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#1
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Epson 440 banding question
Yes, I know it's an old printer and I should chuck it in the bin, but before
I do I would like to find out why the printouts have a faint banding effect. The head alignment pattern and nozzle check are OK. The lines are spaced at about 0.03" when printing at 720dpi, and they run in the direction of the print head travel. Is this caused by a problem (or limitation) with the paper feed, or something else? Thanks, Mike |
#2
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Hi Mike,
When you say banding, do you mean these are areas where one or more color ink appears to be missing, or that there is a line of extra ink? Does the band or line ink extend beyond the image into the margins? Are the bands or lines very distinct and of one color and seem about one nozzle in thickness? Is the problem all the way down the whole page? or only toward the top area? If you could send me a 300 dpi scan of in high quality jpeg of: 1: your nozzle pattern (please edit the scan to just crop the nozzle test display) 2: a 2" x 2" area showing the banding Send them as attachments to my email address as shows in the header. From your description, this seems like a reparable problem that can be brought back to "good as new", but people use terms interchangeably, so I prefer to see the defect, and I will get back to you with what can be done to fix it. Art MikeD wrote: Yes, I know it's an old printer and I should chuck it in the bin, but before I do I would like to find out why the printouts have a faint banding effect. The head alignment pattern and nozzle check are OK. The lines are spaced at about 0.03" when printing at 720dpi, and they run in the direction of the print head travel. Is this caused by a problem (or limitation) with the paper feed, or something else? Thanks, Mike |
#3
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"Arthur Entlich" wrote in message
newsjaFd.84837$dv1.25955@edtnps89... Hi Mike, When you say banding, do you mean these are areas where one or more color ink appears to be missing, or that there is a line of extra ink? Does the band or line ink extend beyond the image into the margins? I'm looking at colour photos printed from either a digital camera or a scanned original. The bands are areas of missing ink which run across the entire image. I acquired the printer as used, so don't know if it has always been like that. If you could send me a 300 dpi scan of in high quality jpeg of: Thanks for the kind offer, I will respond tonight. Mike |
#4
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Art
I followed your excellent instructions for cleaning my printer (much easier with the top cover removed). I took a lot of congealed crud from the cleaning pad and under the head. The print quality is now much improved, but sadly the banding is still there. I think it must be a limitation of the printer's design. Interestingly, I printed off one of the "high quality" pictures that came with the printer, and the banding was also there but much less noticeable. I reckon Epson choose these images carefully to disguise the effect! I'm now looking out for a used Color Photo 890, which seems to have the features I want (unless of course you tell me they're no good...). Many thanks for your help, Mike |
#5
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Sorry to hear that the quality didn't improve as much as hoped. The 440
was the bottom model in their printer line and I suspect that over time wear and tear may lead to inaccuracy in the paper path transport, which may cause the banding. I have not used the 890, and unfortunately Epson tends to have slightly different numbers for the UK than for North America. I have used the 880 and have found it to be a very good 4 color printer. Art MikeD wrote: Art I followed your excellent instructions for cleaning my printer (much easier with the top cover removed). I took a lot of congealed crud from the cleaning pad and under the head. The print quality is now much improved, but sadly the banding is still there. I think it must be a limitation of the printer's design. Interestingly, I printed off one of the "high quality" pictures that came with the printer, and the banding was also there but much less noticeable. I reckon Epson choose these images carefully to disguise the effect! I'm now looking out for a used Color Photo 890, which seems to have the features I want (unless of course you tell me they're no good...). Many thanks for your help, Mike |
#6
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I think its usually caused by a failing Printhead assembly or Mainboard
Assembly... the worst case is to replace the printhead... There's another possibility that a build-up of dried ink, dust, dirt, lint and hair that can sometimes cause the "Printhead Nozzles" to fire crooked and that can cause a colored line to appear. Try this one first: http://www.inkrepublic.com/members/nozzle or http://www.inkjet-cartridges.co.uk/e...ch_support.htm But, generally speaking, cleaning will not usually help if it is a hardware/parts problem. good luck! |
#7
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I had the same problem with my printer.
I got in contact with the guys at Cartridge Express, who talked me through step by step, and my printer works like new now. I would give them a ring. http://www.cartridgeexpress.net/ |
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