I have a Canon Pro 100 and Epson WF7720. I use the Canon for photos and the Epson for making card stock. I can have the Canon off for a couple of months, and turn it on and print without any trouble. I had to call Epson support a couple of weeks ago about some deep cleaning after the heads clogged and the normal maintenance didn't work. Both are good, but I prefer the Canon for photos.
I have had both Canon and Epson both great companies make great printers. To keep them going I will print at least one picture every 2 weeks. I was told that, I use that and it seems to work for me.
I’ve been using Epson’s P800 for the past three years and even after having it turned off for three months while I moved, it started right up without clogging. Yes the ink cartridges ($58 ea.) are expensive but the results are impressive. I have sold thousands of dollars of prints in art galleries using the P800, so I can’t complain about the ink costs.
jim quist wrote:
I am going to buy a printer that will print 16x20 prints. I really like the Epson printer we used in photo classes I took. But I hear about the ink jet ports getting clogged. Do the Canon ports clog just as easily?
If you have experience with both what do you think?
For years I have had all of my prints done thru Millers. But I want to start printing my own now. Excellent quality is what I am looking for.
Want to stay under $3,000 with an initial supply of ink.
Regardless of brand, make a practice of printing in draft quality on a sheet of letter sized paper, regular old copy paper will do. Uses less ink than running the printer maintenance routine.
TriX
Loc: Raleigh, NC
I can’t speak to the Epson, but I can tell you from long experience that the Canon I’ve been using for many years (Pro9000 MKII) is the most clog resistant printer I’ve ever owned. It literally sat, unused for a couple of years and I was sure it was a goner. Before declaring it DOA, on a whim, I changed a couple of cartridges that had dried out (with some cheap after market ones,) but no head cleaning, and to my utter amazement, it printed perfectly.
jwreed50 wrote:
I have used the Epson P900 for about a year. It's a superb printer, and I have had absolutely no problem with a clogged printer head.
how often do you use it??
Every Epson inkjet I’ve ever owned clogged it’s heads and either was a pain to clean or was junked. I’ve had aCanon MFP which has NEVER clogged even with not being used frequently. I will say I don’t have specific experience with the expensive Epson but why would I? Fool me once. I've had a pro 100 for a year now and love it.
I have had a canon pro 100 for several years now and do not use it on a regular basis but do at least once a month do a print check and have never had an issue with any ink clogs would highly recommend it, I also have an Epson which I have had to periodically clean the nozzels which is a pain.
I have the Canon Pro 1000 and like it a lot. No clogs.
I have an Epson All-In-One ET-3600. (For office work - not printing photos.) I have to clean it all the time.
jim quist wrote:
I am going to buy a printer that will print 16x20 prints. I really like the Epson printer we used in photo classes I took. But I hear about the ink jet ports getting clogged. Do the Canon ports clog just as easily?
Jim: I have been using Epson printers for 15+ years. The way to keep the print heads from clogging is to print a small (can be 4"x5") Full Color photograph "Every Week". You do not need to print a lot of ink just make sure you are using a full range of colors to keep the print heads clean.
If you like I can send you a file (Photo Shop PSD) that lets me print 3 small images (one image per week) on an 8.5"x11" sheet of glossy photo paper. This way I do not waste photo paper.
This method works for me.
Good luck
jim quist wrote:
I am going to buy a printer that will print 16x20 prints. I really like the Epson printer we used in photo classes I took. But I hear about the ink jet ports getting clogged. Do the Canon ports clog just as easily?
If you have experience with both what do you think?
For years I have had all of my prints done thru Millers. But I want to start printing my own now. Excellent quality is what I am looking for.
Want to stay under $3,000 with an initial supply of ink.
I strongly recommend you check out JToolman YouTube videos regarding wide format printers. Jose is a printer guru and owns 17 printers. For 16x20 prints you are basically deciding between a Canon Pro 1000 or Epson P900. Both are in your price range but OEM ink for both is expensive. The Canon is 12 cartridges and the Epson is 10 cartridges, they cost about $50 each. ($600 or $500 per set). The setup cartridges with both printers are about 1/2 full so you'll need a new set fairly soon after setup. Modern inkjet printers are complicated electronic devices that must be exercised regularly to keep operating reliably. The Qimage Purge print scheduling helps a lot. My Epson printer spit out a scheduled purge print yesterday.
I'm not ready to go beyond 11x14 yet but I've considered getting a Canon Pro 1000 because there are opportunities to significantly reduce ink cost by refilling with quality ink (even bulk OEM ink) whereas Epson makes that virtually impossible.
Both look like great options. So here's my (unqualified) 2 cents. Personally I like to be consistent with brands. For example, I have a decent Samsung phone. So structured around it I have Samsung tablet, laptop, watch, earbuds, etc. Everything syncs beautifully and a pleasure to use.
With that in mind, I'd lean towards a Canon printer (I'm guessing you use a Canon camera), hopefully making connectivity and transfers a breeze, and obviously apps would be compatible with both.
Another consideration would be the cost of consumables such as ink. I haven't looked into it, but finding out how many prints (approximately) can be made before needing new cartridges would be important to me, and as I said, the actual price of them, and availability.
To my old eyes, the print quality of both of these brands look about identical, but I'm in no way a professional, just a keen amateur, so please take what I've said with that in mind, and I hope maybe it's just a few things to consider when you make a decision. I'm sure you'll be happy whatever you get so good luck and keep shooting!
KindaSpikey wrote:
Personally I like to be consistent with brands. For example, I have a decent Samsung phone. So structured around it I have Samsung tablet, laptop, watch, earbuds, etc. Everything syncs beautifully and a pleasure to use.
I have two Samsung phones, a Samsung tablet and a Samsung laptop. The laptop is still going strong after 7 years with a Windows 10 upgrade, but anything Android can be problematic. I had to get rid of a Note 2 and Galaxy S3 tablet because some software on the Google Play store would not run on them. I'm getting messages on my newer Note 9 phone that some web sites will not work properly unless I upgrade the operating system. I have no control over that. Samsung dictates the upgrades. The phone is maybe 3 years old.
I don't mean to imply that someone will have to swap out a printer every few years, though I do have to say that it's getting harder to find ink for my Canon 8120B AIO printer. Office Max is usually out of the particular ink that I'm running out of, and I've resorted to stocking up from Amazon. By the way, it's a great little printer/scanner/35mm film scanner. I don't use the film feature because I have an Epson V800.
jim quist wrote:
I am going to buy a printer that will print 16x20 prints. I really like the Epson printer we used in photo classes I took. But I hear about the ink jet ports getting clogged. Do the Canon ports clog just as easily?
If you have experience with both what do you think?
For years I have had all of my prints done thru Millers. But I want to start printing my own now. Excellent quality is what I am looking for.
Want to stay under $3,000 with an initial supply of ink.
I started with Epson (doesn't everyone?) but now I'm with Canon and really like it. I's a Pro 100, don't remember the price but it didn't make me blink. Check Amazon.
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