Advice sought on A3/A3+ printers running under Ubuntu Linux

[Bob Giles]

Hi Guys,

My printer has died and I am considering replacing it with an A3 or
preferably A3+ printer.

It must be networkable and importantly, it must run under Linux.

I am considering the Epson Pro 3880, the Canon Pixma 9000 Mk2 or the
Canon Pixma 9500 Mk2 at the moment which should give an indication of
the price range under consideration. I believe that the Epson runs under
Linux but can only find information on the earlier Canon models running
under Linux

Does anyone have experience of running either of these under Linux?

Does anyone have any other suggestions for me to check out?

Does anyone have any observations on running costs particularly ink usage.

Sorry for all the questions!

Bob

 

[Gernot Hassenpflug]

Hi Guys,

My printer has died and I am considering replacing it with an A3 or
preferably A3+ printer.

It must be networkable and importantly, it must run under Linux.

Bob,

I think you'll be best served with Epson if you can confirm that there are drivers available.
More inline below.

I am considering the Epson Pro 3880, the Canon Pixma 9000 Mk2 or the
Canon Pixma 9500 Mk2 at the moment which should give an indication of
the price range under consideration. I believe that the Epson runs
under Linux but can only find information on the earlier Canon models
running under Linux

The Gutenprint project supports inkjet printing under linux, with
Epson and Canon featured prominently )and also some laser printers
supported for B/W).

Epson has been more forthcoming with information, so the Epson
printers are far better supported for high-quality printing; however,
newly supported printers and/or ones which have not had much user
feedback may require tuning of the colors.

On the Canon side, I have put in quite a bit of effort to support the
known command sets in most Canon inkjets, but there are many inks that
are not yet supported (this goes for several Epsons as well, although
red and green are supported there), and this is the main reason the
high-end Canon printers like the 9000 and 9500 series cannot be used
well under linux. Canons also suffer from not having tuning of the
colors for most models.

Does anyone have experience of running either of these under Linux?

Nope, but testing is always welcome! The gutenprint mailing list is
the place to ask, especially for news about how the Epson might
function:

(e-mail address removed)

Does anyone have any other suggestions for me to check out?

Try an inkjet from a manufacturer that provides linux support out of the box.

Does anyone have any observations on running costs particularly ink usage.

I would recommend refilling, or continuous-flow ink systems (again,
with 3rd party inks) unless you have a large pocket or specific needs
(in which case, if they are such a high priority, why not use Windows
and share the printer to your linux machine/network).

Sorry for all the questions!

No worries! I wish I had more time to spend on printer support...

 

[Bob Giles]

Bob,

I think you'll be best served with Epson if you can confirm that there are drivers available.
More inline below.


The Gutenprint project supports inkjet printing under linux, with
Epson and Canon featured prominently )and also some laser printers
supported for B/W).

Epson has been more forthcoming with information, so the Epson
printers are far better supported for high-quality printing; however,
newly supported printers and/or ones which have not had much user
feedback may require tuning of the colors.

On the Canon side, I have put in quite a bit of effort to support the
known command sets in most Canon inkjets, but there are many inks that
are not yet supported (this goes for several Epsons as well, although
red and green are supported there), and this is the main reason the
high-end Canon printers like the 9000 and 9500 series cannot be used
well under linux. Canons also suffer from not having tuning of the
colors for most models.


Nope, but testing is always welcome! The gutenprint mailing list is
the place to ask, especially for news about how the Epson might
function:

(e-mail address removed)


Try an inkjet from a manufacturer that provides linux support out of the box.


I would recommend refilling, or continuous-flow ink systems (again,
with 3rd party inks) unless you have a large pocket or specific needs
(in which case, if they are such a high priority, why not use Windows
and share the printer to your linux machine/network).


No worries! I wish I had more time to spend on printer support...

Gernot,

Sorry for being slow in replying. Thank you for your observations and
advice. Your comments are particularly relevent as I have learned that
Canon are introducing new models according to my local supplier. They
almost certainly be problematic under Linux.

I am slightly concerned that Epson may be a little greedy on ink but as
I don't anticipate high volumes of large prints this may not be an issue.

I will now go and check the suggested resources!

Thanks again,

Bob