I didnt seem to have much of an issue with clogging, realistically i should be getting far better prints than i am so I'm guessing rubbish ink and paper so I'll look at all new and flush it through.
In my experience the 1500 prints are far better than the Ricoh due to the 6 colour setup. That said, I find it a lot easier working with the Ricoh, paper handling, carts and so on and the print is generally acceptable....until my Epson 7890 arrives anyway
You mention inks and paper, but not ICC profiles, and whether you have one/use one or not - this would be key to finding out if your inks are any good or not - spend £25 getting a custom profile made before giving up on either your printer or inks, and certainly before shelling out money on a 4 colour office printer to replace your art/photo printer.