Hello! Did anybody try the LPL C7700MX enlarger? Are LPL enlargers as good as Saunders/LPL enlargers? I'm about to buy one and was wondering if I made a good choice... Thanks! Julie Landreville

-- Julie Landreville (julandreville@hotmail.com), March 02, 2001

Answers

Current LPL enlargers are Saunders/LPL enlargers. Saunders is the US importer. If this is sold in the US, it didn't come in through Saunders. You'd want to make sure it's designed for the US since Japan uses 100 VAC as standard, and US is 117 VAC nominal. A bulb for Japan won't work right in the US without an appropriate transformer.

Likewise, a power supply for 100 V input may not work on 117.

-- Charlie Strack (charlie_strack@sti.com), March 02, 2001.

I am using an LPL/Saunders bought in the US in Japan. I did have problems with the light flickering, since the voltage in Japan is lower, and after a period of anxiety, finally solved the problem by adding a little 200 watt transformer. The Japanese LPL models and US Saunders/LPL models are very similar, although not exactly the same. Most of their parts are interchangeable. The Saunders/LPLs in the US are quite cheaper than the LPLs in Japan. All of them are excellent quality and make for a modern, perfectly and as the manufacturer claims, permanently aligned, enlarger. The support that Saunders offers by e-mail is also not bad.

Raja

-- Raja A. Adal (d60w0635@ip.media.kyoto-u.ac.jp), March 03, 2001.

I've been using a C7700 happily for 20 odd years, and I'd recommend it to anyone.
I don't know what the situation in the States is like, but in Europe, the LPL C7700 is about the only choice of well-built enlarger. There don't seem to be many companies still making enlargers.

The bulb is a 12V 100W halogen type, so a transformer must be used anyway.

-- Pete Andrews (p.l.andrews@bham.ac.uk), March 05, 2001.

I've used Beseler, Durst, and Omega; and am very happy with the Saunders LPL 4500II.

-- Chris Ellinger (ellinger@umich.edu), March 05, 2001.

I have a saunder LPL 4500 II. It's solid fast and easy to use. I love it.

-- Wil Hinds (ytb@aol.com), March 06, 2001.

Hello,

I am in China. There are only 3 selection of imported enlarger in China. They are LPL, Fujimoto, and Drust. Drust is very expensive, maybe because it is a Europe brand name. LPL and Fujimoto are about similar.

I don't know between LPL C7700 and Fujimoto V70 which one is better ?

Can every body give me any suggetion ?

-- G.Shi (gshi@citiz.com), May 23, 2002.

Resend --- my mail add should be gshi@citiz.net

Hello,

I am in China. There are only 3 selection of imported enlarger in China. They are LPL, Fujimoto, and Drust. Drust is very expensive, maybe because it is a Europe brand name. LPL and Fujimoto are about similar.

I don't know between LPL C7700 and Fujimoto V70 which one is better ?

Can every body give me any suggetion ?

-- G.Shi (gshi@citiz.net), May 23, 2002.

I replaced my Fujimoto with Suanders/LPL. I spent 10 years priniting with Fujimoto, never happy about it. Stability was so-so, builtin analyzer was practically useless because you have to zero it for different types of films, so I had to buy an external analyzer Colorstar 3000. Plus, aligment was totallly off and there was no way of re-aligning. For 35mm it was tolerable because of 50mm enlarging lens depth of field could compensate for it. Once I started priniting 6x7 aligment problems were seen. I replaced Fujimoto with LPL 4550XLG and can't say a single bad word about LPL.

-- Boris Krivoruk (boris.krivoruk@kp.org), May 24, 2002.