Epson 9890: sudden colour cast problem

[Papermouse]

Hi Brian,
Thank you for joining in.

head clean: once this is solved I'll get to it, I've done that before, I think about 6 months ago was the last time.

Printer driver: I was trying to avoid that as I also loos all my settings. But as I am running out of options and time, I will probably try that today.

double profiling: good point, but unless I'm making a mistake I am not aware of I don't use them both at the same time.

Thank you,
Alex

 

[FinalProof]

Hi Alex,

Have you changed any inks in recent weeks, depending on the amount of printing you have done since any ink replacement it may take a while for new ink to reach the printhead and show any change.

Brian.

 

[The Hat]

@Papermouse, As an outsider looking in, that never uses colour management, it seems to me that you’ve got your whole print procedure arse about backwards.

@stratman supplied you with a print to check that your printer was printing all the colours correctly, and from what I’ve seen you failed to do that.

Colour management is great when it works the way it should, but when you mix up the setting then you’ll get the same quality output you’re getting right now.

Start from the top once more and change nothing at all, use the same print again but this time just alter the media to glossy paper (Generic) set your print quality to fine or high quality (Your choice) and DON’T use any profiles whatsoever and allow the printer to colour manage.

The answer to your problems are in your own Thread heading... Epson 9890: sudden colour cast problem
Post the results here so we can see the outcome..

 

[stratman]

Start from the top once more and change nothing at all, use the same print again but this time just alter the media to glossy paper (Generic) set your print quality to fine or high quality (Your choice) and DON’T use any profiles whatsoever and allow the printer to colour manage.

What I recommended in Post #8. Return to basics (default).

@Papermouse - if you did this - settings at default and letting the printer manage color - can you please make it clearer which image is a test of what settings.

 

[Papermouse]

Hi,
Short question in between (it's a busy day up here):
@stratman: can you please make it clearer which image is a test of what settings

I thought I did? the first image
180928EpsColCastTestImg_Faststone_PrntDetCol.jpg
has the settings in the first screenshot
Settings180928EpsColCastTestImg_Faststone_PrntDetCol.jpg
so this is printed in Faststone, not Photoshop (to rule out that something in PS is causing it), with the setting Pinter Determines Colors, in Auto Mode to Epson Standard RGB as is shown in the screenshot.
I thought it be easier and more complete to view the settings in a screenshot than me writing them down but maybe that was not a good idea?
And this image* is "settings at default and letting the printer manage color", I don't use any profiling or corrections here, so I thought I was doing what was requested.
Thanks for your patience,
Alex
edit: * 180928EpsColCastTestImg_Faststone_PrntDetCol.jpg

 

[stratman]

I thought I did?

If you had I wouldn't have asked.

I like that you have included images of settings. Please make the pairing of image and settings easy to associate, such as 1a and 1b or whatever scheme you choose. Spell out the parameters so there is no confusion. Maybe separate the paired images by description so we focus on that single example, one at a time. You know what you have done. We are trying to understand. I need training wheels here, so keep it simple, please.

And this image is "settings at default and letting the printer manage color",

What image?

 

[Papermouse]

Hi,
Understood, I will write out the settings in the screenshots tomorrow morning (sorry, have to leave in 15 minutes) and rename the images differently.

What image? = the 180928EpsColCastTestImg_Faststone_PrntDetCol.jpg.
Thanks and have a nice evening
Alex

 

[FinalProof]

Hi Alex,

Not withstanding the limitations of the rendering devices and software between your prints and my monitor, I noticed that the greens appear rather weak as do the cyan/blues and cyan is used to mix with yellow to make the green, the reason I asked about ink changes was that it may be that cyan is causing the cast issue and as the cyan ink in a 9890 has the longest plumbing path of all of the colors to the print head it may take some time to show up on a print.

Brian.

 

[Papermouse]

Hi All,
Sorry I haven't posted in a while, time has not been my friend lately, to put it mildly.

Short update: the b/w prints have a cast as well, so I cannot make any print any more which is bad. Installed a new updated printer driver, same color cast. As I am on a time pressure, I had to call a technician this morning. I'll keep updating when I can.

Brian; that is an excellent flow of thought. And, sorry, I had not answered that one, light-cyan is the last colour that has not been renewed lately.

I had another brainwave yesterday: what if,... pressure is good for a nozzle check but not strong enough (maybe because of some blockage in the tube or along the way) for a normal print. That might explain things as well. I did explore the possibility of flushing the tubes but that seems a many hour job with all the possibilities to break things permanently if done without experience.

I'll order a new light-cyan and see what happens. Just in case. While waiting for the tech guy.
Thanks,
Alex

 

[stratman]

Please let us know what turns out. We all learn from one another.