I'm not sure what your "bit the dust" happened to your printer but I have an Epson 2200 that I thought I would have to replace. I happened to find a repair technician who made a simple repair at a fraction of the cost I had expected to spend on a replacement (especially since I was going to move up to a 3880). The 2200 now works like new and was serviced in two days. You may want to do a search for a repair service near you. you may be pleasantly surprised.