Alps v Epson color photo printer?
Jon
Epson 750/1200 printers.
I have to rule out the HP PhotoSmart since it only comes with a parallel
interface. I want to attach another printer to my Mac. (Anyone know if
an 10Base/T card is available for the PhotoSmart)?
The Alps has a SCSI interface, 1200 DPI and "dry sublimation" printing
(can someone explain this?). I have an Epson 800 for general printing
-- no flamewars, please -- this printer has been just fine for the past
year and a half.
I'm looking for a printer for a CP950 UPS is still shipping (via the
Panama Canal, I think, but that's another posting) from pcwonders on the
right coast. I can't complain about pcwonders, they shipped the next
day, I guess I missed the "overnight" checkbox on the order form :-(
Is there a site comparing the print quality of the Epson and Alps brands
of printers?
Thanks,
Jon
peter cowie
Md 1300 and Epson 750 tested at the top. The Alps 1300 and 5000 (the 5000
does 2400 dpi!) do dye sublimation, which produces a detailed ,grainless
image-even magnified. Dye sublimation also creates waterproof and fade
resistant images, essentially like photos. The Alps also do micro dry
printing on ordinary laser paper. This method is also water and fade
resistant. There is a glossy finish coat too on the laser paper. You have to
buy the USB adapter for the Alps 1300 and 5000, and you have to buy the dye
sub adapter for the 5000. The Alps are slow compared to the Epson, and use
ribbons. Some people also complain about banding. I got the Epson 750, since
I need quick high quality printouts of enchanced photos to paint portraits
from. get samples from Epson and Alps.
peter cowie
Jon <jo...@home.com> wrote in message news:37AA4830...@home.com...
van der Ree
http://www.alpsusa.com/new/printers.html
They give a good explanation about the principles of how the printer
operates.
vdRee
Jon heeft geschreven in bericht <37AA4830...@home.com>...
Michael Benz
of the prints are fantastic. I have never seen the Epson print quality but I
hear it is nice too. You may get some comments on banding issued w/the Alps
but I have never had any issues with it and my printer comes with a linefeed
utility to adjust it if it crops up.
The Alps is a micro dry printer which means the prints are fade proof, water
proof (as water proof as paper can be) and smudge/smear proof. If you get
your supplies via mail-order the cost of an 8x10 dye-sub print on the photo
quality paper is around $1.00 / print (4x6 for around $0.50). I buy my
supplies mail-order and in quaintly from www.buycomp.com and when I get to
the last of a color, I will buy another 4pk of that color(same with the
photo paper). As for plain paper prints, any of the laser paper on the
market will do (don't use inkjet paper due to a coating on the paper which
could harm the print head / ink).
no complaints here about the alps but you will get some flame mail from
others. Go to www.onelist.com and check out the Alps group for Alps specific
info. Also check out www.alpsusa.com.
Mike....
Jon <jo...@home.com> wrote in message news:37AA4830...@home.com...
TDS
Overall I'm more pleased with the Epson for these reasons:
1. The addition of a true black ink (in the Epson) gives photographs
slightly greater contrast and a little more visual "oomph." It also
means that for non-photographic images (e.g., those created in
Adobe Illustrator) you have a true black for line art. With the Alps
in dye-sub mode the black ribbon is replaced by the overcoat.
This doesn't mean that in dye-sub mode the Alps can't do a good
representation of black. One of the first things one learns in art
schools is that there's no true black in nature. The "blacks" in an
Alps print tend to be warmer than those in an Epson print. (I'm new
with the Epson and am still learning how to fine-tune its output.)
Until I learn the nuances of printing with the Epson (it would be nice
if their driver gave more control over ink flow) I still prefer the
output of the Alps for these b/w images.
2. The Epson 1200 (well, inkjet printers in general) has an amazing
variety of papers from which to choose. Luminos and Ilford, two
traditional darkroom paper makers have gotten into the act, and
make some wonderful papers if: you can find them; you're willing
to pay for them. With the Alps in dye-sub mode you're limited to
one paper and one ink set. Granted, they produce a very nice glossy
photo output but that's not always what you want.
3. My 1200 can print up to a "Super A3" (13"x19") and banners up to
some ridiculous length. I doubt I'll ever print on anything larger than
11"x17", which I do all the time.
Banding was an occasional issue with the Alps, especially in large
areas of constant color (walls, skies, etc.). I found that by adding
a little bit of "noise" in Photoshop I could reduce the banding without
unduly altering the picture.
The dye-sub option is an additional expense with the MD5000. It may
not be worth it depending on what you think of the 5000's "VPhoto"
2400 dpi output. The sample book I saw at CompUSA was quite
impressive. Unfortunately too many of the samples showboated the
printer's foil ribbons (which I suppose you'd like if you liked that
kind of thing). I found it rather gimmicky. There was an 8x10 monochrome
headshot that was nothing short of spectacular. The subject was an
older caucasian male and every hair, wrinkle and pore was plainly
evident. (Probably shot on a 4x5 sheet of TMax 100 and drum-scanned
at some ridiculously high dpi.) I would have prefered to see more
photographic samples with less foil.
Lastly, you can get parallel to USB converters (I don't know what their
effectiveness is and I'd call the printer manufacturer to see what, if
any, their experience is.
I hope this helps. You can email me directly if you want any specific
questions answered.
Cheers!
...todd