print out there.
Decisions about how the prints will be used, how they will be displayed, and whether or not you will be using matte paper will weigh heavily in considering which print technology (dye vs pigment) to get. If dye works for you, the choices are easy - Canon Pixma pro9000 for up to 13x19 or the HP for up to 18x24, or if you need pigment, the Pixma Pro9500 or a corresponding Epson, but I caution you that there may be a trade off in operating and maintenance costs, with the Epson being the more costly in comparison. Something just bothers me about having to purge the black ink line each time you change cartridges from matte to gloss ink or back again - the cost of that is absolutely prohibitive.