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Accessories Reviews

Review Epson Stylus Pro 3880

Ernesto Santos (esantos)


Keywords: epson, stylus, 3880, printer, paper, non_nikon

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When I tested the 3880 Stylus Pro I was eager to try this Advanced Black and White Photo Mode. I looked through a number of test images in my library when I came across a shot of the beautiful and imposing Guadalupe Peak in the Guadalupe Mountains National Park in Texas. While as a color image this photograph is not exactly a compelling study in light when transformed to a black and white image it really comes into its own. I decided to take this one step further and add a subtle Platinum tone to the image. I selected the Warm preset in the Color Toning drop down list of the Advanced Black and White Photo Mode controls and then played with the sliders until I felt I got the look I wanted – something close to the old platinum toned prints of the past. I then printed the image on a sheet of Epson Velvet Fine Art matte paper.

guadalupe_peak

Guadalupe Peak by Ernesto Santos

Next I took the original color image and converted it to black and white in Photoshop CS5 using B/W Styler plug-in from The Plug-In Site. I have used this black and white converter for a number of years and have been very happy with the results. After I converted the image to black and white I toned it as close as I could visually to the print I had just made using the Advanced Black and White Photo Mode. I did this by viewing the print next to my monitor under a 5000°K lamp and soft proofing in Photoshop using the Epson ICC paper profile for Velvet Fine Art. The results were quite interesting. While I was not able to get an exact match between the two prints the overall tone the prints were almost identical and the print quality and range of black and white tones were excellent. The details were well preserved in both and if you put aside the slight differences in color tone and overall exposure level (variances attributed to human eye perception and differences between reflective and emissive sources) you could not tell which print was done using the Advanced Black and White Photo Mode or the traditional black and white conversion/color managed print workflow method.


 

The Advanced Black and White Photo Mode solution is not without its limitations. For one, you have to gain some level of feel for what this method will give you as you adjust the sliders. The preview image is helpful, but in other prints I made I had to make a few proof prints and subsequent adjustments until I got what I really wanted. Hopefully, in later iterations of the Advanced Black and White Photo Mode Epson will provide a more sophisticated way of previewing the settings on the actual image you are printing. This would make the Advanced Mode almost perfect. Whatever method you choose to make your fine art black and white prints you will not be disappointed with the black and white output capabilities of the 3880 Stylus Pro. In every case my test prints were rich in detail and gray tonality. Oh, and before I forget, the three black technology gives you true neutral black and white prints. True neutral black and white prints with past inkjet printers has always been elusive. Now, with the addition of a Light, Light Black ink Epson screening does not rely so heavily on mixing colors to achieve all levels of gray. With the three levels of black it would be a rare occasion if a color cast were to impose itself on your beautiful print.

(4 Votes )
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Originally written on February 10, 2011

Last updated on June 4, 2014

Ernesto Santos Ernesto Santos (esantos)

Nikonians Resources Writer. Recognized for his outstanding reviews on printers and printing articles. Awarded for his high level of expertise in various areas, including Landscape Photography Awarded for his extraordinary accomplishments in Landscape Photography. His work has been exhibited at the Smithsonian. Winner of the Best of Nikonians Images 2018 Annual Photo Contest

McAllen, USA
Gold, 15330 posts

19 comments

Victor Hebert (Victor777) on August 22, 2014

Thanks Ernesto. Your review is practical and assuring about this printer.

Rick Spehn (PSAGuy) on August 11, 2014

Great review Ernesto....Mine is in a box right here in my office . I need to clean a bit (clutter on my work surface) before I unleash this great tool to replace my 2880 which is still working I might add after 6 years and thousands of prints. I cannot wait.

Bruce Blackstone (weevil) on February 5, 2014

Thanks Ernesto for a great review. I really want this printer there are many sites that sing praises for it. However, I am troubled by a consistent handful of users that complain about the printer's short lifespan, print head failures and poor support from Epson. I just don't want to get burned. This is a lot of money for me to invest in a printer. I want it to last. Thoughts anybody?

