Opemus 7 or Omega C700 - which is better?

[Lachlan Young]

Having started to give some serious thought to buying a new enlarger I have come to the conclusion that either of the above would seem to be suitable. I would be buying a condensor enlarger version and was wondering which of the two would be better. The prices are £275.44 (Meopta) and £293.75 (Omega). I would also like to know what the maximum possible enlargement size is for the Meopta.

All help much appreciated,

Lachlan

 

[Peter Black]

Hi Lachlan

The Nova Darkroom site suggests 30x40cm or 16x12 inches as the max enlargement for the Opemus 7. I see you've decided on the condensor head version, but the Meograde head is actually made under licence from Ilford and is a good performer with multigrade papers.

 

[Lachlan Young]

I see you've decided on the condensor head version, but the Meograde head is actually made under licence from Ilford and is a good performer with multigrade papers.

I can always buy the multigrade head at a later date - anyway the ilford filter system is ever so slightly 'off' when used with my new favourite paper ADOX fineprint.

Thanks for your help,

Lachlan

 

[John Koehrer]

I would consider parts avilability fo the Omega to be a minus. Here in the US I wouldn't consider the Meopta for the same reason.

 

[Mick Fagan]

I don't know the exact model Meopta enlarger you are thinking of, but having owned two Meopta enlargers over the years, as well as ½ a dozen other types of enlargers, I have yet to see anything wear out, other than the globe, on any enlarger I've owned.

Both of my Meopta enlargers were able to be swivelled on their base, allowing floor enlargement, on top of that their head could be swivelled sideways to allow for wall enlargement.

Generally speaking the size of an enlargers baseboard, seems to be a good indicator of the maximum print size in standard set-up.

Mick.

 

[Jim Jones]

I usually use an ancient DeJUR enlarger in preference to the Omega C-700 in my darkroom. The Omega is a decent enlarger, although the original lens was a dog. 293.75 sounds awfully expensive, though, with so many affordable enlargers available on ebay.

 

[Rolleijoe]

Omega Parts availability (Omega vs Meopta)

I would consider parts avilability fo the Omega to be a minus. Here in the US I wouldn't consider the Meopta for the same reason.

John, I've always used Omega, and have never had any problems with parts. In fact, I just recently bought an Chromega D5-XL Super Dichroic, and one small part was damaged in shipping. Omage knew of the problem, and sent out a new part (now made of solid brass) right away.

I also use an Omage B-4 for making smaller prints, and an Omage D-3 Autofocus (just because it was my 1st enlarger), for sentimental reasons.

Printing on graded paper helps (no fussing around with filters), although I do enjoy the extra possibilities given when using the chromagenic filtration.

For an extra 20pounds, you can't go wrong.