Epson Stylus Color 8³ manual

Printer Basics Printed on recycled paper EPSON Stylus Color 880/880i/8 3 ®[...]

ii Copyright Notice All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, sto red in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any me ans, electronic, mechanical, ph otocopying, recording, or othe rwise, without the prior written permis sion of SEIKO EP SON CORPORA TION. The information co ntained herein is designed only fo[...]

iii Contents WELCOME! 1 About Your Documentatio n 1 Warnings, Cau tions, Not es, and Ti ps 1 Vie wing Your Elec tro nic Pr inte r Ma nual 2 Watching Pr inter Movi es 4 PRINTING FR OM START TO FIN ISH 5 Printing with Window s 5 Loading Paper 5 Opening t he Pri nter Soft ware 6 Sele cting Printer Soft ware Se tting s 7 Controll ing Printing 8 Printin[...]

iv Replacing an Ink Cartridge 23 Ink Cartridg e Precaut ions 23 Removing and Installing Ink Cartridges 24 Replacing an Outdated Ink Cartridge 26 Aligning th e Print Head 28 Cleaning the Printer 29 Transpor ting the Printer 30 PROBLEM S OLVING 31 Iden ti fying Pri nter Part s 3 1 Diagnosing Printe r Problems 32 Checking the Control Panel Lights 32 R[...]

1 EPSON Ink Jet Papers and Ink Cartridges Use EPSON p aper and inks t o get th e same p hoto qu ality result s that have earned E PSON’s pr inters all of their a wards! EPSON papers a re specia lly coa ted to wo rk with E PSON’s qu ick dr ying i nks. You’ ll notic e that wh en pri nts co me out of yo ur pr inter, you c an imme diatel y hand l[...]

1 Welcome! Your EPSON Stylus ® Color 880, 880i, or 8 3 printer is the ideal outp ut device for small office or home printing. Wi th resolutions of up to 2880 by 720 dp i, you can prin t anyt hing fr om rep orts and resume s to pho tos a nd newsl ette rs with great r esult s. The EPSON Stylus Color 880i and EPSON Stylus Color 8 3 pri nt ers ar e fu[...]

2 Viewing Yo ur Electronic Printer Man ual Your printer software CD-ROM includes an electronic Reference Guide for your printer. The manual is in HTML format, so you need a bro wser—such as Microsoft ® Internet Explorer 3.0 or later o r Netscape Navigator ® 3.0 or later—to view it . If you are using a different browser, th e pages ma y not di[...]

3 If you copied the manual to yo ur hard drive, you can access it at any ti me, as follows: Windows : Select Start , Programs , EPSON , and double-click ESC880 Guide . Macintosh : Open th e EPSON Stylus Color 880 fo lder and double-click Vi ew Reference Guide . When you first open the Reference Guide , you see t his scr een: Click a to pic on the l[...]

4 Watching Printer Mo vies Need he lp load ing enve lopes, replacing ink cart ridges, or pr inting on both si des of the paper? Your printer software CD-ROM includes help ful Fix-it Flix SM movi es that expl ain these and ot her co mmon t asks. Follow th ese steps to watch yo ur print er movies: 1. Insert your printer software CD-ROM. 2. Windows : [...]

5 Printing from Start to Finish Here’s what to do to print a basic document —such as a newsletter or photograph— from loadi ng the paper t o selecti ng prin t settin gs to cont rolling the print j ob. Fol low the instructions here for: ■ printing with Windows (be low) ■ prin ting o n a Mac into sh (on p age 9 ) If you’re al ready fam il[...]

6 Follow th ese gu idelin es when l oading pa per: ■ Load the printabl e side face up. It’s usually whiter or brig hter than the o ther side. ■ Load lett erhead o r prepri nted pape r into the printer top e dge first . ■ Don’t load pap er above the arrow on the left edge guide. If you’re printing o n envelo pes, see page 16 for loadin g[...]

7 Selecting Printer Software Settings Once you click Propert ies , you see your printer software Propertie s dialog box. The most important thing to remember is to set the correct Media Type for th e paper you’re using. The Media Type setting affects the o ther options you can choose . If necessary, click the Main ta b to displ ay the setting s s[...]

