Epson 3880 not changing from PK to MK based on profile settings

[praja343]

Hello:
I searched for anything similar to the problem I have and I could not find any solutions. I have a iMac and a Macbook Pro. The former is on OS10.9.5 and the latter on 10.12.6. I run PS CS5 on the former and Photoshop CC on the latter. when I print on my 3880 using the old infrastructure (OS10.9.5, PS CS5) the print dialog boxes are attached. Using these I can choose the proper profile and depending on the profile the 3880 swaps between PK and MK.

When the printer is attached to the MBP with Photoshop CC the dialog boxes are different (I have attached them on a follow up post since only 3 attachments are allowed per message). As you can see  the dialog boxes are somewhat different from the previous versions and I don't have the same options and choices as before. Regardless of the paper profile, the printer now uses only PK even if the paper profile is matte. My guess is that the Epson Utility has changed and now the choices are different. Any suggestions for getting the printer to use the right ink based on profile would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.

[praja343]

These are the PS CC and attendant dialog boxes:
Thanks for your help.

[BobShaw]

Well I have the 3880 but I never use the driver to print MK.
However the first thing to look at is that you haven't selected a Matte "profile", you have selected a Matte "Preset", which could be set up for anything.
Use the drop down menu "Printer Settings" with the grey line through it. Also try "Print Mode". AccuHDR is probably a PK setting.

[Alan Goldhammer]

I'm on WinOS and print from LR so I can only comment based on this.  The ink switch is handled by the Epson print driver and not the Adobe application software.  In LR there is a Page Setup button that pulls up the print driver and of course once you have configured that you can save the settings both in the print driver and the application as a preset.  there must be a way in MacOS for you to call up the print driver independently of the application to check to make sure all the settings are what you want them to be.  Also, you can switch the ink using the panel settings on the 3880 though this could lead to strange results if the selected profile doesn't fit with the paper you are printing on (using a PK profile when printing using MK ink).

The fact that you have two computers doing different things is a bit strange but the Adobe PS versions are different (though I'm not sure that would have an effect on the Epson driver).

[Ferp]

The general thrust of the comments is correct.  The choice of MK or PK is make in the driver and it is almost entirely determined by the media type setting.  If you choose one of the photo paper or proofing paper options you will get PK enforced by the driver.  If you select one of the matte or fine art paper settings then MK will be enforced.  Only plain paper allows you to choose the black ink, although MK is usually the default.  You don't make the media option selection in either PS or LR - in either program you'll have to open 'print settings' and ensure that you've selected an appropriate media type.   If you don't do this then you're playing Epson Roulette, in which some default option will determine the media type setting and hence the black ink.  (I think that recent versions of PS will save the last used printer settings for some image formats like either TIFF or PSD. You can save combinations of settings, including the media type, as a preset in the driver, but you still have to open the driver options via print settings in order to select the preset.)

[Wayne Fox]

I think you have a driver issue in the second one.  That dialog box seems completely wrong, almost like a UNIX driver of some type has taken over.

In the second one your media type menu is blank. You should be able to select it and see all the Epson media types to select from.  If not there is a definite driver issue.

I would get the Epson uninstall utility, remove the Epson drivers from that computer, and then reinstall them with fresh download from Epson.  Delete all occurrences of the printer in the printer preference dialog.  You may even have to reset the Mac printing system by right clicking in the window that shows current printers.  This will wipe out all presets and everything else stored on the mac, but it may come to that to clear up the problem and get the correct driver operating correctly.

[praja343]

Thanks to all for their comments.
Wayne: A special thanks for pointing out specific steps. I will do that and will post the results. I agree with you that the Mac Book Pro screen looks totally wrong. The driver versions on both the computers are 9.33. But when I upgraded the OS to the current Sierra Version (10.12.6) sometimes Apple installs some of its own print drivers that may cause problems. I will check your steps and let people know.

[praja343]

Wayne:
 Your suggestion worked perfectly. My guess is that when I upgraded the Mac OS from Yosemite to Sierra, the drivers must have been  - to use a technical term - garbled. For others who may have this problem, I detail what I did:
1. Deleted all the old printer drivers and the Epson folder from the Application Folder
2. Deleted the printer from the System Preferences
3. In System Preferences under Printers and fax move mouse over the printer list (now empty since I deleted the only printer)
4. Control Click in that space. Click Reset Printing System in the pop up
5. Restart the Mac
6. Download the printer drivers and icc paper profiles from Epson for the 3880 for Mac OS 10.12.6
7. Install them
8. Add the  3880printer back in the System Preferences under Printers and Fax
I tested the switch between PK and MK.
Every thing works like a charm.
Thanks a lot for your help. I can now print again.
Best,
Prakash.

[pluton]

I got that strange Epson driver once, on a Mac.  May have happened during a OS update or some such.  Fix was as suggested...delete and install good driver.