Moab Papers

[rgarvin]

I see there was a review of Moab papers on this site back in 03. I am wanting to get the very best print possible. I have an Epson 4000 Printer and currently use Epson Premium Luster 250 and Epson's rag paper. Would the quality of the Moab papers with correct profiles downloaded from Moab for my printer be equal or better than the Epson papers??? Any inside on Moab papers would be appreciated!  Thanks Robert

Sorry First time I've posted here and now I see I put in the wrong section..

[mikeseb]

Would the quality of the Moab papers with correct profiles downloaded from Moab for my printer be equal or better than the Epson papers??? Any inside on Moab papers would be appreciated!  Thanks Robert
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I have used Moab papers extensively with my Epson 4000, both with Moab-supplied profiles and more recently, using ImagePrint and its Moab profiles. I use Kayenta Photo Matte 205gsm for "everyday" stuff, as it's less expensive than the others (alpha cellulose rather than cotton rag); and Entrada in both the Bright (optical brighteners) and Natural (none) and in both 190gsm and 300gsm weights, for exhibition or portfolio prints. Aside from Arches Infinity (heinously expensive) they are my favorite papers.

Only caveat, and I'm not sure it's exclusive to Moab, is that you should give the papers a good brushing with a draftsman's brush before printing, to dislodge any loose flakes on the papers' surface before ink is applied, lest white spots occur. This problem has cropped up from time to time with Moab papers; I haven't been too much troubled by it.

I think you'd find them, and their profiles, every bit as good as Epson papers. No doubt someone here will disagree!

[bob mccarthy]

I switched to Epson Ultrasmooth for one simple reason.

Soft proofing in CS2 seems to indicate that the gamut of the entrada profile is smaller that the epson paper. I don't know if this is paper or profile related, but near the gamut edge (?) Epson is more accurate or better stated , more pleasing to my eye.

I don't know if this is sound reasoning, but I'm very pleased with Ultrasmooth.

bob

[michael]

For portfolio and exhibition prints my favourite remains Entrada 300 Natural.

I've recently started using Hanemule Photo Rag 308, and find it to be excellent as well, but more expensive than Entrada.

I've just received a roll of Museo Max and look forward to doing a comparison soon with the other two.

Michael

[bob mccarthy]

Michael, do you think this is a function of your using a RIP?

I'm currently enjoying the Atkinson Ultrasmooth profile vs the Maob profile for Entrada.

bob

[michael]

As long as you have a good profile for the paper / printer combination this should be true.

If you don't have a RIP like Imageprint, or a Spectrophotometer like an Eye One, then you can have any one of a nunmber of different companies make a custom profile for you for about $50.

Michael

[abiggs]

I actually wrote the Moab Paper review back in 2003, and here are some thoughts on the subject.

First of all, some of the papers in the review are no longer available, but have been replaced by newer products. I want to look into these papers at some point. It is also worth noting that since 2003 I have done some paid projects for Moab Paper, such as creating profiles on the Epson 2400 printer, as well as helping out at trade shows.

To get the best results out of any paper, you need to have either excellent available public profiles or have them made for your specific printer/paper combination. You will also generally see the best prints with the use of a RIP like Imageprint or Studioprint.

Personally, I use Moab Entrada Natural 300 for all of my portfolio prints that will be handled, and Entrada Natural 190 for prints that will be behind glass. I am also looking into using Kokopelli Semi Gloss for prints behind glass, but the more traditional type papers require a period of time that many term 'outgassing'. Expect to have the print out for 24 hours before framing. Entrada also has a unique place in the market because of the availability of larger cut sheets. 17x22, 24x30 and 24x36 being common examples. Entrada is also double-sided.

I use Moab Kayenta Matte for all of my everyday and proofing needs.

If you are using the profiles from their web site, and are not achieving the results you think you should be getting, think about getting custom profiles made. Most profiling houses charge $50 for this service. I was in a period of testing every known paper on the planet a few years ago, and having third party profiles made for me was not cost effective, so I purchased my own profiling solution. Gretag Macbeth, Colorvision and XRite are some good names to start off with.

I hope this helps!

Andy