Robert Barnes (barnesrl) on December 9, 2013

Ernesto: Thanks for your help with my questions on my 3880! You cleared up several of my questions. Thank you for the review on the 3880. It was very informative to me. Thank you again.

michael m. maziasz (mikemaz41) on September 2, 2013

I am "considering" an upgrade from my 2880 to a 17 inch printer and have looked at both the 3880 and the 4900. And I have read both your reviews of those particular printers. Your review of the 3880 impresses me since I have not yet found the need to use the roll paper feature of my 2880. I am looking at the cost structure of the ink cartridges for both the 3880 and 4900 and see that a larger cartridge does have its cost advantages. But I am not a professional so high volume is not a requirement. Thanks again for your insightful reviews of both printers.

Stephen W Burnes (in4apenny) on July 3, 2013

Ernesto, at the conclusion of your review, what went through my head is "wow, thank you Ernesto" Your examples convinced me. Will be ordering one soon

Jeff Natrop (Jeff_thoen) on May 21, 2013

I found the printer to make good prints but... Do not expect any quality service / support from Epson. They are hard nosed and could care less about your situation. Here's my experience with two printers; a 3800 and a 3880 is they have a short life span. I purchased a 3800 (new) and paid for the extra 3yr extended warranty. It was a $1200 printer so I thought it was worth the extra for the extended warranty. After 3yrs and 8 months the printer started dumping 1 inch long by 1/8 in wide black ink blobs, and the Photo Black cart on the LCD read 90% full when the cart was actually empty. Epson support said it needed a new printer head. The cost was the same price a new printer. Because it was now past the extended warranty they would do nothing else for me. (Shouldn't a pro printer at $1200 last more than 3.75 years of moderate use?), I guess not. I then purchased a new 3880, but did not get the extended warranty. After 2 yrs and 2 months, this 3880 started doing the exact same problems as the 3800: dumping 1 inch by 1/8 inch wide black ink blobs and the LCD showed the Photo Black cart at 90% full, when it actually was empty. I spoke with Epson support as well as next person up the line. Epson response: "Because it is out of warranty we will do nothing for you". Despite the fact that this is the 2nd 38xx series printer that had the same problems. Note that Epson will only warranty this printer for a maximum of 3 years - if you purchase the extended warranty, costing several hundred dollars - not cheap. You can not extend the warranty past the 3 years. Given that short time frame you can see that Epson does not expect the 3880 (3800) to last much more than 3 years. If it does, you were lucky. If not, buy a new one or... change to another brand. Given the fact that I had this same problem on two different professional printers - 3800 & 3880. Knowing that these are not $100 disposable printers, but $1200 pro printers; and as a professional customer that had already given Epson several thousand dollars for their printers, and thousands more buying their ink; I had expected Epson Professional division to provide better support and work with me to fix the problems. I had been told that Epson customer support really sucks. Now I must agree with that statement. If you can risk dumping $1200-$1500 every 2 - 3 years on an Epson Pro printer, then you may be happy with the 3880. If you can't, then look at anther brand. I've heard that Canon makes a good pro printer.

User on November 4, 2012

FYI: I got something in mail that said the rebate of $300 is still in effect until 11-30-12 ... I'm about ready to order, too.

User on October 21, 2012

Ernesto... thanks so much for the review... I've been going back and forth from the 3880 to the 4900... I'm moving into a semi-pro range now, e.g. more than a hobby...and it seems that the 4900 would be the next logical step should I make the move...but, for what I plan on doing...e.g. 50-100 prints per month...it would seem this printer would meet the bill... Looking mostly to do some portrait and family studio stuff along with Pet Photograhy...where it would be nice to have the printer on site and sell a photo at the dog groomers location. Your thoughts?

User on July 14, 2012

Hi Ernesto, This was a very informational review, thank you for putting in the time to put it together.

Bob Brandoff (digitalandfilm) on January 2, 2012

As of 1/1/12, there is still a $300 rebate..

Joseph Nowak (prophotoman) on July 16, 2011

Initially I had color problems with the printer... however, I found out that the problem with it was NOT the color space I was using... it was clogged nozzles that was causing poserization in the shadows. After running the STANDARD nozzle cleaning routine a couple of times, the colors are superb, especially when I print directly froom CNX2! There is just no way you can go wrong with choosing the 3880 printer.

