Ricoh C9200+C7200 v Xerox Iridesse

[Klew]

We are just about to sign for the Xerox but Ricoh have just came to the table and offered both machines for basically the price of the Xerox

We are really in need of the 5th white toner which was the original reason for looking at the Iridesse but we also need workhorse which after looking at the C9200 would be no issue with the white toner being produced on the C7200. Am starting to favour the idea of 2 Ricoh machines as the sheet output compared to the one Xerox press would be more. We have been Xerox customer for 10 years and know what the machines are capable on doing and after demoing the Iridesse we were very impressed with the quality and build of the machine. Then Ricoh which we have never dealt with!

Anyway would love to hear your thoughts on the above configuration and any other comments about the above presses

 

[msaeger]

Did you get to demo the Ricoh machines in person? See if they will give you some existing 9200/7200 or 9100/7100 customers in the area you can visit. What do you have now?

 

[Shawnd]

I am always in favor of having 2 machines vs 1 big one, especially when uptime is a huge factor. I got 2 7110's and it has worked out well, I came over from Xerox as well to Ricoh, the TRCU program is awesome if you are worried about service you are able to do a lot of it yourself, didn't have that with Xerox. I would still ask local Ricoh shops how service as been and is now, maybe get an interview with the area Service manager so you have another phone #. Get as high up the chain as you can incase something happens later.

I don't do much 5th color but I have it on both machines, one is white and the other is clear. One has a banner tray and the other does not, just the best of both worlds for whatever we run across.

 

[gsbatch]

Unless Xerox has made major changes to their engine, you will do better with Ricoh in the variety of papers you can run. Ricoh can handle heavy textures. Xerox cannot. I think that goes farther with customers than metalics. That's your bread and butter. The white and clear are good basic additions that need no explanation for customers to utilize. Plus the two machines will outproduce the Xerox and chances of both machines being down are slim.

 

[PricelineNegotiator]

Unless Xerox has made major changes to their engine, you will do better with Ricoh in the variety of papers you can run. Ricoh can handle heavy textures. Xerox cannot. I think that goes farther with customers than metalics. That's your bread and butter. The white and clear are good basic additions that need no explanation for customers to utilize. Plus the two machines will outproduce the Xerox and chances of both machines being down are slim.

Yeah, but isn't the output from Ricoh presses extremely glossy?

 

[gregbatch]

No. On a recent job on uncoated stock the finished piece had more ink gloss than the proofs off the Ricoh. There is a sheen, for sure, but the output from our Xerox was far more glossy.

 

[Puch]

Having two machines – two such beasts – is a no brainer over a single one. You always have a backup at hand, almost zero downtime. You can do load balancing, if both of them working. You get long sheet capability. On top of that, output on textured materials is the best you can get by using these new Ricohs.

 

[thealienhacker]

Go for Ricoh, far better.. and having two machines is always a bonus.

 

[PrintIT]

Unless Xerox has made major changes to their engine, you will do better with Ricoh in the variety of papers you can run. Ricoh can handle heavy textures. Xerox cannot. I think that goes farther with customers than metalics. That's your bread and butter. The white and clear are good basic additions that need no explanation for customers to utilize. Plus the two machines will outproduce the Xerox and chances of both machines being down are slim.

I'll agree with having two machines being better, but I'm not sure which engine you're comparing to on the textured stocks. The Iridesse is the next iteration of the Colorpress engine, and we've always been very happy with how our Colorpress prints on textured stocks.

 

[PricelineNegotiator]

I'll agree with having two machines being better, but I'm not sure which engine you're comparing to on the textured stocks. The Iridesse is the next iteration of the Colorpress engine, and we've always been very happy with how our Colorpress prints on textured stocks.

I saw some prints off the Iridesse at the Graph Expo and was pretty stunned at the textured capabilities. I mean, I kind of was, but it's well known that iteratively each new press that comes out from Xerox has better texture capabilities. I was a bit confused by some of the responses here saying that the Iridesse could not handle solids on textures. Our V180 can do Mohawk Via Felt cover stock pretty well. I have not had a break to test stock since we got the machine in July. Just been running the usual suspects...

 

[gregbatch]

I'll agree with having two machines being better, but I'm not sure which engine you're comparing to on the textured stocks. The Iridesse is the next iteration of the Colorpress engine, and we've always been very happy with how our Colorpress prints on textured stocks.

They couldn't get a good image off of a c1000i on Classic Columns or a deep felt finish. Heavy linen was OK - photos were not the best. And we're talking a demo machine with a bunch of technicians tweaking it. Walked up to two production Ricoh machines (7110 & 9100) with over a million clicks each and they didn't skip a beat. I wanted to stay with Xerox because of a great service team, but I had to go with the machine that could run my jobs.

 

[Yes U Can]

Best results with Canon imagePRESS and with the PRISMAsync controller easy to operate and automation of the flow. Try it you'll be surpriced

 

[pfelgner]

Any one had pricing on the 7200 5 color and the 9200?

 

[printing656]

The only downside to 2 machines is floor space and color matching if you're splitting jobs.

 

[Shawnd]

Can't forget about extra electrical and networking, that just about got us since we had to upgrade power from the Xerox 700's we had, had to pull extra power from a fuse box on the other side of the building.

 

[pfelgner]

We currently have 2 Lino Pro901's, Ricoh but thru Heidelberg. With a pretty dam close color match. We are about to upgrade them just not sure with what yet. We also have a Xeikon 9800 with GM XP500 inline finishing. Power is no problem here. I am currently looking to maybe replace all 3 with the KM1. We also run offset for our volume work. I was curious on the 7200 and 9200 pricing.

 

[[email protected]]

The only downside to 2 machines is floor space and color matching if you're splitting jobs.

You can always create a master color profile for both units using the Color Profiler Suite software that comes with it or you can even G7 certify both units. Either way matching color between multiple units and even to offset is very possible.

disclosure - I work for Ricoh's production group

 

[bill kahny]

Does the ricoh have gold toner option? I see they have fluorescent pink and yellow.

 

[Shawnd]

No gold that I am aware of. Invisible red, pink, yellow, clear, white

 

[Shaare]

The proof is in the pudding. Do serious research. Visit a few customers that have had the machines for a while. Ask about SLAs to existing customers. Ask to run thousands of sheets to stress test the machine. Bring hard jobs. To me quality of service and total uptime will far outweight bells and whistles like white or pink etc. I've seen the Iridesse and the 7200's output and they are both very matte. For serious production I'd trust the Iridesse simply because you can visit many existing customers and its built mostly on proven technology. Do serious research, share and good luck!