8 For more informa tion abou t print er sett ings, cl ick the H elp but ton. O r you can right- click an y item o n the sc reen an d then cl ick Wh at’s This ?. Select ing the Settings You Us e Most Often The print er settin gs you ma ke apply only t o the appl ication y ou’re curre ntly using. If you usually print one type of do cument in diff[...]

9 After a m oment , the Progres s Meter ap pears and sho ws the progress of your p rint j ob. You can use the buttons to cancel, pause, or restart printing. You can also see ho w much ink you have left. For advance d settings and more in formati on on printin g—for exam ple, previewin g your printout, ch anging th e paper si ze, or add ing a wate[...]

10 Follow th ese gu idelin es when l oading pa per: ■ Load the printabl e side face up. It’s usually whiter or brig hter than the o ther side. ■ Load lett erhead o r prepri nted pape r into the printer top e dge first . ■ Don’t load pap er above the arrow on the left edge guide. If you’re printing o n envelo pes, see page 16 for loadin [...]

11 Selecting Printer Software Settings Now op en the File menu and cl ick Prin t . Yo u s ee the main p rinter s ettings dia log box for your appli cation (your dialog b ox may look slightly di fferent): The most important thing to remember is to set the correct Media Type for th e paper you’re using. The Media Type setting affects the o ther opt[...]

12 Controlling Printin g Once you’ve clicked Print , your printe r begins printi ng. If you turned on backg round printing, you can se lect EPSON Monitor 3 from the Applicat ion menu at the right side of the menu bar to check the pro gress of your print job. You see the EPSON Monitor3 dialog box: If you’re n ot usin g backgro und prin ting, but[...]

13 Using Advanced Sett ings Your printer s oftware includes ad vanced se ttings t hat let you ha ve more con trol over your printouts. See the fo llowing sect ions: ■ “Enhanci ng Phot os” below ■ “Using Custom Proj ect Type s” on pa ge 14 ■ “Using A dvance d Custom Settin gs” on page 15 Enhancin g Photos Your printer software incl[...]

14 Using Custom Project Types Your EPSON Stylus Color 880 printe r software includes custom project types with preset o ptions fo r printing s pecific type s of docum ents— such as rep orts, graphs, or drafts. These options le t you quickly select th e best settin gs for your particular ty pe of document and paper, or select a co lor-matching m e[...]

15 You can select from these project type s: ■ Text/Graph : For prin ting grap hics-i ntens ive document s like p resen tations with charts and graphs. ■ Economy : For printing rough drafts of te xt on plain paper. Sa ves ink. ■ ICM (Image Color Matching; Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows 2000 only ): For printing documents created in an IC[...]

16 Afte r you customi ze you r pri nt s ettings , you can sa ve th em a s a gr oup s o you can re use them w heneve r you pr int a simil ar proje ct. The defa ult Gamma s etting of 1 .8 provi des the opt imum contr ast qualit y for yo ur photo s. How ever, you c an cha nge it t o either 1 .5 (for decrea sed contra st) or 2.2 (for incr eased c ontra[...]

17 Double-Sided Pr inting You can prin t on bo th si des of e ach pa ge w ith th e doub le-s ided printi ng opt ion in your EPSON ® printer software. This section includes instructions for standard double-sided pri nting. You can also create singl e-fold booklets with Fol ded Booklet double-sid ed printing . See your electro nic Reference Guide fo[...]

18 When the first side of all the page s has printed, you see a window on your screen telling you t o reload th e pape r. 5. Reloa d the enti re stack o f paper, wi thout chan ging the order of the pa ges, an d insert it in the printe r with the pri nted side down , with the t op edge first, as shown. 6. Click Resume . The print er prints the eve n[...]

19 EPSON Matte Paper - Heavy weight EPSON Matte Paper - Heavyweight has a professio nal-looking, flat matte finish for printing photos and graphics on a non-glos sy surface. Load up to 20 sheets as descri bed on p age 5, including a support s heet beneat h the sta ck. Before prin ting, select Matte Paper - Heavyweight as the Media Type. EPSON Ph ot[...]

