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Conference hydra::amiga_v1

Title:AMIGA NOTES
Notice:Join us in the *NEW* conference - HYDRA::AMIGA_V2
Moderator:HYDRA::MOORE
Created:Sat Apr 26 1986
Last Modified:Wed Feb 05 1992
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:5378
Total number of notes:38326

4135.0. "Color Graphics Printer?" by KAHUNA::SUMNER () Wed Sep 19 1990 13:31

    
    What is a good color graphics printer to use with the AMIGA 2500
    for hi res graphics files?   Is thermal the best way to go still
    for color graphics?
    
    Thanks,
    Ray
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4135.1what quality print is neededSALEM::LEIMBERGERThu Sep 20 1990 09:3828
    	The fact that the system is a 2500 has no bearing on which printer you
    use. I have a Citizen GSX 140 at home. It uses a 4 colored ribbon and
    does not need any special paper. It uses the EpsonQ print driver. The
    printer has the capability to print 360x360 DPI. The problem is the
    Epson driver does not support that high a resolution. Can't remember
    offhand but I think it is 180x360 or thereabouts. I have had good
    results printing structured graphics out of Professional Page with this
    printer. No jaggies,and the color is good. The LJ25XX line from DEC 
    (paintjet) will give you a richer print,but I did not buy one of these
    because:
    	Cost,both of printer,and ink cartridges,and the need for special
    paper. The deciding factor however was that the finished print was not
    suitable for mailing list etc. The quality was their but the ink runs
    if it gets wet. I have seen Wax based thermal printers that give
    magazine like quality, but the cost is prohibitive(at least to me).
    	I printed out a Xmas card on the GSX,and then took it to a copy
    shop and had it copied on a color copier. The result was very good. It
    actually looked better than the original. Keep in mind that I used a
    simple pallete for this project. This process will give you a picture
    that could serve as a preliminary proof if you had to show a customer.    
    I have had several people (clone users) bemoan the output of the Amiga
    when it comes to printing. However the Amiga is not the problem. Their
    is just no cost effective way to get quality color prints thes people
    want out of a desktop system. What applications do you have in mind ?
    The application will have a very heavy inpact on the printer you will
    end up selecting. If it is a commercial venture then a color lazer
    printer may be needed( cost more than a new car).
    							bill
4135.2KAHUNA::SUMNERFri Sep 21 1990 19:5213
    A friend of mine owns a funiture business.  He wants to market a
    chair, something like a produces chair, and have the kids picture
    on it.  So, I would digitize the picture and then send it to the 
    printer and do a heat transfer of the picture to the material. 
    I've looked at some Canons thermal printers and they gave me a 
    demo on the process I used.  It was impressive but, the price was
    $6,000.  I can't justify that kind of cost for this venture.  
    
    How many colors can your printer generate?  My knowledge base on
    color printers is zip,  I assume that your 4 color printer has
    a process of combining the 4 colors to achieve a many colors?
                                                                 
4135.3Well, I think LJ250's are OK too.SNOC02::KINGRandall King @SNO Sydney, AussielandSat Sep 22 1990 00:2833
    
    Well, I reckon an LJ250 is not too bad for a lot of things if you can
    find one cheap or on loan.
    
    Resolutions (in HP PCL mode) are 180x180dpi for 8 colours (eg.  business
    graphics), and 90x90 dpi for 256 colours. 90 x 90 is very low res, so
    be careful. However, I use an LJ for printing cards, titles etc from
    DPRINT I which is always less than 8 colours and it does the job 
    beautifully.
    
    In my experience, the ink doesnt run - if you use the higher
    quality paper recommended for ink jets - which is addmittedly an extra
    cost.
    
    Also, some people arent aware of how to get the more vibrant colours -
    you just have to enable "double pass" printing recommended for plastic
    transparencies.
    
    Apart from these the other great features worth noting are
    
    		- no print noise!  preserves your sanity.
    		- very convenient cartridge replacements
    		- separate BW cartridge for ordinary text printing
    		- in my experience at work over a few years, very
    		  reliable and trouble free ie. little or no clogging.
    		- very lightweight - lightest printer I've ever used.
    
    Once you get hooked on inkjets, going back to dot matrix is tough -
    although I must admit the 24pin colour high-res printers are sometimes
    tempting.