We examine some Epson 2100 print samples

10th May - 2002
By Ian Burley

We analyse colour and mono print samples from Epson
BLACK AND WHITE PRINT ANALYSIS

Now we turn to mono printing. Unfortunately we don’t exactly know how the Epson sample print was set up - did it use the intermediate black? Probably, but we aren’t sure. Is it a completely mono print? Unlikely, as we can clearly see some coloured dots and the print has a very slightly warm feel about it.

What we do know is that it was printed on Epson Archival Matte paper at 2880x1440dpi.

Normal viewing

Viewed normally, unaided, the Epson 2100 mono sample is not particularly sharp, so it’s not very easy to determine how well detail is retained. However, the grey tones look reassuring, without the graininess you would normally expect.

What about metamerism - the nasty, usually greenish, cast that spoils the true blacks of many pigment ink printers when viewed under various lighting conditions. It’s not completely cured. Viewed in daylight the print looks neutral, but under fluorescent light there is a touch of magenta about the print and under incandescent artificial light, there is a hint of green, but it has to be said it’s much better controlled compared with previous Epson pigment ink prints.

All scans were made using a HP 7450 2400x2400ppi flat bed scanner and the scans were made in 24-bit colour mode.

Directly below are thumbnail views of the the original DPN Epson Premium Glossy 10x7.5 inch Stylus 950 test print (2880x1440dpi) and some detail in a model’s blouse in close up:

 


And below is the Epson 2100 6x8 inch sample thumbnail, printed on Epson Archival Matte at 2880x1440dpi plus its selected close up portion. The scanner seems to reproduce the images as seen by a human eye under fluorescent light as there is a detectable magenta tint, especially compared with the neutral black of the 950 prints above.

 

Above is an extreme 2400ppi magnification of the 2100 print detailing the buckle on the boy’s swim mask. There is none of the tell-tale sharp dottiness of a typical mono-ink-jet print. We’d guess the intermediate black is in play here and to good effect. We suspect that a warm tone has been selected as there are clearly yellow and some magenta dots supplementing the black ones.

We don’t actually have a 2400ppi reproduction of the Epson 950 print, so here is a 600ppi look at the 2100 print:

This evidence should please those hoping for a big step forward in mono printing with the 2100. At 600ppi, the dots have all but disappeared. Yes, you really can have grey after all!

Here is the Epson 950 close up at 600ppi. This is printed at 2880x1440 also. Despite that incredible resolution, the dots - even at 2pl - are plainly visible and grey areas are seas of dots. But there is a lot of detail in there. This sample is printed on Epson Premium Glossy and later we will do comparative tests on matte as well. It’s possible the matte finish will blur the dots slightly.

 

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