Fading Test Epson 106 vs. 107 inks

[Ink stained Fingers]

Epson has announced a new Ecotank printer ET-18100 as an Ecotank version of the older 1400/1500W A3+ photo printers, this printer comes wtih 6 inks incl. light inks like the predesessors, this printer model comes with a new inkset 107. I could do a comparative fading test of the 107 inks vs. the 106 inks of the ET-7750 which is on a market already since several years, the 106 inks are performing very well as various tests some time ago have shown. I happened to get a cartridge load of 107 ink by a member of the German Druckerchannel forum which let me do this test in comparison to the 106 inks. I'm only testing the CMYK base color inks, not the light colors, and I'm printing the patch sheets on a WF2010W which let me easily swap cartridges with all the inks for testing.

Here is the result showing the deltaE diferences of the color patches after 3 weeks exposed to the current sunny weather, the table is showing the DeltaE average of all patches, and the values for the CMYK patches individually - both for the 106 and the 107 inks as 106/107 values

The 107 inks are overall weaker than the 106 inks - except for the yellow ink which is more stable on various papers . And the table shows again the large impact of the paper type onto the overall fading stability, you cannot rate the fading of an ink w/o referring to the paper used for a particular test.

 

[nertog]

Thanks for the effort! The weak performance of the black stands out to me. Any chance it measures signifcantly darker than the 106 black? Maybe Epson made a conscious compromise here...

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

Yes - the 107 black is dissappointingly weak ; there were two intentions with this test - comparing the 107 and 106 inks and catching variances between papers - OEM glossy papers HP Epson Canon - non-OEM glossy papers and some specialty/FineArt types. The 107 inks generally turn out weaker than the 106 inks, and there is no price benefit for the 107 inks vs. the 106 inks - at least in Germany, this may vary between different business regions.
Please wait a few more weeks - I'm running another test with the 106/107/114/T54C inks but only on the Epson Glossy paper this time, there is already early indication that some inks offer a better black stability.

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

Ther is an interesting detail hiding in the above numbers, I was using for this test the long gone Aldi Netbit paper and a Glossy 300, a PE/RC glossy photo paper by an Ebay-dealer, they have a wide range of such papers by size , quantity and weight and I'm happy with these papers. Aldi was selling alternatively a Sihl Quickry and a Netbit paper long time ago about 2 times a year.

Please have a look to the numbers for the Netbit paper above and the Glossy 300 - the DeltaE average of 96 patches is 10,18 and 10,09 which is the same within some very small variations . The dE per color patch is calculated as the vector difference of the colors of the spots on the patch sheet in the 3D Lab color space at the start of the test and after 3 weeks , that makes quite some numbers and calucations, and the average of the dE for these two papers are identical which cannot be accidental. The color deltas for the C and M spots are identical as well , just the yellow numbers are a little bit off. I purchased the Netbit and the Glossy 300 papers at different times so these papers must be very much identical. And when you look to the icm-profiles for the 106 and 107 inks on these papers they are identical as well - by ink. The mystery of the origin of the Netbit paper is resolved - almost, when you place an order with euro-print the order was actually shipped with DPD from Poland via Görlitz with the domestic shipping rate . So this all means that the former Aldi Netbit paper is still available - in a wide range of quantities, sizes , weights, glossy and semiglossy , some double sided as well.

https://www.ebay.de/sch/i.html?_fro...nkw=fotopapier+rückseite+PE+qualität&_sacat=0

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

No comment

 

[kratossylar]

Hi Ink stained Fingers. I have seen many of your interventions, congratulations on the tests you expose. I have a question. I have an xp970 that mounts cartridges with Claria™ Photo HD Inks. Since the cartridges cost a lot I need to step in and mount a ciss..
Colors Black, Cyan, Light Cyan, Yellow, Magenta, Light Magenta.
I had planned to use 106 photo black, also for yellow and magenta and for light cyan and light magenta the 107.
What do you think?
premise...I am not interested in durability on photo paper but in quality. Vivid and bright colors. I was also undecided about the 114.
Thank you for your response.
Matteo - Italy.

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

You may use the 106 and 107 inks as refill inks, small color deviations may occur and can be corrected via the color adjustments in the driver or by creating new .icm profiles - it depends very much on the papers you are using.

Switching to refill cartridges is an option but I would not support the use of a CISS, it is more difficult to trace down problems - e.g. if you have clogged nozzles or a problem with the ink flow instead. Rather look for cartridges which you can reset at any time with a resetter so you can reset all cartridges at once, and don't use those with ARC - automatic reset chips - which only do a reset at zero ink level on their own by taking them out and plugging them in again.

 

[kratossylar]

You may use the 106 and 107 inks as refill inks, small color deviations may occur and can be corrected via the color adjustments in the driver or by creating new .icm profiles - it depends very much on the papers you are using.

Switching to refill cartridges is an option but I would not support the use of a CISS, it is more difficult to trace down problems - e.g. if you have clogged nozzles or a problem with the ink flow instead. Rather look for cartridges which you can reset at any time with a resetter so you can reset all cartridges at once, and don't use those with ARC - automatic reset chips - which only do a reset at zero ink level on their own by taking them out and plugging them in again.

Thank you for your kind response. But as color quality what ink should I aim for? 106, 107, 114? As I said before I need intense and vibrant colors. For example a very deep black. I ask you kindly because you are very experienced and have tried them. Thank you

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

The gamut of the listed inks is quite similar, the paper much more defines the overall acheivable gamut - and it's the same as with the inks - you get the best results with OEM products - you may use a Canon PT101 as a very good glossy paper or the Epson Premium Glossy Photo paper , but there may be more papers which you should test and compare - it is at the end the user's decision , but don't use the cheapest ones like 10 ct/A4 sheet. It is always the combination of the ink and the paper delivering good performance, and not just the ink alone. Don't spoil your money for inks with cheap papers , but again - you decide at the end. Sure you can go for the lowest price of inks or paper but don't complain later.

 

[kratossylar]

The gamut of the listed inks is quite similar, the paper much more defines the oerall acheivable gamut - and it's the same as with the inks - you get the best results with OEM products - you may use a Canon PT101 as a very good glossy paper or the Epson Premium Glossy Photo paper , but there may be more papers which you should test and compare - it is at the end the user's decision , but don't use the cheapest ones like 10 ct/A4 sheet. It is always the combination of the ink and the paper delivering good performance, and not just the ink alone. Don't spoil your money for inks with cheap papers , but again - you decide at the end. Sure you can go for the lowest price of inks or paper but don't complain later.

Thank you for your helpfulness. I don't save money on paper. Only the quality one. So I will still do a combination of 106 and 107 for light colors. Last question. Which black should I use of the 106? Photo black or pigmented black? Which gives me more print quality? Thanks!