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Author Topic: Z3100 help  (Read 4655 times)

Beginer 1

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Z3100 help
« on: November 17, 2010, 07:47:49 am »

I just bought a used z3100 44" (2007 era) with dreams of printing and loaded a fresh roll of canvas and bought 12 new inks.  Bought Photoshop 9 got the printer utility 3.5 and color center software and drivers are all installed correctly and went to color calibrate after recovering the print heads and purging the ink and all the stuff I was told to do except create a paper profile for the canvas. When I try to calibrate the color it cancels out and reads "calibration canceled due to scanning problems"  Right now without calibrating the color black is non existent (transparent brown) red is totally washed out....just all wrong.  I am printing from a huge tiff file over 1gig.  Any help would be appreciated.
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Ernst Dinkla

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #1 on: November 17, 2010, 09:25:57 am »

Heads can have that internal channels mixing up fault without the Printer Utility mentioning it. If your calibration target doesn't show the problem of black=brown then it is less likely a head failure. If the target has that fault the scanning step of calibration will see unexpected browns on the black patches and cancel out.

Any chance that the advanced color mode isn't on the default settings? The description you give doesn't sound like a media preset and/or ICC profile issue or double profiling.


met vriendelijke groeten, Ernst Dinkla

Try: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Wide_Inkjet_Printers/


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Rocco Penny

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #2 on: November 17, 2010, 09:41:05 am »

I'm in no position to offer technical or very knowledgeable insight,
I've been using my z3100 for 2 years
crashed a formatter, had to clean the heads and parking well on several occasions,
there are some parts that can be soaked to the core in ink.
It needs to be cleaned if it is.
There are several sensors and they only work if they're clean.
There is an online repair manual
Do you have any hotrodding ideas for it? hahah
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Beginer 1

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #3 on: November 17, 2010, 10:02:00 am »

Yeah,  the print target colors look great.  I will check the advance settings when I get to the studio tonight.  I really appreciate your response.  I did a print plot diagnostics?  I think that is what it was called.  MK is supposed to be white or blank?  Also, I am not sure what all these tiny numbers mean at the bottom.  That test seemed to come out fine.
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deanwork

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #4 on: November 17, 2010, 10:43:00 am »

Mk should be black. It sounds like you should replace all the heads that are out of warranty. These heads are dirt cheap and it is a very good practice to keep good ones in there. But first I would do a head cleaning program from the printer menu, maybe two. This printer is designed to be plugged in at all times and does self-maintenance at least every hour. If someone has had it unplugged for awhile and not using it you definitely need to do some head cleaning.  I would first remove all the heads and clean the bottom of them with distilled water and a lint free cloth before doing anything at all. You will find that with the machine you almost never have to do any head cleaning unless the printer has been unused for a very long period of time or unplugged like I said.

If none of this works, I would call HP and pay for a phone session and let them run the diagnostics for you. Remember if ANY of your heads are out of warranty they are going to make you replace them before going any farther. And as frustrating as that is, they are right about that. Did you call the previous owner? Was it working when you bought it?

john
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deanwork

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #5 on: November 17, 2010, 10:49:01 am »

The other thing I would do before calling Hp is to delete and reinstall the driver. You never know when a glitch could happen there. One final thought. Open the the print cover and inspect inside the printer carriage. Take a can of compressed air and blow out any paper dust. Then clean the area carefully with a damp lint free cloth. If you have paper residue inside the machine, as always occurs with rag papers, it could prevent the spectro from reading correctly.

Buying a used printer without a warranty is a total crap shoot these days.
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sm906

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #6 on: November 17, 2010, 10:53:49 am »

  MK is supposed to be white or blank? 

I would not replace all printheads because they are out of warranty. As long as they work fine and the test charts do not show any things to complain about, there is no need to do so.

