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Q
&
A
What’s the difference between
a printer driver and a RIP?
A printer driver is proprietary software
created by a printer manufacturer to control
the output of a printer by choosing the
appropriate media type and printing
resolution. A RIP is software written by a
third party to enhance the productivity,
capabilities and output of a printer.
Why should I care about D-Max?
A higher D-Max will make it easier to match
the black on press to the black on your comp.
Why is color gamut important?
A wide color gamut is crucial to reproducing
Pantone colors. The wider the color gamut,
the closer the color in your comps will
match the color you’ll get on press.
What papers do you recommend for
graphic arts and design applications?
For bright, vivid prints for client presentations
and comps, use Epson Photo Semigloss Paper
or Epson Photo Glossy Paper.
For color-accurate proofs for prepress proofing,
choose Epson Proofing Paper Commercial
Semimatte or Epson Premium Semimatte
Proofing Paper.
Epson Photo Semigloss
Paper is ideal for proofs
to accompany ad files
for publications.
And Epson Enhanced
Matte, Doubleweight
Matte and Singleweight
Matte papers are the
perfect solutions for
printing inexpensive
internal proofs.
The standard printer driver that comes with any printer is all
you need to get the image from your computer and onto
paper. But, if you want to do anything more than that, you’ll
need a program that can fine-tune all of the parameters that
go into making a high-quality color print. In the world of ink
jet printing, this type of software is called a RIP.
What is a RIP?
RIP stands for Raster Image Processor and is software that
takes your image and text and tells your printer where and how
to place each drop of ink on the paper. It’s designed to deliver
every bit of performance and quality your printer can provide.
Improved performance
There are a number of advantages to using a RIP, starting with
productivity. When you print through a printer driver, your
computer will be “locked up” until the image is
completely printed. A RIP speeds up this process and
allows the image file to be processed and printed “in the
background,” eliminating computer downtime.
Better output
A RIP may also produce better image quality and enhanced
color management. With a RIP, each image can have its own
color profile. Colors will be more accurate. And because most
RIPs use PostScript,
®
text and line art will be sharper.
More flexible printing
With a RIP, you can more easily lay multiple images on one
page, as well as tile images to make the best use of paper.
This factor alone can save you a tremendous amount of
money and paper.
The importance of using a RIP
The benefits are tremendous
GRAPHIC DESIGNERS
The Epson Stylus Pro 4800 Professional Edition
Meet the new Epson Stylus Pro 4800 Professional Edition. When it comes to
creating comps, there’s simply no competition. For starters, the combination of
our new 8-color Epson UltraChrome K3 inks and an included Pantone-licensed
ColorBurst RIP produces stable, accurate color output that’s SWOP Certified.
And it’s ready to print PostScript
®
Language Level 3-compatible output from
all popular page layout software. Four paper paths give you greater media
flexibility to meet all of your comping needs. You can print on virtually any
media size, from letter-size up to 17" wide, on everything from plain paper to
matte and glossy proofing papers to double-sided media and even 1.5mm
posterboard. And thanks to a new high-performance print engine, it does
all this at print speeds up to two times faster than even our previous best.
Epson Stylus Pro 4800
Professional Edition
Prints up to 17" wide
Estimated street price
$2,495
Also available with optional
printer stand (shown right).
17"
See your reseller
or visit
prographics.epson.com
A Quick Tip for Better Print Quality
To get the best possible print quality from your Epson Stylus Pro
professional graphics printer, be sure to set your printer driver for the
type of paper you’re using. The printer driver is the software that tells
your printer which print settings to use, based on the type of ink your
printer uses and the paper you choose. To select your paper type,
simply click the “Properties” button in the printer dialog box. Then
choose the paper from the menu. You’ll be amazed at the difference
it makes. If the paper you’re using isn’t listed, you may need to update
your printer drivers or refer to the documentation that came with the
paper. To download new printer drivers, go to the Epson Web site at
www.epson.com and click the “Drivers & Downloads” link.
Want to print color-accurate comps? Then our new
Epson UltraChrome K3 inks are for you. A radical
breakthrough in color ink jet printing, this revolu-
tionary new 8-color ink technology delivers accurate,
industry-standard color for comps, internal proofs
and even contract proofs.
Accurate color from the start
Forget having to make excuses for the color
accuracy of your comps. Epson UltraChrome K3 ink
technology marks a turning point in the evolution
of color ink jet printing. It uses three levels of black
ink (Black, Light Black and Light Light Black) and
new high-density pigment inks to produce an ultra-
wide color gamut that more closely matches that of
today’s printing presses, and a higher D-Max. You’ll
see accurate color in the earliest design stages. And
you’ll be able to give your clients proofs that you
can match on press.
Consistent color from
print to print, day after day
Our new high-density pigment inks dry faster and
are significantly more stable than dye-based inks.
Comps are ready to go, right out of the printer. And
you can count on consistent color, print after print,
with no color shifting. There’ll be no surprises for
either you or your client, from your initial comp to
the final proof.
Pantone
®
-licensed, SWOP Certified
RIP from ColorBurst
®
Epson UltraChrome K3 inks produce color
that’s so accurate, it’s certified by one of the
industry’s top color experts, SWOP. And with
the Pantone-licensed ColorBurst RIP included
with all of our Epson Stylus
®
Pro Professional
Edition graphics printers, when you choose
Pantone 237, you get Pantone 237. And if you
switch to Pantone 238, you’ll actually see the
difference. Color management’s a snap, too. The
RIP does all the work. Whether it’s spot color or
4-color process, you’ll get accurate color the first
time and every time.
The bottom line? When it comes to printing
color-accurate comps, you simply can’t do better
than Epson UltraChrome K3 inks.
New high-density pigments and three
levels of black combine to produce
accurate, industry-standard color.
Graphic
Designers
Color-accurate comps
with Epson UltraChrome K3
™
Stable, accurate
SWOP
®
Certified color comps
right from your desktop
Light Light Black
Light Black
Matte Black
Photo Black
Yellow
Light Magenta
Magenta
Light Cyan
Cyan
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