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The black inks that are supplied with these ink sets are intended for use on matte finish paper only. Not suitable for use on glossy, luster, semi gloss or oyster papers. The blacks have the highest possible Dmax.

However, if you are ordering....

Then you must decide which black ink you want in your inkset. Once you have decided, then select the inkset that contains either Universal Black, Eboni Black or Photo Black.

The GP, 7600 and Ultra-Tone inks can be used with either matte finish papers or glossy, if you have the correct black ink. There are 3 blacks to choose from for these inksets.

Photo Black -
The Photo Black (PK) ink is meant for use on glossy, luster, semi gloss or oyster papers ONLY. It has a very high Dmax, greater than 2.0. However, if used on matte finish paper, the Dmax drops off to less than 1.5. You will not like it on matte paper. So if you plan on printing an glossy type paper all of the time, this is black you should select for the above inksets.

Eboni Matte Black -
The Eboni Matte Black (K) is meant for use on matte finish papers ONLY. It is the best black ink we have ever made. The Dmax is about 1.72 on most matte papers. It is highly archival and has very good fade resistance, as does the Photo Black ink. However, if used on glossy, luster, semi gloss or oyster papers it will solarize and may not dry completley. You will not like it on this type of paper. So if you plan on printing an matte type paper all of the time, this is black you should select for the above inksets.

Universal Black -
The Universal Matte Black (MK) is a compromise that falls in between the Photo Black and the Eboni Matte Black. If you are making color prints that have moderate amounts of black in them, then the Universal Matte Black can be used on glossy, luster, semi gloss or oyster papers. The Dmax is the same as the Eboni Matte Black. When used on matte finish papers, there is no drop off of the Dmax, it holds up to about the same density as on glossy paper. It will dry and will not solarize on glossy type paper unless it dominates the image, like in a sky or night scene. On matte finish paper is looks great and there are none of the glossy paper issues. If you do not specify a black ink, then you will get Universal Black.

To achieve this compromise, some black dye has been added to the ink. It is not a pure 100% pigment ink like the Photo Black and the Eboni Black. Therefore, the fade resistance is lower. When used with good archival quality papers is will hold up for approximately 20 to 40 Wilhelm years.

So if you plan on printing on both glossy type paper and matte type paper, this is black you should select for the above inksets. If you absolutely must have the ultimate fade resistance, then you may have to purchase an extra black cartridge and switch back and forth between Photo Black and Eboni Black. On desktop printers this can be done by simply changing the cartridge. On wide format printers, it is more difficult.