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Download PDF for this July 26, 2003 Update

Epson Stylus Pro 9600
Print Permanence Ratings
(Updated July 26, 2003)

 

 

 
©2002 Henry Wilhelm

Los Angeles photographer Greg Gorman with a print of the Academy Award winning actress Jodie Foster printed with his Epson 9600 and UltraChrome pigmented inks. Gorman is internationally known for his photographs of movie stars and other celebrities. www.greggormanphotography.com
Printer Description: Introduced in May 2002, the Epson Stylus Pro 9600 is a 7-ink printer designed for highquality photographic applications and handles roll paper in widths up to 44-inches (and virtually any length) and sheet paper in sizes up to 44 x 60 inches. With a straight-through paper path easily accessible from the front, the printer can accommodate very heavy sheet paper, such as the 505 gsm Somerset Velvet Fine Art Paper, and rigid cardboard up to 1.5 mm thick. The new Epson UltraChrome inkset can be thought of as the first pigmented inkset designed primarily for indoor use. Although the Display Permanence Ratings are lower than those of the extremely stable Epson Archival pigmented inkset available with the 6-ink Epson Stylus Pro 10000 and 10600 printers, which is suitable for 1–2 year outdoor display applications, the UltraChrome inkset produces more brilliant prints with a larger color gamut, higher d-max, and less metamerism. The UltraChrome inkset used with the 9600 and the smaller 24-inch 7600 (as well as the desktop Epson Stylus Photo 2100 and 2200) also features a dilute "Light Black" (the "7th ink"), which helps smooth tonal transitions, reduces metamerism, and makes it possible to print high quality black-and-white images using the full 7-ink inkset. In order to obtain the highest d-max, a "Photo Black" full-concentration black ink is available for high gloss and semi-gloss papers, and a separate full-concentration "Matte Black" is supplied for matte papers. Price in the United States for the 9600 is $4995.00. The Epson Stylus Pro 7600, a smaller 24-inch printer which is otherwise almost identical in design to the 44-inch 9600, is available for $2,995.
The Epson 9600 is available with a choice of either the pigmented UltraChrome inks or Epson Photographic Dye inks. The pigmented inks provide not only better display permanence than the dye-based inks, but also have better water-fastness and humidity-fastness, superior resistance to gas fading, and have much less "short-term color drift" during the days and weeks after printing.
Display Permanence Ratings and Dark Storage Ratings
(Years Before Noticeable Fading and/or Changes in Color Balance Occur) 1
Color Prints Made With the Full-Color Epson UltraChrome Inkset
Paper, Canvas, or Film Media Printed
with UltraChrome Pigmented Inks
Displayed Prints
Framed under Glass (2)
Displayed Prints Framed With
UV Filter (3)
Displayed Prints Not Framed
(Bare-Bulb) (4)
Dark Storage Stability Rating at 73°F/50%RH (incl. Paper Yellowing) (5)
The > symbol indicates "more years" than the number listed and that the tests are continuing.
 Paper/Canvas Description
Epson Premium Glossy Photo Paper (250)

85 years

>100 years

60 years

>200 years
Rapid-dry microporous glossy RC-base paper
Epson Premium Semigloss Photo Paper (250)
77 years
>100 years
55 years
>200 years
Rapid-dry microporous semigloss RC-base paper
Epson Premium Luster Photo Paper (roll)
71 years
>100 years
48 years
>200 years
Rapid-dry microporous luster surface RC-base paper
Epson Premium Semimatte Photo Paper (250)
67 years
>100 years
47 years
>200 years
Rapid-dry microporous semimatte RC-base paper
UltraSmooth Fine Art Paper for Epson (6)
>75 years
>100 years
55 years
>200 years
100% cotton base matte paper free of UV brighteners (7)
Somerset Velvet for Epson (255 and 505 gsm)
62 years
>100 years
37 years
>200 years
100% cotton base matte paper
Somerset Velvet for Epson w/ PremierArt™ Spray (6)
>145 years
>145 years
75 years
>200 years
100% cotton base matte paper (sprayed after printing)
Epson Velvet Fine Art Paper (sheet)
61 years
>100 years
34 years
>200 years
100% cotton base matte paper
Epson Velvet Fine Art Paper w/ PremierArt™ Spray (6)
82 years
>100 years
55 years
>200 years
100% cotton base matte paper (sprayed after printing)
Epson Smooth Fine Art Paper
72 years
>100 years
57 years
>200 years
100% cotton base matte paper free of UV brighteners (7)
Epson Textured Fine Art Paper

