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I know it seems odd for ME to ask for help, but this is about a printer issue and I haven't been keeping up with new models for a while.
My beloved Canon i960 just may have died, or at least wounded. The issue here is that the light magenta section of the printhead refuses to print. This has been confirmed by doing a nozzle check, all other colors work except for it. And yes, I have put in brand new ink tanks and ran the deep cleaning utility several times. I also uninstalled and reinstalled the driver, no luck.
So, what happens when you try to print? As you may expect, the colors are way off. To top it off I just bought $55 worth of ink and $30 for photo paper for a project I'm working on. If I have to return it, I will.
Here's my dilemma. My i960 is more than 5 1/2 years old (I got it in Nov. 2003). I have resisted the urge to upgrade because a). The photo quality is downright amazing even after all these years and it's FAST (2 minutes for an 8.5x11) and b) Canon no longer makes consumer-level printers that have light cyan and light magenta ink tanks. Sorry but no matter what Consumer Reports says, a standard 4-color system cannot produce the same quality a 6-color can.
I could buy a replacement printhead which cost around $80 on Ebay brand new. Only problem is, if it's the electronics on the carriage itself I'm out 80 bucks and still without a working printer.
So, the better option is to buy a new printer. Hmm, which one to buy? Here are three brands I have looked at (Sorry, I refuse to look at Dell, Lexmark and Kodak and I'm not interested in an all-in-one for this type of printing):
Canon: I looked at Canon's latest offerings and the cheapest printer that has a true 6 color ink system (And not the gimmick of 2 blacks or a gray ink either) is the Pixma Pro9000 Mark II - and it's $450. Seems like Canon is going the ol' "let's cater to the pros and shaft the consumers" route. The Pixma Pro 9000 Mk II looks like a great machine (8 colors!) but there is no way that beast is going to fit on my desk.
HP: From what I have heard is that HP has gotten a lot better in terms of print speeds, the last HP printer I owned (A Photosmart 7350) took 15 minutes to print an 8x10, that's why I got the Canon I960 in the first place. However, a look on it's website shows NO printer that has the true 6 color system, even the "pro" models. Either HP has figured out how to get good quality out of 4 colors or they have just dropped the ball big time.
Epson: A look on Epson's site reveals - jackpot - they have a 6-color printer, the Artisan 50 printer. Only problem is, the Epson printers have a printhead that is not removable, so if it gets clogged you're screwed. At least that's what I found back in 2004, so maybe they have gotten better in terms of reliability. Sadly, this may be the only option at this point.
Man, I'm really bummed out right now. Well, at least it lasted for more then 5 years.
My beloved Canon i960 just may have died, or at least wounded. The issue here is that the light magenta section of the printhead refuses to print. This has been confirmed by doing a nozzle check, all other colors work except for it. And yes, I have put in brand new ink tanks and ran the deep cleaning utility several times. I also uninstalled and reinstalled the driver, no luck.
So, what happens when you try to print? As you may expect, the colors are way off. To top it off I just bought $55 worth of ink and $30 for photo paper for a project I'm working on. If I have to return it, I will.
Here's my dilemma. My i960 is more than 5 1/2 years old (I got it in Nov. 2003). I have resisted the urge to upgrade because a). The photo quality is downright amazing even after all these years and it's FAST (2 minutes for an 8.5x11) and b) Canon no longer makes consumer-level printers that have light cyan and light magenta ink tanks. Sorry but no matter what Consumer Reports says, a standard 4-color system cannot produce the same quality a 6-color can.
I could buy a replacement printhead which cost around $80 on Ebay brand new. Only problem is, if it's the electronics on the carriage itself I'm out 80 bucks and still without a working printer.
So, the better option is to buy a new printer. Hmm, which one to buy? Here are three brands I have looked at (Sorry, I refuse to look at Dell, Lexmark and Kodak and I'm not interested in an all-in-one for this type of printing):
Canon: I looked at Canon's latest offerings and the cheapest printer that has a true 6 color ink system (And not the gimmick of 2 blacks or a gray ink either) is the Pixma Pro9000 Mark II - and it's $450. Seems like Canon is going the ol' "let's cater to the pros and shaft the consumers" route. The Pixma Pro 9000 Mk II looks like a great machine (8 colors!) but there is no way that beast is going to fit on my desk.
HP: From what I have heard is that HP has gotten a lot better in terms of print speeds, the last HP printer I owned (A Photosmart 7350) took 15 minutes to print an 8x10, that's why I got the Canon I960 in the first place. However, a look on it's website shows NO printer that has the true 6 color system, even the "pro" models. Either HP has figured out how to get good quality out of 4 colors or they have just dropped the ball big time.
Epson: A look on Epson's site reveals - jackpot - they have a 6-color printer, the Artisan 50 printer. Only problem is, the Epson printers have a printhead that is not removable, so if it gets clogged you're screwed. At least that's what I found back in 2004, so maybe they have gotten better in terms of reliability. Sadly, this may be the only option at this point.
Man, I'm really bummed out right now. Well, at least it lasted for more then 5 years.
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