Epson Pairs Most Advanced Pro Printer with Exclusive ColorBurst RIP to Launch Complete Printing Solution for Demanding Creative Professionals

Business Wire, Oct 11, 2004

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Epson Stylus(R) Pro 4000 Professional Edition Features a Custom-designed PostScript Language Level 3 RIP by ColorBurst(R) that's both PANTONE(R) Licensed and SWOP(R) Approved

Epson America Inc. is expanding the capabilities of its most advanced professional-level photographic printer to deliver the highest level of performance and value. The Epson Stylus Pro 4000 Professional Edition combines the award-winning Stylus Pro 4000 printer with a custom-designed RIP from ColorBurst and Epson's fastest Ethernet card for the premier printing solution for digital proofing, fine art and digital photography.

Featuring Epson UltraChrome(TM) Ink, the Epson Stylus Pro 4000 Professional Edition produces extremely brilliant, color-accurate, stable prints with repeatable results that are consistent from printer to printer. The unique PostScript Language Level 3 Compatible RIP developed by ColorBurst exclusively for this Epson printer is the first one that includes a full Pantone color library, so there is no need to convert Pantone spot colors to process equivalents, and is SWOP certified. Because this version produces contract-quality prints for final approval in-house, it saves designers money, enables them to set expectations for clients and facilitates the prepress workflow.

The color accuracy, coupled with affordability, also make the Epson Stylus Pro 4000 Professional Edition a viable option for remote proofing in which all participants in the workflow would have a printer, ink and media in their respective locations to print proofs for approval. The solution features an easy-to-use RIP server interface and job manager, as well as direct file printing capabilities with hot folder technology to drag-and-drop files into a hot folder for immediate printing. The ColorBurst RIP also includes a built-in printer linearization technology allowing users to correct out-of-spec color automatically, ensuring that every Epson Stylus Pro 4000 Professional Edition printer is printing to the exact same color standards. Designers can verify that all proofs are the same, while expediting the process.

The Epson Stylus Pro 4000 Professional Edition features an award-winning print engine with an Epson internal 10/100 BaseT Ethernet card to maximize performance. The ColorBurst RIP is a fully compatible software RIP for both Macintosh and Windows and is SWOP certified when printing with the included SWOP Printing Environment on Epson Premium Semimatte Photo Paper 250 and Epson Proofing Paper Commercial Semimatte. Professional color management technology includes separate input ICC profiles for RGB, CMYK and Grayscale images for complete control of color.

"While the Epson Stylus Pro 4000 Professional Edition is ideal for a variety of creative applications, this robust engine is especially suited to handle demanding proofing jobs," said Mark Radogna, group product manager, Pro Graphics, Epson. "Furthermore, because the color becomes stable through the entire approval process once the proof is pulled and the solution is priced affordably so that it can be used throughout the entire workflow, this marks the first step in making remote proofing a reality."

Epson UltraChrome Ink

Besides producing very stable prints, Epson UltraChrome pigment-based ink technology uses seven individual colors (cyan, magenta, yellow, light cyan, light magenta, light black and automatically switches between one of two other unique black inks depending on media type) to create an extremely wide gamut of colors that eliminates color casts and enhances midtones as well as prints black and white photography. Epson UltraChrome Inks are water resistant and offer lightfastness ratings for color images up to 108 years and over 180 years for black and white prints on specific Epson papers under non-UV glass.* When displayed under UV-protected glass, color lightfastness is rated at more than 100 years for all Epson's leading professional papers. The quick drying nature of Epson UltraChrome Ink also makes it possible to handle prints the moment they come off the printer.

Media Handling and Flexibility

Images can be printed on virtually any media type (up to 1.5 millimeters thick) as wide as 17 inches using either rolls or cut sheets. A built-in high capacity media tray handles up to 250 sheets of plain letter sized paper or up to 50 cut sheets of photographic media up to 17" x 22". Cut sheet media can be fed automatically using the printer's high-speed cut sheet loading feature. Roll media users can take advantage of BorderFree(TM) printing. A built-in cutter is included to trim prints faster and with greater accuracy and safety than manual techniques.

High Resolution Printing and Faster Print Speeds

The Epson Stylus Pro 4000 is capable of printing at 2,880 x 1,440 dpi resolution - resulting in finer blends and smoother photographic transitions. It also uses variable droplets as small as 3.5 picoliters to greatly decrease print time while optimizing photographic quality.