Epson GT-9500

Epson's new top-of-the range desktop scanner is the first to move to 36-bit colour sampling. In real terms this means that more detail is captured from the original in areas where the difference between two colours is small. The unit also boasts an optical resolution of 600 « 2,400dpi with software interpolation up to 4,800dpi, fast scan times and a street price of under £600.

The build quality of the GT-9500 is up to Epson's usual high quality. But make sure you have plenty of desk space as it measures in at a rather large 132 « 332 « 563mm. Neatly laid out on the front panel are three LEDs for power, ready and error messages, along with conveniently located power and reset buttons. On the rear panel there are two of the old-style SCSI-1 Centronics-style connectors which are now starting to be phased out by the industry in favour of the more compact mini-SCSI 2 type.

Unlike the distinctive and well-designed lid and hinge assembly that the GT-9000 had, Epson has gone back to a sturdy, but plain, affair that doesn't cope as well with books or other thick original materials. Also missing is a flap on one side, which used to lift up to the level of the scanning surface to provide additional support for wide originals.

Setting up is straightforward. Find a free ISA expansion slot to push the Adaptec 16-bit plug and play-compatible card into, select a free SCSI ID using the rotary switch on the back of the scanner, slide a transportation locking lever to the unlocked position and cable it all up. Annoyingly, although Windows 95 detects the new hardware, it has no support for scanners so the Epson Scan! II software must be installed manually from its CD.

The main software component is the TWAIN driver which can be opened from any application with support for the standard. The software has two modes of operation that cater for both experienced and novice users. Easy mode takes full charge of the scan process. First it previews the image, finds the borders of the original and then performs a final scan. The whole process takes 17 seconds for a 6 « 4in photograph scanned at 100dpi. Although this is quick and easy, the results are rather mediocre. Advanced mode is better, since the area to be scanned can be accurately selected and the settings for the scan tweaked.

Using the TWAIN driver is straightforward. The controls are laid out in a fairly clear and logical manner, and a description for each setting appears in the status bar as the cursor moves over the controls. A limited amount of help is available on-line, but the manuals are the best source of information. There's a colour guide which provides solutions to common scanning problems and then moves on to describe how to use the advanced control settings. It finishes off with a tutorial on the basics of colour which explains some of the deeper issues involved with scanning, displaying and printing colour. Unlike the other manuals it's a multilingual document, so it's short on words and big on graphics and pictures.

The GT-9500 is a fast performer. Calling the driver from Paint Shop Pro 4 took six seconds to check the scanner and initialise, but the preview scan was a fast eight seconds, and a 100dpi true colour single pass scan of a crisp 6 « 4in test photograph took 11 seconds or 18 seconds for a better quality triple pass scan. Greyscale images were also fast, with a 100dpi scan taking just nine seconds.

Colour quality, when left on automatic, isn't that good, but when adjusted manually the scans are excellent. This is due to the scanner sampling in 12-bits each of the red, green and blue colour channels. This delivers smoother tonal variations and greater shadow contrast without sacrificing detail in the highlights. Options for the GT-95000 include a transparency adaptor at £545 and a document feeder for £435. With the bundled software it all adds up to a scanner worth checking out.

Author: Colin Tomkins