HP 8000sr Any comments

[zap]

I am buying a solvent 60+" printer. I just came back from the SGIA show and I was looking at the HP 8000sr as an alternative to the Mimaki jv-33 160.

I am just wondering if anyone has any experience good or bad with the HPs?
I am a big fan of forum and peer support so the mimaki seems like a much better choice in that realm but I need to cover all the bases.

thanks
glenn:

 

[GK]

got a 9000s and a 10000s and they are...awesome, ink is a little pricey for the OEM carts.

 

[Bill Modzel]

Ditto on the 9000. Loving it. Only problem is the print quality is so good that I haven't used the "old" 5000 in a couple of months now.

 

[GK]

they do print amazingly well out of the box, however after we custom profiled all our medias it was even better (obviously). Just note that head replacements for these machines are not cheap at all after your out of warranty $1250-$1500 + a tech needs to install it and align it with their special tools (some sort of jig alignment tool)

 

[FieldTechGuru]

The 8000 heads are user replaceable. It's a matter of popping off an ink line and then pulling out the data cable. It slides into a fixed slot on the carriage.
The 9000 is a different story. Just the jig alone to replace heads costs 1200.00

 

[GK]

The 8000 heads are user replaceable. It's a matter of popping off an ink line and then pulling out the data cable. It slides into a fixed slot on the carriage.
The 9000 is a different story. Just the jig alone to replace heads costs 1200.00

Yeah, and HP will not sell you the jig while you are under warranty unless you are willing to void it. We tried to buy one and they sent us a waiver to do just that. We got it now, but we have been out of warranty for a while so...its worth it.

 

[Donny7833]

I've had my 8000s since July and am very happy with this machine! Great color gamut, easy to maintain and HP quality. I've profiled fabrics, cast vinyl, banner stock, calendered vinyl, mural material, even .020 white styrene and all look fantastic. Speed is slightly better than our JV3 and unlike the Mimaki SS2 ink, the HP black is BLACK, not dark brown and requires no additional cmy to look black. This is most notable printing backlits and has been a sore spot with the Mimaki. I'm not bashing the JV3, I've ran allot of material through it and will continue to do so. But, if I needed another machine in the 16 to 20K range, I'de buy another 8000. I use Ergosoft PosterPrint V12 for a RIP and love the combination with the HP. My one compaint, if the shop is 65 degrees or lower, the print heads take forever to reach print temp.

Beat your rep up on price, the new JV33 is faster.

My machine showed up with a dead black head, one call and a new head replaced by a tech in 48 hrs. The easiest head to replace I've ever seen in a solvent printer. Disconnect the inkline, disconnect the single data coupler, flip the front lever and lift out the head. The 8000 differs from the 9000 in that the 8000 head has a positive alignment collar built onto the bottom of the head. Reverse the above procedures, run the alignment test and start printing. 1/2 hour tops.

I used to swap Spectra heads on Mutoh Toucans, now that's a chore.