I've never
owned Canon printers before, have always been a user of one of the other
brands, including doing workshops sponsored by them. I recently got a
couple of commissions big enough in size and requiring big prints, so I
could finally justify a very large format printer.
I compared
all the options in the 44 inch mega-gamut category. It's tricky deciding
looking at the test prints manufacturers send out, I was fortunate to
talk a seller into printing a couple prints of mine on the three
candidate printers. The Canon won, hands down, on the paper types that I
usually print on. One picture that I always struggled to print because
of its extreme color range finally printed the way it looked in my head,
and it was on this printer.
Relatively
easy to set up. It took me longer to unpack the stand and printer than
it did to build the stand. They're not kidding that you should have at
least four strong people to get it on the stand (I had three macho
moving company guys who said they could handle 200 pounds each, but it's
not just heavy, it's also bulky.)
Setup, head
adjustment, and calibration was smooth and automatic. Lots of ink left
after priming and the setup work, thanks to the large standard cartridge
size. My first couple of test prints were fantastic, next to older
versions they completely rock - almost new images. Just started the
painful process of profiling my old favorite papers, but have been
impressed enough by two of the Canon papers, out of the box with Canon's
profiles, that I'm going to try their equivalents to my old favorites.
The only
downer is that loading sheets is fiddly and tricky - moreso than with
the other brand printers that I used to curse for being fiddly and
tricky. It's so far off from how easy everything else has been that I
guess Canon figures anybody with this printer will be printing
exclusively from rolls. Unfortunately I print on many traditional
uncoated fine art papers that only come in sheets, and the five sheet
loading experiences so far have been awful enough to give me some
concerns.
Overall very
happy, although I'm sure I'll be a little less happy the first time I
have to replace a bunch of ink carts.
