Several questions about printers and ciss

[jizzles]

Hello everyone. I've recently grown an interest with ciss. I learned a out them recently while researching for refillable methods for a HP c309g. Now I'm all over researching for a printer that'll suit my needs. Through my brief research I've learned that Epson may be the best choice for a ciss. Is this true? I bought a xp-800 but returned it since there is no ciss yet and I really need it now. I thought the xp-800 did a great job at printing some of our wedding programs but the photo black ink ran out very fast since we were printing on the best quality using 110 lb card stock. I'm in the need to print a lot of more material for my upcoming wedding.

So I've been looking into buying the artisan series. I was thinking maybe the 835-37 models or maybe 810? Are there any significant differences between them quality wise?

My list of needs/wants would be:
-photo quality
-cd/DVD direct printing
-ciss

I'm not too worried that their printers have subpar text quality as I have a brother 2270dw that I use for that reason.

While I was browsing Craigslist for a printer, I saw a post for an Epson 3800 for $100. I immediately bought it as I felt this was a great deal. I was searching for the refillable tanks and noticed that they cost quite a bit when compared to other systems. For example, the one from inkjetfly has a large cartridge for $200 and a small size for $147. Over at inkrepublic the I-refill system alone costs $280. Finally, I saw a small cartridge on eBay for about $115 coming from Hong Kong.

Is this the going rate for cartridges for this system? Also, are there any differences between the cartridges besides size? Is one higher quality. And more reliable or am I paying for the name and customer service?

Thank you everyone.

Jordan

 

[ThrillaMozilla]

Too many questions. Better to start a new thread for each.

But since you asked, I'll give it a try.
1. Nothing wrong with an HP C309g. Do you need something else for a reason?

Word is, don't think about CISS for HP or Canon. You don't need it (refilling works very well), and it's problematic. I believe the problems are due to nonstationary connections from the CIS, and possibly, cartridge seals not designed for the additional stress. There are reports on this forum of CIS for a C309a (g?), and that worked at least temporarily. Long-term, don't know.

2. $100 for a working 3800? Doesn't matter what the ink cost is. You can refill, and you win big, although it will cost you some $$ to set up. A lot more $$ to buy Epson ink, but those cartridges hold a lot of ink, I think. You need a separate thread if you don't get a quick answer.