trackmag

I need a color printer that delivers relatively decent quality, at a decent speed and will print borderless
up to 11x14. Any suggestions?

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

If you don't want to spend a lot of money, look at the Canon Pro-100. It's usually available with hefty rebates, and often sells for around $150. I don't see anyone offering the rebates now, though.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?InitialSearch=yes&N=0&Ntt=Canon+Pixma+Pro+100+Wireless&ap=Y&c3api=4680%2C309714074816%2Ccanon+pixma+pro+100+wireless%2Cb&gclid=Cj0KCQiAsvTxBRDkARIsAH4W_j8TtmOHTUYzeK44vL3gOfVshjSM_X3zXaALXd0sjkQeHfWbUNPI3T4aAmYuEALw_wcB

yssirk123 Loc: New Jersey

Ditto on Jerry's recommendation for the Canon Pro-100.

trackmag

Thanks. That is what I am thinking.

We print quite a few pages a month . . .proofing magazine that is 10x12 and averages 220 pages per month.

MichaelH Loc: NorCal via Lansing, MI

The downside of using a Photography printer for proofing for a magazine is that the printer is optimized for creating really nice prints but it takes 2 minutes plus per page to print. The ink is also more expensive than the cost of toner for a color laser printer would be. If you do not need photographic prints on special paper and are only proofing for placement and do not need it to be 100% color correct a tabloid laser printer is what you would need. Color laser printers kick out pages at more like 10-20 pages per minute and usually the bottleneck for speed is delivering the data from the computer to the printer. And as I read your needs again, I do not think laser printers print borderless. That is why we have a tabloid extra printer. We mark the borders on the magazine page on the 12x18 sheet and tabloid is just a smidge too small for our magazine. But for 11x14 you could probably mark your edges using tabloid paper depending on the printer. And if needed borderless you could easily cut the tabloid paper down to 11x14 quicker that waiting for a photographic inkjet printer to print the next page.

Xerox and HP make some good tabloid color laser printers but the up front cost to purchase the printer would be higher with the cost of supplies probably being lower. We use a Xerox Phaser 7760 color printer that prints up to tabloid extra size (12x18). It was $4k about 10 years ago and is still running strong. Because it is no longer made the toner has become very expensive ($500 for cyan, magenta and yellow and $200 for black). For reference, our Xerox will print around 5,000 pages of tabloid extra per color toner cartridge and other parts are user serviceable also. There are "transfer rollers" for each of the four toners and a single fuser that are user replaceable.

Try to estimate your costs as you do your research and remember that 2 minutes per page is agonizingly slow in an office workflow. I personally own a Canon Pro 100 and do not mind going to get a glass of water (and drinking it) while my photography prints print. If you do opt for an inkjet photography printer you should look at ones with larger ink cartridges as that will be less costly over time than ones with small ink cartridges like the consumer level Pro 100.

radiomantom Loc: Plymouth Indiana

I agree, do yourself a favor and get the Canon Pro-100. I just in the last week printed out a 11x14 print on mine and then uploaded the same file to Costco and had a print made. I cannot see any difference whatsoever between the two prints.

trackmag

Thanks. Just not sure the 100 would have the speed we need to do the magazine every month. Going to Dallas this week to look at Xerox machine which would be much more costly but would provide the speed
to do our magazine proofing.
But think I will also get the 100 for our remote office for shorter runs.

spaceytracey Loc: East Glacier Park, MT

More $$ but, the Canon Pro 9000 MarkII is amazing & prints up to 13x19. Check on Amazon.

jmh-Orlando

The Pro-100 also prints 13x19 inch. I have owned my Pro-100 for several years now, and it is quite the workhorse. I purchased a backup unit two years ago when they were virtually giving them away via rebate, but haven't found the need to replace my original unit.

I will agree that it isn't the fastest printer on the planet, the quality is worth the wait. I mitigate the operating costs by refilling cartridges using Precision Color inks and have experienced no problems. (Well, other than colorful finger tips after the reloads, but that is probably more my fault than the cartridges!).

spaceytracey Loc: East Glacier Park, MT

Just checked out Precision Color & it sounds great. Way cheaper than buying the tanks. Might give it a try. Thanks

Imagemine Loc: St. Louis USA

I suggest a pro 100 like some of the others photographers on this forum

jmh-Orlando

I've used Precision Color ink for the past three or four years and have always been thrilled with the outcome. I've never had any problems with clogged nozzles, mismatched colors, etc.

When contemplating making the switch to Precision Colors, I did a fair amount of research and found that they had a solid following of happy clients. My math might be a bit off, but I believe the per-cartridge cost of a refilled cartridge works out to be 1/20 or less of a new cartridge.

I've suggested the switch to numerous friends and associates who have the Pro-100, as well as those looking for an affordable "larger format" printer (ie: 13x19). I've never heard any negative comments from any of them as well.

Goldyrock

Inkproducts make a CIS system that works with the Pro-100. They advise not to do any firmware updates.
It comes pre-loaded, but can be refilled with Precision Color Ink. It costs $140.

jmh-Orlando

Thank you for the info regarding the CIS system. I looked for one several years ago but couldn't find anyone who was enthusiastic about options available.

The cartridges I use work well, but I'd prefer to avoid refilling them if I can do so reasonably. Your message gives me research material!

Thank yoU!

wet3843

I recently purchased the Canon Pro 10 and am positivity satisfied with the quality of this printer. Watch for rebate offers. With rebate and sale price I purchased this printer for $199 which I think was a steal. Would not think twice about buying this printer again. I fact I even considered buying two at this price.