Customer Reviews

Canon Pixma Pro9500 Professional Large Format Inkjet Printer (0373B001AA)

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I too, ordered this printer before it came out. When it finally arrived, I immediately started printing some landscape pictures that I was anxious to see in large format. I had purchased the Canon 13"x19" Variety Pack to get an idea of which paper worked best with this printer. I immediately settled on the Fine Art Museum Etching paper. The depth of the images when used with this pigment printer is just amazing. They come out looking like oil paintings. I have printed over 100 of these pictures using this paper and have never been disappointed with the results. The cost per print is not cheap, but I think the quality of the prints makes it well worthwhile.

The only problem I have encountered with the printer occured about 10 days after I received it when it completely died. A call to Canon Tech Support quickly determined that it needed to be replaced. I had the replacement two days later and returned the defective unit with no problems.

I just love this printer using this particular paper. I agree that printing to glossy paper did not produce terrific results, but I seldom print to glossy paper anyway.

When this printer was announced by Canon, I was excited and couldn't wait to buy it. The workflow and features are so apealing but it has gloss problem. Let me give a bit of a background.

When Epson 2200 came out, I rushed to store and bought it and found out that when printed on a premium glossy paper (simigloss and premium luster ok), the deep black parts of the photo are matted and when viewed in angle from the side the black parts appear almost negative. The paper itself is undoubtedly glossy but the gloss is gone once printed. (Yes, I selected the right type of paper in the print option.) Later, I bought a smaller Epson printer R800, the problem has been solved because the gloss-optimizer ink has been added.

The reason I'm bringing this up is because I think Canon is playing catch up with Epson. Canon PIXMA Pro9500 has exactly the same problem as Epson 2200. The glossy paper become dull once printed. The black parts are matted and you can see discontinuity. It's almost like somebody colors the black parts by hand with matted ink.

This is the most expensive printer on the PIXMA PRO PROFESSIONAL INKJET PRINTER product line. The reason I bought this printer is because I want to be able to print true B&W photos. Epson R800 has a problem mixing colors so a B&W photo comes out very unpredictably sometimes with warm tone, others with cool tone - never true B&W. PIXMA 9500 does a decent job because it has gray, matte black and photo black ink. B&W and gray come out beautifully, the problem with the black parts being matted is still there but less (than color photos).

ICC profile works well. It automatically detects embeded color profile. Easy Print Pro software (both stand-alone and plugin for photoshop) works great and very intuitively. I printed Canon RAW (cr2) with Adobe RGB color profile in Photoshop the color comes out very accurate.

I won't review other features because they are great. However, I can't get pass that the print quality is poor. For $850, this is a major rip off.

I don't recommend this printer to digital photographers.

Note:
I just did more research and found that only Epson R800 and R1800 and HP Z series have a gloss optimizer which eliminates this very gloss differential problem. Both Epson R800 and R1800 are not designed for B&W photos. Epson R2400 will do B&W but it has the same gloss differential problem. I guess we can't have it all. For $850, Canon PIXMA Pro 9500 should have included a gloss opitmizer in this model design. I should have researched thoroughly before I bought this printer.

I purchased this printer when if first came out. Very few reviews were available then. I have been very disappointed in print quality on glossy paper, even Canon's own Photo Paper Plus Glossy.

I had some cheap paper from local office supply store laying around (Staples Photo Supreme Satin). The Pro9500 does print very well on this Satin paper which is kinda a smooth matte paper.

Another paper that I found printed well with the Pro9500 is Ilford Galerie Smooth Pearl Paper. (Download the ICC profile from Ilford.com) Again this is a smooth matte type paper, not glossy.

Another thing you have to watch out for with the Pro9500, not all inkjet printer paper is compatible with pigmented inks.

Previously I would edit my photos in Photoshop and save to .jpg and take them down to my local photo lab for printing. I purchased this Pro9500 so I would have more control over my prints. I can't get any decent prints on glossy paper, which in my humble opinon gives the best color. Prints onto Canon Photo Paper Plus Glossy paper and other brands of glossy paper look dull and the the black ink seems to print too heavy with no detail in the dark areas and shadows. Colors are muted on glossy paper.

The owners manual is on CD-rom and doesn't give any advice on how to print from Photoshop or other imaging programs. It only shows how to print from Canon's Easy Print plug in for Photoshop which is a joke.

