Epson 7900 woes!

[GeneGuynn]

Hi guys, I'm pretty sure that I am looking at having to replace my Epson 7900 print head but I'm looking around for advice and second opinions, hopefully to avoid the $2200 repair bill. Started missing bits of the green test section over a month ago, and regular cleaning cycles did nothing. Tried CL1 and then  CL4 maintenance mode cleaning, nothing. Tried SS cleaning, nothing. The problem actually seemed to get worse. Now about the middle 1/3rd of the green nozzle check test is completely out, and even a bit warped. I don't know what else to try, I'm not an expert. I use the 7900 for fine art reproduction. Only about 1500 total pages printed, light duty over the course of 3 years or so. It never sat without printing for more than 2 weeks though, usually every other day.
Here is a scan of the problem nozzle check area for the green ink. All other inks print the nozzle check perfectly. Fortunately print quality really doesn't seem to have changed, so maybe green isn't important enough to even worry about.
http://i.imgur.com/5Wvs8ns.jpg

[natas]

I just went through the same exact thing. Green channel on my 7900 went completely out. Replacement was to much for me to justify so I upgraded to a p8000. Epson has good rebates now.

One thing you can try is printing a green purge pattern about 15 times and hope your issue goes away. Also if you havent done so replace your wiper and clean the area where the heads park. If none of that fixes it chances are the head electronics are on there way out. Only way to fix that is replacement.

Good luck.

[GeneGuynn]

Are you happy with your decision? I am tempted to do the same thing.

[natas]

So far I am. The p8000 is a 44 inch but doesn't have the orange and green. However I notice no difference in output. Well the blacks are a little better. The p8000 with rebate is a really good deal right now. Glad I jumped to 44. Just did my first 40x50 canvas and it's nice.

[GeneGuynn]

The lack of O and G on the P8000 worries me... Since I do giclee fine art reproduction I rely on extreme color accuracy. It is also a bummer that I wouldn't be able to use the $1500 in leftover ink from my 7900, but I guess that will be a problem with anything except craigslisting a used 7900/9900.

[natas]

Yeah. I sold my epson 7900 for parts. Ink went on eBay.

If color accuracy needs to be spot on then go for the p7000 or p9000. I use mine for photography and cannot tell the difference. But I don't need the 99% Pantone accuracy.

[GeneGuynn]

Thanks for the info. Could you possibly elaborate on the maintenance measures you already mentioned? I have never done anything to the printer besides change the ink and maintenance tank, so I'm a printer repair newbie!

What is a green purge pattern? What is a wiper and how do I replace it?

[natas]

http://myx900.com Is a good place to start. A purge pattern is just a solid page of a color printed over and over to try and clear that channel. Search for epson 7900 purge pattern on google

[George Marinos]

I think that your print head is "dying"... You can continue to use it as long as you don't see any problem
and then  you need to change it ,or better maybe change the printer. Do not perform more cleanings...you will waste ink for nothing.

[GeneGuynn]

Idololab, I think you are right. I'm not sure how but my print quality seems unaffected still. I even printed several green purge patterns, of solid #008000 green, around 6" x 22" areas. No lines, stripes, or any other problems in the blocks. Weird. I guess I will go ahead and get a new printer since epson instant rebates expire on 1/31, but I suppose I can continue to print until problems start to show in the prints.