Epson vs. Ricoh & the Wonderful World of Sublimation

Since I’ve been here at Coastal I think that one of the most frequent questions I’m asked is “Which sublimation printer is right for me – Epson or Ricoh?” Well, I thought I’d share my experiences with all those curious entrepreneurs out there. 

For starters, you’ll need to gauge how much business you do in a month or year and how fast your production times need to be. Neither Epson or Ricoh printers were ever manufactured for sublimation; the ink originally made for Epson is actually specialized for printing photography.  Epson’s prepackaged ink is very highly regarded in the fact that is it smudge and fade resistant. Most Epson printers come standard with six to eight printer cartridges, so by having the additional light cyan and light magenta you’re getting a wider color gamut and noticeably better tonal qualities in your photographs.  As far as sublimation goes, when looking at the same finished product done on both systems it may be hard to tell the difference with the naked eye.

Epson ink systems (standard and SubliJet IQ) are WATER-BASED, which is the main source of a lot of issues. The water in the ink tends to evaporate and dry up in the print heads if they are not used frequently enough. Clogged print heads or nozzles are never an easy task; far too often I’ve heard of it taking 10-15 cleanings. In some cases, I’ve even heard of people having to completely replace the print heads. 

Before addressing Ricoh printers, I want to inform people that already have an Epson or Ricoh with the factory inks for regular desktop or heat transfer printing – LEAVE IT THAT WAY! Don’t convert your printer from regular inks to Sublijet inks or vice versa, it’s not worth it. Once you “prime” your printer with ink for the first time, it consumes about 40 to 50 percent of the cartridge. Therefore the new Sublijet ink you put in your printer will have to push all the factory ink out before you can actually sublimate successfully. This, of course, means doing a minimum of 10 to 15 head cleanings or flushings and, if that amount doesn’t work and you need more, you could end up damaging your print heads. It’s a total headache and not a fun task. Do yourself a favor and spend a little extra money to purchase a new printer, new Sublijet ink and keep it dedicated for sublimation.

The biggest difference with the Ricoh printers is that they are GEL-BASED, which means the pigments are suspended in a gel that keeps the nozzles lubricated. This also means that the chance of getting a clog is less likely than with an Epson. In addition, the Ricoh printers also boast larger print nozzles, which allow a better flow of ink on to the paper. With having a larger nozzle, you’d think that the Ricoh lays down more ink than an Epson, but this is not true. The Ricoh gets more mileage with ink, thus making it more cost-effective; it lays down a lesser volume of ink per inch of paper than an Epson. The Ricoh printers have a four-color cartridge system, which limits it in the color range it can produce for non -sublimation printing.  If production speed and turn around times are key for your business, then you should know that Ricoh printers are four to five times faster than Epson printers, with having wider print nozzles and laying down less ink it requires less passes on a single sheet compared to the Epson.

In conclusion, both Ricoh and Epson printers have their own advantages and disadvantages, but it’s important to sit down and access your overall business needs before making a purchase of a sublimation printer.

Obviously, cost is huge factor in people’s decisions to buy a printer and I’m leaving the comparisons in your hands to best decide what fits your budget. Keep in mind that Sublijet(R) ink and systems for Ricoh came out much later than Epson so there are fewer options available for Ricohs.