Epson 1280 problems

[jen_ace]

I bought an Epson 1280 a few months ago having read rave reviews

about it on this site and others, and have been very disappointed

with its performance. I bought it new, from a legitimate vendor, and

put Epson paper and inks in it. It's not consistently bad all the

time, but often enough to be annoying. The best quality prints I get

off it are acceptable. The worst have vertical lines running through

them which are not immediately obvious, but are definitely there if

you look moderately closely. (I am printing at maximum quality; if

you print at maximum speed the lines are many times worse.) It

prints both hot and dark, and there are frequently areas of colour

that don't even appear on the photograph on the edges that enter the

printer first and last (the ends; not the sides). It's often a light

patch, as if the printer missed a spot. I'm not a computer (or

printer!) whizz and really don't know how to fix it - does anyone

have any suggestions? As I mentioned, I've had it for a few months

and am not sure if it's still under warranty, or even if these are

issues that a vendor would accept a return for.

 

Help, please!

[don_cooper]

You didn't say if you've run any nozzle checks or cleaning cycles. Have you and what were the results?

[jen_ace]

Don,

 

I did run a cleaning cycle, and the quality improved on the prints I made that day - as in, the discoloration on the sides virtually disappeared, as did the vertical lines. When I come to use the printer again a couple of weeks later, they're back. I shouldn't really have to clean it every time I use it, should I? Also, it didn't help the hot or dark problems, so the prints are still useless - reds grossly overexaggerated and the whole thing way too dark. Any ideas?

[cbender]

<I> I shouldn't really have to clean it every time I use it, should I?</I>

 

<P>Unfortunately, yes. Everytime you use the printer you should print a nozzle check pattern. If you let the printer sit idle for a few days (or or off), you will probably end up with a clogged nozzle. Before you print a photo make sure you have a perfect nozzle check. I'm also in the habit of running a nozzle check after printing, to make sure that a nozzle didn't clog half way through the print.

 

<P>I'm not sure if this is true on the 1280, but on my 820 and 1160 I run cleaning cycles in sets of 3 (ie. clean, nozzle check, clean, nozzle check, clean, nozzle check). The printer has different 'strengths' of cleaning cycles, and you can only activate these by running multiple cleaning cycles one after another. Just don't run more than three in one go - print something afterwards or your liable to end up with ink on pooling on the black plastic area under the rollers. Obviously, if the nozzle check is good after the first cleaning cycle then you don't need the second or third.

 

<P>One other thing. You almost certainly don't need to print at the maximum quality - this just wastes ink. I generally print at 1440dpi, and the prints are dotless unless I get out my 8x loupe.

[don_cooper]

Jen, you still didn't say how the nozzle checks came out. When you're not printing for a couple of weeks it's always a good idea to run a nozzle check before printing.

[j_robinson2]

Have you done an alignment? Cleaning is fine but making sure the alignment is good will help a lot as well.

[jen_ace]

I'm not sure I ran a nozzle check. I played around with it for a while but I don't think that was one of the things I did. Either way, that wouldn't help the hot and dark issues, would it?

[glen peterson]

I have the 1270 model still(for about 4years now) it uses the same inks. These printers were designed to be used fairly often. When mine sits idle for anything more than a day or two, I do nozzle checks and head cleaning. You will use up a little more ink, but the prints are worth it.

[paul -]

Another thought, do you make sure the printer is powered off with it's own On/Off switch after using? This "parks" the print heads, which helps prevent clogs. Leaving it on all the time or powering it off via something external like a power strip/surge protector prevents the print heads from "parking", and increases chances of clogs.<p>As for the off/dark colors, the first thing to do is calibrate your monitor (with something like a Colorvision Spyder or other hardware device), and recalibrate it every few weeks or so. Monitors gradually change without you noticing. It may be that your printer is really printing what the computer tells it to, while an uncalibrated monitor may be showing you something else. Once I started calibrating, my prints started looking like I thought they should.

[jen_ace]

Thanks for the calibration point - I actually work on my photos at work, an ad agency, where the guys in the studio do a ton of scanning - I'd be very surprised if the monitors there were incorrectly calibrated. Could there be some problem with transferring my files (by cd) from work to the printer at home?

[kaiyen]

Well, if you're not using any profiles at all with your printer, you could still get some color inconsistencies. You have the calibrated monitors at work - that means that you have an accurate representation on screen. But you'll want to have a profile for your printer to make sure it translates properly onto paper.

 

The good news is that epson offers several "canned" profiles that will get you pretty close. They aren't as good as custom ones, but they're pretty good. I think they're still bundled up in the PIM download at www.epson.com.

 

As others have said, you need to make sure you have your nozzles clear and your head clean before you print. It could account of the hot spots, too - a nozzle is clogged, and you'll be missing a color, which will produce one tone. Halfway through, that nozzle unclogs, and now the tone changes.

 

allan

[tom_swanson]

Welcome to the Epson Clogmaster line of printers.

 

I find if I waste ink by using my 1280 as a regular printer it manages to stay clog free a lot longer. Also, shut it off when not in use. That seems to help.

[jp_and_ap_the_glass_eye]

Hello - I generally agree with Chad Bender. Run the cleaning cycle over and over until the nozzle check looks good. If you are going for quality prints YOU MUST START WITH CLEAN NOZZLES. If you dont use the printer for an extended period (a couple of days) expect clogged nozzles. I try to do all my final printing in one evening just for this reason.

 

Ive had the best luck with Epson heavywight mat paper and max resolution printing. The results are almost dot-less. From 10" or more away the results are spectacular -much better than a commercial pro print. Sad to say, inkjet printers can be hard to use. If you want a quality result you have to figgle with em.

 

If you accidentally print in the text and color or draft modes, the print looks muddy, with exaggerated blocked up reds.

[jen_ace]

many thanks to all for your help.

[joe_ethridge]

Jen, I would have to agree with most of what has been said, about running a nozzle check and cleaning cycle, etc. I'm getting ready to order a Spyder 2 Pro to calibrate my monitors. With that said, I must say, that I've had great luck with my 1280 these past 3 or 4 years ( without calibrating software). I don't use Epson papers though. I use Luminos and Hahnemuhle fine art papers, like Woven Fiber, Velour, Parchment, German Etching, and others. They are thick papers and a bit difficult to feed but I really love the results. Some are like museum parchment paper, some like velvet, others have a unique but subtle design in the paper. They are all matte without any glare. You may want to try a sample pack of either brand from B&H Photo on line. Good luck, Joe