82 years
>100 years
68 years
>200 years
100% cotton base matte paper free of UV brighteners (7)
Epson Watercolor Paper Radiant White (sheet)
>90 years
>100 years
66 years
>200 years
Matte surface paper
Epson Enhanced Matte Pape
64 years
>100 years
41 years
110 years
Matte surface paper (formerly Archival Matte Paper)
Epson Canvas
69 years
>85 years
37 years
>200 years
Coated 100% cotton fine art canvas
Epson Canvas w/ PremierArt™ Spray (6)
82 years
>100 years
65 years
>200 years
Coated 100% cotton fine art canvas (sprayed)
©2003 by Wilhelm Imaging Research, Inc. As long as this document remains complete and unaltered, it may be freely distributed to your associates, customers, and friends. This PDF may also be reproduced in magazine articles, books, and other hardcopy print publications; however, it may not be posted on websites without written permission. Links to <www.wilhelm-research.com> are welcomed. Address e-mail inquiries to: info@wilhelm-research.com> Wilhelm Imaging Research, Inc., Box 775, Grinnell, Iowa 50112 U.S.A.
©2002 Henry Wilhelm
Long favoring black-and-white photography for his personal work, Greg Gorman is shown here at a November 1, 2002 reception for his exhibition Just Between Us at the Colin De Land Fine Art Gallery on West 22nd Street in New York. Gorman printed everything in the show with his Epson 9600 using heavy 44 x 60-inch sheets of 505 gsm Somerset Velvet for Epson, a matte surface 100% cotton base fine art paper. Epson large-format printers feature a top-loading straight-through paper path that is able to handle sheet paper and cardboard of up to 1.5 mm in thickness as well as roll-paper.
Display Permanence Ratings and Dark Storage Ratings
(Years Before Noticeable Fading and/or Changes in Color Balance Occur) 1
Black-and-White Prints Made With the Full-Color Epson UltraChrome Inkset
Paper, Canvas, or Film Media Printed
with UltraChrome Pigmented Inks
Displayed Prints
Framed under Glass (2)
Displayed Prints Framed With
UV Filter (3)
Displayed Prints Not Framed
(Bare-Bulb) (4)
Dark Storage Stability Rating at 73°F/50%RH (incl. Paper Yellowing) (5)
The > symbol indicates "more years" than the number listed and that the tests are continuing.
 Paper/Canvas Description
Epson Premium Glossy Photo Paper (250)

135 years

>150 years

76 years

>200 years
Rapid-dry microporous glossy RC-base paper
Epson Premium Semigloss Photo Paper (250)
118 years
>150 years
74 years
>200 years
Rapid-dry microporous semigloss RC-base paper
Epson Premium Luster Photo Paper (roll)
80 years
>100 years
58 years
>200 years
Rapid-dry microporous luster surface RC-base paper
Epson Premium Semimatte Photo Paper (250)
76 years
>100 years
57 years
>200 years
Rapid-dry microporous semimatte RC-base paper
UltraSmooth Fine Art Paper for Epson (6)
>100 years
>100 years
>80 years
>200 years
100% cotton base matte paper free of UV brighteners (7)
Somerset Velvet for Epson (255 and 505 gsm)
90 years
>100 years
60 years
>200 years
100% cotton base matte paper
Somerset Velvet for Epson w/ PremierArt™ Spray (6)
>150 years
>145 years
135 years
>200 years
100% cotton base matte paper (sprayed after printing)
Epson Velvet Fine Art Paper (sheet)
115 years
125 years
112 years
>200 years
100% cotton base matte paper
Epson Velvet Fine Art Paper w/ PremierArt™ Spray (6)
>140 years
>145 years
118 years
>200 years
100% cotton base matte paper (sprayed after printing)
Epson Textured Fine Art Paper

150 years
>150 years
150 years
>200 years
100% cotton base matte paper free of UV brighteners (7)
Epson Smooth Fine Art Paper

140 years
>150 years
120 years
>200 years
100% cotton base matte paper free of UV brighteners (7)
Epson Watercolor Paper Radiant White (sheet)
>100 years
>100 years
>100 years
>200 years
Matte surface paper
Epson Enhanced Matte Pape
>150 years
>150 years
>150 years
110 years
Matte surface paper (formerly Archival Matte Paper)
Epson Canvas
>100 years
>100 years
>85 years
>200 years
Coated 100% cotton fine art canvas