Compact white desktop laser printer in the foreground and a larger floor-standing office printer behind it

Choosing a MICR Printer: Small Office vs High-Volume Check Printing

ACOM Business Solutions

For a small office, start with the Source Technologies ST9917 (its page says up to 6,000 documents a month) or the TROY M507edn (45 ppm). For heavy check runs, look at the TROY M610edn through M612edn, which carry higher duty cycles and faster engines, and size the printer to your busiest month and not your average one.

Start with your real peak month

Count the checks you print in your heaviest month, then add anything else the printer will do, such as remittance pages or other financial documents. Our article on estimating how many checks to order walks through the count. That number, not the printer's top speed, decides the class of machine you need.

Specs from ACOM's product pages

These figures come straight from the listings. The ratings differ in kind (some pages give a monthly volume, others a duty cycle), so compare them with care.

Printer Speed Paper capacity Rating on the page
Source Technologies ST9917 up to 38 ppm up to 900 sheets up to 6,000 documents a month; spec table lists a monthly duty cycle of 120,000 pages
Source Technologies ST9920 up to 50 ppm up to 2,300 sheets up to 6,000 documents a month; spec table lists a monthly duty cycle of 175,000 pages
TROY M507edn 45 ppm 550 sheets duty cycle up to 150,000
TROY M610edn 55 ppm 550 sheets duty cycle up to 250,000, monthly volume 5,000 to 25,000
TROY M611edn 55 ppm 550 sheets duty cycle up to 250,000, monthly volume 5,000 to 25,000
TROY M612edn 75 ppm 550 sheets duty cycle up to 300,000, monthly volume 5,000 to 30,000

See the full range on the MICR printers collection, where the TROY M611edn and M612edn models are listed in their Secure and Secure Ex versions.

The words matter. A duty cycle is the most the manufacturer says the machine can do. A monthly volume range is closer to what it expects you to run. Staying near the middle of the range is easier on a printer than living at its ceiling.

What small offices should weigh

A small office usually prints on a schedule, a weekly payables run and a payroll run. The things that matter most:

  • Cost of supplies. Compare toner yield and price. ACOM lists MICR toner for the ST9917 at 5,000 pages, for the ST9920 at 15,000, for the TROY M507E at 10,000, and for the TROY M610E/M611E/M612E at 10,500 or 25,000 on the high-yield version. Browse MICR toner cartridges.
  • Paper path. Sage Intacct's printing guidelines call for a dedicated, high-quality laser printer with a reliable sheet feed, and say lower-cost top-feed laser printers sometimes feed badly enough to misalign the MICR values.
  • Maintenance. A maintenance kit and a 45,000-page imaging unit are sold separately for the Source Technologies models.

What high-volume shops should weigh

If you print thousands of checks a month, a few things change.

  • Duty cycle and speed. A 75 ppm engine finishes a long run in less time than a 45 ppm one, and a higher duty cycle leaves more headroom.
  • Security features. The TROY M611edn and M612edn Secure listings on ACOM's site cite DataStream encryption to protect data over the network, a setting that disables jam recovery to prevent duplicate checks, and 22 security features overall. The M507edn Secure listing cites audit trail reporting and encryption of network data.
  • Toner and positioning features. TROY's article on MICR rejections describes toner sensing and an exact positioning feature (ExPT). Source Technologies describes MICR toner detection and settings that keep the printer from making extra copies of a check. These all target the rejection and duplicate problems you meet at volume.
  • Capacity. The ST9920 lists up to 2,300 sheets of input, which means fewer reloads on a big run.

Check these before you buy

  1. Your software. Confirm that your accounting or check-printing software can print to the model, and that your bank can accept its output. Our article on printing from QuickBooks and Sage covers the software side.
  2. Your bank. Ask for its MICR specification, and take a test check in before you print a full run.
  3. Your paper. Stock matters. Secure blank check stock and pressure seal checks both have their own handling needs.
  4. Your toner. Match toner to the exact printer. The product page for each cartridge names its printers.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use a regular laser printer with MICR toner?

Only if the printer and toner are compatible. Sage's help article says not all printers can use MICR ink, and to check with the printer manufacturer. A dedicated MICR printer removes that uncertainty.

Do I need a MICR printer or just MICR toner?

MICR toner is required for the MICR line either way. A MICR printer adds features that help with alignment, security and duplicate-check prevention, and ACOM's product pages describe those.

Can these printers do anything besides checks?

ACOM's TROY listings say the printers are designed to print checks and other financial documents in-house.

How do I decide between two models in the same range?

Compare the cost and yield of their toner, the paper capacity, and the security features listed. If the volumes are close, supply costs usually decide it.

Talk to us

Questions about check stock, MICR toner or printers? Call ACOM Business Solutions at 800-891-7899 or use the contact page.

Sources