Hello,

I have a Epson R380 and it's been great. I recently installed a new ink cartridge type. My DVDs are printing out wrong now. All red is coming out magenta. Is this because of the new ink or is it a setting on the printer? If it is the cartridge type can you give me some URLs to good cheap ink? I don't want to have to get Epson ink if I don't have to.

TIA!!

MD

Um, red is magenta. Do you mean that images are too red? Sounds like you're using some "compatible" type inks that aren't very good. Most reds are obtained from a mix of magenta and cyan, lighter reds will have more yellow thrown in.

Yes, it looks like the ink I am using sucks. Do you have any URLs to ink that is cheap but good? The red that is printing out is so magenta and doesn't resemble the red that I am hoping for.

TIA!

MD

You could try with some original Epson ink?

Many will say to stick with OEM inks but it is expensive as you well know.
I refill my Canons myself but Epson requires a different type of ink.
Here is a place to start looking for a reliable non-OEM Epson-compatible ink.
Search results:
http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/sea...h_id=183102345

It is primarily a Canon-friendly forum but there are several knowledgeable Epson owners-refillers there also.
I wish I knew of an Epson forum as good.

Would help to know where you are at. I get compatibles and bulk inks at www.alotofthings.com. Never had any problems.

red color is made from 100% magenta and 100% yellow. please check whether yellow is not empty or clogged.

The ink these guys sell has worked like OEM on both my HP and my Epson r200 http://private.abacus24-7.com/home.a...iliateid=10210 That's their private store link which s usually cheaper then their normal one but not always. The shipping is cheap if you order enough and it got here pretty quickly. There are other very reliable and cheap sources including e-bay sellers. Do some research and makes sure they use OEM quality inks, the guys you bought from obviously didn't, good luck.

don't mean to thread jack but i'm looking for OEM quality ink to buy for my CIS.. The ink I have now isn't very good... I have an Epson R340, any good websites that have OEM quality ink in bulk????

That's what I thought. I've had the photo black clogged in my Canon and got all kinds of weird hues.

I bught a chip resetter from these guys and they said they have CIS systems and inks for most Epsons as well, The resetter was cheap enough and works fine, haven't tried their ink yet but it sounds like they sell good quality stuff and their feedback seems good. http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQfgtpZ1QQ...dolQ2dauctions
I don't see any CIS now but they have BULK refill kits listed and specials refill carts for just about any printer.

I would try cleaning the printhead. It will use alot of ink, but should clear it up. Mine did the same thing when I first used the comp. cartridges.

Well, I don't understand, this is so frustrating. I went to Office Max and bought Epson 78 for the R380 in colors Magenta and Yellow. I replaced the cheap cartridges and it still prints out looking like Magenta instead of the vibrant rich Red on my monitor. I mean the difference is night and day. Is my printer bad? I am using a cheap black cartridge, but cannot imagine Black having that much of a influence on the color.

Any ideas?

TIA!

MD

Oh yeah, I did a head cleaning after I installed the new Epson ink cartridges and it still printed out Magenta.

MD

I'm still confused. Magenta IS red. You could be more specific about what you are seeing, or even post an image. That said, at this point you need to replace all the tanks and start fresh.

I assume that Epson has some sort of nozzle check test or related utility in the printer preferences. Run that and confirm that all 4 inks are printing out correctly. IF one of them is clogged it can shift the printouts to looking more red.

Maybe you need to profile this Epson.
This can get very expensive with special software/hardware etc, but I found this tutorial...Printer Profiling on the Cheap.
If you use PhotoShop, it may be helpful.
http://daystarvisions.com/Docs/Tuts/...Profiling.html

This subtractive CMYK circle may be helpful.

Yes I think you'll have to profile the printer to make it look just like what you see on your monitor. My r800 is like that as well, printout seem quite a bit different then what my 21" CRT monitors shows me. I have played with the settings available in the printers setup menus and it's closer, but it's hard to say if the monitor or the printer is really what it's is supposed to look like.
My r200 and HP990 seem to be much closer but they all vary as to what they print, also the 800 uses different ink so that might be part of it as well as the paper I use.
I play with it and make profiles when I get it close to what I think I want.
The pro setup programs come with light scanner things you use to sample the monitor then it translates that to a setup that should print with the same color/contrast level, they are spendy as mentioned.

Thanks jflan, that is usefull for evrybody and well written as well. I'll have to pour through it and give it a try next big printing session.

Ok, I made some headway. I am using color mode ADOBE RGB with Gamma 1.5 and the Red now shows red, but not exactly what is on the screen. I may never get exactly what is on my screen. So, I am satisfied right now. This is an incredible forum. I have learned so much more than what I was having problems with. I appreciate everyone's input.

Thanks,

MD