We have used a Gerber Edge 2 in our shop for many years, paired with the Envision 375 plotter. Over the years we also added a Mimaki JV4, and now we have an HP Latex 310 and a 360. But for short runs, for anything with white, or anything on chrome, the Edge has been our workhorse. After a failed printhead a year ago and another failed printhead now, I am starting to question my decision to stick with Gerber. Replacement parts are outrageously expensive ($5,000 or so for the printhead). The entire company seems to be stuck in molasses while their competitors continue to innovate. A new Edge FX costs in the ballpark of $17K. For that you get a printer that prints up to 11.8" and has to be plotted in a separate machine. For $13K, Summa's DC5sx prints closer to 30", plotter cuts on its own, holds multiple foils at the same time, etc. and seems to be better in virtually every way.
In searching for discussions about this, I found several chats in the forums, but none in the past 18 months or so. The older discussions mentioned banding as an issue with the Summa, which concerns me. The ONLY advantage I can think of with Gerber is the ability to print on rigid plastic, which is a market for some Edge users, but not so much for us. We had to buy printer cables that were OVER $100 EACH to get a modern computer to communicate with the Edge 2. After paying over $100 for a plastic bomb-sight for the Envision plotter, it reinforced my opinion that Gerber sees no future in our industry and is going to maximize revenue by gouging their dwindling customer base for every penny on their way out. I think there was a company out there that sold refurbished Gerber printers and maybe even parts, but I haven't been able to find them on the web.
With that said, I posted this because this is my experience and I want to get opinions from others who maybe see something in Gerber that I don't. I am approaching this decision with an open mind, but I have two broken Edge 2's pushed in a corner and I'm limping along with an Edge 1, so I need to make a move soon. Thanks in advance for your opinions and advice.
In searching for discussions about this, I found several chats in the forums, but none in the past 18 months or so. The older discussions mentioned banding as an issue with the Summa, which concerns me. The ONLY advantage I can think of with Gerber is the ability to print on rigid plastic, which is a market for some Edge users, but not so much for us. We had to buy printer cables that were OVER $100 EACH to get a modern computer to communicate with the Edge 2. After paying over $100 for a plastic bomb-sight for the Envision plotter, it reinforced my opinion that Gerber sees no future in our industry and is going to maximize revenue by gouging their dwindling customer base for every penny on their way out. I think there was a company out there that sold refurbished Gerber printers and maybe even parts, but I haven't been able to find them on the web.
With that said, I posted this because this is my experience and I want to get opinions from others who maybe see something in Gerber that I don't. I am approaching this decision with an open mind, but I have two broken Edge 2's pushed in a corner and I'm limping along with an Edge 1, so I need to make a move soon. Thanks in advance for your opinions and advice.
