What printer and why ?

HP makes terrific inkjet printers as well. We used an HP 5500 wide format for quite a while at my shop for positives.

We use 2 Printers both Epson a 1400 and a 4880, the 1400 with Filmmaker is awesome, dense opacity, Accurip is mostly best for vector graphics, if you want to start out using Photoshop vs Illustrator then Filmmaker with give you awesome crisp edges, and of course Illustrator always gives crisp edges, but Filmmaker with ensure the best print possible, and with thte 1400 the factory ink works great, the 4880 is the next step after the 1400.

HP ink isn't as uv dense as Epson. they don't 'see' film as well.

because most rips are created for small format use the Epson 1400. and the price of the printer is great. u can buy a rip for around 500 if u need to do half tones. i use my laser printer and vellum sheet. i only do basic designs. simple one or two color. what type of Mimaki do u have. if its a simple design u don't need a rip. now i use a work force 1100 with refill carts and screen positive inks. i sub out full color prints and use my heat press. i also have a small Epson for dye sub.

Epson 1400 is a nice format for tshirts etc. There are better large format printers. Epson are generally the best for registration and density.

If you don't need films bigger than 13x18 the 1400 is the best bang for the buck and it is supported by AccuRip. You can buy the printer on sale close to $100 now and the show price on AccuRip has been as low as $250!