I had lots of difficulting trying to get good prints from Photoshop. Finally found a video podcast from Russell Brown that explained how to set up Photoshop to print and what controls to turn off in the print driver. Also the Canon ICC profiles use very short names (SG1, SG3, SP1, SP3, MP1,,,etc) that make selecting the correct paper and print quality very difficult. Why couldn't they just name their ICC profiles "Photo Paper Plus Semi-Gloss High quaility" instead of SG1.

I do not recommend this printer to anyone that wants to print on glossy paper. If you like matte paper and want the so called longer print life of the pigmented inks then the Pro9500 is a fair printer. Considering the printer only prints well on one type of paper the price is very high.

I have been a Canon fan since the 1970's. I own the Canon Digital Rebel, Canon 20D and the new Canon Eos 1D Mark III which rocks. This is the first time Canon has disappointed me.

I bought this printer on the recommendation of an old school shooter I know. I brought it home and checked on amazon to see reviews and my heart sunk seeing the surprising number of low rankings. I verified that I could return it if the results weren't to my liking and went ahead and did some prints.

Now that I've done that I'm very surprised by the low rankings here. Using my Mac, Photoshop and the Pro9500 I'm very happy with the results. I've done color prints on Canon and generic Costco papers with excellent results on both. As a baseline, I just started with the profiles I built using my ip6000D and found that no adjustment was necessary.

Next, I turned to black and white. This was the main reason I decided to buy this printer. It has a reputation for making good B&W prints. So far I've only tested on glossy papers, but even these look great with no color cast that I can perceive.

In short, I won't be returning this printer. It's living up to my expectations very nicely.

I have been impressed with this printer. Yes it does have its limitations and you do need to sort out what is important to you. The limitations are:

- I have read that a gloss differential problem exists on gloss prints, this doesn't affect me as I'm not keen on gloss prints anyway. I have noticed this on semi gloss immediately after printing, but after 24 hours it has gone
- It is slow, but then printing fine art prints does not normally need high speed output. It has never caused me a problem
- Printing to fine art papers leads to an enforced 35mm margin if you use the fine art as opposed to matte setting. Utilising the matte setting and Hahnemuhle profiles gets around this for Canon Photorag & Museum Etching papers (the Hahnemuhle profiles specify matte and not fine art setting).

All the prints I have made (I have used Canon semi glosss, Canon matte and Hahnemuhle fine art papers) have been excellent - good colours that match my screen (which has been calibrated). The black and white prints have also been excellent - totally neutral.

The printer is very well built, solid, and with wheels to help move it forward or back on my desk. The pigment inks give ensure great print life. While Canon says only to use Canon paper, it works great with other papers - you just need to get a suitable profile. I read comments that some early profiles available for this weren't great, but those available now seem excellent.

I compared reviews of the Epson 2400, 1900 & HP B9180 along with the Canon before making the purchase. The key reasons for selecting the Canon were price (it cost me about half the price of the other two, due to deals available at the time), and due to not having to swap black ink cartridges. I don't believe there is much to separate between the brands.

This is not the printer for everyone, but for those who appreciate good semi gloss, matte or fine art prints, this does an excellent job.

Several problems with this printer, please do your research to save you much aggravation. Well documented problem with glossy paper is the least of the its problems. I print predominantly on matte papers, and gloss is not a concern for me. However, printing on Canon Matte Photo Paper gives very mediocre results, the prints are low-contrast and dull. One would think that it's a character of a matte print, however, printing on Fine Art Matte Photo Paper gives excellent color and contrast that is extremely close to the original image. You would think, the problem is solved, right? Wrong. The fine Art paper, though practically the same thickness as regular matte photo paper cannot be auto fed, which means you have to reconfigure the printer (watch "Transformers" for reference) and move it very far away from any walls, front-feed the paper and just when you think you have everything squared away, you are forced to two options: either print 13X19 or Letter size (nothing else) AND get a 35mm (1 1/2") margin. Selecting custom size forces you to print on any paper BUT Fine Art. Getting custom color profiles does not correct the issue. Printing on Fine Art paper with any selection to allow auto-feed or lesser margin will ruin the color, CATCH 22 ALL THE WAY. Seems like many people in forums are having similar problems and no one has found a fix for it. Canon's tech support says "you are using the printer not in the way it was meant to be used." I thought the word "Art" included "Creativity" in the definition. Being forced to ONLY 2 SIZES and 35mm Margin if you want to get a decent print (and that's at $5 a sheet!) does not fit the "PRO" or the "Fine Art" definition in my opinion.