If your MK charts on the ICC / calibration prints are missing (for the canvas) it seems there is something wrong with the relevant printhead. One or more cleaning cycles and a previous manual printhead cleaning (using destilled water) might solve the problem. If not, you really should replace the printhead with a new one. As deanwork allready pointed out, this is not very costly and one of the benefits of the HP Zx000 series.

Did you try to make ICC profiles for other media than the canvas, such as photo paper or fine art media? I would recommend to do so, to be sure that there is not (only) a media problem with the canvas.

Thomas
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Beginer 1

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #7 on: November 17, 2010, 11:00:28 am »

I already ordered the new printhead.....I will clean the machine tonight and post back on Friday.  Thank you so much. 
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Beginer 1

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #8 on: November 17, 2010, 11:13:08 am »

Could somebody load a pic of a correct diagnostic plot?  That would help me to see if there are any other inconsistency.  If it is not too much trouble....having trouble finding an image online.
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Beginer 1

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #9 on: November 17, 2010, 11:26:09 am »

here is an image of my diagnostics.....
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Rocco Penny

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #10 on: November 17, 2010, 11:28:54 am »

Also,

If you have already tried these strategies, forgive my obviating

Online HP archive has the operators manual,
this forum's search archive function leads to I think it's maybe like 44 pages, and hundreds of posts concerning this great machine.
My membership wasn't approved until I read like 300 posts
I'm concerned about adding layer upon layer of guesswork to the function of your z
Are all of the printer firmware and computer updates in place?
Are all of the software updates current?
Do you create your own ICC you eventually print your calibration target with?
 Do you have color center installed correctly and updated?
Is there a custom paper profile in the software? In the printer's menu?
Do all your drivers have the same rendering and print handling menu choices matching?
Ummm,
so many variables
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sm906

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #11 on: November 17, 2010, 12:16:11 pm »

Yep, the MK is totally missing, either because of the printhead being totally clogged or there is problem somewhere from the MK cartridge to the MK printhead. In the latter case there are severval tests that can be carried out to check where the problem is located.

The service manual can be found here: http://z3100users.wikispaces.com/Maintenance+Tips

BTW, since you bought a used printer it's a good idea to check the printers functionalites based on the service manual anyway, to be sure everything is fine with it, besides your current MK problem. Get a good cup of coffee, or two, and carry out the test cycles, which takes a while, cause after finishing a single cycle the printer turns off.

Thomas
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Beginer 1

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #12 on: November 17, 2010, 12:36:04 pm »

So far This is what I think I know.

I have the correct driver (gl2) and it is the driver that is connected to color center and the Quick print utility 3.5 everything is in sync and it is communicating with the printer.  (right port)  Also, I just updated the firmware successfully.  The machine updated and restarted and read 100% on the front panel. 

Could the mk cartridge need to be reseated and the panel is unaware?  I will read the service manual you sent thanks.
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Beginer 1

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #13 on: November 17, 2010, 02:16:15 pm »

I was just told that the matte black may be turned off in the paper settings.  I am going to set this thing back to HP matte canvas and give it another whirl.
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deanwork

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #14 on: November 17, 2010, 03:59:48 pm »

One final thing. Take out each ink cart and gently shake it for about a minute each. If this printer has not been used for awhile and unplugged, the pigments are surely settled to some degree and the carbon content of the Mk ink would probably be the first to need that mixing. It is also not out of the question that the ink line itself could be blocked with dried ink if this thing has been out of commission for awhile. I"ve seen this more than once with Epson printers. Dried ink in the lines, dried ink in the dampers or even in the head itself.

