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Printing with Windows
General tips
Printing color images using higher print quality settings takes longer than printing black-and-white images in standard print quality, as the volume of data in high quality color documents is much greater. For this reason, it is important to be selective in your use of color and print quality settings if you also require a faster print speed.
Even if your document requires the highest print quality and extensive use of color, it may still be possible to optimize the print speed by adjusting other printing conditions. Keep in mind that changing some conditions to increase the print speed may also lower print quality.
The following table shows the factors that inversely affect print speed and print quality (increasing one will decrease the other).
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Print quality |
Lower |
Higher Slower |
Printer driver menu |
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Printer driver settings |
Print Quality |
Normal - 360 dpi Economy |
SuperFine - 1440 dpi SuperPhoto- 2880 dpi |
Advanced dialog box |
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High Speed |
On |
Off |
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Data characteristics |
Image size |
Small |
Large |
- |
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Resolution |
Low |
High |
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The table below shows the factors related to print speed only.
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Print speed |
Faster |
Slower |
Printer driver menu |
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Printer driver settings |
Ink |
Black |
Color |
Advanced dialog box, Main menu |
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Flip Horizontal* |
Off |
On |
Advanced dialog box |
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Data characteristics |
Variety of colors |
Grayscale |
Full color |
- |
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Hardware resources |
System speed |
Fast |
Slow |
- |
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HDD free space |
Large |
Small |
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Memory free space |
Large |
Small |
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Software status |
Running applications |
One |
Many |
- |
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Virtual memory |
Not in use |
In use |
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 | * Varies depending on the printer driver and application you are using. |
You can make certain print speed settings in the Speed & Progress dialog box. To access this dialog box, click Speed & Progress on your printer software's Utility menu.
Prints multiple copies of your document faster.
Displays printing progress while printing.
Speeds up the data transfer rate to EPSON printers.
If your computer has a parallel port which supports ECP mode, you can enable DMA transfer to help speed up printing. See your computer manual to determine if you have ECP support and DMA transfer.
To determine whether you need to enable DMA transfer, compare the message below the EPSON Printer Port setting to this table, and take the recommended action.
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Message |
Action |
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High Speed (DMA) Transfer enabled. |
DMA transfer is already enabled. Click OK to close the dialog box. |
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For higher data transfer rates, use DMA Transfer. |
Follow the steps below this table to enable DMA transfer. |
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(No message) |
Your system's parallel port setting does not allow DMA transfer. However, if you change the parallel port setting to ECP or enhance using your computer's BIOS Setup program, you may be able to use DMA transfer. Consult your computer manual or computer maker for instructions. Once you change the parallel port setting, follow the steps below this table to enable DMA transfer.
Note: |
If you need to enable DMA transfer, follow these steps.
 | Double-click the My Computer icon and double-click the Control Panel. |
 | Double-click the System icon and click the Device Manager tab. |
 | Double-click the Ports (COM & LPT) icon and double-click LPT1. If you have connected your printer to a port other than LPT1, double-click the appropriate port icon. |
 | Click the Resources tab and select the Use automatic settings check box to deselect the Automatic Setting. Write down the Input/Output Range settings shown in the Resource settings box. |
1. Write down these settings
2. Click here to clear the check box
 | Select a basic configuration setting from the Setting based on list that uses the same Input/Output Range settings as those you wrote down in step 4, and make sure the Direct Memory Access channel and Interrupt Request numbers are allocated and displayed. Confirm also that the Conflicting device list box shows No conflicts. |
 | Click OK to save the settings. |
 | Reopen the Speed & Progress dialog box to verify whether DMA transfer has been enabled. |
 | Note: |
| You may not be able to use DMA transfer on some computers even after you make the settings explained above. Consult your computer manufacturer for information on the DMA transfer capability of your computer. |
| Note: |
| Port settings for Windows NT 4.0 are complicated and should only be made by an experienced person with administrative privilege. |
If your computer has a parallel port which supports ECP mode, you can make certain print speed settings in the Port Configuration dialog box. Before making settings, make sure that the ECP mode has been selected in your computer settings. For details about ECP mode, see your computer manual.
To access the Port Configuration dialog box, follow the steps below.
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| Double-click the My Computer icon, double-click the Printer icon. |
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| Right-click your printer icon, and select Properties. |
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| Click the Port tab, then click the Configure Port button. |
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| Click the LPT port tab for the port to which your printer is connected, then click the Port Configuration button. |
| | Note: |
| | If your printer is connected to LPT1, only the LPT1 tab is available. |
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| Click OK. |
If you have connected your printer to LPT2 or LPT3, making IRQ and DMA settings here may help you speed up printing. Input the same configuration numbers for IRQ and DMA which you have made with your expansion board. See your computer manual to determine the settings for IRQ and DMA.
Using DMA transfer to send print data to the computer may help you speed up printing. If the Use DMA Transfer check box appears dimmed, you first need to enable DMA transfer in your computer settings. For details, see your computer manual.
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| Version 1.10E, Copyright © 2002, SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION |
