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Problem Solver

Print Quality Could Be Better

If you are having print quality problems, first perform the . Then, compare your test printing with the illustrations below. Click the caption under the illustration that best resembles your printout.

Horizontal banding	Vertical misalignment or banding
Horizontal banding	Vertical misalignment or banding
Color gaps	Colors are incorrect or missing
Blurry or smeared printout

Horizontal banding

Try one or more of these solutions:

• Make sure that the printable side of the paper is face up in the sheet feeder.

• Run the Head Cleaning utility to clear any clogged ink nozzles. Windows 98, 95, and 3.1 users can start the now.

• Select Automatic as the Mode setting on your printer driver's Main menu (Windows) or in the Print dialog box (Macintosh).

• Check the black and color ink out lights. If a light is flashing, replace the appropriate ink cartridge. See Replacing an Empty Ink Cartridge.

• Make sure that Maximum is not selected as the Printable Area setting in your printer driver. When this setting is selected, banding may occur in the expanded area.

• Make sure that the Media Type selected in the printer driver is appropriate for the type of media that is loaded in the printer.

Vertical misalignment or banding

Try one or more of these solutions:

• Make sure that the printable side of the paper is face up in the sheet feeder.

• Run the Print Head Alignment utility. Windows 98, 95, and 3.1 users can start the now.

• Clear the High Speed check box in your printer driver's Advanced dialog box. For Windows users, see Making Advanced settings for instructions. For Macintosh users, see Making the Advanced settings.

• Run the Head Cleaning utility to clear any clogged ink nozzles. Windows 98, 95, and 3.1 users can start the now.

• Make sure that the Media Type setting selected in the printer driver is appropriate for the type of media that is loaded in the printer.

Color gaps

Try one or more of these solutions:

• Make sure that your paper is not damaged, dirty, or too old. Also, make sure that the printable side of the paper is face up in the sheet feeder.

• Run the Head Cleaning utility to clear any clogged ink nozzles. Windows 98, 95, and 3.1 users can start the now.

• Check the  black and  color ink out lights. If one of the lights is flashing, replace the appropriate ink cartridge. See Replacing an Empty Ink Cartridge.

• Adjust the color settings in your application or your printer driver. For Windows users, see Making Advanced settings for instructions. For Macintosh users, see Making the Advanced settings.

• Select Automatic as the Mode setting on your printer driver's Main menu (Windows) or in the Print dialog box (Macintosh).

• Make sure that the Media Type setting selected in the printer driver is appropriate for the type of media that is loaded in the printer.

Colors are incorrect or missing

Try one or more of these solutions:

• Change the Ink setting in your printer driver to Color. For Windows users, see Using the Automatic mode for instructions. For Macintosh users, see Using the Automatic mode.

• Adjust the color settings in your application or your printer driver. For Windows users, see Making Advanced settings for instructions. For Macintosh users, see Making the Advanced settings.

• Run the Head Cleaning utility. Windows 98, 95, and 3.1 users can start the now. If colors are still incorrect or are missing, replace the color ink cartridge. If the problem persists, replace the black ink cartridge. See Replacing an Empty Ink Cartridge.

Blurry or smeared printout

Try one or more of these solutions:

• Make sure that your paper is dry and that the printable side is facing up. Also, make sure that you are using an acceptable paper type. See Paper for specifications.

• Select Automatic as the Mode setting on your printer driver's Main menu (Windows) or in the Print dialog box (Macintosh).

• If the paper is curled toward the printable side, flatten it or curl it slightly toward the opposite side.

• Set the adjust lever to the "+" position, and make sure that the Media Type setting in your printer driver is correct.

• Remove each sheet from the output tray as it is printed, especially if you are using transparencies.

• If you are printing on glossy media or transparencies, place a support sheet (or a sheet of plain paper) beneath the stack. Or, load one sheet at a time.

• Run the Head Cleaning utility. Windows 98, 95, and 3.1 users can start the now.

• Run the Print Head Alignment utility. Windows 98, 95, and 3.1 users can start the now.

• Ink may have leaked inside the printer. Wipe the inside of the printer with a soft, clean cloth.

Warning:

Do not touch the gears inside the printer.

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