I'll bet you if you replace that MK head you will be back to normal though.
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KevinWilliams

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #15 on: November 17, 2010, 05:44:00 pm »

My Experience is that is a printhead issue. Probably the printhead lost its prime and there is no ink left inside of it. You will need to replace the printhead and if it is under warranty HP will replace it.
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Beginer 1

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #16 on: November 17, 2010, 08:18:55 pm »

Cleaned just that printinhead and got it fired up....changed the paper preset back to hp professional matte canvas..(which I am actually running Fredricks 901 wr)  I know.....not a good practice but I thought the machine turned off the Matte black when hp told me to put some generic setting in there.  Started a proof and ran out of yellow!  That was ordered earlier today.  Along with a new printhead (mk-r).  The proof is finally looking promising.  The was I see it now is 1. Get the rest of the new inks in and the one new printhead (get the other 5 asap)
2. Run another print diagnostic.  3. Color calibration.  (if that will go through with the paper preset).

I am so green at this.  I invite someone to comment about the canvas issue...I have no idea how to get the machine to add this canvas to my paper preset.  I have no idea how important it is and finally I am not sure if the color calibration and preset are interrelated.......Keep in mind Hp matte canvas is on back order...for 3 weeks.....
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sm906

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #17 on: November 18, 2010, 03:15:35 am »

I am so green at this.  I invite someone to comment about the canvas issue...I have no idea how to get the machine to add this canvas to my paper preset.  I have no idea how important it is and finally I am not sure if the color calibration and preset are interrelated.......Keep in mind Hp matte canvas is on back order...for 3 weeks.....

Good to read you got the MK problem solved, if you got you right!?

If the canvas issue remains, I would recommend the following:

1. Check out other papers to be sure that everything is okay with the printer
2. Read the DnjZ2100_Z3100_setup_manual.pdf. HP tells which media preset might fit best third party papers (if you do not have the manual yet simply download it from the HP website).
3. Adding new media presets and ICC profiling them is carried out via HP Utility --> Color Center.
4. If you are still not sure which media preset might be the right for you or the results are not as expected ask the canvas manufacturer, they should know that. Principally, most paper manufacturers I know i.e Hahnemühle, Moab and Tecco deliver at least a table where the paper presets for the common printers are listed, either with each package of paper you buy or at least as PDF on their website.
5. In addition you have several fine tuning options with the Zx100 printers to alter media thickness, ink volume or gloss enhancer volume (but that should be the last step, when it is working principally).

In the beginning it's time consuming to get well known with a new printer. That belongs to the individual learning curve we all got through with a new and complex printer such as the Z3100.  So, don't be too impatient and take a bit of time to get accustomed to the machine.

Thomas
« Last Edit: November 18, 2010, 03:18:09 am by sm906 »
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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #18 on: December 13, 2010, 07:23:39 pm »

Just wanted to let everyone know that a replacement of the Print heads was the answer.  Thanks everyone.  Awesome machine.....

Is it supposed to squeak when printing?  It is not loud, just seems that it does it towards the end of the printing cycle...is there something I should lube?
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Ernst Dinkla

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Re: Z3100 help
« Reply #19 on: December 14, 2010, 03:12:44 am »

Just wanted to let everyone know that a replacement of the Print heads was the answer.  Thanks everyone.  Awesome machine.....

Is it supposed to squeak when printing?  It is not loud, just seems that it does it towards the end of the printing cycle...is there something I should lube?

Yes, a Classic wide format.

Several things could produce a 'squeak' sound. The printer pumping ink from a cartridge, left or right, happens frequently when the cart is near empty. Slows printing too. The head making a rest at the left side to squirt some ink in the spittoon there, or at the right side. The ink tubes touching the cover.

It is a good idea to clean and oil the bar the head carriage runs on. If that produces the sound it is already way over time for maintenance like that and I guess you would have printer errors coming up.

manual and oil tips on this page:

http://z3100users.wikispaces.com/Maintenance+Tips

BTW, The specification of the thinnest oil in the Nye Hobbyist Lubricant Kit is 99% that of the official HP oil for that bar. Price is lower, easier
to get and there is a high quality grease and a thicker oil included in the box. The HP version is also a Nye quality.


met vriendelijke groeten, Ernst Dinkla

Try: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Wide_Inkjet_Printers/



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