Replacing my memjet label printer - Is the Epson the way to go?

[gazfocus]

I've mentioned before (on here and on other forums) about my frustrations with my label printer. I have a model that's the same machine as the Afinia L801 (just badged different) which uses the Memjet printhead. In terms of print quality, I'm pretty happy with it, the only thing that bugs me is you get white lines where the Memjet heads are stitched together so you have to be clever about where you place your prints if you're doing full colour backgrounds, etc.

Anyway, my main frustration really comes with the printhead. The head dries out way too quickly and is costing a fortune in replacements. I'll be honest in that we don't get enough jobs to be running the printer every day but I do at least print a head check every day (maybe I need to run a couple of feet of print every day instead). However, if I go away for a week, that week of not printing the head checks is enough to kill the head, so then I have to fork out another £600 for a new head.

Then there's the fact that it doesn't do smaller precut label sizes so the smallest precut size I can do is 2". This isn't a huge issue but something that bugs me.

So... I've been looking for a long time at the Epson C6500 (I would look at the C7000/C8000 but they only print 4inch wide) and I'm wondering if I should sell my current printer and get the Epson.

I know the Epson is ALOT slower, potentially taking an hour to do jobs that I could do in 5 minutes on my current printer, but I wondered if there's anyone here that has both printers (or has experience of both) and can offer any thoughts/opinions? How does the print quality compare between the two? What about the running costs?

I have asked on a Facebook group I'm on but just looking for additional thoughts to help me make a decision.

I do have a label finisher so I can do the whole print/laminate/cut thing which is why I don't really want to go down to 4" as my finisher can do up to 220mm wide.

Any thoughts/opinions would be hugely appreciated.

 

[SoggyWinter]

I don't have knowledge of those Epson printers, but you might ask in some other places like reddit/r/commercialprinting. Please update this thread with what you find out.

 

[stevengironf]

I've mentioned before (on here and on other forums) about my frustrations with my label printer. I have a model that's the same machine as the Afinia L801 (just badged different) which uses the Memjet printhead. In terms of print quality, I'm pretty happy with it, the only thing that bugs me is you get white lines where the Memjet heads are stitched together so you have to be clever about where you place your prints if you're doing full colour backgrounds, etc.

Anyway, my main frustration really comes with the printhead. The head dries out way too quickly and is costing a fortune in replacements. I'll be honest in that we don't get enough jobs to be running the printer every day but I do at least print a head check every day (maybe I need to run a couple of feet of print every day instead). However, if I go away for a week, that week of not printing the head checks is enough to kill the head, so then I have to fork out another £600 for a new head.

Then there's the fact that it doesn't do smaller precut label sizes so the smallest precut size I can do is 2". This isn't a huge issue but something that bugs me.

So... I've been looking for a long time at the Epson C6500 (I would look at the C7000/C8000 but they only print 4inch wide) and I'm wondering if I should sell my current printer and get the Epson.

I know the Epson is ALOT slower, potentially taking an hour to do jobs that I could do in 5 minutes on my current printer, but I wondered if there's anyone here that has both printers (or has experience of both) and can offer any thoughts/opinions? How does the print quality compare between the two? What about the running costs?

I have asked on a Facebook group I'm on but just looking for additional thoughts to help me make a decision.

I do have a label finisher so I can do the whole print/laminate/cut thing which is why I don't really want to go down to 4" as my finisher can do up to 220mm wide.

Any thoughts/opinions would be hugely appreciated.

I totally get your frustration with the Memjet, especially the cost of the printheads and how quickly they dry out if you’re not running jobs every day.

For context, I work with Robot Jet, and one machine we build is the Single Pass Digital Printer. It runs on Epson A3+ technology, which is designed to be more stable and cost-effective long term. It also has an automatic capping zone that keeps the printhead moist even if the printer isn’t used daily, so the lifespan is much longer. Another point is that each printhead is divided into six independent chips – if one fails, you just replace that chip instead of the whole head.

Since it’s single pass, it can also reach speeds up to 48 meters per minute, which is really handy for bigger production runs.


In short:

• Longer printhead life, less money on replacements
• Automatic system that prevents drying
• High-speed production (48 m/min)
• Works well for both short runs and volume jobs

Just thought I’d share since it might be a good fit for the type of issues you’re running into. Happy to answer any questions if you want to know more!

 

[johncerten]

I've mentioned before (on here and on other forums) about my frustrations with my label printer. I have a model that's the same machine as the Afinia L801 (just badged different) which uses the Memjet printhead. In terms of print quality, I'm pretty happy with it, the only thing that bugs me is you get white lines where the Memjet heads are stitched together so you have to be clever about where you place your prints if you're doing full colour backgrounds, etc.

Anyway, my main frustration really comes with the printhead. The head dries out way too quickly and is costing a fortune in replacements. I'll be honest in that we don't get enough jobs to be running the printer every day but I do at least print a head check every day (maybe I need to run a couple of feet of print every day instead). However, if I go away for a week, that week of not printing the head checks is enough to kill the head, so then I have to fork out another £600 for a new head.

Then there's the fact that it doesn't do smaller precut label sizes so the smallest precut size I can do is 2". This isn't a huge issue but something that bugs me.

So... I've been looking for a long time at the Epson C6500 (I would look at the C7000/C8000 but they only print 4inch wide) and I'm wondering if I should sell my current printer and get the Epson.

I know the Epson is ALOT slower, potentially taking an hour to do jobs that I could do in 5 minutes on my current printer, but I wondered if there's anyone here that has both printers (or has experience of both) and can offer any thoughts/opinions? How does the print quality compare between the two? What about the running costs?

I have asked on a Facebook group I'm on but just looking for additional thoughts to help me make a decision.

I do have a label finisher so I can do the whole print/laminate/cut thing which is why I don't really want to go down to 4" as my finisher can do up to 220mm wide.

Any thoughts/opinions would be hugely appreciated.

That’s a tough spot to be in. The Memjet speed and quality are great, but the printhead maintenance cost can really add up if the machine isn’t running daily. From what I’ve seen, Epson units tend to be more forgiving with downtime, though the speed trade-off is real. It often comes down to whether lower running risk and flexibility outweigh raw throughput. Interested to hear from others who’ve run both long-term.