20 Choosing the Correct Media Type Setting Before printi ng, alway s che ck the Media Type sett ing in your printer softwa re. See the table below for the se tting you shoul d use. The pr inter us es th e Medi a Type se tting to adj ust the ink cover age for the type of pa per you are using. The Media Type setti ng for your p aper may no t be the s[...]

21 Maintaining Your Printer This sect ion describe s main tenance procedures to keep yo ur print er working at its be st and prepar ation s teps for mo ving your prin ter. Follow t he instructi ons here for: ■ cleaning the print head (belo w) ■ replacing an ink cartridge (on page 23) ■ aligni ng th e print hea d (on page 28) ■ cleaning the [...]

22 2. If you have an application running, access the printer sett ings dialog box as described on page 6 (Window s) or page 10 (Macintosh). Or, with Windows, cli ck Start , point to Settings , then sele ct Printers . Right-cl ick your EPSON Stylus COLOR 880 pri nter icon in th e Printers window. The n select Properti es in Windows 98 or Windows 95,[...]

23 Replacing an Ink Cartridge When th e B bla ck or A color i nk out light f lash es, the indica ted cart ridge is lo w on ink. This is a good time to make sure you have a new cartridge. When the light stays on, the c artrid ge is empt y and y ou need t o repla ce it. You cann ot prin t if eit her ink cartridge is emp ty. Lea ve the em pty cartridg[...]

24 Removing and Installin g Ink Cartridges You can replace a cartridge when the B black or A color ink out li ght is ei ther flashing or on. (If you perform these ste ps when both ink out lights are off, the printer cleans the print heads as described on p age 21.) Be sure you have a new ink cartridg e before you beg in. Once you start the ink cart[...]

25 6. Tilt the new cartridge forward slightl y as you plac e it in the holde r, with th e label fa cing up and tow ard th e back of th e prin ter. Han g the tabs at t he back o f the cartri dge on the hoo ks. 7. Press down the ink cartridge clamp until it locks in place, but don’t press down o n the cartridge itself. 8. If you need to replace the[...]

26 Replacing an Outdated In k Cartridge When an ink cartridge is more than six mo nths old, yo u may need to replace it if you notice t hat your pr intouts do n’t look as g ood as they used to. If prin t quality doe sn’t improve aft er cleaning a nd aligning the print h ead, you can replace on e or both cartridges. Follow th ese ste ps to re pl[...]

27 6. Tilt the new cartridge forward slightl y as you plac e it in the holde r, with th e label fa cing up and tow ard th e back of th e prin ter. Han g the tabs at t he back o f the cartri dge on the hoo ks. 7. Press down the ink cartridge clamp until it locks in place, but don’t press down o n the cartridge itself. 8. If you need to replace the[...]

28 Aligning the Print Head If your printo uts cont ain mi saligned vert ical lines , you may ne ed to alig n the prin t head. Your prin ter must be con nected to a local po rt, no t on a network, to use th e Print Head A lignmen t utility . Follow th ese ste ps: 1. Make sure th e printer is turne d on, but not printi ng, and le tter-si ze paper is [...]

29 Cleaning the Printer To keep your printe r working at its best, you sho uld clean it several times a year. Follow th ese ste ps: 1. Turn off the printer, unpl ug the power cord, and disco nnect the printer cable. 2. Remove all t he paper fro m the sheet feeder. 3. Clean the exterior o f the printer wit h a soft, damp cl oth. Use a soft brush to [...]

30 Transportin g the Printer If you move your p rinter some distance, you nee d to prepare it for t ransportation in its ori ginal box. Fo llow these st eps: To av oid dama ge, alway s leave t he ink ca rtridges in stalled when transpo rting the printer . Be sure to remove th e tape u sed in s tep 4 afte r insta lling the printer in its new l ocati[...]

