Epson CIS

[Nodge]

I have an Epson 2100 and in the course of printing approx 75 A3 prints I've
got through 20 ink cartridges. That's about £200 making about £2.66 per A3
print. This is more than I want to pay so I've been looking at CIS systems.
I've always steered clear in the past as a lot of people seem to have
problems with these but I do have to reduce my costs somehow. I do want to
maintain quality though so I've looked at Lyson and Permajet systems but
they are so expensive - about £300 including ink! Didn't really want to
spend that much if I can help it. It now looks like I might also be
acquiring an Epson 1290s. I wouldn't expect the results from this printer to
be quite as good as the 2100 but they might well be acceptable. I know I can
buy an unbranded CIS for this for about £80 including dye based ink. Just
not sure which way to go. Would I be wasting my money on a cheap CIS for the
1290? How about a cheap CIS for the 2100? - you see them on Ebay for under
£30. Or should I stick with a Lyson or Permajet system? Or how about
refillable cartridges as opposed to a CIS. Not sure what the pros and cons
are. Anyone care to comment?

Thanks

John

 

[Roy G]

I have an Epson 2100 and in the course of printing approx 75 A3 prints I've
got through 20 ink cartridges. That's about £200 making about £2.66 per A3
print. This is more than I want to pay so I've been looking at CIS systems.
I've always steered clear in the past as a lot of people seem to have
problems with these but I do have to reduce my costs somehow. I do want to
maintain quality though so I've looked at Lyson and Permajet systems but
they are so expensive - about £300 including ink! Didn't really want to
spend that much if I can help it. It now looks like I might also be
acquiring an Epson 1290s. I wouldn't expect the results from this printer
to be quite as good as the 2100 but they might well be acceptable. I know I
can buy an unbranded CIS for this for about £80 including dye based ink.
Just not sure which way to go. Would I be wasting my money on a cheap CIS
for the 1290? How about a cheap CIS for the 2100? - you see them on Ebay
for under £30. Or should I stick with a Lyson or Permajet system? Or how
about refillable cartridges as opposed to a CIS. Not sure what the pros and
cons are. Anyone care to comment?

Thanks

John

Hi.

I don't have a 2100, but it strikes me that you should get one hell of a lot
more than 75 A3 Prints from 20 Carts.

I would expect to get at least 10 or 12 from 1 Colour Cart in my 1290.

Unless there are large time gaps between Photo Printing sessions, because
that way more ink gets used in cleaning than in printing.

Roy G

 

[me]

I have an Epson 2100 and in the course of printing approx 75 A3 prints I've
got through 20 ink cartridges. That's about £200 making about £2.66 per A3
print. This is more than I want to pay so I've been looking at CIS systems.
I've always steered clear in the past as a lot of people seem to have
problems with these but I do have to reduce my costs somehow. I do want to
maintain quality though so I've looked at Lyson and Permajet systems but
they are so expensive - about £300 including ink! Didn't really want to
spend that much if I can help it. It now looks like I might also be
acquiring an Epson 1290s. I wouldn't expect the results from this printer to
be quite as good as the 2100 but they might well be acceptable. I know I can
buy an unbranded CIS for this for about £80 including dye based ink. Just
not sure which way to go. Would I be wasting my money on a cheap CIS for the
1290? How about a cheap CIS for the 2100? - you see them on Ebay for under
£30. Or should I stick with a Lyson or Permajet system? Or how about
refillable cartridges as opposed to a CIS. Not sure what the pros and cons
are. Anyone care to comment?

Just a general comment in regard to inkjet printers related to ink usage.
Everyone would be best served trying various printing resolutions on
whatever media and source images they are using to determine if the higher
printing resolutions are really buying anything other than higher ink
usage.

 

[Arthur Entlich]

I appreciate your concerns both about ink prices and CIS issues.

Some people have opted for buying a Epson 3800 if they are printing a
lot of prints, because it uses large cartridges which cost less, and
last longer, and the printer comes with filled cartridges when you buy it.

The 2100, as you know, uses Ultrachrome ink which is a pigment ink which
uses acrylic resins to seal the ink onto the paper. The main advantage
top this is the ink has a very good level of fade resistance. Most dye
inks are more fugitive to light. The 2100 is also a bit more durably
built than the 1290, but both produce good results.

I would suggest you look closely at the output of each and decide which
is best for your needs. If you are selling your prints, fade resistance
becomes a bigger issue.

Regarding CIS, there are a number out there. The newer designs tend to
be better (the spongeless types). You may decide it is better to get
the CIS and the ink separately, rather than both together, because some
good CISs are made by companies whose inks you may not like, and vice versa.

I don't endorse specific companies for 3rd party inks or CIS, but
hopefully some other people will respond with details of their
experiences. You might also wish to join the Epson printers group on
Yahoo, where a lot of Epson users read and participate, and ask there
for experiences.

Art

 

[Arthur Entlich]

The 2100 has individual cartridges for each color, unlike the 1290 which
has two cartridges, a black, and a 5 color cartridge. Although each
individual cartridge has more ink in it than the one section of your 5
color cartridge, the 2100 would use 5 or 6 cartridges to your two, so
there isn't a direct translation. In OEM costs, your color cartridge
would be more costly than one one-color cartridge with the 2100. The
Ultrachrome inks are more costly than dye inks, also.

Art

 

[measekite]

Get a Canon Pro 9000 and use Canon ink.  The ink mileage is bettter and the quality is just fabulous.

Nodge wrote:

I have an Epson 2100 and in the course of printing approx 75 A3 prints I've got through 20 ink cartridges. That's about £200 making about £2.66 per A3 print. This is more than I want to pay so I've been looking at CIS systems. I've always steered clear in the past as a lot of people seem to have problems with these but I do have to reduce my costs somehow. I do want to maintain quality though so I've looked at Lyson and Permajet systems but they are so expensive - about £300 including ink! Didn't really want to spend that much if I can help it. It now looks like I might also be acquiring an Epson 1290s. I wouldn't expect the results from this printer to be quite as good as the 2100 but they might well be acceptable. I know I can buy an unbranded CIS for this for about £80 including dye based ink. Just not sure which way to go. Would I be wasting my money on a cheap CIS for the 1290? How about a cheap CIS for the 2100? - you see them on Ebay for under £30. Or should I stick with a Lyson or Permajet system? Or how about refillable cartridges as opposed to a CIS. Not sure what the pros and cons are. Anyone care to comment? Thanks John

 

[measekite]

I appreciate your concerns both about ink prices and CIS issues.

Some people have opted for buying a Epson 3800 if they are printing a
lot of prints, because it uses large cartridges which cost less, and
last longer, and the printer comes with filled cartridges when you buy
it.

The 2100, as you know, uses Ultrachrome ink which is a pigment ink
which uses acrylic resins to seal the ink onto the paper. The main
advantage top this is the ink has a very good level of fade
resistance. Most dye inks are more fugitive to light. The 2100 is
also a bit more durably built than the 1290, but both produce good
results.

I would suggest you look closely at the output of each and decide
which is best for your needs. If you are selling your prints, fade
resistance becomes a bigger issue.

Regarding CIS, there are a number out there. The newer designs tend
to be better (the spongeless types). You may decide it is better to
get the CIS and the ink separately, rather than both together, because
some good CISs are made by companies whose inks you may not like, and
vice versa.

I don't endorse specific companies for 3rd party inks or CIS, I do not endorse any of them.
but hopefully some other people will respond with details of their
experiences. You might also wish to join the Epson printers group on
Yahoo, where a lot of Epson users read and participate, and ask there
for experiences.

Art