I really could go on about many other caveats I've discovered, but these MAJOR things should steer many a Photographer/Artist away from this restricting machine.

Do not blame Pigment Inks for poor contrast. HP and Epson manage to do fine on any paper, as well as Canon on $5/sheet paper (only when you print on 75% of it).

I'm returning the printer and going back to the drawing board (HP or Epson).

This is the best color printer made.
My "other" printer is the i960 six color. The output from that has always amazed me but the output from this printer is truely head and shoulders above anything I have ever seen. I have reprinted some of my old pictures and compared the two. Colors seem to be more true, and to have almost a glow to them that seems more realistic. Don't get me wrong, the output from my other printer is wonderful, as long as the two are not placed side-by-side. I had initially thought to sell the other Canon but I think now I will keep it for quick proofs, etc.
Reason? This is the slowest printer I have ever owned.
Paint dries quicker! But good things are worth waiting for.
Also beware of the size, I figured on the length width etc. but forgot you need 17 inches in back for heavy stock.
Ink tanks could be bigger, I know it's my new toy and I am printing a lot, but it seems to run out quickly.
Haven't tried B&W printing yet, but i did a print of fog and trees in winter that could have been, and the tree bark looked like you could touch it.
Anyone know why it takes forever to start printing, and makes all sorts of noises warming up?

I see quite a few complaints about the print quality on glossy paper, but I also agree with those who say that that is simply the nature of pigment ink. As it stands, I have found this printer to provide a satisfactory introduction to pigment ink-jet printing if you adjust a few things about your thinking :) When I bought it, I was not at all concerned with print speed, thinking that to be an extremely low priority when compared to image quality. I wanted something that could print larger formats, and have the prints be durable. Its print quality in my eyes surpasses that of my Canon S820 (RIP) and i860 when fed good paper. It seems to be sturdily made, and compared to what I have owned, it does excellent black and white prints, which opens another door for me (even if the high-gloss door is now closed). Yes, the colors are not as punchy as the dye printers on some media, but they do seem to be more of a match to what I see on-screen, meaning that if I want punch it should be in my original image first. On the other hand, if I have a subtle tone in my image, I have no worries about being able to print it. Long story short, look at your pictures, look at the paper you want to use, then go choose a printer. If you require an accurate print on fine-art paper at a decent variety of sizes, it is not a bad choice, but profiles are easier to find for the Epsons.

Awesome (if you use Windows XP)! If you use Vista, be prepared for problems printing with Adobe Elements. Canon's Vista help area doesn't even cover the 9500- you have to go elsewhere to find the correct drivers (the Canon helpdesk did get me to the right place). Bit I still can not print every paper size using Vista and Adobe Elements 5.0 - sometimes only a half page will print, sometimes an inch and sometimes the whole picture - its a crap shoot. Using XP and Elements 5.0 everything works great. I can use Vista and Canon's print program successfully.

Print quality is awesome - highly recommend this printer.

Bought this to replace my I960 with something that does b+W also. The colors are out of this world. The most life-like I have ever seen. I thought my old printer was good until I re-printed some shots on this printer that I had previously printed with the I960 . I found shades and details that didn't print, or printed faintly on the I960 were present and vivid on the 9500. Black and white is indistingushable from my old darkroom days. I was an avid B+W shooter and printer, and gave up on ever being able to do my own prints again until now. I didn't believe a printer could perform this well. I have gone crazy printing everything I have, just to see the amazing shades I get with no wierd colors. THe ink tanks do seem a bit small, but last fairly long. It's hard to tell since I am printing more then I used to! Be aware, this sucker is BIG. It weights a ton, and takes a lot of room. Remember to leave 17 inches at least behind it for the front feed to work. My only complaint is the print speed. I guess good things are worth waiting for, but I am keeping my I960 for routine jobs because it is much faster. Besides, who needs great output for flyers and graphics that get thrown in a day or two.