31 Problem Solving This secti on gives y ou the basi cs for diagnos ing and so lving printe r problems. ■ First se e “Dia gnosin g Printer Proble ms” o n page 32 to help dete rmine wh at the cause of the problem m ay be. ■ Then see “Problems and Solutions” on page 34 for solutions to common setup, software, prin t quality, pa per feedi [...]

32 Diagnosing Printer Problems You can diag nose some problems by checking the printe r’s con trol panel lig hts, as described below, o r running a printer che ck, as described on page 33. Checking the Control P anel Lights P is on The P power light is on when the printer is on and ready to print. It flashes when the printer is receiv ing a print[...]

33 Running a Prin ter Check You can run a pri nter check t o determ ine wheth er a problem co mes from th e printer itself o r some other s ource. Fo llow thes e steps : 1. Make sure both the printer and computer are turned off. 2. Disconnect the interface cable from the printer. 3. Make su re pap er is lo aded in the printe r. 4. Hold down the S l[...]

34 Problems and Solutions Below are some basic t roubleshoo ting tips if y ou have any problems s etting up yo ur printer, in stallin g software , getting g ood print qua lity, feed ing paper, or ot her misce llane ous pr oblem s. Problems Settin g Up the Printer or Installin g Software The printer star ted making noise after ink cartridge installa[...]

35 ■ Make sure tha t the Universal Se rial Bus Co ntrolle r is w orking p roper ly in the Device Manager. For details, see your comput er docum entation. If it is no t working properl y, con tact yo ur computer deale r. ■ In Windows 2000, do not sel ect Block under Control Panel > System > Hardware > Dri ver Signing , or your driv er i[...]

36 For the fa stest pri nting, try th e following: ■ Choose Black ink if your docume nt doesn’t include col or. ■ Set the Q uality /Speed s lider to Speed . ■ In the printer software’s Advanced dialog box, turn MicroWeave off and t urn High Speed on. ■ If you’re usin g the parallel port, enable ECP/DMA mode on your computer’s pa ral[...]

37 Your printo ut is blurr y or smeared. ■ Make sure your paper isn ’t damp or loaded face down (the printable side should be loade d face up). If it’s damp, re load a n ew stac k of paper. ■ Use a su pport she et with special media, or t ry loading y our media one s heet at a t ime. ■ Make sure your paper or media meets the sp ecificat i[...]

38 ■ If you’re prin ting a hi gh-resolut ion image, t urn off Ph otoE nhance. ■ Try using Au tomatic mode. S ee page 7 (Windows) or page 11 (Macintosh) for instructions. ■ Make sure yo ur printer and port are selected in your software. ■ Your printed colors ca n never exactly match your on-screen colors. However, you can use a color manag[...]

39 Paper jams insi de the printer. Turn off your print er, open the cover, and re move all th e pap er that ’s insi de, incl uding a ny small piec es that may have torn off. If paper jams frequently: ■ Use smo oth, h igh- quality paper, loade d pr intab le sid e up. ■ Fan th e stac k and th en ev en the edges before loading it. ■ Don’t lo[...]

40 Uninstalling Prin ter Softw are Windows 1. Double-click My Computer , then double-click the Control Panel icon. 2. Double-click Add/Remove Pr ograms . Click EPSON Print er Software in the program li st, then s elect your EPSON Stylus COLOR 880 printe r icon. 3. Click the Add/Remove butto n ( Change/ Remove button in Windows 2000) and follow th e[...]

41 Where To Get Help If you need help with yo ur printer or its software, including EPSON Software ™ Film Factory, ™ see the co ntact informatio n below. For he lp with the creative ap plicat ions on the print er software CD-ROM, see p age 42 for contact information. I f you need help using other software with an EPSON product, see the document[...]

42 To speak to a technical support repre sentative, dial: ■ U.S.: ( 562) 276-7564, 6 AM to 8 PM , Pacific Time , Monday through Fri day and 7 AM to 4 PM , Saturday ■ Cana da: (905) 709-2567 , 6 AM to 6 PM , Pacific Time, Monday through Friday and 7 AM to 4 PM , Saturday Toll or lon g dist ance charg es may appl y. Before you call, ple ase have [...]

