Where to buy inks - cheap ?

[Tapeman]

I ordered an Epson R1800 referb today and want to have replacement inks at the ready. I'm thinking that I'll stick with Epson's inks, at least the first time around.

[mmcaleer]

A lot of guys from the local camera club buy here:

http://www.77ink.com/

[gkas]

A lot of guys from the local camera club buy here:

http://www.77ink.com/

Those are not OEM inks.. There is no guarantee as to their performance. Remember, the R1800 uses pigment inks, and they are pretty unforgiving in their formulation.

I get my inks from Canoga Camera. A lot of folks like Atlex, but their shipping to the West coast is high.

[Tirzah]

I've ordered from here...
http://www.atlex.com/epson-stylus-inkjet-printer/photo_r1800_printer_paper_ink.htm

[JohnJ80]

Those are not OEM inks.. There is no guarantee as to their performance. Remember, the R1800 uses pigment inks, and they are pretty unforgiving in their formulation.

I get my inks from Canoga Camera. A lot of folks like Atlex, but their shipping to the West coast is high.

For OEM inks, I'd recommend atlex at http://www.atlex.com

The idea that the printer must use OEM inks for the best results is nonsense. If you use high quality inks from a reputable supplier and use custom profiles you will get results as good as or better than the OEM inks.

I've used Mediastreet pigmented inks in my R1800 for the last year (equivalent to about 24 cartridge sets) without a single problem. I find the results to be better and the longevity after a year of testing in a high fade high UV environment (my west facing office window sill) shows no fading or shifts and is equivalent to the OEM inks. The price however - a set of inks in 4 oz bulk bottles costs $159 vs about $800 or so for OEM ink cartridges, is quite a bit better. For the cost difference, I saved enough to for the printer in the first set of ink.

J

[ItsMike]

I use an Epson 1280, I would stick to the Epson ink.. I tried the "Cheap Ink" and it was a Disaster!! The prints looked like crap and some if the ink "ran" and made a mess.. Never again!!!!

[Mike_Canon5D]

I've bought OEM ink for my 2200 from www.databaazar.com and they offer free shipping.

[JohnJ80]

I use an Epson 1280, I would stick to the Epson ink.. I tried the "Cheap Ink" and it was a Disaster!! The prints looked like crap and some if the ink "ran" and made a mess.. Never again!!!!

Certainly understand the sentiment.

To be clear, there are some serious cr*p inks out there. Mediastreet is not one of those at all but is very high quality and considerably cheaper than OEM.

That said, it is not a case of mediastreet being cheap it is a case of Epson being over the top expensive at something like $2500 a gallon or so. Amazing what you can do with FUD marketing.

J