ORIS Color Tuner top scores in Chicago proofing contest
“It is very satisfying to be able to reassure the Australian industry that it made the right choice in making ORIS Color Tuner the most popular digital proofing system,” said Michael Laird, managing director of CyraChrome, CGS distributor in Australia and New Zealand. “We were first in the market with high-end digital inkjet proofing and with over 400 sites the CGS ORIS system is the largest installed base by far in printers, publishing houses and prepress shops in Australia.
“Now Color Tuner has added to its list of awards by being declared winner in the IPA Proofing Roundup in the USA this year.” This follows its GATF 2003 award as the top digital proofing system.
The 2nd Proofing Roundup, held in Chicago this year, awarded first place to ORIS Color Tuner for superior measured and visual results for proofing Pantone spot colours and Pantone Hexachrome colours. The CGS contract proofing system showed an average delta-e variance of only 2.90 in the spot color test, and matched more colors than any other system. The next best score was 5.00.
Of the 27 systems tested, 23 were evaluated for Pantone and Hexachrome proofing performance, returning a combined average spot color Delta-E variance of 9.57. Color Tuner also visually matched more Pantone spot and Hexachrome colors than any other hard copy proofing system tested.
“These results prove that not all proofing systems are the same, that significant differences remain to be evaluated when deciding which way to go. Measurements such as these are vital in the reproduction of high-end contract proofing,” said Laird.
ORIS Color Tuner also performed well in the measured CMYK portion of the test. Using data from the IT8.7/3 test target, Color Tuner’s average delta-e variance was less than 1.0. The system also achieved perfect results in the demanding Altona technical and visual files, a series of complex RIP and color management tests utilizing the PDF/X-3 standard.
“It’s not simply that Color Tuner is the most accurate proofing system available, it also has key advantages in outputting remote proofs within the very tightest tolerances. This provides solid contract proofing, which is backed by comprehensive calibration and proof certification tools,” said Laird. “It is an area that CyraChrome has pioneered in Australia, implementing remote proofing for some of the largest companies nationwide.”
The importance of spot colour proofing
Accurate, cost-effective spot color proofing is a matter of increasing importance, particularly in the growing packaging market, where custom colors are far more critical than in publication or commercial printing. Digital proofing of Pantone and Hexachrome is considered essential in that market’s move towards digital production and CTP.
ORIS Color Tuner, a cost-effective contract proofing system for Canon, Epson and other inkjet output devices, won the 2003 GATF InterTech Technology Award for its accuracy and innovation in automatic device calibration and spot color handling.
The Proofing Roundup was part of the IPA’s annual Technical Seminar, which features multiple sessions on a broad range of industry topics. At the event, 15 companies submitted results from a total of 27 proofing systems. IPA will publish the results in detail, including a comparison of proofing system costs. For more information www.ipa.org.