43 Requirements and Notices This ch apter inc ludes sys tem require ments, safe ty instruc tions, legal notices, and other impo rtant info rmatio n. Windows System Requirements To use y our pr inter and its softw are, yo ur syste m shou ld have : ■ An IBM ® compatible PC with at least a 486/66 MHz (for Windows 98, Windows Me, or Windows 2000) or[...]

44 Macintosh System Requirements To use y our pr inter and its softw are, yo ur syste m shou ld have : ■ An Apple ® iMac ™ series, Power Mac intosh ® G3 or G4 w ith USB po rt ■ Mac ® OS 8.5.1 or later If your iM ac is running O S 8.1, you’ll n eed to u pgrade your ope rating s ystem be fore install ing your p rinter s oftware. If your i [...]

45 ■ Do not place t he pri nter on an uns table surf ace or near a ra diat or or he ating vent o r in dir ect sunlight. ■ Do not blo ck or cover the openings i n the printer’s case or i nsert objects thro ugh the slots. ■ Use only t he type of power so urce ind ica ted on the prin ter’s label . ■ Connect all equipment to proper ly groun[...]

46 FCC Compliance Statement For Unit ed States Users This equipment has been tested and fo und to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Ru les. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection agains t harmful interference in a residentia l install ation. Th is equipment ge nerates, us es, and[...]

47 Declaration of Con formity We: EPSON AMERIC A, INC. Located at: MS 6-43 3840 Ki lroy Air port W ay Long Beac h, CA 90806 -2469 Tel ephon e: (56 2) 29 0- 5254 Declare under sole responsibility that th e product identified herein, complies with 47CFR Part 2 and 15 of the FCC rules as a Class B digital device. Each product marketed, is identical to[...]

48 Warranty Epson America, Inc. Limited Warra nty What is Covered: Epson America, Inc. (“Epson”) warr ants to the f irst end-u ser customer that the Epson printer covered by this limited war ranty statement, if purchased and used in the United States or Canada, conform s to the manu facturer’s specificat ions and will b e free from defects in[...]

49 Index Numerics 360 dp i In k Jet Pap er, 20 4 x 6- inch P hoto Paper, 19 A Accessories, 23, 42 Advanced settings, 13 t o 16 Aligning pr int head, 2 8 Autom atic mo de, 7, 1 1 B Background printing, 1 2 Banding, 16 , 36 Blurry i mages, 37 Browser, 2 C Cable, p rinter , 43, 44 Checking pr inter, 33 Cleaning print h ead, 21 to 22 printer , 29 sheet[...]

50 I ICM (Image Co lor Matc hing) setti ng, 15 Incorr ect char acters , 38 Incorrec t colo rs, 37 Ink ca rtridg e repl acin g, 23 to 25 repla cing outd ate d, 23, 26 to 27 safety instruct ions, 45 Ink Jet Tr ansparenc ies, 20 Ink level, 9, 2 3 Ink setti ng, 7, 11 Inter net, 41 Iron-On Cool P eel Transfer Paper , 20, 39 L Layout prob lems, 39 Lever,[...]

51 Pri nting advan ced , 13 to 16 controll ing, 8 to 9, 12 Macintosh, 9 to 12 Windows, 5 to 9 with custom project types , 14 to 15 Probl ems install ing sof tware, 34 miscellaneous, 39 paper feeding, 38 print q uality , 36 to 38 print ing, 35 to 36 setting up print er, 34 Progress Meter , 9 Projec t types, custom, 14 to 15 Q Qualit y/Sp eed se ttin[...]

How To Order EPSON Ink and Paper To order EPSON ink cartr idges, pap er, and other p rinting m edia, co ntact your de aler or c all EPSO N at (8 00) 873 -7766 or visit the EPSON St ore at www.epson.com (U.S. sales onl y). In Canada , please call (800) 8 73-776 6 for deale r refe rral. EPSON Ink Cartridges Black T019201 (U.S.) , or T01 9311 (Cana da[...]