New printer advice OR advice on current printer repair!

[DannyM]

Evening,

Right, the situation just now is this; I have a printer, a Canon MP610 which is/was a good printer!

It's not playing too well right now. When I first bought it, I used the first set of cartridges I got with it, but because I REFUSE to pay the high prices for cartridges when I am not doing high quality prints 24/7 I decided to get myself a CIS (continuous ink system - basically an unofficial automatic ink refill system) and the printer worked fine for a fair few months, I print on different types of media, plain paper, photo paper and every so often onto printable DVD-R's. This is where the problem arises. A few weeks ago, it started making a horrendous scratching sound like a metal grinding sound.

I thought nothing of it at first, did all the basic maintenance, but the noise wouldn't go away, however, this only happens when printing onto discs, I went through about 10 discs (with no data on) trying to get the thing to print properly. But no joy and tonight I tried again, I got a common Canon error 5100.

So now I'm a bit stuck, I know you can get replacement heads for the Canon printers as they are replaceable on the new models, but I'm not entirely sure the head is capable of making a noise like that! So either I try to get it fixed (it's out of warranty)

OR

I get a new printer! So I'll give some requirements:

- Must be able to use third party ink.
- Must be be able to do decent enough photos.
- Must be able to print onto CD/DVD media.

A scanner would be nice too, but not too fussed about that.

Price range would be £70 but if you can recommend an all singing all dancing printer that does everything above that price, I may consider it!

Thanks!

[Kumagoro]

you could pick up a refurb mp610 off ebay from canon for about £60

[Saracen]

Or, for not a lot more, an MP620 or even, if you pick your moment, an MP630.

The MP6x0 range has always rather impressed me, since someone on here recommended them a while back, and I think you'll be hard-pushed to find a more capable model in that price bracket. Oh, if you triple the budget there are some very good machines, but at the £70 point, I'd go straight for a Canon refurb (with, I might add, a full Canon warranty) from the Bay.

Look at it this way, Danny. You know the CIS will fit, and if you subsequently have problems (after the warranty expires), you've got the old machine there as a source of replacement bits, heads, motors etc.

For that money, I doubt you'll do any better.

[DannyM]

Or, for not a lot more, an MP620 or even, if you pick your moment, an MP630.

The MP6x0 range has always rather impressed me, since someone on here recommended them a while back, and I think you'll be hard-pushed to find a more capable model in that price bracket. Oh, if you triple the budget there are some very good machines, but at the £70 point, I'd go straight for a Canon refurb (with, I might add, a full Canon warranty) from the Bay.

Look at it this way, Danny. You know the CIS will fit, and if you subsequently have problems (after the warranty expires), you've got the old machine there as a source of replacement bits, heads, motors etc.

For that money, I doubt you'll do any better.

Sound ideas from both of you, thank you very much