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Author Topic: Another 4900 horror story  (Read 55560 times)

digitaldog

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #20 on: January 29, 2014, 06:32:11 pm »

For the last month, I have been using the Harvey Head Cleaner to daily print a noozle check.  So far it seems to do the trick. 
Question: how does this utility turn the printer on to do it's thing? Mine goes to sleep after awhile. Does it wake up when HHC sends it a file?
Comment: I did some internal research and I'm hearing that the 4900 and similar printers really need to be used a couple times a week.
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jrsforums

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #21 on: January 29, 2014, 06:45:18 pm »

Question: how does this utility turn the printer on to do it's thing? Mine goes to sleep after awhile. Does it wake up when HHC sends it a file?
Comment: I did some internal research and I'm hearing that the 4900 and similar printers really need to be used a couple times a week.

If it is off, it is off.  You need to not gave it auto turn off.

HHC uses windows services to send a request to print a nozzle check...which seems to be enough...most of the time to keep everything ok. 

The few times I have seen "blips", I have run the auto check, then cleaned just those.  Often, I then gad to turn off over night and then find it cleared.  Next time I get a blip I plan to just turn off and, after a while, turn back on to see it depressurization is the real fix....I.e.  Air being the problem.

John
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digitaldog

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #22 on: January 29, 2014, 06:53:56 pm »

You need to not gave it auto turn off.
How do you do that? My unit just power's itself down after awhile. Is there some setting (which I can't find) to keep it running?
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jrsforums

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #23 on: January 29, 2014, 07:05:11 pm »

How do you do that? My unit just power's itself down after awhile. Is there some setting (which I can't find) to keep it running?

As they say....read the fine manual... :-)

Without checking, I think it is in maintenance mode.  If you don't fine it, get back to me and I will find it.  Let me know.

John
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John

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #24 on: January 29, 2014, 07:11:05 pm »

Actually, it's glaringly absent from the manual in any obvious way :-)

You do go into Maintenance Mode - Pause/Cancel button held down whilst switching on.  Then it's under Menu Item "Power Management".  You can enable or disable the Power Off Timer and you can also set the time to Sleep Mode from 1 to 24 hours.
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digitaldog

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #25 on: January 29, 2014, 07:16:01 pm »

Thanks guys.
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jrsforums

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #26 on: January 29, 2014, 07:48:11 pm »

Actually, it's glaringly absent from the manual in any obvious way :-)

You do go into Maintenance Mode - Pause/Cancel button held down whilst switching on.  Then it's under Menu Item "Power Management".  You can enable or disable the Power Off Timer and you can also set the time to Sleep Mode from 1 to 24 hours.

Ya made me look it up....

Page 132

"...To set the amount of idle time required until the printer automatically powered off, press d to highlight POWER MANAGEMENT, then press r. Press r to DISABLE or ENABLE the POWER OFF TIMER, or press d to highlight TIME TO OFF, press r, then press u or d to increase or decrease the value. Press OK to select the setting you want..."
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jrsforums

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #27 on: January 29, 2014, 07:52:47 pm »

Thanks guys.

Andrew, if you want to use HHC on the 4900, contact them and get HHC Version IIIA, which is special for the 4900.
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John

digitaldog

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #28 on: January 29, 2014, 07:53:12 pm »

OK found it too. So keeping the unit on isn't an issue. I have a PC laptop I could use for HHC but I'm wondering why I can't have my Mac do the same function with either Quickeys (Macro) or something similar (Automator). My understanding is that what HHC does is send a request to print a nozzle check on a scheduled basis. Pop plain paper into the cassette, run the nozzle check twice a week. What am I missing?
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jrsforums

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #29 on: January 29, 2014, 08:00:25 pm »

OK found it too. So keeping the unit on isn't an issue. I have a PC laptop I could use for HHC but I'm wondering why I can't have my Mac do the same function with either Quickeys (Macro) or something similar (Automator). My understanding is that what HHC does is send a request to print a nozzle check on a scheduled basis. Pop plain paper into the cassette, run the nozzle check twice a week. What am I missing?

Nothing.

I have not done it, but I would assume you could set the PC up via network and have it scheduled for off hours.  Mac could be network or USB.  Just make sure you reset to cassette after other printing.

Santa Fe is dry.  I run mine everyday.  Suggest same for you.  Ink is minimal.  Paper can be used four times by turning/flipping to reuse.

