# Sublijet VS Artainium on 4880 hybrid



## Cjoe Design (Jun 3, 2008)

I am in the middle of purchasing a new Epson 4880 printer which will have Chromablast on one side and Sublimation ink on the other. I originally was going to purchase the system with the Artanium inks thru Conde. I presently use Artanium and am happy with the colors. When I found out I needed to purchase a Multirip for close to $700 I started researching it. It seems that if I buy the printer from companies that carry Sublijet inks I can get drivers supplied by Sawgrass to switch between the mediums for free. 
I presently own a 1280 that I have worn out and am upgrading. I am aware of all the hoopla about the blacks being different. But when you talk to Artanium reps they say sublijet has serious issues so they don't carry it and when you talk to Sublijet reps they say Artanium ink colors are so all over the place they need a ripper.
I have been using Artanium for the past 3 years and Rotech before that and was happy with both. except for the clogging. Another reason I am going with the new 4880 that has the titanium ink repelling heads.
I don't want to cut any corners but I also don't want to spend any money that I don't have to. Both inks are made by sawgrass but use different technologies.
Which is better?
Does one produce more Clogs?
Why pick one technology over the other?


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## DAGuide (Oct 2, 2006)

Cory,

You need to really see all five systems in person and have have them print your designs out. Yes, there are five ways to run it a hybrid. The free print driver can make transfers, but the colors will never make it to the same level as a hybrid powered by a RIP. It is a known fact that you get better color control when you run a RIP than a print driver. This is why you see all the large format printers (Roland, Mutoh, Mimaki,...) always running a RIP. Below are the different RIP configurations that you can go with as a hybrid.
1. Sawgrass Print Driver Hybrid - SubliJet IQ and ChromaBlast only
2. RIP Option #1 - SubliJet IQ and ChromaBlast (light transfer solution)
3. RIP Option #2 - SubliJet IQ and MultINK (light and dark transfer solution)
4. RIP Option #3 - ArTainium and ChromaBlast (light transfer solution)
5. RIP Option #4 - ArTainium and MultINK (light and dark transfer solution)

When running a RIP powered hybrid, I have not really seen that much of a difference between the colors between SubliJet IQ or ArTainium as the RIP can make the adjustment for it. So for colors, it is not much difference between the two inks. There is a slight difference in price between the two sublimation inks. There is also a large price difference between the ChromaBlast ink (around $110) and the MultINK (below $60).

Most people also feel that the PowerDriver IQ drops more ink down as well. I can't speak for the other RIP manufacturers, but MultiRIP profiled its ink on a high release sublimation paper so we can drop less ink and still get bright colors. You are more than welcome to use an unvalidated version (i.e. prints a watermark) of MultiRIP to see how the colors look. Basically, it is like a test drive. You can even do this if you decide to go with the Sawgrass Print Driver hybrid as well.

The best thing that myself or anyone else can say is to see the results of the printing first hand. Make sure all the distributors just print your graphic without tweaking it. This will give you the best comparison. Best wishes in your research.

Mark


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## Cjoe Design (Jun 3, 2008)

Thanks Mark,

I am now leaning towards the Multirip. I am all for better color management and less ink usage. as for using the unvalidated version for a test run, it is not an option since Conde will sell the Multirip light for $679.00 when purchased with the artanium inks which is several hundred less than I have been able to find elsewhere. They must have incentives to help sell the Artanium hybrid over the Sublijet.

I have also read that the Multirip is very user friendly and has many of the different substrates built in so it can color manage properly.


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## DAGuide (Oct 2, 2006)

Not a problem. If you would like to learn more about how MultiRIP works, there a ton of online videos located at these two links:
- General Videos - YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. 
- Tech Support Videos - YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.

The individuals at Conde are very knowledgable with the RIP as well. Feel free to ask any additional questions that you might have. I want you to be as confident as possible in your decision. Best wishes.

Mark


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## jpkevin (Oct 22, 2007)

Hi Cory,

We sell, test, and most importantly tech support BOTH Artainium and Sublijet inks. The honest answer is that neither ink clogs more that the other. Performance wise they are very simular, and most clogging issues I have seen have more to do with the humidity where the printer is, what printer the ink is in, and how often the printer is used. Artainium is less expensive, but is harder to get all the color settings correct in the initial setup, and has a steeper learning curve. Sublijet is a little more expensive, but is very easy to set up and start using because of the Powerdriver Printer Driver that comes with the ink. With the basic set ups, the Sublijet inks have a darker black than the Artainium inks, but with a Rip, that can be compensated for.


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## Conde_David (May 29, 2008)

Clogging:

My experience has been that the Artainium inks clog less and extend the life of the printhead and capping station compared with the IQ inks. 

On large format printers where clogging must be minimized and printhead life maximized, the Art inks are dominant. I don't think that Sawgrass even pushes the IQ ink any more into the WF market. 

From a history point of view, this is one of the reason why Sawgrass bought the Artainium inks was because of performance and price. I think this was one of the best decisions Sawgrass has ever made.

Colors:

My experience with colors again has been that the epson driver combined with an ICC profile produces better colors and faster print speeds. Most folks that have large printers all use ICC profiles as this is the way of the world. Using the Multirip for a hybrid systems does the same.


Great topic.


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