Digital BW, The Print

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "eddiegnz1" <eddiegnz1@...> 
wrote:

> To me it's not 100% clear but it seems like this so called K7 kit 
> includes 8 cartriges but none of them are color cartriges but are 
> designed for a specific slot on the Epson R2400.  For example, there 
> is a neutral grey ink designed for the yellow postion.  is that 
> right?

The Neutral K7 set was originally made for the 2200, which only has 7 positions. It has a 
black plus 6 dilutions of grey. There is no color as such (no yellow cyan etc.) In printers 
with more than 7 positions they add a "Power Flush" cart for the extra slot.

The set was designed to be measurably neutral on Photo Rag paper. Using the inks on 
other papers will impart an apparent color to the inks. On Inkjet Mall's "Bradford Brilliant 
White" the inks will seem to have a selenium color. And on Innova Cold Press Art paper 
they will seem to be warmer. You can also buy a Sepia toned set of the inks, or just use a 
Sepia in  a few positions for a split toned effect. It's fairly easy to swap out carts since the 
print head doesn't hold much ink in the smaller, desktop printers (2200, 2400, 1800 etc) 
and the switch over happens pretty quickly, although you do burn through some ink.

The inks are set up to be used with QuadTone Rip, which comes with curves already made 
for these inks. Check to see if your favorite paper is supported by QTR. Use those curves 
rather than making your own unless you really know what you're doing. Cone and Co have 
made very nice curves that can be made to print super smooth and subtle, or you can jazz 
up your files and print a very contrasty look if so desired. You can't print on glossy paper 
with these inks, only the matte surface art papers.

Now the one wild card in this is human perception. Cone's crew used a colorimeter to 
measure each dilution of the neutral set and they were tuned to be measureably neutral on 
Photo Rag paper. Each person's eyes will see this differently though, so you might not 
perceive the inks to be neutral. Inkjet Mall has a set of samples on a variety of papers that 
one can order and look things over before buying. Or for the $130  give the inks a try. 

Mark Stracke