# Sublimation printer comparison



## Dave1972 (Aug 17, 2017)

Hello,

I am currently doing a little sublimation printing with a Ricoh sg7100dn and it seems to do a decent job. I have been approached by a company and they are offering me an Epson SC-F6200 Sublimation Printer at a good price with some nice extras such as finance option and warranty - I will have to read the terms before I can be sure it is a good deal but I would like to know if anyone has had any experience with this printer and Epson and what you think does the print quality match the Ricoh etc?

Thanks.


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## JYA (Jun 2, 2008)

You're wanting to compare a desktop printer to a wide format printer; two completely different things.

However, question #1 should be "what products do I want to make?" 

Question #2 should be "what's my budget?" 

IMPO, all printers are no different than ink and paper. They are consumables. The last thing I want to do is to have a lease payment hanging over my head when that printer dies.


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## Dave1972 (Aug 17, 2017)

Hi M,

oops, omitted some key details there 

I use the Ricoh for printing on t-shirts the quality is good but I would like to print wider images and I was told Epson produces better quality images and sublimation ink costs are a lot lower.

As for the price its about 4K and as it stands that is not really an issue for me and with nothing to pay for 20 months with 0% interest the only issue is - is the unit any good and maybe the T&Cs of the contract


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## JYA (Jun 2, 2008)

Dave1972 said:


> Hi M,
> 
> oops, omitted some key details there
> 
> ...


Is the Epson new, used?


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## Dave1972 (Aug 17, 2017)

The printer is new


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## PatWibble (Mar 7, 2014)

Dave1972 said:


> Hi M,
> 
> 
> 
> I use the Ricoh for printing on t-shirts the quality is good but I would like to print wider images and I was told Epson produces better quality images and sublimation ink costs are a lot lower.


Are you still looking to print onto t-shirts, or are you going to be printing some larger items that will need a wide format printer?
If you a only want to print larger images onto t-shirts then Epson make some good quality 13 x 19"/A3+ size printers. 

The one most often used by forum members is the 1430 Artisan. Because it uses the same basic printheads as some of the wider format Epson printers, it is compatible with the same low cost ink that the F6200 uses. Based on the UK costs, you will be able to get one with a Cis full of sublimation ink for $300-$400US. 

Unless you are planning to branch out into all over printing, cut and sew or large format items such as flags, you could be better running one or more 1430 printers than one F6200. Three 1430s will fit into the same footprint as the F6200, and cost about a quarter of the price.


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## djque (Feb 5, 2013)

also how often do you print with sublimation sine Epson needs to be used more than the ricoh printer.


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## JaeAmera (Dec 25, 2006)

djque said:


> also how often do you print with sublimation sine Epson needs to be used more than the ricoh printer.


Very good point! More than not, our clients that once did sublimation printing for themselves, had issues with their printers and/ or color consistency due to lack of use. So many feel they will be better off ,profit wise, printing for themselves even though they don't use their specialized inks consistently. When actually it's a detriment to profitability. 

Go bigger or add multiple printers when your phone rings every two days asking for a larger size or larger volume than you can provide or provide comfortably without straining your shop. (preferably this comes from existing accounts)

So many people get themselves in a financial jam based on speculation of future business...."if I buy this, my potential customer will do this."

"Go bigger, Why? Go multiple printers, Why?" Both of those questions as well as others should be written and answered based on validated proof, not speculation.

Don't hang your hat on the potential of new business I.M.H.O. We hung our hat on valid proof from our clients/accounts that they were growing and desired to grow using our services. So as their volume grew with validated numbers, we ramped up our services with additional speed, quality and volume capabilities.

Talk to your existing clients, study their business, their business acumen, goals...even their character. If you are in a business that serves other business (everyone isn't of course) you need to make sure you are leveraging your growth with good people/companies.

Before buying any new/additional piece of equipment...ask yourself who will care and who will wear it out with placed orders. 

Hope this helps.

Jae


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## Dave1972 (Aug 17, 2017)

Thank you all for the information it is much appreciated!
@Jae - Currently about 20% of my business is printing client designs and 80% is me selling designs I have created. The designs I create often attract customers that want the design in a 2XL or bigger but I can’t accommodate this request with the Ricoh – on average I get between 40 to 60 questions about doing a larger size than XL per month thus me looking into a larger printer. Going forward I have no plans to branch out into anything else I just plan to do bigger t-shirts.