Debra Gillilan (dgillilan) on June 5, 2011

Great review, Ernesto. I wondered what the new K3 with vivid magenta inks would add, and you pointed out the blues and violets are better. I have noticed that the violets pose a problem sometimes,but I have encountered that with all three of my Epson photo printers, including the 3800. Thanks again, Debra

Ernesto Santos (esantos) on March 23, 2011

Nikonians Resources Writer. Recognized for his outstanding reviews on printers and printing articles. Awarded for his high level of expertise in various areas, including Landscape Photography Awarded for his extraordinary accomplishments in Landscape Photography. His work has been exhibited at the Smithsonian. Winner of the Best of Nikonians Images 2018 Annual Photo Contest

Thanks for the report Pete. I wouldn't knock Kirkland paper I hear it is very good, I just don't have a Costco in my area, otherwise I would have tried it already. You are right about ink use, I am still on the original cartridges of the 3880 I am using. Thanks for following my reviews. More to come soon, working on the Epson 4900 as we speak.

User on March 23, 2011

Ernesto, I bought a Stylus Pro 3880 approximately 14 months ago, and just could not be more pleased with it! For "serious" prints, I mainly use either Epson's 17x23in. Premium Lustre but I also use some of Red River's papers. Results are absolutely superb. I use LR3 and/or CS5, a 30in Apple monitor and a ColorMunki for color management. It has turned out to be an excellent combination for me. Previously, I used Epson and Canon printers, but quickly retired everything apart from the 3880 and a B&W laser. For "hack" stuff on the 3880 (mostly shots of the grandkids for family members), I use Costco's Kirkland 8.5x11 Photo Paper. Don't knock this material - it offers extreme value, although it's only available in gloss. I can't be certain how many 17x23 prints I have made, but it seems that it could be 50+, together with LOTS of family stuff. There are some inks that I haven't replaced yet from new! Ink costs are the lowest of any printer I have ever owned. The inks run out at significantly different rates, obviously depending on what's being printed. BTW, the 3880 can handle cut sheets up to 17x37.4ins - which is big enough for a pretty reasonable panorama! Occasionally, I wish I had gone for the 7900(24in. and roll-capable) but ultimately the very compact size of the 3880 governed my decision. IMHO, the 3880's print quality is exemplary! Keep up the good work! I love reading your reviews. Pete

Ernesto Santos (esantos) on March 22, 2011

Nikonians Resources Writer. Recognized for his outstanding reviews on printers and printing articles. Awarded for his high level of expertise in various areas, including Landscape Photography Awarded for his extraordinary accomplishments in Landscape Photography. His work has been exhibited at the Smithsonian. Winner of the Best of Nikonians Images 2018 Annual Photo Contest

Scott - Fortunately you won't have to buy all the inks at once. Each color depletes at different rates. There have been many attempts to track ink use to determine the cost per square cm or inch. I think it is really focusing on the wrong issue. The amount of control one gains by printing themselves far outweighs the cost of media and ink. Additionally, you have so many more choices of paper than at the typical commercial lab. In my experience you can take the cost of your paper and multiply it by a factor of 1.5 to 2.0 and get a reasonably accurate cost of ink. Use the higher number for less expensive papers and the smaller number for the costly fine art papers. The bottom line is that we print all types of subjects under different lighting conditions with different palettes of color - some in black and white as well. Then there is ink usage by the printer during maintenance routines. Different papers use different Media Type profiles that instruct the printer how much ink to lay down. Unless you collect a lot of data over a long period of time you can't get precise usage rates. In the end is the effort worth it? There are a few brave souls who have developed complicated Excel spreadsheets to track all this. As a financial professional for over thirty years my personal opinion is that this is a colossal waste of time and NOT the reason you buy a printer as good as the 3880. Use my factoring rates and enjoy your printing efforts.

User on March 19, 2011

Ernesto - inks on this printer look like they run about 50 bucks each. With 9 ink cartridges, that's $450. I realize that every print is different, but has there been any benchmarking about how often ink must be replaced and what a price per page would be?

Ernesto Santos (esantos) on March 15, 2011

Nikonians Resources Writer. Recognized for his outstanding reviews on printers and printing articles. Awarded for his high level of expertise in various areas, including Landscape Photography Awarded for his extraordinary accomplishments in Landscape Photography. His work has been exhibited at the Smithsonian. Winner of the Best of Nikonians Images 2018 Annual Photo Contest

Thank you Chuck. Going to the 3880 from the 2200 you will see an incredible improvement in function, output, and efficiency.

User on March 15, 2011

Ernesto: Thank you for an excellent review. Very objective and with terrific examples, especially the photo of Guadalupe Peak. I ordered my 3880 this morning from Epson. $200 rebate is a help. I expect delivery Wednesday. It will replace a 2200. All the best,

G