What printer should I buy: iGen4 / Nexpress S2500 / Indigo 3500

[Dave Lyons]

I have an iGen3/110, but unfortunately it cannot print the flat screen tints, halftones, and duotones without artifacts. So I have the opportunity to choose between installing a new Nexpress S2500, and iGen4, or Indigo 3500.

I have received samples from all 3 devices and all look very good. My question to this forum is Color Consistency: Xerox has come out and stated that the iGen4 will match the very first sheet to the last. However, I have not heard anything from Kodak (Nexpress) or HP (Indigo).

Thanks for any light you can shed on this

Dave

[Craig]

I do not have any of the machines you are looking at, but I will say from the information I have gathered the Indigo will produce some excellent prints if it is properly maintained. I understand that it does require a lot of maintenance though. If I were making a decision between the Nexpress and the iGen it would be very hard indeed. I like the 5th color unit of the Nexpress, and the clear toner, that's a major plus for me. But the automation in the iGen 4 is pretty cool too.

[RGPW17100]

Indigo is a variable data machine. If your looking for a digital press and do not plan to run mainly variable then Indigo is probably not for you. Click charges are very high and you are very limited on substrates you can print on most of which are pretty costly. Keeping color consistent from sheet to sheet on longer runs can be an issue. Climate conditions must be watched as well and keeping up with maintenance. As far as I am concerned there is not better quality digital machine then the Indigo but it dont come cheap.

[John Roberds]

If you are looking at production printers you should spend a little time with Xeikon. Their new 1200 dpi LED technology is the best in the business. They don't have the name recognition of the other three but their performance is on a par and they have a number of different machines to choose from. We just installed our 1200 dpi machine and the image quality is great. Worth a look, particularly if you have difficult images to output.

John Roberds

[X33]

I think that if you have samples from all these major digital presses in a table, it would be hard to figure out which one was printed on what ... quality is very good on all of them

you may want to think more about service and support, technology, maintenance and uptime ...

[mmeister55]

But that would be if all the samples were printed in CMYK. However I think you will see a difference between a 4 color, 5 color, and a 7 color sample. If the full capabilities of the equipment are used the difference in the final printed product becomes more evident.

[Whygen]

We have had Igen 3 and Nexpress 2100 - photographic detail and quality was superior on the Nexpress, general commercial quality was Igen - Nexpress costing model hugely unreliable and Igen just hugely unreliable.
Quality is best on Indigo - higher running costs - need volume and right market.....

[Craig]

Just a question Whygen, did I read on another thread that you are looking at getting 2 KM6500's? If you had enough volume to support an iGen and a Nexpress, why would you get such light weight devices? 6500's/6501's could never survive that type of punishment for any length of time.

[random]

If you are looking at the above spec machines your not going to be looking at a c6500.

My best c6500 runs 100k+ a month so two would be 200k a month with redundancy Craig. Considering your only running 70k a month Konica Minolta 6500 - Thoughts maybe you should get one.

Just because there isn't KM in the title doesn't mean Im not going to find you bagging my product you toe rag.

[lfelton]

Just a question Whygen, did I read on another thread that you are looking at getting 2 KM6500's? If you had enough volume to support an iGen and a Nexpress, why would you get such light weight devices? 6500's/6501's could never survive that type of punishment for any length of time.

I think it's because Wygen can do math