@Pat – If I split my image into 2 or more parts how hard would it be to sublimate without messing the middle – I would think this would be quite hard?

@que – I am not going to included client designs as this would skew the average but I would say I print 4-5 a day.

I talked to the sales rep for the Epson and he has the printer has been designed from the ground up for sublimation printing thus clogging should not be an issue like it is with some of their other printers that have been converted to sublimation printers. He all so went on to say that for the same prince as a full set of Ricoh sublimation inks you can get a full set of Epson sublimation ink for their printer and each cart is 1 liter thus a huge saving in printing costs. Finally, He also claims the print quality is better than the Ricoh. Now I use the Ricoh and it does a good job overall but I have fond when doing fading effects it falls a little short. While doing some research I did notice that the Ricoh has a higher DPI then the Epson so I do not know if this claim is true or not.


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## twnfinn (Jun 24, 2013)

Dave1972 said:


> Thank you all for the information it is much appreciated!
> @Jae - Currently about 20% of my business is printing client designs and 80% is me selling designs I have created. The designs I create often attract customers that want the design in a 2XL or bigger but I can’t accommodate this request with the Ricoh – on average I get between 40 to 60 questions about doing a larger size than XL per month thus me looking into a larger printer. Going forward I have no plans to branch out into anything else I just plan to do bigger t-shirts.
> 
> @Pat – If I split my image into 2 or more parts how hard would it be to sublimate without messing the middle – I would think this would be quite hard?
> ...


The Epson sales rep's comments are correct but like others have said you need to have enough work for the printer to be a worthwhile investment. Also make sure you are buying from a legitimate source, the price of $4000 is very very good for this printer. (it is the f6200, not the older f6070?)


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## Dave1972 (Aug 17, 2017)

twnfinn said:


> The Epson sales rep's comments are correct but like others have said you need to have enough work for the printer to be a worthwhile investment. Also make sure you are buying from a legitimate source, the price of $4000 is very very good for this printer. (it is the f6200, not the older f6070?)


Just to clarify do you think the Epson will produce better prints than the Ricoh and are you coming to this conclusion based on the specs if so could you explain why - I would like to understand how to differentiate between two sublimation printers? 

I have checked around on the web and noticed that the unit is going for around 7K so 4K does seem a little cheap. I will ask for the terms of sale on Monday - I suspect I will find something nasty in the financing part as 20 months with 0% interest on top of a low price seems silly


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## twnfinn (Jun 24, 2013)

Dave1972 said:


> Just to clarify do you think the Epson will produce better prints than the Ricoh and are you coming to this conclusion based on the specs if so could you explain why - I would like to understand how to differentiate between two sublimation printers?
> 
> I have checked around on the web and noticed that the unit is going for around 7K so 4K does seem a little cheap. I will ask for the terms of sale on Monday - I suspect I will find something nasty in the financing part as 20 months with 0% interest on top of a low price seems silly


With sublimation its many things that have to work together, printer, ink, RIP, paper, pressing temperature, pressing force, environmental conditions and finally but not least the substrate that you are pressing on. There are certainly more knowledgeable people on this board but my experience would be that unless you are pressing a hard substrate like a metal plate the DPI of the printer is almost a meaningless question. Unless you have a well made profile and RIP for you Ricoh you will likely get more true colors with the Epson since it comes with a RIP and profiles made for their inks. 

If the price is the true it sounds like you could buy it, test it and if you don't like it sell it on ebay for no loss.


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## Signature Series (Jun 11, 2016)

Next time an Epson sales rep claims the printer was designed from the start to be a dye sub printer may want to ask what are major changes to the printer compared to a standard Epson wide format printer? For those that remember and experienced the F6200 when it first came out it was a disaster. When it comes down to it the only critical part of the printer is the print head. If the F6200 now has a unique print head then I would listen.


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## StormJetPrinter (Dec 27, 2017)

for small desk top printer sublimation iam not very professional but regarding large format printer now mostly using the Epson 5113 head. which is fast speed and less cost. Which sell a lot in the market.


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