I’m about to use my X-Rite Pulse system (purchased from Chromix ;o) for the first time and am hoping someone with experience can provide a little advice. The main issue is this: when printing targets from my Epson 4000 (Photoshop CS2) on a variety of third party matte fine art papers I need to know which driver paper setting is most appropriate. I’m testing on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag, Moab Entrada Natural, Epson Ultrasmooth Fine Art, and Premier Hot Press.
Possible appropriate choices in the Epson driver seem to be:
Enhanced Matte, Watercolor Radiant White, Smooth Fine Art, Textured Fine Art, Velvet Fine Art
So which choices for which papers? Is there some kind of test file that might show the paper settings that are best for each paper I’m testing or is there one best choice for matte papers?
Also, there’s a check box for “Finest Detail”. I remember reading somewhere that checking this isn’t necessary for matte papers. I’ve been printing on matte for a quite a while with this box unchecked, but since I’m printing all these targets and am going to profile them I’m wondering if there’s an advantage to leaving this checked.
I’m about to use my X-Rite Pulse system (purchased from Chromix ;o) for the first time and am hoping someone with experience can provide a little advice. The main issue is this: when printing targets from my Epson 4000 (Photoshop CS2) on a variety of third party matte fine art papers I need to know which driver paper setting is most appropriate. I’m testing on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag, Moab Entrada Natural, Epson Ultrasmooth Fine Art, and Premier Hot Press.
Possible appropriate choices in the Epson driver seem to be:
Enhanced Matte, Watercolor Radiant White, Smooth Fine Art, Textured Fine Art, Velvet Fine Art
So which choices for which papers? Is there some kind of test file that might show the paper settings that are best for each paper I’m testing or is there one best choice for matte papers?
the basic test is to print a black to white wedge and see which one has the smoothes tones and, probably more important, which has better shadow detail. Some settings with block up the shadows and you want to avoid these.
Also, there’s a check box for “Finest Detail”. I remember reading somewhere that checking this isn’t necessary for matte papers. I’ve been printing on matte for a quite a while with this box unchecked, but since I’m printing all these targets and am going to profile them I’m wondering if there’s an advantage to leaving this checked.
well, like all things color, it depends on what you see. If you cannot see any difference then leave it off. I don’t think I’ve seen a difference with Finest Detail.
Regards,
Steve
o Steve Upton CHROMiX www.chromix.com
o (hueman) 866.CHROMiX
OK, I’m finding the best low-end gradient results using “smooth fine art” paper setting. That choice won’t allow printing from the tray. Manually feeding letter size sheets is a real pain on the 4000. Is there a way to trick the printer/driver into allowing a manual-only choice to feed from the tray?
OK, I’m finding the best low-end gradient results using “smooth fine art” paper setting. That choice won’t allow printing from the tray. Manually feeding letter size sheets is a real pain on the 4000. Is there a way to trick the printer/driver into allowing a manual-only choice to feed from the tray?
not that I know of… sorry
Regards,
Steve
o Steve Upton CHROMiX www.chromix.com
o (hueman) 866.CHROMiX
Not for unattended use, but you can load the paper in the tray and
then push the up arrow on the printer panel once to load a sheet from
the tray. Then just use the manual feed option in page setup and the
printer will think you have manually loaded a sheet of paper.
