Off brand inks for Epson 9900?

[wonderings]

I have an Epson 9900 I took home with me when our family business merged with a larger print shop. I don't do a whole lot with it other then print some posters for nieces and nephews birthdays. Looking to save some money on inks as the Epson branded stuff is a pretty penny especially when there is 12 colours! Anyone have good results with an off brand ink? I just print on an 8mil photo satin paper.

 

[SoggyWinter]

Do you have a process for resetting or replacing the cartridge chips?

 

[wonderings]

Do you have a process for resetting or replacing the cartridge chips?

No, I am still on the original inks and have about 5 colours still new in the box. At the moment I need to get Orange and then I am good for a while I think.

Are you talking about flashing the ships and refilling the Epson cartridges themselves? Having never used anything but Epson inks, how do refillable or off brand inks compare for colour as well as life span?

 

[SoggyWinter]

3rd party cartridges need chips that emulate epson cartridges or OEM epson chips that have been reset.

 

[Magnus59]

None genuine inks destroyed the printhead on one of our 9800s

 

[easiprint]

I found they work ok if you use it daily, but if there are periods of non-use, the ink dries and clogs the heads badly compared to Genuine Epson inks.

 

[Puch]

I found they work ok if you use it daily, but if there are periods of non-use, the ink dries and clogs the heads badly compared to Genuine Epson inks.

That happens with genuine Epson inks, too. I had 3 (three) head changes on our 7900 in 8 years, using original inks. As the fourth head is dead now, I will send the machine to the scrapyard as soon as this whole covid scam is over. I already had one head change on our 4900, which is only 4 years old. The x900 heads have too tiny noozles, and can overheat and damage themselves when trying to clean clogs. On the other hand, x800 is a different design, almost indestructible: we have a 4800 which is working fine after 13 years, without any problems.

 

[WreckTangle]

It's best to use OEM inks. My experience is below:

I brought home a HP T790ps that had been sitting and powered off for awhile. Started it up, it ran through its initializing cycle and soon was outputting perfect prints. It's a newer printer so it pumps the ink through the printheads everyday to keep them from drying or clogging. Even after being powered off for a few months there were no issues with the print heads.

When it was time to replace the inks, I bulked at OEM cartridges. So, I ordered LD brand. They were "okay" at first, but went downhill in the last year or so. Half the time the chips don't work, or, they just fall out/come un-glued of the cartridge. LD support is great and they ship replacements, but half the times they don't work either. Recently, all my printheads crapped out at the same time. after sitting while I was on vacation--strange right?

I'm pretty sure it was the non-OEM inks. Now I am back on OEM inks, which I purchase through eBay. If you are patient and look you can get it cheaper than 3rd party inks (non-OEM)--at least for my machine. Just be careful with the expiration dates, I usually pass on ink that is dated beyond 2 years.

If your running press proofs, which most Epsons are used for you better be using OEM inks.