John
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AFairley

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #30 on: January 29, 2014, 09:49:27 pm »

OK found it too. So keeping the unit on isn't an issue. I have a PC laptop I could use for HHC but I'm wondering why I can't have my Mac do the same function with either Quickeys (Macro) or something similar (Automator). My understanding is that what HHC does is send a request to print a nozzle check on a scheduled basis. Pop plain paper into the cassette, run the nozzle check twice a week. What am I missing?

Rodney, I believe Mac users have done exactly that, but I don't know the reference off the top of my head.
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Mark D Segal

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #31 on: January 30, 2014, 06:15:18 am »

I wonder whether a prolong period of printing nozzle checks alone would suffice to keep the printer in tip-top printing condition. As well, as this approach seems to work for some people, one wonders why Epson doesn't build something like it into the driver, which would be cross platform, and perhaps trigger itself without even having a computer powered on.
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Scott Martin

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #32 on: January 30, 2014, 08:11:53 am »

...one wonders why Epson doesn't build something like it into the driver, which would be cross platform, and perhaps trigger itself without even having a computer powered on.

I agree Mark! I'm surprised Epson and Canon didn't do this research years ago and build this functionality in to the printer itself. Under-usage is one of the biggest causes of problems with large format printers today...
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Alan Goldhammer

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #33 on: January 30, 2014, 08:57:44 am »

I wonder whether a prolong period of printing nozzle checks alone would suffice to keep the printer in tip-top printing condition. As well, as this approach seems to work for some people, one wonders why Epson doesn't build something like it into the driver, which would be cross platform, and perhaps trigger itself without even having a computer powered on.
Perhaps Epson think that folks with these printers use them every day.  It's easy enough to do from a programming point of view.  They could also design it to print more than just a nozzle check so that more ink is used (but this would be a little more complex and they would have to figure out the optimal amount of ink needed without wasting too much).
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Mark D Segal

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #34 on: January 30, 2014, 09:05:36 am »

Perhaps Epson think that folks with these printers use them every day.  It's easy enough to do from a programming point of view.  They could also design it to print more than just a nozzle check so that more ink is used (but this would be a little more complex and they would have to figure out the optimal amount of ink needed without wasting too much).

I think with very little effort they could do the programming and find a suitable design to print that would do the needful. The fact is that not all their customers run these machines all the time because when we bought them Epson never made a point of informing us that this would be an important operational consideration in choice of printers.
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Mark D Segal (formerly MarkDS)
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Scott Martin

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #35 on: January 30, 2014, 09:29:54 am »

Perhaps Epson think that folks with these printers use them every day.  It's easy enough to do from a programming point of view.  They could also design it to print more than just a nozzle check so that more ink is used (but this would be a little more complex and they would have to figure out the optimal amount of ink needed without wasting too much).

I've spoken with a few peopleat  both Epson and Canon about this and their attitude was "people need to know they have to use these things" . My impression was that they felt it wasn't their job to watch out for under usage. In a beta program six years ago I detailed the needs of the printer to protect itself from under usage but that seems to have fallen on deaf ears.
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Mark D Segal

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #36 on: January 30, 2014, 09:40:02 am »

Well, if "people need to know they have to use these things" don't you think it's the primary responsibility of those companies to tell us what we need to know? But they never did that because it would have impacted on sales. So that response you got is completely disingenuous. "Peole" can't be expected to know this without being advised, because the 3800 and 3880 before these x900s certainly never needed this kind of baby-sitting.
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Mark D Segal (formerly MarkDS)
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Scott Martin

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #37 on: January 30, 2014, 09:48:39 am »

I completely agree Mark. So far, both Epson and Canon have missed an opportunity to "do the right thing" and protect these printers from under usage damage. Smarter integration could have solved this years ago. They have ignored customer feedback on this very issue for a long time and customers are suffering now more than ever because of it.
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Scott Martin
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Mark D Segal

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #38 on: January 30, 2014, 10:05:57 am »

Of course they could always rescue their reputations on this matter by developing the algorithm and offering users an up-dated driver with that included. :-) :-)
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Mark D Segal (formerly MarkDS)
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shadowblade

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Re: Another 4900 horror story
« Reply #39 on: January 30, 2014, 10:36:30 am »

It would have been so easy for Epson to implement a setting to deal with underuse and infrequent, but heavy use, as well as something to save the printer when you're away on a shooting trip.

Just an automatic setting to print a few lines from each nozzle daily, or twice daily, or however often the temperature and humidity demand. Put a pile of cheap A4 paper in the printer and let it maintain itself through regular use.
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