Color Accuracy Question

[prosigner]

Hey everyone, hope your weekends are going well!

We are still tinkering with our new Roland Printer and wondering how you guys deal with color accuracy. We noticed on our first test print the colors were different on the print from the image on the computer. Say we have an RGB image, should we convert that RGB image to CMYK to see how it is going to come out on the printer (we are going to be using an IPS panel that will be eventually calibrated).

Thanks in advance! :U Rock:

 

[FrankW]

It is a big effort to match the screen with the printer.

Regularly to do softproofing (testing color accuracy on the screen), you'll need a calibrated display with a wide gamut panel, which works in a room without daylight influence, and the lights in the room should match D50-standard.

But you can't calibrate the screen to the printer output, you need to create color accuracy on the printer and on the screen independently to let them match. So you need to calibrate the printer exactly too, every media you use with every print mode, and in optimum re-calibrating the media profiles on a regular basis.

Even then it could happen that colors don't match, because a RGB-display can show much more colors as for example Eco-Solvent-Ink on a banner. But you have achieved highest possible color accuracy.

A lot of the people in signmaking business don't to that effort. They match color samples with the output and use standard output profiles on the printer. A solution for achieving highest possible color accuracy for vector colors is to match the colors with the reference of the Roland Color System Library.

 

[jkdbjj]

Hey everyone, hope your weekends are going well!

We are still tinkering with our new Roland Printer and wondering how you guys deal with color accuracy. We noticed on our first test print the colors were different on the print from the image on the computer. Say we have an RGB image, should we convert that RGB image to CMYK to see how it is going to come out on the printer (we are going to be using an IPS panel that will be eventually calibrated).

Thanks in advance! :U Rock:

My advice, is to not jump around switching color setting for your art file.
Instead first just work with different profiles in your rip, assuming you aren't making your own profiles.

You will see a world of difference just trying different profiles. Find the one that is right for you and make a note of it.

On a side note, you will get different answers from different people about keeping your file RGB or CMYK, kind of fanatical advice from shop to shop, like religion

My experience, RGB seems to give more depth of color and ranges in general. I tend to match my corporate account close to 100% sending RGB files.
When we send CMYK files, blacks can be dull, as well as some other colors.
However, as I said, you will hear different ideas from different people.

 

[FrankW]

However, as I said, you will hear different ideas from different people.

Sometimes, the opinion of the people results on how good their RIP's manage RGB-Files. Of course, RGB is the wider gamut than CMYK, but regularly one outdoor printers CMYK will mean no limitation.

 

[prosigner]

Thanks for the help guys! Much appreciated.

We are going to be getting an IPS monitor in and will have to look into getting it calibrated to maximize color accuracy on screen.

We are running Versaworks and maybe that is where the issue lies. Will do more research and testing and report back with what we find.

 

[Terremoto]

Working/designing in sRGB will give you the closest match to the output of your Roland. Most CMYK color spaces only manage a small subset of what your Roland can produce. Let your RIP (Versaworks) handle the color conversion. That's what it was designed to do.

Dan